Zach

I'm trying to decide between these two. My wife and I are going to NYC for the first time in August. I can get a one-bedroom suite at Beacon for $170/night, or can stay at Park South in an Executive Room (larger than their standard) for about $182/night. The Park South rate would include a $60 dining certificate at Black Duck, two tickets to Rent and continental breakfast each day. Your opinions are greatly appreciated. Thanks!

msmiller

Wow, I would recommend Hotel Beacon without hesitation, having stayed there twice with various family members for 5 days at a time. We had a standard "king" room for $145 and a 1-BR suite for ~$180. No meals were included, but major grocery stores literally across the street allowed those who were interested in eating in the room to get supplies for minimal cost; there was a restaurant literally next door for breakfast, etc.

The Park South rate sounds like it has lots of perks; where is it? Do you need a suite, i.e, need a room for more than 2 people? Tickets to Rent, if you're interested in that performance, would certainly be worth the difference in hotels.
(I'm curious about your info for when we go back to NYC!)

Zach

Park South is near Gramercy Park, about 3 to 3.5 miles from Hotel Beacon. Not having been to New York, which would be a better location? We certainly don't have problems taking the subway all over town, but it sounds like the Beacon is near some nice upscale grocery stores and shops. Can anyone weigh in on the Gramercy Park area? How does that compare to Midtown? Thanks.

johnpressman

Having grown up on the Upper West Side, near the Hotel Beacon, I would not recommend staying there. Once you get north of 59th street where Central Park begins, you are somewhat isolated as the park forms a barrier to cross-town travel. In addition, while the Beacon is close to the Museum of Natural History and the Hayden Planetarium, you are in an uptown residential area. Stay further south in Midtown. The hotel in Grammercy Park, while not ideal, will give you access to Times Square, Macy's, Empire State Building and a jumping-off place to see Greenwich Village, Chinatown and other downtown sights. In NYC without a car, location is everything and you will want to stop by your hotel to change clothes for the evening, rest your tired feet, etc. as you will be walking around a lot (possibly in the rain).

mclaurie

The Park South Hotel is at 28th St on the east side. The Beacon is on 75th St. on the upper west side. Midtown is generally considered to be between 34th-59th. Both areas are nice. 75th is more residential, 28th is combo residential & business.

Tickets to Rent are readily available at the discount TKTS booth or online at discount sites like Playbill.com, theatermania.com etc. I'm not sure what the price would be-perhaps $45-55/ticket. The Black Duck is in the hotel & gets a good review in the Zagat Guide. They estimate the price of dinner for one including one drink & tip at $43.

The Beacon has gotten good reviews here (do a text search). Don't know too much about the Park Central. On one website I looked at, the Park South is rated 4* while the Beacon is rated 3*.

Either sound good to me. A lot of the areas that tourists like- Soho, Greenwich Village, Chinatown, Staten island Ferry are closer to 28th st. The Beacon is close to the Museum of Natural History and Lincoln Center.

In the end, I think it depends on how much a suite & a kitchenette are worth to you & whether you'd want to see Rent anyway.

jem

Hi Zach,
We stayed at the Park South last fall and were very pleased with it. The hotel's only a couple of years old and everything still had a "new" feeling. The room was nothing special, but everything was clean, the bed was comfy, and they had some nice shampoo and soap in the bathroom. The subway stop was right on the corner, which was great and there is a drugstore next door, which was helpful when we discovered we'd forgotten our antihitamines. We got a certificate for free cocktails in the lounge/restaurant downstairs, which we redeemed for martinis. Free breakfast was served in the same place--coffee, juice, good selection of sweet rolls, yogurt, cold cereals and granola, and fruit. There are a number of very good restaurants in this area--Les Halles, Tabla, Eleven Madison Avenue, Gramercy Tavern, etc. Also, lots of inexpensive places, including ethnic shops where you can get some pretty tasty treats. With all the extras they're throwing at you, I'd go for the Park South.

GoTravel

I've not stayed at The Beacon but I love the Park South Hotel. Great location (1/2 block from the Lex), pretty lobby and rooms, and great service. I stayed there in March.

Meesthare

Another vote for the Beacon. Stayed there last year - loved the hotel, and particularly loved the location. Close to everything and in a great neighbourhood for walking.

Nina66

We just returned from our second two week stay at the Beacon. I can't say enough about the hotel or the neighborhood. It's nice to do other things during the day and then return to this relatively quiet area with lots of restaurants, and stores of all kinds within a few blocks of the hotel. The subway is only a block away and it took us about 15 minutes to get to and from the theater district at night. All of the spacious rooms have kitchenettes. Great when you don't want to get up early to have your 'free' breakfast or dress to go out to a restaurant for breakfast. Fairway, across the street and Zabar's a few blocks away, have great take out food and Fairway has wonderful produce. Of course you won't be cooking or eating in your room every day, but when you want do, you will be happy that you have the option. It was always easy to get a cab either in front of the hotel or across the street, day or night. Ask for a corner room as high up as possible and you may be pleasantly surprised, as we were last year, to see the top Empire State Building from one window and a view of the park from the other. Love the Hotel Beacon and the UWS.

We never felt too far away or isolated from anything that we wanted to see or do. The staff at the Beacon is very welcoming and helpful and the rooms and common areas are well maintained.

Nina66

The suites at the Beacon are spacious, and having two separate rooms, especially for $170 per night, is a real bargain. Major advantages are privacy, even if there are only two of you, and you have space to spread out and move around.

Rob

The Beacon is ideally located for travel downtown, uptown, cross town or any where you want to go. Central Park is not a barrier to crosstown travel - you can get a crosstown bus at 72nd St or 79th St. One writer implied you could get to TImes Square faster from the Gramercy Park area. - not so. Actual travel time from 72 to 42 on the express train is just over 3 minutes. The station is less than a 5 minute walk from the hotel. The hotel is on 75th ST.