Tuesday, December 4, 2012

Hudson Yards Taking New York Into the Future


A huge transformation of Manhattan’s West Side has begun as ground breaking at the 26-acre rail yards, owned by the Metropolitan Transit Authority, and leased to developers for 99 years for over $1billion got underway on Tuesday. Years of deal making finally led to agreements between the MTA and developers, who plan on creating Hudson Yards, a 15-building, city-within-a-city project valued at about $15 billion.
Plans for the waterfront development included apartments soaring 75 stories high; a futuristic observation deck in the shape of a rocket ship about to launch orbiting over Manhattan at an altitude above the Empire State Building; a landscaped 5-acre plaza.

“Developing Manhattan’s final frontier is the next major step in our city’s ongoing economic revival,” Mayor Bloomberg said. “The Hudson Yards project — whose construction will create at least 23,000 jobs and whose existence will support thousands more — is a testament to our city’s economic strength.”
The Vision for Hudson Yards

TripAdvisor: Finding the Right New York City Hotel


When planning a vacation or a business trip at a hotel out of town, many people check out TripAdvisor to get a sense of the experience of prior guests.  The website offers “unbiased hotel reviews, photos and travel advice for hotels and vacations.”  

Certainly, it's important to take a look at the rankings before deciding on a hotel in New York, or anywhere else for that matter. Shimmie Horn’s Iroquois Hotel, for instance, was recently ranked Number 26 out of 435 hotels in the NYC vicinity (based on 1053 TripAdvisor reviews).  For the year 2012, the Iroquois Hotel was awarded as being a winner of the Certificate of Excellence from TripAdvisor.

Those who have stayed at the hotel made the following statements on TripAdvisor, when describing their experience.  These include: “the perfect place”; “great location and very nice staff”; “clean and friendly”; “loved staying here”; “our home away from home” and many more.  Many of Shimmie Horn’s guests rated his hotel a 5 out of 5 star rating as well.  These reviews are current and indicate that the hotel is consistently sticking to its high standards to ensure top level customer satisfaction at all times.

The Chatwal, on West 44th Street, ranked number 17 on the same list.  It has been described by recent guests as: “a really nice hotel in midtown location”; “excellent service”; “retro cool”; a Great NY experience,” “Oasis.” Designed by architect Thierry Despont, it has a cool Art Deco style which still works well today.  Each room in and of itself is a work of art, “capturing the romance of the past while looking to the future.”

The Bowery Hotel in Manhattan’s East Village ranked number 42 on the list of top hotels in New York City by TripAdvisor.  Based downtown in New York’s lower east side, this quaint hotel offers scrumptious meals in its Gemma restaurant for breakfast, brunch, lunch, dinner and more. Perfectly situated between Soho and the East Village, it has been described as having a “homey décor, big windows and large rooms.”

TripAdvisor is definitely a great starting point for those outside of the area who want to book the perfect hotel for their stay in the Big Apple.