The Quin

My wife and I are experienced travellers. This was our third trip to NYC. This review is not just about the hotel but about NYC for tourists in general. In short, we had planned six days but, alas, left after one. Why? Simple. NYC is too expensive for what you get. It has priced itself out of the market. I think NYC has hit a tipping point here, and with the new mayor, fees and taxes on tourists are unlikely to go down. We landed at JFK airport, which I had never been to before, but it was not a world-class experience, more of a grim third-world experience. After two plus hours, including a train ride, we finally managed to get an Uber to Manhattan. Our trip fare was $81.97 USD for a 35-minute ride, ok. However, after 9, that's right, NINE surcharges (including a wait time surcharge), adding 33% (essentially a tax), plus with FX (we are Canadian), we shelled out $152.96 CAD for our ride in. We arrived late at the Quin, checked in. There were police in the lobby for some reason. We were hungry but were told there was no room service. There was a restaurant, but it was closed. We inquired whether there was a restaurant nearby; yes, there was, but the clerk could not give us directions. So the solution is pizza in. Tasted fine, but as a modest medium pizza, it cost $42 CAD, of course. The delivery person left it downstairs, and nobody at the hotel told us or bothered to bring it up. The hotel's floors are cramped. The room was small but comfortable with a slightly tired motel feel. The closet was unusable for hanging things, just strange. You got two bottles of water for free. I guess at $900 CAD a night (which includes six separate taxes and fees - punitive taxation?), you should not expect anything else. We were disappointed and ultimately decided to keep our money and leave, with, yes, another $150 ride to the airport. Overall, the stay experience at the Quin was equivalent to a stay at our local motel at $110 CAD a night, they even give you free pastries. Yes, people will say, but you are in New York! True, but that is the problem. Outrageously over-priced hotels are one thing, but everything else touristy is over priced. At some point, things become too expensive; the value isn't there, despite the hype. One example, I thought it would be fun to go to the top of the Empire State Building. Iconic right? I thought it would be free, ride up, take a look, then go on your way. If not, perhaps a $5 or $10 ticket, which seems pricey to look out a window. Actual price for two people $310 USD or $434 CAD! Just to look at a view. All of this is to say we came away feeling NYC is not tourist-friendly, unless you are the 1%. The assumption seems to be that tourists will always want to come to NYC and you can charge them anything and they will pay. Cash cows. Well, these two travellers realised that NYC is no longer a good value and won't get better, so they won't be back. Good luck!

Stayed two nights to celebrate our anniversary. Great location on 57th and 6th. Close to Central Park, Carnegie Hall, lots of restaurants, subway and walkable to much. Room was large for NYC, modern bathroom. We were on 6th floor facing 57th and not noisy at all. Two elevators and not long waits. No complaints. Comfortable bed, but would’ve preferred firmer pillows!

SAFETY ALERT We stayed for 3 nights in October. Brought up our concern with the glass shower door not being safely fastened and slamming hard. The front desk staff did nothing. My husband nearly guillotined his finger. He had bruises and cuts on both sides. We replicated the incident with a bar of soap (video attached) and it chopped it clean in half without us applying any force to close the door. Could have been so much worse if it was a kid or someone with smaller fingers. Was also very upset it took two complaints to the front desk to send a manager and engineer up to our room to fix it (they didn’t). They offered us some Hilton points and ice. But somehow, we only ever received the ice… Very disappointed in the service and staff’s response. This should be a nicer Hilton, especially given the location. For the price and attention to customer’s needs (let alone safety), stay somewhere else.

My husband and I live in Africa and we get together with family in NYC each year to visit my mother. My husband and I enjoyed our week-long stay at The Quin last year, so we booked again for this year. Last year, The Quin accepted cash at check-in as well as check-out, and we were expecting the same this year, since neither the hotel nor the booking agent advised of any special conditions to note regarding payment. When we arrived on the afternoon of Saturday 25th October, we were informed that they needed to put a hold on a credit card for the entire amount of the stay at check-in. Although we were prepared to pay IN CASH for the entire stay upfront, the manager, Brandon, refused to accept this or any other arrangement. He was dismissive and condescending, and could not care less that we would not be able to check in at all, since we could not even deposit our cash in the bank as it was already closed. We finally managed to check in only because my sister came to the rescue with her credit card. The incident spoilt our stay at The Quin. It was also entirely avoidable, had the hotel only been clear from the outset what its requirements were at check-in, especially since these had changed since last year. They had sent several emails prior to our arrival but none of the emails addressed this at all. Aside from the above incident, we would like to send a shout-out and say a special thank-you to Nima, one of the porters, who assisted us with our luggage upon check-out all the way to Madison Avenue due to the streets being closed for the NYC marathon. His attitude exemplified real customer service which Brandon certainly lacked.

Worst NYC hotel we have stayed at! Maybe it’s ok if you’re a Hilton club member but we paid a ridiculous high amount for an extremely NOISY corner suite. The room itself was nice, housekeeping excellent, good nespresso coffee machine , shower was nice, water replenished daily. Negatives: price( $5400 incl tax for 4 nights)common areas worn, doormen mostly stand around and don’t do anything, mattress marginal, pillows thin and squishy, weird clear glass door encasing toilet, no breakfast included in my price. Maybe an interior room is less noisy. Didn’t have one in my category to move to. A lesser room was offered but front desk said I’d have to talk to manager to possibly get that lower room rate, forget that nonsense! We stuck it out with little sleep despite earplugs!! Location of hotel is decent. Room size is spacious. My advice is find another hotel in the area!