REVIEWS
SHERATON NEW YORK TIMES SQUARE New York A warm welcome in the Library Bar Sheraton New York: perfect mid-town location
THE 53-STOREY SHERATON New York Times Square Hotel has a perfect mid-town Manhattan location between the neon lights of Times Square and tranquillity of Central Park. By Matthew Parsons
WHAT’S IT LIKE? Sheraton’s tagline is “the world’s gathering place” – and going by the lobby, that’s not wrong. During my early December stay, just after the Thanksgiving holiday and in the run-up to Christmas, the hotel was teeming with guests and had a festive feel. Airline staff often check in at the expansive desks, which are manned by welcoming staff. The hustle and bustle almost creates a world of its own, and you sometimes forget the Big Apple is literally on your doorstep. The Sheraton New York is in a prime location. As well as Times Square and
Central Park, Radio City Music Hall and Carnegie Hall are a short stroll away. Hell’s Kitchen is a 15-minute walk, and a highlight was discovering dim sum restaurant Tim Ho Wan on Ninth Avenue. Food-wise, the hotel’s own Hudson
Market restaurant serves breakfast and dinner, but with a plethora of diners and bars in the area, I mostly dined out. However, I did catch a conference attendee enjoying one of the Hudson’s impressive-looking burgers. The hotel’s Library Bar is the
unexpected star of this property. By day, it’s a Starbucks; by night, a great
RESIDENCE INN BY MARRIOTT Amsterdam Houthavens
OPENED IN JANUARY 2018 and managed by Cycas Hospitality, this all-suite property is contained within a double-decker building also housing Marriott’s lifestyle brand Moxy, and its modern decor perfectly fits into Amsterdam’s cooler-than-cool vibe. By Molly Dyson
Residence Inn one-bedroom suite
WHERE IS IT? Located in the up-and- coming business district of Houthavens – Amsterdam’s main port – the hotel is a 20-minute bus ride from the city centre. The area is one of the city’s hotspots for the creative industries; the property is surrounded by the offices of fashion companies, including Tommy Hilfiger and Calvin Klein. WHAT’S IT LIKE? The first few floors of the property are occupied by the Moxy hotel, which features a communal lobby with a lively lounge and bar, as well as seven meeting rooms with the largest able to host up to 56 people, underground parking, a gym and a swimming pool (look out for the stunning manta ray sculptures floating in the foyer, which you can see from the pool).
118 JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2020 The upper floors play
host to the Residence Inn, which offers 60 studio and one-bedroom suites. Each morning a complimentary hot breakfast is served on the top-floor lounge and terrace, where you’ll find stunning views of the harbour and the river. Guests staying in the apartments are also welcome to use the Moxy’s lounge and meeting rooms. ROOMS I stayed in a comfortable one- bedroom apartment on the corner of the building. A bank of floor-to-ceiling windows in the living room gave me a great view of the harbour, and I was able to watch containers being loaded onto one of the biggest ships I’ve ever seen. The kitchen was equipped with everything I could possibly need for cooking my own meals, from pots and pans to plates and glasses.
bar that’s always busy and where a sense of occasion prevails as most guests are dressed up, meeting for a drink before a night out. During a sudden, fierce blizzard, its roaring fire was a welcome feature, too. ROOMS There are 1,781 rooms in total. My 45th floor room had vertigo-inducing skyscraper views, a coffee machine (Starbucks coffee, of course), a luxurious bed and a large TV. In the bathroom there was a large walk-in shower and, on the plus side, a robe and slippers were included. However, the room was all browns and beiges with a complete lack of colour and embellishment. The last renovation of the hotel, which was built in 1962, took place in 2012, at a cost of US$180 million.
BUSINESS I was in town for a conference being held in the hotel’s New York Ballroom, during which hotel staff were helpful and attentive. The event included a healthy buffet lunch, which was delicious and included fantastic seared tuna and freshly cooked prawns. Overall, the hotel has 5,800 sqm of event space, and there’s free wifi throughout, although it often dropped. Located on Seventh Avenue between 52nd and 53rd Streets, the hotel is an easy cab ride to pretty much anywhere in Manhattan. Just factor in the heavy traffic jams at every corner. VERDICT Like New York itself, the Sheraton New York is a buzzing hotel, with a constant ebb and flow of business travellers and tourists.
A meeting room at Moxy
BUSINESS Moxy’s seven meeting rooms are super cool and the property offers a range of options for groups; think popcorn machines, gourmet snacks, lunch and cocktails, whiteboard and blackboard walls and even beanbag seats. Each meeting room offers natural daylight through floor-to-ceiling windows, limiting the chances of an afternoon slump. VERDICT Staying in the Residence Inn made me feel like a high-flying socialite living in a swish Amsterdam apartment. What’s not to love?
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