Crowne Plaza HY36 MIDTOWN MANHATTAN by IHG

The hotel is located on W 34th Street, right on bustling 8th Avenue in Midtown Manhattan. It offers pretty good value for money. The surrounding area is extremely lively, teeming with all sorts of New York City elements: diverse people, various smells (urine, sweat, perfume, and one particularly nauseating odor I can't quite pinpoint), and constant siren wails. Surprisingly, it gets relatively quiet at night. Funnily enough, overnight, by morning, the streets become surprisingly clean and tidy. Transportation in the area is very convenient; it's very close to both the train and bus stations. The Empire State Building and Macy's are also within walking distance. There's an Essen restaurant right at the corner, and their food is very reasonably priced. The hotel lobby isn't large. The check-in and check-out process was smooth, though they require a $200 deposit. There's a small lounge area where you can relax if you've checked out and have nowhere else to go; nobody bothers you. The room was clean and comfortable, equipped with all the necessary amenities. There's no complimentary bottled water, but you can get free water from the 6th floor; I didn't bother going, partly because it seemed like a hassle and partly because I suspected it might just be tap water. There were no slippers, toothbrush, toothpaste, or a kettle, just a capsule coffee machine, which I didn't know how to operate. The bed was very high and too soft. There were four pillows, but no duvet cover; instead, the comforter was sandwiched between two flat sheets. I wonder if that's standard practice here.