Monday, July 25, 2016

Roger Smith Boutique Hotel Review

My stay in the city in June was at the Hotel Roger Smith, a three star hotel on Lexington Avenue. I have stayed in this area before, at the InterContinental New York Barclay, it's a fabulous area. I wanted to see what the difference from a 3 star and 4 star would be. This hotel has been around since 1929, purchased from the Roger Smith Group in 1938. 
This is the lobby. It's a very quaint design, old fashioned kind of hotel. 
They offer granola and yogurt in the lobby. One couple took a look at the yogurt, and the guy said to the girl "oh you don't want this it has 11 grams of sugar" and put it back. I just chuckled to myself. 
This very cool mailbox or letterbox was right near the vintage elevators.  
My junior suite was not ready when I arrived, so I was upgraded to a deluxe suite but didn't get in until close to 4pm. I had things to do, and couldn't wait at the hotel for the room to be ready. The decor was interesting, to say the least. It was pretty large, I will say.  
When I walked in, the air was not turned on, so it was an oven. I was not too happy, and turned on both air conditioners, and headed out again shortly after I unpacked.  


A mini kitchen area, microwave, Nespresso machine and fridge.  
The bedroom area was pretty large, photos above and below plus another tv.  



My view from one of the many windows.  
The extremely small bathroom 


 Positives: 
  • Room service (delivery from local restaurants and option to charge to room)
  • Gym passes to New York Sports Club
  • Assorted Greek yogurt and granola bar and fresh seasonal fruit
  • Apple computers and printer in lobby
  • Seasonal rooftop bar with city views, plus another bar with happy hour
  • 10 minute walk to MOMA and Rockefeller Center
  • Lexington and Fifth Avenue shopping 
  • Short walk to several subway lines

I am not one to be looking for a cookie-cutter chain hotel, but things like above should not be in your room. It's just common upkeep of a hotel to not have peeling wallpaper, peeling paint on a table, and some kind of large mark on the dresser in the bedroom. These are easy fixes in my opinion. 

Negatives: 
  • $25.00 Resort Fee (as of 06/25/19) 
  • No Fitness Center on site 
  • No Restaurant on site 
  • Very worn furniture, wallpaper peeling in room 
  • Old fashioned air conditioners in rooms
  • No outlets in lobby to charge devices 
  • Bathroom very tiny, no space for toiletries 
  • Outlets in room not near chairs or bed 
501 Lexington Ave @ 47th Street 
New York, NY 10017
212-755-1400

1-800-445-0277

136 rooms, guest rooms - junior and deluxe suits -   
Location: Midtown East 

Three Star Hotel 
Established in 1929 as Hotel Winthrop, purchased by Roger Smith Corp. in 1938
Valet Parking
Non Smoking Hotel  
Free WiFi
Pets are allowed, under 20 pounds, fees involved 
Trip Advisor Ranking 156 of 475 (as of 07/09/16)
Trivago Rating 80 out of 100 (as of 07/09/16)
Price Range: $199 - $440 (Based on Average Rates for a Standard Room) US Dollars



Hotel prices are at their lowest in the months of January and February; their highest September and October. Sunday nights are the lowest prices for hotel rooms, in most cases. My go to places for checking prices for hotels are TrivagoTrip AdvisorHotels.com and Travelzoo. I am learning quite a bit about booking hotels during this process of featuring different hotels on this blog. 

Always remember to check the hotel's website itself, they are really trying to have you book direct and sometimes offer specials or a discount with AAA that is cheaper than the websites I mentioned above. I am also finding that if you book on your mobile device, you can save some money as well. I actually got a better rate via my mobile phone than using my AAA discount online direct at the hotel. You should really do some research on your price for hotel a few different ways, and ALWAYS book a room that you can cancel, you never know what may happen in the future. 

Remember to take into account for your total cost the NYC Hotel tax of 14.75% plus Daily $2.00 per room occupancy fee.

Would I stay at the Roger Smith Hotel again? I don't believe so. Even though a clean hotel, and excellent location, just not my type of hotel. The worn furniture in the rooms, the peeling wallpaper and just overall dated look didn't impress me. If you need a stay in the city, and funds are limited, you will be okay staying here. The funny thing is, I actually paid less for my stay at the amazing Giraffe Hotel than this hotel. Do your research, always book when you can cancel, and keep your options open when choosing your New York City Hotel. I would not pay more than $200 per night to stay here, you can do much better. 

My rating for this hotel, on a scale of 1 to 10 with 10 being perfect in every way, is a 5. 


Be sure to sign up for my future posts, so you do not miss the next hotel review. You can also follow me on Instagram for live photos during my stay, and see where the next stay will be! 


Disclosure: This stay was paid for by me. I will always state at the end of each review whether my stay was paid for by myself or if I was hosted by the hotel. I will honestly tell you about my experience at this hotel, not being swayed in any way by complimentary services. I know you value my opinion, and it is important to me to be as honest as possible. All opinions are my own. Thank you so much.

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