I had a couple of things to do inside and outside of New York City back in July during my stay, so I spread my visit across two different hotels, one downtown and one uptown. You might know that I’m also quite in love with hotels and struggle with more than four or five nights in the same one — I get bored — so variety is key!
My first hotel was The Thompson Guiildhall, down on Wall Street, which turned out to be very convenient to the Women’s World Cup Parade. (Yey Team USA!) It was also convenient to the World Trade Center Memorial, where I spent a couple of hours one morning. (And then returned to the hotel and had a glass of wine.)
Although The Thompson was a tiny bit worn around the edges and the bathroom wasn’t my favorite — it was super small — I loved the decor of my room and the huge ass TV. I don’t normally watch a lot of TV when I travel (or at all, really), but I am totally in love with the Property Brothers and was eager to do a little gorging. (The amount of HGTV I watch when I’m in the States suggests that maybe I should get into property.)
What I liked and didn’t like:
- The glass of prosecco they poured me upon arrival.
- The location and the little coffee shop on the corner.
- The proximity to multiple bagel shops.
- The convivial bar.
What I didn’t like:
- The bathroom was a tad basic for my tastes. I like a bit more space. I know this is NYC but…
- They do this thing where they have mini gyms on each floor. One treadmill and one elliptical and some free weights. I like how they are trying to maximize their space, but it’s a little weird to be in such a small room with one other person. I felt like I was invading on their workout.
- In general, everything was a little run down and worn and torn. Not by a huge amount, but dings on the walls, scratches on the furniture, etc.
- Wine at the bar was not cheap. (This may be a greater New York City problem, of course.)
- It was practically impossible to get a taxi to Penn Station when I left the hotel on a Sunday afternoon, and I made my train by the skin of my teeth. The doorman and I were both at our wits’ end. He promised it’s never normally like that but…
Would I stay here again? Maybe…while the hotel was convenient for my needs at the time, I probably would stay more in Greenwich Village/Soho next time or more midtown. It’s definitely a quality property though so if you have a lot of business to conduct in the Wall Street area, I’d give it a go.
I booked the Thompson Hotel on Hotwire at the bargain price of $183 USD before taxes. With fees, it was $232 USD, which I think is extremely reasonable for a hotel of this quality in Manhattan. Read my post on how I save money on hotels using Hotwire.
