The Maxwell NYC

College and family visits have brought us to NYC multiple times over the past year and a half, and having just stayed at The Maxwell, we have decided this is our "residence" in the city. My husband and I decided on a vacation for just the two of us to see family and some Broadway shows. We chose this property because of its proximity to Times Square and it was also two blocks from a Hertz rental location (rented a car for the day to see family in NJ). From the moment we walked in the door, we had nothing but incredible interactions with everyone we encountered working at the property. At first, I thought we lucked out when we were assisted by Elizabeth Pantaleon. Her smile was so welcoming and she went out of her way to inquire about the availability of a king-size bed for our four-night stay. We are Marriott Bonvoy members and are able to get an upgrade at some properties when (and if) available. We were not expecting to get an incredible room with a massive balcony and it really made our get-away from our teenagers so amazing that we could imagine retiring there! The daily breakfast was the perfect start to our busy days in the city, and there we had the pleasure of meeting another incredible member of The Maxwell team, Alex Salamanco. He greeted us every morning with enthusiasm and, by our second morning, knew how we liked our eggs. We looked forward to seeing him every morning and by the time we left, he was giving us travel tips and recommendations of European restaurants. We thought that, surely, we have lucked out and are getting people on a good day, until we ran into the lovely ladies cleaning our room: Marie M. Legerme and Regine Dieujuste. They were as nice and sweet and helpful as the other staff members we had met, and at this point we felt that something must be truly different about the property. Sometimes a hotel is a hotel, a room is a room, and a comfortable bed is a comfortable bed. But what sets apart a property and makes it stand out is the way is is represented by the people working there every day. We travel all over the world and have stayed at some incredible properties, and The Maxwell not only delivers with location, room quality, and hotel amenities, the real draw is the incredible staff that represent the hotel every day. Thank you Elizabeth Pantaleon, Alex Salamanco, Marie M. Legerme, and Regine Dieujeste for helping to create such a memorable vacation.

Just checked out of the Maxwell Hotel. I’ll start with the good. The good: My husband and I arrived on Sunday to go to a graduation. I called the hotel to get a florist recommendation. I was able to order a bouquet of flowers and I had them delivered to the hotel before we arrived. We ended up getting caught in terrible traffic which caused us a 2 hour delay. I called the hotel and spoke to Dennis who told me that he was afraid that my flowers were going to start to wilt. So he put them in our room in a pitcher of water. I thought it was really nice of him. The gym is also pretty nice. They have plenty of machines and weights. The location is also great. . They also give you a $30 credit towards the bar downstairs when you arrive which makes up for the “resort” fee that NYC hotels now charge. Ok the bad… I stayed at this hotel maybe 10 years ago when it was the W. It was great and stylish then. Now its just worn down. I am a titanium member with Marriott Bonvoy and I used my Suite rewards for this reservation. I was happy to have my one-bedroom suite confirmed a few days before. When we arrived it was clear that this hotel is just the worn down W. The wall paper was peeling in the bathroom. The bench in our room was filthy. And take a look at our “view”. I wish I didn’t waste my suite reward for this. Also when my husband and I were trying to find the gym on the 4th floor we ended up in the deserted former bliss spa area. I guess we used the wrong elevator but I am unsure how we even ended up there. We were wandering around trying to find the entrance to the gym until we realized we had to use the other set of elevators. The service at breakfast was horrible as well. The line to get checked in took about 5-10 minutes. Once seated we had to wait forever for our food. Then I got the bill when my meal should have been free as a titanium member. Again I had to wait to get it resolved by the manager. So overall… meh. If you are able to get a good deal then I would still stay here. I had a Sunday deal of only $127 for the night that I prepaid. If you are a Marriott elite member do not waste your suite nights here. Not worth it.