The Lowell

We feel like this is our “home” when we go into Manhattan for little staycations! It is unassuming elegance with friendly service and an Upper East Side townhouse vibe. Also, it’s one of the few family-owned hotels in NYC and you can feel the attention that results. It’s a small property that you could easily miss if you were just walking by. It’s just off Madison Avenue, but the hotel feels very residential. We drive in and feel a sense of calm as soon as we pull our car out in front and a bellman and doorman come to greet us. I love that they’ll send up some beverages to the room when we arrive. There is a great little restaurant that serves a lovely high tea, a breakfast room, fitness center, bar, and lounge area. I book through the Leaders Club membership, but you could easily also book directly through the hotel’s website. We’ve stayed here a number of times, and I do have to say that this time there were a few “glitches.” One was that it was never expressed to us that while our suite category said on the booking site that we can ask for a room with a terrace, which I did in the requests section, it never mentioned that there was an extra $200 charge for that. The hotel calls you before your arrival, and I had asked for a terrace verbally then, too, and the hotel person on the phone never mentioned that either. So we were a bit surprised when we got the folio and had to call to ask about it. We likely would have accepted this to get the terrace anyway, but it was the surprise that annoyed me. Also, a couple of days later we got a revised folio that had a mini bar charge of more than $50 when we just had one bottle of tonic from the mini bar. I called and it turned out that they had made an error and put someone else’s charge onto our account. Of course they immediately fixed this. All in all, though, we love this place and would highly recommend it to anyone who wants to feel taken care of and have a calm respite in Manhattan.

Join LHW and take advantage of upgrades. All the rooms are great but especially the suites and the ones with a fireplace.

If you would like to experience living in your own Upper East Side luxury apartment with friendly doormen who remember you, staff who meet your requests with smiles and speedy resolution and gorgeous, charming rooms, this is your hotel. Excellent food, charming bars and a fantastic location are the silk bow on a beautiful jewel box of a hotel.

We had an excellent stay and we will definitely stay again. A beautiful hotel, very well located, the service was wonderful.

This was our third time to stay at this hotel and we love it more and more each time. The staff is so friendly, the hotel is beautiful and comfortable. Even when it's busy, it never feels stressful. It's a wonderful retreat from the hustle and bustle of the city.