Adventures in Blind Hotel Booking: The Hudson for $139

May 3, 2010 at 4:06 PM | by juliana | Comments (2)

Quikbook got into the blind booking game back in early March so after having done Hotwire in Hollywood and Travelocity in Las Vegas with reasonable success, we hit up QB for our trip last week to New York.

We settled on a deal for $139 in the Central Park area for a superior room with a queen bed (it's just us traveling.) Looking around at what else Quikbook was offering in that area we guessed it would be either Six Columbus or The Hudson Hotel.

Quikbook emailed us immediately with a confirmation saying that we had booked the room for $139 but it took a few more hours until we received the actual email telling us which hotel it was (Travelocity and Hotwire do this instantaneously.) And for everyone who guessed the hotel on Friday, you were right! It was The Hudson. And it was certainly a deal. Room rates were going for over $200 that night on various other sites.

But before we go any further with this review, we need to confess something. We made the mistake of Twittering to our friends about our Quikbook experience as it happened, forgetting that some Morgans Hotel Group people follow us. Sure enough, when we arrived at check-in, we were upgraded to a room with a queen bed (this sort of room goes for about $359 a night or $100 more than the standard room.) When we asked the person we suspected for the upgrade, she told us it was not her. So was it Quikbook-related? Doubtful.

In short, we don't feel we can fairly review this room for you since it's probably not the one Quikbook had set aside for us. But honestly, we would have been fine with the ~~coffin-sized~~ smaller rooms. We spent two hours in the room before going out to dinner and then when we returned home, it was time for bed. The next morning, we woke up, went for a run, packed and showered and checked-out for a total of four conscious hours in the room. But it's true, we did enjoy the extra space.

Nevertheless, here's what we liked and didn't like.

Liked
· The room was at the end of the hallway, away from smokey cigarette smell and featured two windows with two different vantage points.
· We actually liked the kinky peekaboo bathroom. Then again, we were by ourselves. Plus it came with a bathrobe!
· The Agua bath toiletries are delicious.
· The location. We went for a run in Central Park in the morning.
· The hotel's public spaces are still quite fascinating like the chandelier at check-in and the terraces.

Didn't Like
· The room was far away from the elevator bank which required a long walk and a few twists and turns to get to.
· There was no full-length mirror.
· The bathroom was a little cramped and the shower head was fussy.
· There was no mini-bar of goodies.
· WiFi was $10 a day.
· Up on the guest floors, it felt like a factory of hotel rooms and guests. Not so pretty.
· The street noise is unavoidable. Light sleepers may want an extra glass of wine before bed or bring earplugs.

Bottom Line: For a rate of $139 (close to $189 with taxes), this is about what you should pay for one of the Hudson's small rooms. Yet while the rooms are cramped and the crowd is mostly Europeans with nicotine habits, the location is stellar--right near Columbus Circle and Central Park South--and the staff were all very friendly, from the front desk agents to the bellman, doormen and servers.

We'll have more on the hotel's public spaces tomorrow but overall, we'd say the Hudson still has a certain appeal for tourists looking for a stylish stay that isn't too far from all the must-see NYC sights.

Comments (2)

Return to » Adventures in Blind Hotel Booking: The Hudson for $139

I really like how the small rooms "envelop" you. Granted, there's no place to put anything, but the bed is so comfy, and that makes everything ok for me.

But the biggest issue I find with the Hudson? In their small rooms, the bathroom is downright miniscule. You have to be Mini-me to be able to move around. I'll put it this way...the bathrooms are not for the average American traveler, they'd get stuck.

I think at most Chatwal properties this may be the issue as well. Recently stayed at "The Stay" and "The Night", I felt like I kept running into walls for no reason.

Hotel fanatic indeed, and design oriented as well...but for the guest's comfort sake...think about ergonomics and comfortableness as well Mr. Jewelry Man

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