The cost to stay at Conrad New York Midtown was $641/night USD (CAD 866), including tax, or 95,000 Honors points.
I opted for the points rate because I earned a free night certificate through US American Express Hilton credit cards. These certificates allow you to redeem at any Hilton property with a standard room availability of up to 150,000 points. Considering the property’s high cash rate, it was excellent value for the certificate!
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The Conrad New York Midtown is ideally located at 54th Street and 7th Avenue. To the north, you are just five blocks from Central Park. To the south, it’s eight blocks to Times Square and the Broadway theatre district. Most of the top attractions are within walking distance, with the rest of the city easily accessible via the 7th Avenue subway station just around the corner from the hotel.
LaGuardia airport is 35 minutes away by car outside of traffic delays (of which there are many), with Newark and JFK being 40-50 minutes. Newark also has an express train to take you to Penn Station in Manhattan. This is the best choice if arriving during periods of heavy congestion, from which you can continue to the hotel via subway, taxi, or on foot.
The hotel’s main entrance is on the north side of 54th Street and has a bold façade with the Conrad name. Valets will greet you at your car if driving and help you with your luggage if they are available. There is no dedicated entrance off the street, so it depends on how chaotic the traffic is around you to get right in front of the main hall. Valet parking is available for a stiff $85/night ($95 for SUVs) and, unfortunately, doesn’t include any in/out privileges.
The hotel has a small but chic lobby. In the center is a light fixture and art piece that I’ll describe simply as “avant-garde.” 😉 It’s a modern sculpture by New York artist Carole Feuerman called “Leda and the Swan.” Other local artwork, including work by Andy Warhol, is placed around the hotel.
Off to the right is the bar and restaurant, with the other side featuring the check-in and concierge desks and another small sitting area.
The check-in process was quick and efficient. We were confirmed in a one-bedroom suite, a free upgrade from the base junior suite room we had booked. Our upgrade and room assignment had been completed using the app before arrival. Generally, at a Conrad elsewhere in the world (particularly in Asia), there would have been more substance to the arrival experience. Perhaps some hot towels, a welcome drink, a description of the property, etc. However, being in New York and catering to a larger business audience, this could have been more present. We headed up the elevator and down the nice but somewhat bland room corridor.
Our suite can definitively be described as spacious by New York standards. The base junior suite we booked is 425 square feet, with the whole one-bedroom suite being 500 square feet. It can accommodate up to three people, so one child could accompany two parents. However, unlike its downtown counterpart, Conrad’s suites don’t include a pull-out sofa, so a rollaway bed is required.
The room was spotless, modern, and well-appointed. The living area had a sofa and coffee table, a pair of chairs by the window with another small round table, and a large TV next to the wall.
The room was also very well designed for storage. Not only was there lots of closet space (again, for New York) but there were many sliding drawers and compartments for personal items, the minibar, nice glassware, the coffee/tea/ station, etc.
The main bedroom had a very comfortable king-sized bed, two side tables, a telephone, and a television.
The bathroom was a highlight of the room. While it lacked a bath, it was very bright due to the white tiling and marble throughout the space. There was plenty of room with a generous amount of counter space, offering more storage shelves, lots of towels of different sizes, and bath products by Byredo. The water pressure in the shower was terrific, and we each had bathrobes provided.
Being in New York, the high floor gave a view of other tall buildings! We were in a room facing south, but the trick is to get into a room on the north-facing side on a high floor, and you can get a view of Central Park. I wasn’t too concerned about the view since we’d be spending very little time in the room anyway.
I had communicated with the concierge before the arrival of my wife’s birthday and had been in touch with the hotel about our arrival time. Due to that and our Diamond status, I was expecting a nice welcome amenity in the room upon arrival. We did get a little piece of cake along with some sparkling wine. However, it was put in our room hours late after we returned from a long evening of dining to celebrate the occasion. So, while it was appreciated, it never got consumed, and it was a bit disappointing.
The hotel has a bar and restaurant right off the lobby called Dabble. We had our breakfast there. Being two adults in the room, we received a USD 50 credit for the meal thanks to our Diamond status, which doesn’t stretch very far. My wife only had the continental side of the buffet (the hot side was an additional charge), while I had one meal from the menu of eggs, potatoes, and sausage, which still cost us around $20 above our dining credit allowance.
The restaurant is quite nice, with a lively bar scene in the evening. And all our food itself was quite tasty. The service, however, was pretty poor considering the cost. It took a long time to get served, and the attitude wasn’t particularly welcoming. When we needed anything, we pretty much had to get up and go and find someone to ask.
This hotel is for you if you like to keep in shape while travelling. It has a great gym, filled with pretty much everything anyone could want from a hotel gym. It is about 1,500 square feet, featuring equipment by Life Fitness and Kinesis walls by Technogym. They even provide earphones to guests who may need them. There was also a nice station setup with hand towels, fruit, and bottled water.
On the service side, it’s New York, so we weren’t around the hotel much – like most other people who stay in hotels in Manhattan. All the staff we ran into were friendly, but nothing went beyond what you may expect from a luxury-branded property. The service in the restaurant left a lot to be desired, and as stated before I had been hoping for a nice birthday message waiting for my wife upon arrival (which I had also arranged in advance) which didn’t appear until much later. So I’ll say the hotel doesn’t do much to go above and beyond anyone’s expectations. But at the same time, most people aren’t expecting much other than a place to sleep, and possibly eat breakfast and use the gym facilities.
We enjoyed our one-night stay at the Conrad. The rooms are well-designed, spacious, and comfortable. Generally the staff are friendly, and the gym by New York standards is terrific. Its location also is hard to beat. Overall it is a high-quality, stylish hotel, so I’d recommend it if it fits your budget.
Having said that, there wasn’t anything I found particularly memorable about it considering its cost, including any extra service provided which you may look forward to at a luxury-branded property. We preferred the Conrad Downtown New York as it was more spacious, had pull-out sofas in the suites, and had more welcoming service.
But it is New York, so you’re not likely to find many hotels which give you a heck of a lot more than a comfortable night sleep. For us it was a great way to use a Hilton free night reward. But for the cost either in points or dollars, I would still recommend shopping around the different brands of hotels you like, in the best location for you in New York depending on what your plans are. You may be able to find a lower-priced property that will still very well meet your needs.
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