Jenn0625

Since this hotel does not seem to be getting any great reviews, what is the best Hilton in NY to stay in if cost is not an issue?

Kacee

Well the Hilton full service options are pretty limited. Conrad is the only other one that's even arguably high end. If you don't want to be downtown, Hilton Times Square.

Miesque

MS02113

Conrad is the best Hilton property in the city, no doubt, but I also quite like the Renwick, which is part of Curio Collection. But it's certainly more "boutique" and therefore a different experience than your typical full-service chain hotel.

rrrrrich

be interesting to see what the old Radisson Martinique will be like when that joins as curio at the end of the year. hopefully they'll put the London nyc out of its misery and start on the remodel. desperately needs it. in the meantime, well worth avoiding this place (in fairness, we had our entire stay comped but I'd sooner have paid for a decent hotel experience).

orvando

stayed here on a recent weekend, very interesting. "Suites" (not "Flats!" - they're tiny) are indeed "big" but not in a very functional way- living room seating and lighting is so lousy that the only useful thing in there is the massive desk, which gets good daytime light via the bay windows. Bedroom and bathroom are standard NYC size and thoroughly worn out (chipped furniture, dirty tile grout, stained carpet). Bedroom TV is tiny and old. Location is excellent for theaters and Central Park, and I found restaurant (including service) to be very good for both breakfast and dinner, so the hotel has some potential would it be renovated - BUT, the service outside of the restaurant needs improvement too. Too few doormen/bellhops, long lines at front desk, generally a long wait for help via phone. Must check-out via front desk to have FHR credits properly applied, which can only be used for food and bev via restaurant or room service - no other charge types. Note that currently, FHR guests get a better breakfast (American vs. Continental) than non-FHR Hilton Diamond or Gold. No lounge. Very few children in the hotel (likely owing to lack of rooms with 2 beds), if you consider that a plus.

Bicoastal Local

That might change. During an exchange with someone at the London NYC, they mentioned that the new Conrad NY Midtown would have a few 2-Queen suites after the renovations.

christianj

Do we know when the renovations are going to start?

Bicoastal Local

Last month, I was told they were still planning to kick off renovations in October this year, and reopen as a Conrad next summer.

Travel4Love

I just stayed here. At check-in I was given a welcome letter stating Diamond benefits as 1.000 bonus points, 2 bottles of water per stay, 30$ per person per day towards breakfast. As others remarked, the lobby and restaurant are quite dark, maybe trying to hide that the whole place is a bit worn out. Check-in staff was very friendly and polite, restaurant staff somewhat indifferent. Breakfast buffet has gone up to $39. Event though the buffet looked really good I opted for the 40$ Maine lobster Benedict, which was fabulous, highly recommended.

retiredfromhilton

New York is probably Hilton's worst big city quality issue. Virtually all of its properties in the city are dumps, with poor service to match buildings that are run down or just nasty. Three possible exceptions: the Millennium opposite the UN, and, as others have mentioned, the Conrad and the Renwick (though the Renwick feels more like a place to stay for leisure than business).

trouble747

Hmm...so between Conrad or Renwick, which would be best for using some weekend certs? (Although it's looking like NYC isn't the best place to use them, they're about to expire and that's where we're going.) Conrad is the higher priced of course. Leisure trip--so I'm a little hesitant to stay downtown--but we've done most of the big touristy things previously, so beyond theatre we'll probably just be walking around the city, and one day in queens for US Open.

(Other alternative was to keep them for a weekend trip to Miami, though the Hilton on South Beach doesn't seem to be particularly well liked either.)

Kacee

Conrad location is fine if you don't need to be uptown. I prefer staying downtown for leisure, it's less frenetic and that's where more of the interesting neighborhoods are. Would you rather be close to Tribeca or Times Square? (And if your answer is "Times Square," then never mind.)

trouble747

Nope, probably would only need to be near Times Square for theater. We might want to go out some night in Hell's Kitchen but that doesn't seem too arduous...

BOStonTravels

Agreed, the NYC properties are disgraceful!!!