This past October, I took a weekend trip to New York City to visit some friends. I normally stay uptown at hotels like the JW Marriott Essex House. While it’s nice being near Central Park, most of my friends actually live downtown so it’s a bit of pain to head downtown to see them and then back uptown to the hotel before heading back down to see them again. This time, I traded in 24,000 Starpoints for a two-night stay at the Sheraton Tribeca New York Hotel.
While the hotel says it’s in Tribeca, it’s located on Canal Street which is definitely on the border of neighborhoods. You don’t quite get the vibe of Tribeca but at least it’s a very close walk. I decided to drive to New York and it was a bit scary having to leave my car out on the street for almost 30 minutes until the valet finally moved it. I didn’t want to get a ticket or accidentally bumped!
The valet service needs some work, but the check-in process went smoothly. They said they gave use club access to make up for the wait, but I have the SPG Business card from American Express, so I actually get Sheraton Club access regardless. I guess it was a nice gesture…
The lobby was very nice, though a bit crowded. There was a restaurant and a smaller grab-and-go eatery.
I don’t normally give bad reviews, but I felt like the room was pretty bad, even by NYC standards. It was somewhat small, which is to be expected in New York, but it just didn’t feel clean. The bedspread was disgusting with visible stains. There was a mint melted onto the AC/heating unit. How did they not notice a mint STUCK TO THE WALL?! Grossness aside, I also didn’t think the bed was as comfortable as the last Sheraton I stayed at. Maybe the lack of cleanliness just made me feel less comfortable.
There also was no formal closet. Not a big deal for a weekend stay, but I don’t like it when there isn’t ample storage, especially if I want to stash my suitcase away.
The bathroom was fine. Surprisingly, the shower was much nicer than “luxury” hotels like the JW Marriott Essex House.
As I mentioned earlier, we had access to the Sheraton Club. The lounge was nicely decorated. We arrived at night and the lounge was very full and there was trash everywhere. I took these pictures the next day and it looked a lot better after the cleaning staff made their rounds.
The space isn’t huge so it felt very crowded at night and during breakfast. However, we never had to wait for a place to sit.
The nighttime snack selection was sad. The breakfast was better, with an assortment of bagels, cereals, and muffins. The oatmeal was actually quite good! They do a nightly happy hour, but we unfortunately missed it.
The best part of the hotel is the patio located off the Sheraton Club. It was huge and had amazing views of the city. It was a little chilly so we didn’t spend too much time out there, but this would be a great place to hang out in the summer.
Final Thoughts
Our stay at the Sheraton Tribeca was okay. The downtown location was good because we were within a 3/4 mile radius of all my friends, which made our stay in New York more enjoyable than when we stay uptown. However, the hotel room was unimpressive and somewhat dirty. Also, getting the car back from the valet was a bit of a process. They didn’t know who had the keys after pulling the car around for us. The patio off the Sheraton Club was the hotel’s biggest redeeming quality. While I’m more likely to stay downtown in the future, I’ll definitely give other hotels a shot before returning here.
