Renaissance Hotel
218 West 35th Street at 7th Avenue, New York, New York 10001, USA
Why We Like It
A brewing community is forming at the Renaissance and that a corporate hotel can offer a vibrant crowd of locals and travelers speaks to the efforts made on the hotel’s behalf to make it feel like a true New York experience. The rooms are comfortable and convenient for life on the road.
Fodor's Expert Review
The Renaissance has rebranded itself as Marriott’s adventurous “jet-set” branch, and this newly opened Penn Station-Madison Square Garden location has set the new tone for the brand’s flagship. With its big, brash and brass approach to decor (that’s tasteful and luxe), one gets the feeling that Renaissance Midtown sees sports stars and business execs as its main clientele. In keeping with its mission to integrate itself into the local surroundings, designer Jeffrey Beers sought out inspiration from industries around the property including fashion and sports.
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Room
This two-year old building was built as a rather square construction, making the 12-rooms-per-floor layout standard across these 29 floors. Rooms are pretty uniform in size, and are designed with maximizing space and efficiency in mind with trendy flair. All the amenities of a 4-star hotel, including ample work and leisure space, with views across Manhattan in rooms with floor-to-ceiling windows allowing for floods of natural light. This is a top-of-the-line corporate hotel, but dressed up in New York bold.
Bathroom
Long and well-lit, these bathrooms are a best-of in contemporary bathroom design: we got the marble, we got the subway tile, we got the glass-enclosed shower and even a soaking tub! Brass and bronze fixtures look sharp against the long vanity against a nicely back-lit mirror. This is a smart bathroom, indeed.
Lobby
Like many an Asian hotel, the actually lobby is on the 7th floor—though the street-level entrance offers a waiting space for transport as well as the baggage level. Up on 7 however are the grand salons, or really the Thread bar/lounge and the Library. Reception is behind brass podiums where Navigators (aka concierges) can both help with checking in and heading out.
Gym
New York’s favorite discount gym chain, Planet Fitness, has a huge two-story outpost on the 2 and 3rd floor of this establishment, where guests can workout for free amongst PF’s own members.
Dining
With a rather masculine clientele, the Renaissance has gone with a 7,000 square foot restaurant, bar and event space called Rock n Reilly’s, an upscale gastropub that’s whole brand aesthetic revolves around the Irish Gangs of New York or so it seems. The menu is a battle between bourbon and bacon, with beef and potatoes also making multiple appearances. The indoor-outdoor convertible space has movable wooden partitions, leather couches and healthy banana trees, all lending to a rather trendy interior. The eatery is also surrounded by wrap-around terrace, which gets quite crowded in the warmer months.
Room service, however, is provided by My Belly’s Playlist, a new chop shop venture that has unique interpretations of what can be slapped between two buns.
Drinking
Thread touts a big marble bar outfitted with enough copper and brass to tempt vandals, though it’s fairly priced classic cocktails have summoned a fierce group of regulars that include both travelers and after-work locals. Every day at 6:30, the Bartenders ring the punch bell and serve a unique recipe of the day (really, 365 distinct drinks a year) for guests to enjoy convivially in the lobby.
What's Nearby
Getting Around
On the steps of Penn Station, the hotel is close to the 1/2/3 and A/C/E lines, as well as New Jersey Transit, Long Island Rail Road and the Path trains.
Restaurants
Penn Station has never been known for quality eats. Walk over to Koreatown or towards Times Square for more enticing options.
Bars
Bars around here serve mostly a functional purpose: drink off the day. Some bars even have the NJT and LIRR schedules posted in large TV screens for their largely commuter clientele. However, the area on Broadway known as Nomad has ushered in tremendously chic hotels, such as the Nomad (7-min) and the Ace (7 min), and both their drinking establishments, the Nomad Bar and the Breslin offer the utmost sophisticated cocktails and savory snacks without the fuss of dining in their proprietary luxurious restaurants.
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