Lux Life London
Travel New York

Hotel Review: The All-Suite Conrad Hotel, NYC.

 

Every single room in the five star Conrad Hotel NYC, is a suite. From the marble and copper stairs in the atrium, to the gorgeous suites, and the famous ‘Loopy Doopy’ piece of artwork and aptly named rooftop bar with views over the Hudson River, the Conrad is perfect blog and instagram fodder.
The Conrad Luxury Hotel New York City

Staying at the all-suite Conrad Hotel NYC

Jasiminne and I were in NYC for four nights, and spent our first two nights at The Row on Times Square, as I’d been invited to review it a few months ago. It was billed as a ‘luxury’ hotel…and on first appearance the lobby was impressive, but after that it all went downhill rapidly. The bedroom (a junior suite) was absolutely tiny, with a bathroom even tinier (and dirtier). Everything about it was shabby, with dents and scrapes everywhere, and it honestly felt like a glorified hostel. Not to mention the location – it’s round the corner from Times Square on 8th Avenue, and I hated that street and the area with a passion.

Row NYC just felt far too trendy for me and I still can’t believe it has a four star hotel status (one time we waited over 10minutes just to get the lift from our room on the 18th floor down to the ground floor, only for it to announce  it wasn’t working, and we then had to take the staff lift down a dirty back corridor – not exactly luxury service). Anyway, so when we left Row NYC to head down to the financial district and The Conrad, it was a very welcome change. Also it was perfect for photos… (huge thanks to Jasiminne for the one below of me!)

The Conrad New York Hotel Financial District

 

Loopy Doopy Rooftop Bar at The Conrad Hotel NYC

The Conrad is a really beautiful hotel, modern yet sophisticated, and our suite was beautiful. As a hotel guest you also get preferential treatment to access to the Loopy Doopy Rooftop Bar. On the evening we wanted to go up there was a large waiting list because it was a glorious sunny evening, but we just asked the question; ‘we’re hotel guests, does that move us up the wait list at all?’ and they took us straight up.I didn’t have a cocktail because I was on antibiotics (infected mozzie bite, ugh) and wasn’t allowed alcohol until Saturday night, but Jasiminne had one and loved it! They do these really cool ice-lolly cocktails and the lolly gradually melts to create the drink.

Conrad Hotel Loopy Doopy Roof Terrace NYC
Conrad Hotel Loopy Doopy Bar Lolly Cocktails

Inside our suite at Conrad Hotel NYC

Our suite at Conrad Hotel NYC had a spacious living room with sofa, chairs, and a desk, and a glass sliding door to a bathroom/kitchen area. Then through another sliding glass door was the bedroom. It was all very swish and modern, but still classic enough to feel luxurious rather than gimmicky. It still didn’t beat Langham Hotel NYC though, but I’m not sure anything ever will to be honest. The lighting in the living room area was super dark because the only natural light that comes into it is from the bedroom through the corridor bit.

Conrad Hotel New York City

The Location & Service of Conrad Hotel NYC

Location-wise it was great – right on the Hudson River, and just a 5minute taxi ride to the Meatpacking District which quickly became mine and Jasiminne’s favourite place to hang out in NYC, and just round the corner from the 9/11 memorial, One World Trade Centre, and the gorgeous Tribeca neighbourhood.
The only thing we found was the reception staff at Conrad Hotel NYC felt a little ‘off’ and unfriendly, and I found their attitude a little patronizing. When we checked in the booking was really weird, we were there for one night with hotels.com, so one night was booked in under them…and then we had a second night there that we were paying for. I’m a Hilton Hhonors Diamond member so it meant we should have had an upgrade, late checkout etc, and of course I earnt points on the stay too.
I’d booked a twin room for the second night but at check-in the lady told me there were no twin rooms available for our first night, so we could either have one night in a double and change rooms the second night, or stay in the double. We couldn’t be bothered changing yet again so decided to just stay put. But then when I asked about the room upgrade and late checkout a smirk crept across her face and she said ‘you’re a blue hhonors member…’ I told her my status had only recently changed to diamond so could she check again, and it was only after she updated it that it came up.
But no. They couldn’t give us a room upgrade, and no late check out. So what is the point of having diamond membership!? At least I got my points I guess.
It’s just little things like that that leave a bad impression. I stay in a lot of hotels, most of them luxury hotels, and for me service is one of the most important things about a luxury hotel. We went to Orlando after NYC and spent 3 nights in a four star Hilton there, and the service was so much better – they gave us a triple upgrade to a large suite, as well as free breakfast, vouchers for complimentary bottled water every day, and vouchers for complimentary coffee every day. Just little things like that make such a big difference to a stay – and that was just a four star not a five star like the Conrad Hotel NYC!
If you want a hotel in midtown then I highly recommend Langham Hotel NYC and The Knickerbocker NYC, but if you’d like to stay downtown or would like some extra space, The Conrad is a great choice.
Watch my #Unrooming video for Hotels.com below!
Upload your own here to be in with the chance of winning a £200 Hotels.com voucher.

 

What’s your favourite hotel in NYC?
*We stayed one night at The Conrad complimentary with Hotels.com, and paid for the second night ourselves.
Follow:
Catherine Lux
Catherine Lux

Catherine Lux is a veteran travel blogger by night and the Head of Content Marketing at Amazon by day. Originally from Surrey, she spent four years living in Australia (2007-2009, and 2016-2018), and now lives in London. An ex-party girl sometimes prone to relapses, she loves nothing more than sharing her fine dining and luxury travel experiences with her loyal readers.

Find me on: Web | Instagram

You may also enjoy:

5 Comments

  1. Angie SilverSpoon
    September 5, 2016 / 9:48 am

    I love New York rooftop bars!! That service does sound shoddy but at least it was an improvement on The Row.

    Reply
  2. Ayushi | The Foodie Diaries
    September 6, 2016 / 6:38 pm

    I agree, service is such an important part of any hotel experience! The rooftop bar at the Conrad does look so lovely though x

    Reply
  3. Catherine Lux
    September 9, 2016 / 1:48 pm

    It was gorgeous, especially as we were so lucky with the weather! x

    Reply
  4. Catherine Lux
    September 9, 2016 / 1:49 pm

    It was a huuuuuge improvement on The Row haha, I'm still shocked that they're a 4* hotel! x

    Reply
  5. Hannah Bailey-Churcher
    September 11, 2016 / 5:01 am

    Shoddy service seriously ruins a hotel in my opnion- I'd rather stay in the worlds most basic B&B with amazing service than a fancy pants marble lined room with unhelpful staff!

    The hotel looks awesome though.

    we are DANNAH | Australian lifestyle blog

    Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *