My first thought upon seeing the freshly renovated Time Hotel was what did the architects think when they saw what they’d be working with? With oddly shaped public spaces, ho-hum views and guest rooms that can be politely described as compact (the smallest are a mere 180 square feet), this modest 193-room hotel built in 1927 could either stymie its renovators or inspire them to be really creative. Read more
Midtown Manhattan isn’t known for its residential ambience. So cheers to Affinia 50, fresh from a $19 million renovation, for offering a taste of apartment living this side of Airbnb.
To be fair, hominess is in the Affinia’s DNA. The 250-room building started out in 1959 as a residential hotel. There’s no restaurant, but two enormous lounges eat up the second floor. And all 100 suites, from studios to one-bedrooms, come with kitchenettes. Read more
Overlooking the parade finale from the lobby patio
When Macy’s changed the route of New York’s marquee parade from Seventh to Sixth Avenue in 2012 it proved a blow to visitors who like watching Hello Kitty & Company float by from a hotel room.
Seventh Avenue’s eight hotels overlooking the parade route dwarfed the five along Sixth Avenue and Central Park West, both in size and number. But this summer the Courtyard Marriott Manhattan/Herald Square added 167 rooms to the mix, many with direct views of Macy’s, the parade’s grand finale.
And this week brought more good news for parade lovers. Read more
When a hotel closes its doors to renovate, you expect to see something dramatic on the other end. So what went on during the year that the St Giles Tuscany New York was shuttered?
Lots, but a bit of background before we proceed. Read more
Terrace in the air.
Not that you’ll be alone. My guess is the new outdoor terrace at the freshly refurbished Novotel New York Times Square will be jam-packed when 2014 is ushered in.
Still, the handsome outdoor expanse – a dazzling 5,700 square feet – that semi-circles the seventh floor of the Novotel’s glass tower is sufficiently spacious to pack ‘em in, from cocktail sippers enjoying an autumn moment to year-end revelers who want to be outdoors but above it all, literally. Read more
They don’t hand out gold statues for Best Dressed Scaffolding. But if they did we’d vote for the courtyard at the New York Palace. Read more