Sofitel New York, New York City

About the hotel:

The Sofitel Hotel is operated by the Accor Hotels and is located on 45 West 44TH Street between 5th and 6th Avenues, right in the heart of Midtown, and is the perfect location to explore Manhattan in easy walking distance of Times Square, Grand Central, Fifth Avenue shops, Macy's, Bloomingdales, Central Park, Rockefeller Center, and most of the major attractions!
The hotel is only about three years old and is immaculate inside, with an opulent lobby, including a very comfortable seating area at the entrance to the hotel. The check-in staff are efficient, very polite and courteous, and extremely helpful. The most common phrase to be heard as you wander through the lobby is often 'Bonjour' or 'Bonsoir' a nice touch!

The rooms:
The hotel rooms are quite spacious (not as large as some U.S. cities, but this is New York!) and come with either one king or two double beds. Furnished in light, modern colours and with contemporary art on the walls, rooms have large mirrored wardrobes that offer lots of space for your clothes and NY purchases! The rooms have good air-conditioning, comfortable chairs, desk, and large international TV with pay movies. There is a complimentary turn-down service and free Evian water as well as chocolates on the pillows. There is also a small safe in the room. The bathrooms are huge, with large bath and separate power shower and beautifully decorated in marble. Lots of huge, fluffy towels and Aveda bath products make the bathrooms perfect for unwinding at the end of a long day of sightseeing! The rooms are also immaculately maintained and cleaned very very well.

Booking:
Booking online at sofitel.com they gurantee the best rates and rooms start at $195.00 per night but most typically you will pay around $250/300. Be advised also that local taxes will be added at the end of your and not on the room rate quoted so add these fators into your budgeting! PLease note that these rates are quoted in dollars as this is the currency that rates are quoted in and also the currency that you pay in the US whe you pay your bill. $250= approx $175.

Eating and drinking:
Breakfast was not included in our package but is available in the hotel, and we ate in the Red Flame diner located a few doors away from the hotel, where you can experience a real new York breakfast for approximately $6 per person, including as much coffee as you can drink! We ate in the hotel restaurant twice, and the service was impeccable, with a varied menu that was very reasonable (although they served us the wrong wine, which was an expensive mistake at over $100!). The 'snack' menu in the bar is varied and very reasonable for a lighter dinner, with most meals/snacks under $10. The list of drinks features a good choice of international wines, as well as local beers: I would recommend trying the Brooklyn beer.

Facilities:
The hotel also features a very modern gym filled with state-of-the-art exercise equipment although with so much to see in New York, I doubt you will have time to see much of it! The hotel shops stocks a select range of opulent gifts but there are plenty of local shops offering snacks and drinks if you wish to buy this to take back to your room. The lobby is filled with over sized couches and is a great place to read the newspaper for ten minutes or chill out whilst waiting for other members of your party.
The concierge is excellent and were very knowledgeable about booking local trips and theatre tickets, as well as booking transport from the hotel to the airport (around $35). Taking taxis to and from the airport is the quickset and easiest way to travel and when you are at the hotel, most major sights are within walking distance of the hotel and if not there is a subway stop two minutes away on foot.
All in all, I would highly recommend this hotel for its excellent, quiet rooms, exceptional staff, and great location; I can't wait to go back!