Kacee

Despite expressing doubts earlier in this thread, I booked one night on points for a recent last-minute stay, as options were fairly limited. Wound up having a very solid stay (and even extended for an extra night).

Within a few minutes of booking for same day arrival, I was upgraded in app to Studio Suite. This is a pretty nice room for NYC. Comments about lack of desk in this thread were a concern, but my Studio Suite had a large extended countertop with two chairs - suitable for dining or working. I found it really excellent for working. Wifi was fine (brief outage one morning at 6 am, and then froze once for about 15 seconds in two days of very heavy videoconference use). There was a router in my room, so perhaps that's a recent improvement. I liked the room better than the Andaz Suite. Andaz decor is just too spare and industrial for my taste, and the room layouts (esp. bathroom and closets) can be really odd.

As noted above, the room service breakfast is very good - an appealing menu, fast delivery, and quality was good. Room service is expensive (my lox bagel, coffee, and grapefruit juice totaled over $60) but the total charge was wiped off the bill. What a change coming from two Marriott properties that offered either nothing (Edition) or next to nothing (Ren Chelsea) for elite breakfast. I also ordered room service from Burger Joint. The burger was nothing special IMO (shared this with gal at front desk, and we agreed Black Tap is better). The whole Burger Joint set-up is a bit weird, with long line behind velvet rope in lobby and extending out front door waiting to get in (shades of Studio 54!). Apparently Burger Joint will be moving.

Lobby is still mostly under construction. I was told they're expecting a July opening. No construction noise in my 8th floor room facing 56th. Traffic noise was not an issue (and I'm pretty sensitive to that).

Service was overall solid - front desk staff were friendly and accommodating. Lack of coffee maker in the room, and no free coffee set up in the lobby, were for me the biggest negatives. Oh, and the scent. They pump heavy perfume into the lobby. It's awful.

Could be really nice when the lobby opens fully. I'd return.

Boraxo

We brought the family to NYC and had a fantastic 3-night stay earlier this month. I do not have much to add to Kacee's fine report:

• Checkin at 3pm was very smooth and we received rooms on the 11th floor. They offered to upgrade both rooms to an Executive Suite but we only upgraded one as we wanted double beds for the kids' room. 4pm checkout was proactively offered, which was perfect as we had an 8pm flight home.
• The renovated Executive (Junior) suites are just as I remember them but with updates furnishings, etc. There is easily room for a third person to sleep on the couch if desired. The refrig was quite handy for all the leftovers from Carnegie Diner, etc (which is conveniently located around the corner on 57th.
• We did not experience any noise from the renovations, nor street noise which plagues other properties. Alas there was annual fire alarm testing on one day so I guess nobody will have to worry about that for a year.
• Sadly no more swimming pool, and you have to exit the hotel to use the gym.
• When construction is completed you will once again be able to enter the hotel from 57th St and into a more expansive lobby area.
• The burger bar is great but alas only open through 11pm. Not cheap but of course this is NYC.
• The free room service breakfast for Globalists is one of the better ones - though maybe not quite as good as Andaz or PH Tokyo (the latter probably sets the bar).
• There is a nice starbucks a half block away at the corner of 56th & 6th, and a chipotle on the opposite corner.

Overall just a great trip in spite of the rain, and we will be happy to return here again. And a bit of a steal for 16k points per night (after 20% rebate).

joey965

Well that was a very positive review and so glad to hear it as we are staying here in 4 weeks. Thanks.

ElevatorEnthusiast

Both this Thompson and the Andaz are very nice properties. I'm glad to hear that some of the teething issues at the Thompson (such as the WiFi) have been improved, per Kacee's review.

I might still prefer the Andaz but would not scoff at a stay here (which is why it's one of the few properties I've returned to and stayed multiple times).

ElevatorEnthusiast

The hotel was sold to new owners, who then had it join Hyatt as a generic Hyatt prior to the Thompson conversion.

https://www.globest.com/2019/01/25/gfi-capital-and-elliott-pay-420m-for-parker-new-york-hotel/?amp=1

cfabar1

Very sad to hear the pool has been taken out. That was one of the best features of the property!

Embowaf

Stayed here twice in the past month and agree with what everyone else has said. The breakfast is great, service has been very good, and I haven't really had any noise issues. Looking forward to the updated lobby.

renila

Ha! We were there that day as well. Also received a Globalist suite upgrade.

ne0ven0m

Completed a 4 night stay last week on 20k/night points before the Hyatt price hike. Great value in my opinion, and I'd opt for them again over PH if the price gap is 10k+ between the two. Automatically upgraded to Studio Suite King 24 before arrival. They pre-emptively reached out to me via e-mail a few days before check in, and were able to set up a complimentary dessert on arrival day for wife's birthday. Room is plenty spacious for 2 people. Very comfortable bed and L shaped sofa. Chromecast worked without issue the whole stay. Room service Globalist breakfast was surprisingly good- good variety to pick from, quick delivery, and didn't even show up on my bill at checkout. Only 2 gripes would be lack of drawer space and lack of pool (haven't read through this thread enough to know if it's being worked on, or simply removed during the remodeling).

Burger Joint was indeed a great burger. Indian Accent is overpriced for what you get. There is also a decent, but again overpriced, new ramen place called Kin Ramen that is just steps away from hotel entrance. Really liked the location as it's very walkable to many major attractions, as well as having various subway stations to get you elsewhere on the island.

relidtm

just went last weekend for mothers day my friend and I made the mistake of booking this weekend but our significant others were accommodating. The service was great so was the in-room breakfast, they used to have a rooftop bar I'm not sure if that's coming back when the parker was there. The burger place is decent, I didn't try the ramen but I got recommended a local bar called faces and names which I enjoyed walking through that half street. The staff was great texting me if I needed anything. I still prefer the PH but my friend that I was with didn't care about the service as my partner does. was a great experience overall though id def recommend, the pool, and hopefully, the rooftop bar could come back? im not sure but it's hard to beat the value for the points in NYC. Also, I got a refund on the Thompson promotion despite the point hike.

dsywon

Just finished a stay there for 3 nights and it was a good experience. I've been really liking the Thompson brand as the ones I've been to so far have been great value. Took advantage of the 20% rebate for 20k a night. Overall I enjoyed my stay and would not hesitate to stay again at 20k. At 25k it'd probably depend on location vs Andaz, both are solid. On special occasions I'd still go for the 40k PH NY.

Pros:
- Good Globalist recognition. Automatic upgrade to a suite and explanation of benefits on arrival.
- Very friendly and competent employees.
- Breakfast is quite good. Almost as good as the PH NY. I'd say it's 90% as good. On one of the days we ordered a breakfast side instead of a drink and it was still comped. We tried almost everything. Favorite was probably french toast but everything was really good. Only thing I might skip on next time is the avocado toast. It wasn't bad, just more basic compared to the others.
- Elevators are quite quick and very efficient.
- Bed is quite comfortable. I really like the Thompson brand beds. The comforters are the best out of the Hyatts I've been too. Couch is really nice and comfortable too. Again probably one of the best sofas I've had at Hyatts.
- We only checked it out but the gym was one of the bigger and nicer ones I've seen. It was very empty too. The elevator there is super slow though.

Cons:
- Bathroom is a little small.
- Chromecast wasn't working, wasn't sure if it was a general Hyatt issue or this hotel/room only.
- Minor gaffes or disorganization. Gave wrong tea on one of our orders but have noticed this happens now and then even at the best Hyatts. No biggie. Slid under the door a welcome note in envelope for the next guest while we were still there. People still check for room service even though I marked no room service and had DND. Not the biggest deal but they should keep track of which rooms to skip. Gets repetitive when you have to answer the door every day in the morning.
- No in and out privileges for valet parking.
- Walls are quite thin. You can hear everything outside and vice versa. Can hear car honks much louder than other hotels in the city. Didn't hear a peep at the PH NY.

Kacee

I agree with most of your points, but not this one. I was on 8th floor overlooking 56th Street and street noise was totally acceptable for Manhattan. By contrast, the 10th floor 57th Street facing room I had at PHNYC several years ago was one of the louder (and darker) rooms I've ever had in Manhattan.

dsywon

Idk it was a big difference for me. I was 15th floor at the Thompson and 11th floor at PH NYC facing same direction. PH NYC was dead quiet, I don't think I ever heard any noise from the outside while within the room. Total peace and quiet. It did help that the bed was in the middle of the room and had quite a distance from the hallway and windows. For Thompson the car honks were not that surprising as the bed is right next to the window. However what was surprising was how loud everything was from the hallway and vice versa. I could hear full conversations from both in the room and in the hallway. I haven't had this with most of the Hyatts I've been into and I've been to about a dozen the past year. The most surprising part was how clearly I could hear people. Though it could be that for PH NYC it was a combination of what I mentioned and perhaps less traffic near the room. Didn't even really see many people on elevators let alone the hallway while at the Thompson I saw a good amount of people. PH NYC visit was last month and Thompson was this weekend.

Kacee

Thompson was pretty empty when I was there, so no point of comparison in terms of noise from hallway, but street noise did not bother me.

ElevatorEnthusiast

The hallway noise is less of an issue in the studio suites as the bed is further from the door, but it definitely sounded like the housekeepers were IN my room during the day. Luckily, I didn't have any loud neighbors who enjoyed having full-on conversations in the hallway, but I could definitely hear the housekeepers very well.