sarahgl

I've been lurking on flyertalk for a while, mostly on the BAEC board, and i'm hoping you can all provide some advice in response to my first posting.

I'm flying to NYC in BA NCW in September with my OH, using some of my hard earned BA miles, and we are looking at staying in luxury hotel for the 4 nights we are there, probably in a suite or delux room, as we will be celebrating a special occasion.

We've been looking at the St Regis and Peninsula in particular, as we want to stay centrally, preferably around 5th Avenue. The reviews for both are a bit mixed on Tripadvisor - not a surprise really!

Has anyone stayed in either / both and can recommend which is better? Which are the room types to go for? Is a 5th Avenue room really better than one which is at the back of the hotel?

Is there a different hotel which is better?

Many thanks,

Sarahgl

DavidO

Both the Peninsula and the St. Regis are Virtuoso properties. Both are very nice and, of course, very close to each other. The St. Regis offers upgrades at the time of booking for Virtuoso clients.

If you'd like to try smaller, boutique luxury hotels, you might also consider The Lowell (63rd St.) and the Plaza Athenee (64th St.), both in the Upper East Side near Madison Avenue.

All four are Virtuoso properties and offer upgrades upon arrival and complimentary daily breakfasts for two.

eutow

Welcome to FT!

My favourite hotel in NYC is the Mandarin Oriental, which is also centrally located. I particularly like the service and rooms there. I used to like the Ritz-Carlton Central Park, but have gone off it a bit. The service doesn't seem as good as it used to be.

JNelson113

What about the Four Seasons? Their suites, food, and service are all wonderful.

Kagehitokiri

welcome to the Luxury Hotels forum

what are your dates?

FS is cheaper than St Regis for some dates.. ridiculous.

St Regis has confirmed Virtuoso upgrades all the time.

david said he has gotten double confirmed upgrades at FS on weekends.

im assuming you prefer the more traditional style, but i would definitely compare prices/upgrades at FS with St Regis (moreso than Pen) IIRC Pen is more mixed than St Regis here, at least lately. OTOH suite life is pretty good > http://newyork.peninsula.com/pny/promotions.html also RCCP may have dropped in service some, but it does have the club, and is more traditional style.

also one negative for St Regis - lack of dining

Raffles

There was a similar thread recently on the St Regis v Waldorf Towers which you may want to look at. The interesting point is that the Waldorf Towers is very heavy on suites and they are surprisingly well priced - sub $700 often possible. I have got a Luxury Towers Suite for $665 at the end of the month for 3 nights so can report back on quality.

Further question - how old are you? If you sub 35 with no kids, you may want to consider Soho House. If you want a combo of bar / restaurant / spa / rooftop pool / 'hip' area / good nightlife it may work for you. The top rooms are huge - I stayed there shortly after it opened and got upgraded to one of the top suites. My boss also went there recently for his 10th wedding anniversay and he's 47 (wife 37). You can't book this through any of the hotel websites - you need to look at the website then contact them directly.

If you want modern-smart and cheap(er) luxury than the FS etc, try the Ritz Carlton Battery Park which is only about 5 years old. The area is a bit dead at weekends but the hotel itself has lovely rooms with Statue of Liberty rooms and last time I stayed there 2 years ago was heavily reduced Fri / Sat.

Kagehitokiri

considering the St Regis VS Pen, i would imagine they prefer traditional/classical style design

and the St Regis is actually about $200 more than FS on some nights. plus you darn £ earners have the great exchange rate.

actual service wasnt anything special at the gansevoort (went last summer) and ive heard it might even be worse at soho house. you go there for the scene and perhaps pool. interesting, i was also upgraded from top room to suite, although it might have only been because oscar delahoya didnt show.

good to hear more prices @ waldorf towers. ^ id tend towards something more contemporary, but im more about the room/value/deals than things like service. (luxury has said theyre mainly focused on taking care of repeat guests there - hence the very mixed reviews)

Thalassa

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Methinks you can book Soho House through Tablet Hotels (www.tablethotels.com). The rack rate for their Playhouse suites is $875 and for the largest Playground suites $1350.

If the OP prefers traditional style, she is probably best off with her original choices, but for more "hip" alternatives, Tablet Hotels is rather a good source for boutique hotels.

Cheers,
T.

Kagehitokiri

tablethotels also has regular old lux, while designhotels leans much more towards really trendy. kiwi collection is another fairly good one, varied like tablethotels.

bhd87

You can get into the St. Regis using SPG50 coupon (or redeeming 1000 SPG points) for $500 a night. They might still also have an okay ABA rate.

RC BP is heavily discounted for the remainder of July (FHR) but rates kick back up in August.

sarahgl

Thankyou for your replies.

We are both in our 30's (no kids yet), and not really the sort of people that like to party all night, so we ruled out Soho House quite early on. We are more interested in old-style luxury than minimalism too, so that ruled out the Mandarin Oriental and the Gaansvoort.

We're going from the 18th to 22nd September, and have been looking at the Suite Life promo for the Peninsula.

Kagehitokiri

doh, suite life ends sept 15 looks like some kind of event.

Pen - £460, £530, £595, £695 / $925, $1075, $1200, $1400
St Regis - £495, £520, £745 / $995, $1045, $1500 (confirmed virtuoso upgrades)
RCCP - £505, £555, £655, £745 / $1020, $1120, $1320, $1500 (IIRC club is £85 / $175 extra per night)

FS - £500, £540, £570, £590 / $1005, $1095, $1150, $1195

bhd87

Are the UN meetings in September?

sarahgl

Apologies, it is the Suite Experience that we are looking at, for the Peninsula - we are staying for 4 nights, so the Suite Life promo can't apply to us.

Having said that, the price is not an issue - its the level of service and the feeling of luxury that we get that is important to us. We are looking for the "little things" that make a stay truly enjoyable. We are also looking at transfers from JFK to the hotel - this is included one-way for the Peninsula (we will be paying extra to get transfers both ways).

Kagehitokiri

st regis with virtuoso confirmed upgrade
£520 / $1045 56m2 astor suite

for peninsula, not sure if suite experience can be combined with virtuoso benefits, or if you can be upgraded (if available) from £940 / $1900 67m2 exec suite > £1390 / $2800 98m2 DLX suite
but if so, all the extras really pile up there.. the DLX suite looks really nice too.

IIRC ritz carlton central park charges $175 for club, making 80m2 avenue suite with club £875 / $1770
though not quite the location you want it seems, on the park .6 km from Pen/St Regis