BlissWorld

The rooms at W Times Square used to only have a regular tube television and furnitures/paint/carpet were showing wear and tear (but still not in terrible shape). Most of the rooms are now with new paint, some with new carpet, bedding, and furniture. They also added a very nice 32" plasma tv on the wall of almost every room ^

19103_aa

Did they fix those shower door/drains that leak all over the floor? That really gave them a :: in my book. Stupid, stupid, design.

itsaboutthejourney

Hey BlissWorld, I hope you took home lots of good Bliss Spa stuff!

Great report. The taking the 50th st. stop on the E from JFK is an exccellent tip!

ihdihd

Being that I live nearby and work just south of TS (40th/Broadway) I've never had a chance to stay at the W-TS. In fact I usually cannot wait to leave the area ASAP after work. Some tips that could make your life a lot more pleasant on a TS hotel stay (chain independant, I suppose):

Relax
Bryant park - free wireless internet access and a really nice park atmosphere in the middle of the day. During the summer its the one thing that keeps us sane in the tourist madness. If you need a spot to sit go towards the library and the Bryant Park grill. Around 6 the BP grill is a nice place for a drink on the terrace overlooking the park.

With a snack
About half way down 42nd street between 6th and 5th there's one of the best desserts you'll have, the crumbs bakery with giant delicious cupcakes.

Good TS food without TS hassle
If you're in a hurry and want some really excellent food there's a little known place called the Croton Reservoir. Its on 40th St between Broadway and 6th. has a nice bar in the basement and a classy restaurant on the ground floor. The restaurant serves all kinds of food, but my favorites are their ahi apps.

These are some quickie favorites that help me survive living day-in/day-out in the TS area.

NittanyFlyer

FWIW--very disappointed in this hotel as it reminds me more of a W than a Westin. Rooms are tiny with the same black wood furniture that I see in some W's (Chicago Lakeshore come to mind). The hallways are a little scary--always expecting someone to jump out at me around the corners. One big plus though--the service. Room service was exceedingly fast--less than 10 minutes in some cases--and the concierge was great.

Be warned about trying to get a cab if they close off Times Square.

I think I'll find another hotel in NYC next trip.

kluau88

Hmmm. Let's see most NYC rooms are small. If you want a large one without having to try and get on via the upgrade route save yourself the hassle and just buy one from the start so you won't be disappointed with the room size. Yes the configuration of the hallways might be an issue, but this could be said of any hotel. The W Times Square is similar too if you ask me. Staying in the Times Square area you should expect there to be heavy traffic in the area. As for the Westin Times Square it offers some of the best benefits to SPG Platinums.

mario33

I prefer the Hilton Times Square over the Westin.

The Hilton is less pretentious, staff are friendlier and I like the fresh & bright atmosphere. You also get a full breakfast at the cheery restaurant next to the sky lobby, compared to Westin's continental breakfast in the bleak exec lounge.

kluau88

According to the OP's profile, the OP is only SPG Gold. Unless the OP has booked a room with Executive lounge benefits I don't think the OP gets lounge access.

ILUVCITIBANK

NittanyFlyer, I respectfully disagree. The Westin/TS is my favorite of the TS-centric starwoods (Sheraton, W/TS, and Westin/TS), and one of the stand-out features, IMO, is the SIZE of the rooms at this Westin.

I have stayed here as many as 3 times or more and each time I appreciate the location, location, location, cleaniness, and size of rooms.

Of all the adverse comments one might think up for this property, would not be the smallness of the room. Just the opposite (and I speak of only standard rooms...I have never been upgraded here).

number_6

I agree, rooms are larger than average for NYC, and that sums it up perfectly. The corner rooms (which I suppose are an upgrade) are particularly nice and well designed (though most of the extra space is corridors). The location is just about the best that there is, from a transit standpoint, and a big plus for this hotel.

christianj

I stayed at the Westin last year as a Plat. and was not impressed. I will be back for a two night stay this weekend and will see what this stay is like. I personally prefer the W TS over the Westin if I need to be in the TS area. (staying at the Westin because I booked the reward stay last year for 10k a night vs. the W which was at 16k for the same nights.) I found that getting a cab at the Westin was a nightmare too!

number_6

One of the big benefits of the Westin TS is that it is very easy to get a cab here. But I guess you have to know NY a bit; you don't get the cab at the hotel door, most of the time, but a block away (depending on which way you are going). Always available (due to proximity to the port authority), and well positioned to avoid heavy traffic. Interesting how this varies from guest to guest (things that I view as strong points become weaknesses and even problems; perhaps the hotel needs to improve its helpful advice for those not sufficiently familiar with NYC).

christianj

We ended up going to the port authority to get a cab as you mentioned because the valet just couldn't flag any down. Problem was it was raining cats and dogs and that made that alternative very inconvenient. This weekend we won't even try getting one at the hotel and will go right to the port authority terminal.

NittanyFlyer

Thanks for the comments. While you may be right that the rooms are great in terms of TS-centric Starwoods or even NYC-Starwoods, they were small to me based upon the rooms I usually get at Westins.

anchor79

Any updated review for this property?

Hows' elite breakfast benefit here now?