My husband, myself and our two daughters have stayed in many hotels in NYC (we go about 4x per year) but this was the first time we weren't staying at a chain. It was a bit of a spur-of-the-moment Sat/Sun trip in January and the cost was a lot less than where we usually stay (Hilton, Sheraton). It was in a convenient location across from Penn Station and just a few blocks from Koreatown, (an area of Korean restaurants on 32nd) where you can get great Korean bbq cooked right at your table. The lobby is beautiful -- massive with marble floors, chandeliers, leather seating and a large bank of elevators -- and the outside of the multi-story building looks old and charming (I believe it's from the 1920s). Our room, however, was another story. The brown flat carpet was dirty all around the edges of the room, as was the edge of the bathroom floor. There was mold on the bathroom ceiling and door & some chipped paint and cracks in the walls and ceiling throughout the room. But despite the bit of mold and the bit of dirt, the room did not smell (which we have experienced in the past on an East Coast driving trip when we had to stop without reservations -- so this was better than that!). We did check for bedbugs and there were none; the sheets were clean and so were the towels though my 16-year-old daughter didn't trust the sheets so slept on her sweater on top of the pillow. Beds were uncomfortable and there was a dip in the middle. Flatscreen TV was nice though the remote didn't work so we had to get up and change the channel -- but at least the cable continued to work! There is 5 minutes of free internet then it is $9.95 per day. There was good quality soap and shampoo provided and the shower, sink and toilet all worked well in our room though the shower head was about at my eye level (5-foot-4 inches), but we're all short in my family so it was OK! There is a Lindy's (cafe) in the lobby, also small coffee shop with a couple tables, a restaurant (steakhouse, I believe), a large gift shop, a newsstand and several tiny gift shops (just t-shirts and mugs) plus TV screens showing news in the lobby and in all the elevators. Luggage storage was $4 per bag. So my feeling is it could have been worse (as some of the reports about it have noted the horrors of their rooms).
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