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Renaissance Chelsea - New York City [Master Thread]

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Old Jan 31, 2019, 12:26 pm
  #1  
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Renaissance Chelsea - New York City [Master Thread]

Opening July '19. Cat 6. Hotel website:

https://www.marriott.com/hotels/trav...chelsea-hotel/

"Discover one of New York’s most unique and diverse Neighborhoods,the Renaissance Chelsea is your gateway to a truly New York experience. Located at the cross section of the Chelsea Flower District and steps away from the iconic Fashion Institute. At the New Renaissance Chelsea, you can also enjoy everything New York has to offer without ever leaving the hotel. Take in our expansive 360-degree views of Manhattan on our Rooftop Lounge or meditate over a good book at the outdoor Garden Terrace. You will find yourself discovering fascinating remnants of the Historic Chelsea Flea Market throughout the hotel. Our central location will make it easy for you to sneak in a concert at the world-famous Madison Square Garden or be inspired by one of New York City’s renowned Broadway Shows. Whatever brings you to our City the Renaissance Chelsea has everything for you."

Last edited by SkiAdcock; Apr 13, 2019 at 4:24 pm
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Old Jan 31, 2019, 1:42 pm
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Less than 1/2 mile away from the Midtowne Renaissance. Has Marriott finally reached a saturation with Courtyards in NYC that they are moving onto Renaissance ?
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Old Jul 27, 2019, 7:19 pm
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Opening is now pushed back to October.
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Old Sep 23, 2019, 2:04 pm
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And now said November 2019, but still not bookable in December.... anyone know anything about this property?
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Old Oct 16, 2019, 6:16 pm
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Marriott.com showing "Opening Soon Dec 2019" but not bookable for my dates (29Dec-3Jan). Is there any news on this hotel?
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Old Feb 18, 2020, 11:56 am
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Any updates on this hotel? My preferred hotel (Edition) is outside of corporate travel policy for an upcoming trip, so I am looking for alternatives, and this is the only other hotel in the area that really has much appeal to me based on pictures. I am trying to avoid being any closer to midtown. Never stayed at a Renaissance before - what other brand is it most comparable to? Is it open and complete (I know often hotels are opened before completion)? Any idea what the $25 amenity fee includes?
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Old Mar 7, 2020, 8:59 am
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in my former 'hood

FYI: There is a homeless shelter across the hotel.
Bowery Residents' Committee

A top spot for a quick lunch next to the hotel: Johny' s luncheonette
Whole Foods Market is conveniently located 1 block away on west 24th street & 7th avenue.
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Old Mar 7, 2020, 6:31 pm
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Originally Posted by zip10001
FYI: There is a homeless shelter across the hotel.
Bowery Residents' Committee

A top spot for a quick lunch next to the hotel: Johny' s luncheonette
Whole Foods Market is conveniently located 1 block away on west 24th street & 7th avenue.
I will avoid that hotel for sure then. My wife and I have some PTSD after a recent incident with the homeless that congregate near her now former workplace in Seattle, because it was too traumatic to go back. I am not taking that risk or dealing with that anymore.
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Old Jun 1, 2020, 3:38 pm
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Stayed here 10 Feb the week it opened. Upgraded to one of the highest floors in a superior corner (no suites available to book, though given it's a Renaissance, I wouldn't expect an upgrade anyway). No lounge.

The Entrance was pleasant and bright, though cramped. An overstaffed check-in, and a concierge desk sat next to each other on the left; on the right a small bar, and small amount of seating. After a long day, a look at the bar, in full view of the reception and concierge desks put me off the little guy on my shoulder saying I should grab a drink. This may just be my preference, but any hotel I can't get in or out of without being spotted by the front desk upsets me.

Anyway, check-in team friendly enough, upgraded me to a higher corner as the hotel was still very quiet, gym not yet open, rooftop not yet open. A walk behind the desks takes you to the elevators; pretty standard. As I stepped out I was pleasantly surprised by the design of the corridors, think PUBLIC / Standard, a little whimsical in style, with a slight whiff of MDF in the air, I headed into the room.

The room was pleasant, with a similar theme to the hall which I personally enjoyed a lot. compared to the Ren in Mid town the equivalent room was much smaller, missing the often taken-for-granted chais lounge and large bathroom with the peeping shower. Instead, came a small desk, building blocks for a nightstand and basic chair which made me feel like I was back in a Moxy. The saving grace, really was the lamp on the desk, which I'll leave a mystery as to not spoil possibly the best part of the room.

Bed comfy, TV's all smart, steamer rather than iron, bookcase which acted as shelving - all the standard stuff. What wasn't standard however, and what was probably the nail in the coffin for me was that the safe, which they have hidden nicely away in a compartment on the shelving unit was tiny. For reference, my 15" macbook pro did not fit, and my ipad 13" barely made it in.

Fortunately I was only here for 1 night as I was keen experience a brand new NY hotel before leaving back to London the next day. When I popped down, past the blinding reception / empty bar I was halted in my attempt to leave without causing a scene by the 2/3 people on reception to ask how everything was. "Overall, pretty good, however one thing, is that my the safe is tiny, I can't even fit my laptop in it" to which the response was "Oh, well I'll note that down, but you can leave it in your room, it's safe.." Right.

In the morning, I opted for the breakfast due to status. This was held on the ground floor, whether or not due to the hotel still being under construction or not I do not know. As I came out of the elevator, the bar had now transformed, with a series of catering dishes sat on top it, bacon, eggs, sausages - the usual. In front of the bar, there was a barrier of tables with cutlery, plates, fruit and juices available. Technically a full spread, however between waving to the team on reception once again as they watched me try and serve myself a basic breakfast, and the odd looks from other guests newly entering it all felt a little uncomfortable. Behind the bar was what felt like canteen style dining, lovely modular, and wobbly IKEA tables and chairs which felt a little more airport food hall than Renaissance.

The waitstaff were young, and seemed overwhelmed with the few people sat around the tables. They were there to collect dishes, payment and for orders of coffee. Even though I had a 'breakfast included' ticket, I still had my credit card taken, however no charge applied - quite odd, though no fraudulent charges just yet.

Overall - I am in no rush to stay here again, and would go back to the midtown if I had a persuasion to the Ren hotels. I will likely step in again once the rooftop opens to take a look, however with the current front desk / bar layout on the ground floor, no lounge, disappointing breakfast options and likely no chance of a suite upgrade I wouldn't recommend it if those things are valuable to you.
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Last edited by jjLDNY; Jun 1, 2020 at 3:44 pm
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Old Aug 8, 2020, 3:36 pm
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Just completed a one night, pandemic-era stay here after Tropical Storm Isaiah knocked out our power. (This was my first Marriott property since March! Ironically, the day after checking out Bonvoy sent me a "We Miss You" email.)

There were no suites available for booking. It could be that they're occupied by long term occupants, or maybe they're just closed off due to low occupancy. Amongst other service changes, housekeeping will only come if specifically requested, and the gym did not appear to be open (though I can't confirm that). The roof deck is open on weekends with limited capacity, so reservations are recommended. Staffing is minimal.

There is no food service at all, so there were a bunch of extra points awarded at check in (breakfast guarantee, welcome gift). The hotel is officially charging a $25 "destination fee", but they waived it (not sure if they're waiving it for everyone or just elites). My rate was an exceptionally low $104 before the fee, so I wasn't going to lose too much sleep over it, but there are several other Marriott hotels in the area that are not imposing a junk fee, if that's important to you.

This hotel is built in the same "tall, slender" tower as other hotels in the area. There are typically 11 rooms per floor, 01 - 07 face north (views of the Hudson Yards and the ESB), 08 - 11 face south. Most rooms above ~10F should have a view of some sort. There are four elevators. I imagine at peak times with high occupancy their capacity will be insufficient, as is typical in other properties of this design.

The design of the rooms is generally pretty good. They are about 50% larger than the Moxy two blocks north, and have a narrow but usable desk (unlike the Moxy, which has a folding chair and a pull down table). Storage is sufficient for a couple of nights. My room had an iron in the closet next to the shelving. The walk in shower had both a hand held shower head and a rain shower. Water pressure was excellent. Wifi speeds: 40 Mbps down, 40 Mbps up. Each room has a random selection of about a half dozen used books, presumably purchased in bulk from some place like the Strand. A nice touch, though I imagine few people will read them. The walls are a little on the thin side... I was able to hear a neighbor who was talking unusually loudly, though once they stopped I didn't hear anything else.

On an amusing note, the "Maximum Rate" on the card in the door to the room is $10,000.

Re the homeless shelter, I didn't even know it was there. If that's the sort of thing that bothers you, perhaps it might be better to stay in the suburbs.

All things considered, the stay was fine. If/when things come back to normal, I'd probably try it again as a "full service" alternative to the other hotels in the immediate vicinity.
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Old Mar 31, 2021, 11:04 am
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Cute hotel--looks and feels new, and the decor is surprising and nice (I didn't have time to take pics, but there's a lush forest wallpaper in the hallways that could be perceived as a little tacky but I think is a nice change from the norm, and the rooms have a rabbit theme... bunny-shaped coat hooks and a lamp).

No suites were available from the time of booking through check in, so SNA was denied but we received a high floor view room automatically which was great for a one-nighter. Easy walk to Madison Square Garden, which is what we were going for.

Lobby Bar is currently open for beer and wine daily 4-10pm, will a full bar available only on Friday and Saturday. We didn't try it, but the sitting area is pleasant. Rooftop facility remains closed.

Gym, ice machine, and reasonably priced food and drink vending machines are in the basement level. The gym was small but had 6 or 7 cardio machines and a good assortment of free weights up to 50 pounds. The Peloton was in decent shape except that the water bottle holders had been removed...

Pic of the view from our 35th floor room:

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Old Jul 22, 2021, 11:38 am
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Stayed here last weekend 7/16-18. Overall not a bad stay and the rate was good – AAA rate at $225/night all in, including all taxes – but I wouldn't rush back at a higher price.

Check in was a disaster, as the lobby was overcrowded and the front desk attendant, when I finally reached her simply said, "what kind of room do you have? If it's a king, I can't give you one til 3pm." I was a bit taken aback and she clearly noticed it and said, "sorry, I've been here since 10pm last night." Anyway, she informed me they’d text me when it became available. She checked the bags and I left, noticing on the way out that the lobby smelled a little funky.

Never got a text, but went back at 3pm and the room was ready. Was not informed until I inquired, but the platinum breakfast benefit isn’t available, so they give you 750 points/night instead. Frustrating as I am sure the breakfast for two people is worth way more than the ~$5 the points are worth. And the bar is open, so not sure why the kitchen isn’t when the hotel is 100% full, as she informed me. The lobby still smelled bad, and the front door I noticed was broken with a plate of plexiglass taped in where a pane should be.

Anyway, things are better once you get to the room. I like the hard product on the guest floors and in the rooms themselves. Small rooms but not smaller than to be expected, with a great shower with rainfall shower head. I like the décor scheme, very pleasant. Daily housekeeping.

I would note that the roofdeck bar is operated by someone other than the hotel, and if you come back between 10pm and 4am on a weekend night the exterior area around the entrance and the lobby around the elevators are an absolute $hitshow. People everywhere trying to get in, velvet rope, drunk people running around later in the evening, etc. Super unpleasant.

The location is awesome, really love being in the heart of Chelsea, close to Flatiron and Madison Square Park, etc. Probably the best thing about the hotel.

Overall a pretty good value at the price I paid but would be hard pressed to stay here if the cost were higher.
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Last edited by Nash_Andrew; Jul 22, 2021 at 11:40 am Reason: Added comment about location
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Old Aug 23, 2021, 11:42 am
  #13  
 
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Just completed two nights here.

Good news for those who pick hotels primarily because they offer breakfast, the Ren Chelsea is now offering elite breakfast. The FD provides the standard Marriott "Continental Breakfast" coupon for elite+1, but the actual breakfast is basically your standard low end lounge fare (steam trays of sausage, bacon, and eggs; plastic shelves of breads; yogurts; etc).

The buffet is in the room next to the elevators that looks like it was supposed to be the lounge, but there's no seating there. Instead, you enter through the restaurant (which is now full service) and walk back to a special seating area that looks like it was supposed to be outdoors, but was covered by a tin roof. There are three large picnic tables that seat about 8 people each, and two smaller tables. There's also a heated area that was roped off. The area was leaking from heavy rain. (Apparently under some circumstances they'll move the elite breakfast to the 2nd floor ballroom, maybe when it gets busy.)

The rooftop nightclub has apparently (re)opened, and in particular on weekend nights can be pretty loud until about 4am. The FD agent proactively offered to place us on lower floors, and we ended up on 15F and 20F. From 20F, I was able to barely make out the nightclub when the room TV and HVAC were off, but basically any noise covered it up. If you're staying on a weekend night, I'd definitely recommend a lower floor.

When the nightclub is open, it also takes one elevator out of service. The other three were mostly sufficient (maybe because the hotel wasn't completely full), but the hotel could benefit from the hallway dispatch system that the Ren Midtown and Marquis use.

The hotel appears to be transitioning from Aveda to EcoWell, or maybe they ran out of Aveda and had to supplement? (My room had a mix.) I'll have to go dig up the toiletries thread and ask there. Still no pen/paper in the room, unlike the Ren Midtown.

The FD no longer appears to be waiving the $25 "destination fee". That said, I price my stays by comparing a/i pricing, and the total Ren Chelsea price was in line with other hotels I was looking at, so as far as I'm concerned that's between the hotel and the taxing authority they're cheating revenue from.

For anyone considering both the Ren Chelsea and the Ren Midtown, at the moment Chelsea seems to be more popular on weekends and Midtown seems to be more popular on weekdays.
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Old Feb 2, 2022, 10:58 pm
  #14  
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Does the nightclub operate on weeknights? Many of the TA reviews include complaints about noise and excessive elevator wait times.
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Old Feb 4, 2022, 1:47 pm
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Originally Posted by Boraxo
Does the nightclub operate on weeknights? Many of the TA reviews include complaints about noise and excessive elevator wait times.
The published hours of operation are Thu - Sun. As per my previous post, you can't really hear it from the lower floors.

The elevator situation in any of these tall, thin hotels is generally problematic at peak hours, whether because of nightclubs or everyone going to breakfast. The Moxy a block or two north has basically the same design and issue.
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