The Benjamin Royal Sonesta New York

We stayed at the Benjamin Royale Sonesta for 6 nights at the end of May to celebrate our Anniversary. The hotel itself is ideally situated for a short walk to Times Square, The Empire State Building and The Rockefeller Centre. The Hotel staff were very friendly and the room was spacious for a large city hotel and kept very clean (see photos) The one thing I think it misses out on is a bar/restaurant but I knew this wasn’t an option before traveling. There are restaurants and bars close by including budget ones like McDonalds and Panda Express as well as more expensive options. A little more about the room. Bed was comfortable. Bathroom was well lit and a nice shower it had blinds on the windows which stopped you seeing what view you had but on looking out the windows were dirty so that stopped the view anyway. They also had black out blinds on the windows which to be honest were a pain one in particular was already broken when we arrived late evening I had to fiddle around to get it to work, i reported it the next day it was semi fixed but we struggled with it for the rest of our stay. There were 3 lifts that serve the floors in the hotel so you could experience a small wait time. We were on the 14th floor and they say New York is a city that never sleeps and you could hear that. Not sure why the windows allowed so much noise though but you could audibly here car horns (multiple) and emergency service sirens (multiple) I guess if you’re local it’s background noise and you soon get use to it. Finally would I stay here again….the answer is yes which should be good enough review in itself.

Amazing Service and the room was fantastic. Room are spacious and bed are comfortable, also the pillow program is a great way to give you a great night sleep. If you are traveling with kids get the Owl program for them, they will love it. Great stay and highly recommend the hotel. Good location as well.

Stayed here last week for 7 nights in a balcony suite, 2 friends, so we could make use of the sleeper-sofa and effectively have a bedroom each. The suite was spacious and very clean. The balcony was very small with only one chair so we didn't really use it. With air bnbs no longer allowed in New York, this is a good alternative in order to have a bit more space, especially having a small kitchenette, however there is no hob, just a microwave, coffee maker and fridge freezer. A toaster at least would be a great addition. There is only one mirror in the suite (apart from the bathroom) and doesn't have electric sockets next to it, fortunately I always take an extension lead...🤣 As other reviews have mentioned, the AC (particularly in living area) is very noisy and intermittently turned off during the night in the bedroom. Overall, this is an excellent hotel for a week's stay. The staff are amazing - couldn't be more helpful or polite and I would 100pc recommend this hotel for a midtown stay and wouldn't hesitate in rebooking for next trip to NY.

We had a lovely stay last week. The hotel is lovely in an ideal location. The air conditioning is very loud though. The restaurant was being refurbished while we were staying and there is no room service available. Kitchenette is room is ideal. It took us a few nights to get used to the noisy streets below but the air conditioning does drown this out. Would definitely stay again.

We stayed here for the first time during spring break. We are locals but needed a stay-vacation this year for a variety of reasons. We won’t two nights. It probably goes without saying that location is everything when staying in NYC and it is hard to think of a better “home base” than this. A ton of great restaurants near by and public transportation, but you’re not smack in the middle of tourist traps of Times Square, etc. Right from our arrival, I was really impressed with the staff. This is a professional team that clearly takes pride in their work. It shows in their responsiveness and how they present themselves to guests. Top tier all the way. Rooms were cute - art deco style is my fav for NYC spaces and this was very well done. The bed and bedding were comfy and cozy. We had a one bedroom with a sofa bed and our son slept great on the fold-out. I can’t leave a review without commenting on the pillow menu which was awesome - and kind of a fun thing for the family. We all found a favorite. I need to find the Swedish memory pillow. It was great! The pillow situation can really make or break a hotel stay so I think this is a brilliant service. Only two items for improvement - first, the AC unit was loud turning on and off in the night. We turned the fan on low the second night and it was better. We also didn’t care for the heavy coffee table - moving it each night for the fold-out was a two person job. It just seems like an odd choice. I would recommend asking housekeeping to help move it if you’re not a super strong person! Bottom line I loved this place and will be back.