I stayed here twice, one time for one night and one time for 2 nights. Both times in a room with shared bathroom. Both times I was happy to leave. It is the only hotel in Manhattan where I have stayed so I can not compare but this hotel did not feel very welcoming or very safe to me. The good thing about Hotel 31 is its location and I had quite a good deal I think with booking online (directly). But because it feels like everyone can walk in (you dont have to swipe a card or anything to go from reception to upstairs), it feels a little unsafe. This is not helped by all the warnings that you should not leave anything of value in your room, but I guesos its NY after all. Both my rooms had no view and the window was a meter from the concrete wall of the building next door. The second room I stayed in had the most horrific and claustrofobic decor, multi coloured horizontal stripes and flowers all around. The second time I stayed it smelled like someone had peed against the wall in the hall way and it really smelled. The cleaners did their best to clean it but it did not really help.
So, maybe this is all quite normal in Manhattan but as a solo traveler I would not recommend this - the third time in NY I ended up staying outside of Manhattan in arty Brooklyn (in a B&B) and enjoyed it much better.
hotel reviews