W New York - Times Square

The W New York Time Square is one of the premier hotels in this part of town. The 57-story, skyscraper-like structure is an elegant, if not quirky, building with jutting panel accents that form a "W" on the facade of the bottom-most floors. W Hotels tend to be "trendy" in their design, and this flagship is no different. There is a large entry lobby with elevators waiting to bring new guests to the seventh floor welcome desk. Once a room is assigned, two elevator banks are used to take guests to either lower or higher floors, respectively. The lobby is essentially the Living Room Bar -- a large, chic open space that was remodeled in 2015 and features a trendy vintage-modern look with long, charcoal-gray couches, black-top coffee tables with bronze legs, and pod-like private booths with geometric pendant lights. Behind the bar, a cool neon mural celebrates old Times Square. The restaurants -- a seafood restaurant and a Mexican restaurant, both of which have their own bars -- are trendy and stylish, too, each with a different vibe. Despite the common-area decor, it's worth keeping in mind that under the "boutique" trappings, this W is a fairly large outpost of the Starwood mega-chain. With over 500 rooms, guests aren't quite getting the intimate, highly personalized service of smaller hotels (or, not without paying for it). And, room rates tend to be pretty high. Still with decent-size rooms, an on-site fitness center, a lively, funky lobby scene, and W's famously comfortable beds, the W delivers on high-end amenities -- tourists and leisure travelers are primary guests, though families and business travelers who can afford it end up here, too.

Situated right in the heart of the Theater District less than a half block from Times Square, W New York Times Square occupies the tourist's dream location. The hotel is surrounded by eateries, souvenir shops, flagship stores, and theaters hosting Broadway shows. The TKTS discount ticket booth is practically across the street, less than a one-minute walk. Sweetening the deal, Broadway's closed to traffic between 42nd and 47th Streets, making the streets near this hotel some of the most pedestrian-friendly in the city. And if the neon marquees and seemingly endless stream of people get to be too much, the less-touristy Hell's Kitchen neighborhood is just two blocks west. Central Park, the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), Radio City Music Hall, Rockefeller Center, and Fifth Avenue's famed shopping are all a 15-minute walk or less from the hotel.For sights further out, 12 subway lines (virtually every major subway line in the city) are less than a five-minute walk from the hotel. LaGuardia Airport and JFK International Airport are about an hour away via public transit. Discounted parking is available at a nearby garage, but -- this is New York -- it's still pricey.

By virtually any standard, this W hotel offers really great rooms -- big for Manhattan, stylish, comfortable, and well equipped. Rooms pair neutral wall-to-wall carpeting and walls with bright white beds accented in bright pink runners and pillows. Details like mirrored headboards with abstract panels, modern lounge chairs, translucent magazine displays, and wardrobes with hot pink interiors add on-trend flair. Bathrooms feature subway tiling, vessel sinks, and luxurious glass-enclosed "Voyeur" showers with rainfall shower heads. Upgraded rooms may have combination showers and tubs. A bonus: All rooms are on floors 10 through 57, and some have nice views.Comfy beds are a W-brand staple: feather beds with pillow-top mattresses, goose down pillows, and 350 thread-count sheets. As for electronics, all rooms feature 49-inch plasma TVs plus data ports and charging stations. Wardrobes have safes, irons and ironing boards, and terrycloth bathrobes. Minibars are stocked with alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks. Bathrooms come with high-end Bliss-brand individual toiletries and hairdryers. Guests' biggest complaints? No coffee/tea service, no drawers, and Wi-Fi can cost an extra fee. Noise from Times Square can also be an issue, though the hotel offers earplugs. All rooms, no matter the category, measure 288 square feet -- upgrades are in the amenities or view. The smallest suite ("Basic Fantastic") measures 625 square feet while the largest ("Extreme WOW") measures a whopping 1,200 square feet and has two bedrooms, two bathrooms with TVs, living room space, original art sculptures and top-floor panoramic views of Broadway. 

The hotel has more amenities than guests might expect from such a centrally located city hotel. Blu Fin, which serves breakfast, lunch, dinner, and drinks, is a huge but highly regarded restaurant that specializes in seafood. There's even a sushi bar on the lower level. Dos Caminos is a more casual Mexican restaurant with its own bar. Living Room is the hotel's classy and lively bar, which attracts guests and non-guests alike, and has a live DJ on the weekends. Guests find breakfast a mixed bag, and it's not usually included in the room rate. Room service is available 24/7.As at most W hotels, the in-house fitness center, known as FIT, is clean and very well equipped (though somewhat characterless) with free weights, more than a dozen cardio machines, plenty of fresh towels, and a bowl of fruit for a mid-workout pick-me-up. A small business center has two desktop Mac computers. There's also a boutique-y gift shop on-site. The hotel has a 24-hour front desk and offers high-end service including its trademark "Whatever/Whenever" service, wherein guests are encouraged to ask for, as the name suggests, anything at any time (fees apply, of course). The hotel offers W2GO service (providing grab-and-go food and drinks), concierge service, luggage forwarding, iPod and iPad rentals, luggage storage, laundry service, and valet service. Parking costs a hefty extra fee (the norm in New York), and while Wi-Fi is free in the lobby, in-room Wi-Fi may cost a daily extra fee.The hotel provides loaner cribs, but isn't particularly tailored toward children. Pets, though, are a different story -- the hotel can arrange dog sitting, dog walking, a pet bed, pet toys, clean-up bags, leashes… pretty much anything guests need to make their pet's stay in the city more comfortable. There is a weight limit for pets, though, as well as a non-refundable cleaning fee. In addition to the fee, there is a nightly fee for four-legged friends.