SH*T SHOW! Hotel 48LEX New York

This hotel is situated in a fairly central location within walking distance of the Grand Central Terminal and many eateries, the reason I booked this hotel is the slightly lower cost than the surrounding luxury hotels and also being a part of the Hotels.com VIP program, as a Gold status I get perks which include credits and late check out. You can read my updated post on the Hotels.com loyalty program HERE.

CHECK IN

I got in at around 11:30am which is much earlier than the normal check-in time of 4pm. They told me that they can hold my luggage and come back at 2pm, I got back at around 2:30pm with my suitcase already in my room.

ROOM

This is a Suite room featuring separate living and bedroom. Unfortunately due to the time constraints I wasn't able to take a lot of photos and I didn't want to show the mess I left while I was in the room.

Upon entry, there is a minibar section with a sink and microwave. The problem I notice first thing is the lack of proper glass to make the drinks in, they do provide tea and coffee but I'm not sure how I am going to make them without proper glassware, am I supposed to pour cold water in the paper cup and put it in the microwave? There is a mini fridge but it's difficult to find the opening if you don't know where to look, there's also a dishwasher but I'm not sure what you are going to wash in there without any silverware, plates or cups.

Further into the room is the living room, comes with a 2 seater sofa and a separate 1 seater leather sofa, the working desk is average size and right on top of that is a large screen TV. Next to that is the bathroom, nicely layout with a large sink and shower, however the showerhead is not adjustable so you are stuck with one position. I was surprised that there were no bathrobes provided even though later during my stay I came upon the TV menu and upon scrolling through their amenities they do list that as one that is provided, I suspect some cost cutting going on here with the disappearance of cups and bathrobes which should be basic amenities in a top rated 4 star hotel (top rated according to Hotels.com anyway). There was no mention of service cut, restaurant closure or amenities temporarily being pulled from their rooms, which I would think is a critical piece of information that customers should be informed of prior to booking.

The temperature control was not able to go above 26.5 degrees which don't feel that warm at all, fortunately it wasn't even the coldest day in NYC but I had to put on a jacket because I could feel the cold air coming through the windows. The temperature control is for the entire suite so you won't have a separate section for the bedroom. There was a loud clanking noise which I assume was the AC unit but I thought it would be a central unit, after locating the source of the sound, I manage to open the panel which reveals the filter into the AC and it was filled with dirt, I wasn't sure how long ago was it cleaned but definitely been overdue for some time, and fortunately I'm not sleeping in the living area or have a room that has no separation because that noise would have driven me crazy.

The bedroom is located on the corner of the building which provides a view of the intersection, however there are large panels of glass sticking out on both sides of the corner (making some kind of a triangle) blocking some of the views out. A queen size bed is located here with 2 nightstands on each side, a closet space and a separate TV.

The view is not exactly great from that corner, based on the pictures I got from Hotels.com, they do have a better view on the other side but I suppose that's for people paying the premium pricing or booking directly with the hotel.

Going through the furniture I could tell they have aged badly and needed a revamp immediately, it feels like it is about to break at any second. Some update is also needed such as the work desk power strip as they don't really meet the modern requirements anymore.

There is free breakfast and pre-dinner drinks available for guests, but the breakfast offering is not extensive and VERY small in portion although the pre-dinner drinks can probably make up if you are a heavy loader. I was told to leave the breakfast order card out by midnight, which I did way before that. I was under the assumption they will leave it outside or something, but I woke up around 9:45am where the card I indicated to have it delivered between 9:30-10am, and at 10am I didn't see or hear anything so I called the reception to have them check it and after 10 minutes they delivered it. I got the overnight oats and a cup of tea, the photo may not pick up how small it is but the oats were about 3 spoons worth at most.

ISSUES

I was under the impression that the hotel is aware of the benefits I get as a Gold member with Hotels.com which are $30 credit, upgrade if available, early check-in if available, and guaranteed late check-out of 2 hours. I was informed to call in the morning to confirm the late checkout since I requested it during check-in and they said it's based on availability, I had another look at my booking confirmation in the morning and saw the guaranteed late checkout so I tried to communicate with Hotels.com and the hotel but the hotel insisted on sticking on their standard checkout time even after Hotels.com customer service tried to call the hotel to work something out. The customer representative on Hotels.com told me that late check out is always at the discretion of the hotel while I try to explain that is not what the booking confirmation stated as I had planned my day assuming that they are honouring based on the confirmation. The hotel receptionist wasn't willing to get the manager for me to file my complaint and said that they don't get communicated about perks of programs offered by third-party booking sites, so I am not sure how they know about the $30 credit which I assume is provided based on my Gold status unless it is offered to all the guests and Hotels.com scammed me into thinking it's a perk of being a Gold status member. Now going back to the booking page on Hotels.com, they stated that late check-out is based on availability, I am not sure when this was changed but if my booking confirmation stated that I get the perk I am under the assumption that they have to abide by that unless they resend me a new confirmation with the new updated policy.

I was told that I could use the lounge on level 2 to wait, but that is not the same given I will have to rush to get ready in the morning and not have a private space to work or relax.

COST CUTTING?

I'm not sure if this is a dirty tactic the hotel management is using, but not providing some of the basic amenities like bathrobes is pure lazy and good for their expenses report, meanwhile with their in-house restaurant not in operation, the $30 credit can only be spent in their lounge with very limited selection most likely just drinks/alcohol which doesn't cost a lot to the hotel anyway. Is this a way for them to lure people into staying at their property while they cut costs by offering a credit that cannot be used? Not to mention they also charge over $40 (+5.90 which I assume is the card fees) for the resort fee, they stated that it is to cover costs for food and cleaning, which is rather ridiculous given that the food was not worth a few dollars and I don't think they pay their cleaners over $30 to clean that room.

CHECKOUT

After checking out, I went out for lunch and went back to the lounge which they informed me will have drinks options for me to purchase, or complimentary tea and coffee however it was unstaffed more than half the time I was there so I didn't end up getting anything and didn't spend any of my credit. I tried to get a cup of tea but I didn't know how to operate the water machine so I didn't get any drink for half the time there until the staff came in and show me how to use it. The staff working the bar doesn't speak good English and has a very heavy Italian accent (if I guessed it correctly) so it is a bit challenging to work out what she was trying to say. Anyway, I think there's a huge lack of understanding and communication between the staff since I keep getting different messages from them about various issues/topics.

CONCLUSION

The hotel is located in a convenient spot with good access to the subway which goes directly to JFK and LGA connection points, and within walking distance to some tourist spots like Grand Central Terminal and UN. I was somewhat deceived during check-in that they will be very accommodating and while I also take responsibility that I didn't communicate or check properly for the late checkout, I feel like they were giving me more excuses than actually wanting to improve and review their booking policy with third party sites. The staff also gave the impression that they have no idea what the hotel policy is, I was given multiple different checkout times from the moment I check in to when I check out, while they said I could access their lounge after check out and use my credit, it was unstaffed so I couldn't purchase any beverages, if they know that the staff don't start until a certain time they should have informed me but they either have no clue what's going on up there or that they simply chose to ignore and not give that information out.

The room condition was deteriorating especially the furniture which seems fragile and could break at any moment. There were missing basic amenities like cups (not the paper ones left in the cupboard) and bathrobes. The air conditioning was loud and don't provide enough heating, there's a lot of work for the hotel to do to get it back up to standard, the staff will have to get back into training because there has to be some sort of standard being set and not made up as they go, communication is very critical and especially with the rather unique situation I was in, the hotel will have to review its policy and their relationship with third-party booking sites to be sure that they are on the same page, as a customer I shouldn't have to call the hotel and inform them of the benefits I have received or am entitled to according to the third party, these should be sorted out between the hotel and the booking sites. I cannot recommend this hotel without some of the more critical and essential things sorted, if you can find something within this price range and is of similar category, I would suggest trying somewhere else instead.