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Tags: Hotel Openings / Tri-Pack Hotel / Hotel Delays / Budget Hotels / Sam Chang / Manhattan Hotels / → All Tags

It's Official: The Tri-Pack is Open

Ohhh wow. The Tri-Pack is open. Hooray!

We got The Real Deal in our inbox yesterday with some wonderful news: Sam Chang, the Manhattan budget-hotel guru himself, has finally lined up a buyer for the Tri-Pack — something he'd been having a hard time doing, which (we assume) was partly to blame for the opening delay here.

Recall that the Tri-Pack (or so we've dubbed it) is a Hampton Inn, Candlewood Suites and a Holiday Inn Express on West 39th Street, near Times Square. The Hampton Inn actually opened on Tuesday of last week, followed by the Candlewood Suites on Friday. The Holiday Inn is opening its doors today.

Unfortunately, TRD says the Hampton Inn was at a 20% occupancy rate the day after it opened. A couple things are probably to blame for this, though: rates are around $179 (kinda meh since you can get the Thompsons and whatnot for around that price these days) and, um, nobody really knew the place was open.

Tags: Hamptons Hotels / Hotel WiFi / Montauk Hotels / HotelChatter Reviews / → All Tags

Try to Keep Your Laptop Dry While Using Solé East's Free Poolside WiFi

Where: 90 Second House Road [map], Montauk, New York, United States, 11954

Solé East has mastered the ability to have that unique quality of being an "all play and no work" and an "all work and no play" destination thanks to their gift of free universal WiFi to guests.

The swanky, Euro-chic Montauk property has a strong wireless connection in the bungalow rooms and cabana suites, out by the heated pool, along the two rows of over-sized outdoor beds, in Backyard Restaurant — everywhere! Dare we say it: it's almost too much. We need to detach from the Mac. Yes, it is an amazing convenience, but after an 11am to 2pm outdoor work session we learned the hard way that laptop tan lines on the upper thighs are not a sexy look.

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Tags: Hotel Parties / Above Allen / Thompson Hotels / → All Tags

Thompson LES Shows Off Above Allen Space with Ronson Party

Where: 190 Allen Street [map], New York, New York, United States, 10002

Yeah, this is a rendering of Above Allen and it sucks. Any real photos of AA? Email us.

Alas, there were no chunks of twice recently died red locks of hair lying anywhere near the Thompson LES hotel. At the Made with Love Charlotte Ronson and Shoshanna Russ swimwear debut celebration hosted by Lucky Magazine, the only Lindsay that dared to bare (a little leg that is) at the hip downtown hotel was Lipstick Jungle's Lindsay Price.

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Tags: Film Festival Hotels / Tribeca Film Festival / Tribeca Hotels / → All Tags

Sunday Night Dinner and a Movie at The Tribeca Grand Hotel

Where: 2 Avenue of the Americas [map], New York, New York, United States, 10013

Just in time for the Tribeca Film Festival, Robert DeNiro will be making an appearance Sunday night at the Tribeca Grand Hotel. Kind of. Robert DeNiro in the form of the utterly psychotic Travis Bickle will flash across the silver screen inside the hotel. (You talkin' to me? You talkin' to me? You talkin' to me?) Who can resist?

We can't. The hotel is extending their Grand Life series from their AM Grand Sunday Brunch with complimentary kiddie films to the PM with screenings of classics and cult faves.

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Tags: Hotel Construction / Manhattan Hotels / Hotel Rumors / Hotel News / → All Tags

Is The Cooper Square Hotel Secretly Designing a Donut Room?

Where: 25 Cooper Square [map], New York, New York, United States, 10003

We know that donuts are the new cupcakes and all, but what is going on with the Cooper Square Hotel's so-called Donut Room?

A snooping room sleuth, Construction Graffiti, was conveniently having a few cocktails at the Cooper Square Hotel the other night and used slight inebriation as an excuse to go up to the hotel's under-construction 21st floor. Stealthy excitement!

Uncovered was "a donut-shaped room where the closets and toilets [were] in the donut-hole." Mmmmm....donuts.

Make no mistake: we'll be throwing stones toward this glass house. Apparently there are 360-degree wall-to-floor windows up in this room as well. Not to mention the duly-noted his and hers tubs!

Finished rooms that are not shaped like donuts start at $215; we'll bring you (and your inner Homer Simpson) more info on the mysterious space when the mystery is revealed.

Tags: Hotel Deals / Hotel Parking / Hotel Bars / Manhattan Hotels / → All Tags

Drink and Park on the Cheap at Bryant Park Hotel

Where: 40 West 40th Street [map], New York, New York, United States, 10018

Manhattan's Bryant Park Hotel knows how to hook a driving booze-hound up. Well, not exactly. They do keep the drinking and driving (read: parking) deals separate. During the work week, the overly stressed and recession fearing can over indulge in a three-hour happy hour starting at 5pm in the Cellar Bar (above). (The hotel's website says bad boys and girls go here to be discreetly naughty and listen to DJs spinning an eclectic mix of sounds.)

Come the weekend, the over-the-top lucky, or, bridge & tunnel crowd can take advantage of the shockingly kind (by New York City standards) complimentary valet parking on Friday and Saturday nights. So no need to worry about DWIs! The catch? A deluxe queen with a view still runs you roughly $319 a night. Also, you have to be a guest to enjoy such perks. That means out-of-towners in the city for work will likely never make it out of the hotel until noon each morning after.

Tags: Deal or No Deal / Mandarin Oriental Hotels / Sweet Suites / Hotel Deals / → All Tags

The Mandarin Oriental's Suite 5th Anniversary Offer

Where: 80 Columbus Circle [map], New York, New York, United States, 10023

"In these recessionary times" it takes a little digging to reward yourself with some seriously luxe discounts. Luxury brands, in their struggle to stay in business, are offering some steep discounts that at first glance seem amazing and like, totally bookable. But when you peel back the layers, is it really a deal?

Enter: New York's Mandarin Oriental. After clicking around on their site a bit, we found a sweet suite deal where rooms are as much as 50 percent off. That sounds great, right? But remember these are suites at the Mandarin Oriental in NYC where regular rooms in boom times go for as high as $1,000 a night. Again, for regular rooms.

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Tags: Hotel Renovations / W Hotels / Hotels-Near-Times-Square / Hotel News / → All Tags

W Times Square's New Look is 'Techno-Glam Cool'

Where: 1567 Broadway [map], New York, New York, United States, 10035

Someone just got a serious facelift and for once it's not Joan Rivers or Mickey Rourke. W New York-Time Square scored a full guestroom renovation in W Hotels Worldwide's attempt to keep up with the times, as well as with those young cats who were starting to find W's boutique chic pretty passe.

It's good timing too as W Hoboken and W New York-Downtown plan to be popping within the next year and aim to support the whole, 'We're still hip," hoopla we can't help but wonder if W can ever get back. (Just like we'll never believe Nicole Kidman is in her early 30's no matter how many wrinkles she zaps.)

Here's the kind of Botox and Restylane you can expect in your W Hotel room. According to a press release:

Each room glows with dramatic highs and lows of light and color bringing an element of techno-glam cool. In addition, each room offers guests a variety of entertainment options, from W Hotels' signature "Munchie" Box (W Hotels' re-invention of the traditional Mini Bar), retro-designed Tivoli radios, iPod docking stations, and large flat-screen televisions mounted for rotation to ensure comfortable viewing from anywhere in the room.

We have no idea what "techno-glam cool" means, but it makes us want to bring our roller skates! Room rates start at $319 (advance purchase rate) for a weekend stay.

[Photo via Hospitality.net]

Tags: Tax Relief Deals / Leona Helmsley / Manhattan Hotels / → All Tags

Leona Helmsley To Cover Your Room Tax From the Grave

Where: 212 E. 42nd Street [map], New York, New York, United States, 10017

If only hotel mogul Leona Helmsley — who famously said, "Only the little people pay taxes" — had served those 18 months of punishment in the slammer in 2009, she might have been a celebrated pop culture icon worthy of some good Daily Show and The Soup fodder.

Regardless, the late, great "Queen of Mean" certainly knows how to keep it newsworthy just in time for tax season. April 15th might as well be named Leona Helmsley Day as the New York Helmsley Hotel is offering tax-free rooms cheekily in her honor on the very day most of us file. Not too shabby considering New York city tax went up to 5.875 percent from 5 percent back in March.

That's right guests, now you too can dodge tax payment, only this time let Mrs. Helmsley's estate foot the tax bill for a night. (That's a savings of $50 on a $250 badly-in-need-of-renovations room.) How is that for some afterlife irony? Just stay away from Trouble.

Tags: Interviews / Hotel Staff / Celebrity Scoop / → All Tags

Sean Paul Tells Us His Own Hotel Room Confessions

Where: 151 West 54th Street [map], New York, New York, United States, 10019

HotelChatter contributor Shira Levine got the chance to interview Jamaican singing sensation Sean Paul while on assignment for HEEB magazine. But when Sean Paul revealed he had a past in hotel employment, she knew it was too good to pass up for HotelChatter. Here's what she learned.

Last week, Jamaican reggae and dancehall singer Sean Paul flew into New York for a few live shows in Manhattan and Queens. Come this summer, his fourth album will hit the streets, so we took the opportunity to chat up the "Gimme the Light" and "Like Glue" singer in his suite at The London NYC.

Sean Paul chooses typically to roll up in that spot because he digs the suite life. “It’s all suites in here," he said of the hotel's accommodations.

Speaking of sweet, random details, it turns out that long before he was a multi-award winning superstar, Sean Paul was on the academic track to a career working in hotel management. That's right, Sean Paul could have been a hot hotelier! Below, he dishes on what that was like.

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Tags: Hotel Video Tours / Sweet Suites / Manhattan Hotels / Penthouse Suites / Luxury Hotels / → All Tags

Newly Renovated Plaza Terrace Suites for $20K a Night

Where: Fifth Avenue at Central Park South [map], New York, New York, United States, 10019

We're not exactly sure how you go about fully getting your money's worth when paying $20K a night for The Plaza's recently renovated penthouse-level Royal Terrace Suite. We suggest not leaving for more than fifteen minutes because the room runs you roughly $833 an hour.

We were able to tour the Royal Terrace Suite, the largest (2,000 square feet) and priciest of the six glorious Manhattan penthouse suites. Alas, after careful consideration, we have come to the decision that we definitely do want to live in one, and we'll even settle for the $10,000 a night Edwardian Suite. How we'll make that happen? We aren't quite sure yet. But dire financial straits have us thinking UUUUGE! (Insert The Donald's voice, the man who once owned our future new pad.)

Here's a quick video for you to see what we're all worked up about. Tomorrow, we'll give you the full scoop on what's inside.

Tags: Hotel Restaurants / Susur Lee / Thompson Hotels / → All Tags

Shang is Shangalicious, But Not Recession-Friendly

Where: 190 Allen St. [map], New York, New York, United States, 10002

The New York Post's Steve Cuozzo is giving the thumbs-up "mmm-mmm good" to newly-opened Thompson LES' Shang Restaurant. He calls the chic eatery "an all-over-the-map mix'n'match of Chinese, Japanese, Malaysian and American styles and ingredients."

The only thing the Post really knocks is Shang's goofy PR statement that attempts to set the atmosphere: "Chinese wallpaper with erotica designs more than 600 years old creates a tantalizing escape." Yeah, perhaps they should hire a better copy writer. We're not sure what is tantalizing about 600-year-old erotica.

Otherwise, the food created by Hong Kong-born chef Susur Lee of the Toronto epicurean scene and who apparently "boldly matched TV's 'Iron Chef' Bobby Flay platter for platter to a culinary draw" is tasty by Cuozzo's palate, even though the timing for the restaurant's opening may not have been ideal.

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