Affinia Shelburne

Hotel: Affinia Shelburne. August 2009

Great Location. Great view of Empire State buildiong from the room. Simple, no luxus hotel. Great for people who want a place to sleep without many more items. Bar at same hotel building well visited. Would recommend it to friends and stay again. Good value for the money.

Absolutely we’ll be back!

This was a great recommendation from a friend. Location is fantastic - walking distance to ’everything’ but a fairly quiet neighbourhood. Staff really friendly and helpful, rooms much larger than most in Manhattan, the hallways are slightly ’tired’ but the value for money is exceptional. Even Aveda products in the bathroom! We had a Queen one bedroom suite with e which was huge (by NYC standards), but the bathroom was tiny. My sister had a standard King room and her bathroom was much bigger. We’ll definitely stay there on return trips!

Traveler's tip on getting the most out of your stay

Very helpful Concierge and doormen - steered us to great neighbourhood restaurants.

Ok place to stay

nice room and restaurant too

NICE, BUT!

The morning I checked out it was a mugy morning. On the registration counter was a large glass water container fillewd with ice water and orange slices, but no glasses. When I asked for a glass, the girl at the counter, simpley dismissed me with, "We ran out of glasses". Did she check - No. The container was 3/4 full and they ran out of glasses?

A home away from home!!!

We have staying at the Shelbourne for many years and have never been disappointed. This time we had our European friends with us and they loved it too. Sometimes we wished there were more spoons, knives and plates in the suites for easy eating in room.

Traveler's tip on local attractions

Well situated in the city Easy to get to Grand Central Station so you can get to anywhere easliy. Walking distance to many places too

Excellent value and great location

This was a great hotel for a girls trip. The room had two bathrooms, which was really convenient for 4 ladies. The hotel was only a few blocks from grand central station which was convenient.

Great location

We found this hotel to be ideally located to get around NYC. Also the rooms were clean, quiet and roomy, I liked the small refrigerator to keep water and juice.

Traveler's tip on getting the most out of your stay

We found easy access to the subways and within walking distance to Times Square. We were able to visit the Museums and then go to Union Square.

Geared towards couples versus families

I stayed at the Shelburne on a recent 2 day business/leisure trip. My party included my husband and two children. The room was very small, but clean even after upgrading. If this was a longer trip this would have been uncomfortable. The staff was pleasant and friendly and the rooftop bar was nice. In hindsight for a couple trip the room would have been fine but not for a family. I would stay again but with kids I woud stay at their cohort the Eastgate Tower which is another Affinia hotel.

Affinia Shelburne

I’ve stayed in many hotels over 30 years of business and leisure travel to NY. The Affinia Shelburne was a real pleasure. Its rooms are larger than most and the location very convenient to Broadway, the Javits Center and most of what you’d want to do if you were interested in seeing the major sites and major shopping venues. I’ll be staying there again, soon.

Traveler's tip on dining

Hell’s Kitchen is one of the best restaurants I’ve eaten in in cities across the US and Europe. It’s close to Broadway and close enough to the hotel to make sense.

Nice place for the money & location

This hotel was very comfortable for our stay. Our room was a little small, but we got a great deal and the hotel was in a great location in Murray Hill. Recently renovated. Nice, comfortable beds & pillows. Very friendly staff - good restaurant and bar attached to the lobby. Would stay there again!

Home away from home.

I have stayed in top of the line hotels in the Time Square Area, first time out of this location and I lovedl it! This particular hotel is off Lexiton Avenue in a residential area. I will definetively go back to it. l

lovely spot

The room was comfortable and spotless with a flat screen TV, great beds and Aveda toiletries. Centrally located.

Traveler's tip on dining

Breakfast in the cafe/bar downstairs was great. The food was yummy and the price reasonable. There ae entrees for kids and adults.

Poor service ruined our visit

We have stayed at the Affinia Shelburne before and had a good stay. We were therefore disappointed this time to experience service that ranged from rude to disorganised to complacent. Despite phoning down to reception three times and being told our bags "were on their way up!", we waited an hour and a half before finally going downstairs and sorting out the bag delivery ourselves. While waiting for our bags, we found our room was missing a bath plug, several lamps weren’t plugged into sockets, a light in the bathroom was out and a TV remote did not work. When my husband informed a member of the reception staff that he was not happy with the service, she ignored him and went on to another customer. We heard her give incorrect directions to another guest. Only one elevator was working to service the whole hotel (or you could use the grubby staff one hidden behind a curtain). On leaving, the bell captain brought my bags to the lobby. When I asked him to take them outside (I have a bad knee) he said the door man would do that (the door man was outside and dealing with other guests). He finally took my bags out when I brought out a tip. A real shame as the friendly attitude of some of the staff was tainted by the very poor attitude of the others. Much better management and staff training needed at this hotel.

Traveler's tip on dining

Penelope’s on Lexington and 30th very good for breakfast.

Ideal Getaway Location

This hotel has been recently renovated, which makes for a very pleasant atmosphere and clean facility. The only problems we had was that the elevator doors stuck once or twice and it took an hour for a cork screw to be brought to our room. All in all the room was fabulous! Very spacious and comfortable. I haven’t slept that good in a very long time. Most definitely recommend this hotel for its quiet and accessible location and for its friendly/modern/clean atmosphere.

Very Good Experience

This is a very good place to stay in Midtown Manhattan. The hotel and staff were very good. The facility was clean and well maintained. The only complaint that we had was that the alarm clocks in both of the rooms that we stayed in were impossible to figure out how to use. The location was within walking distance of the Empire State Building, Macy’s and numerous banks/ATMs

Traveler's tip on dining

Carmines - good place for Italian family-style dining. Delta Grill - good place for Louisiana-style dining. Papaya Dog - cheap but quite good hotdogs. Sarge’s - Good, inexpensive dinners. Scottie’s - Good breakfasts. Moonstruck - Good breakfasts and lunches. Butterfield 8 - Good lunch. Bubby’s - excellent breakfast.

Recommend to all.

I was extremely impressed with the room and comfort of the facility. Plenty of room, large bathroom, easy walk to 42nd. Street, great service.

Clean Rooms. Poor Service.

Our visit to the Affinia Shelburne during July 2009 was a disappointment. The room was clean, but the doorman was never present, and we never had access to a concierge during our three day stay. It took housekeeping more than 45 minutes to bring things such as additional towels, or new cups. Once the request was lost between the front desk and housekeeping. We were charged for a movie we didn’t watch, and it took two conversations with two different managers to get the charge removed. The front desk often appeared stressed and preoccupied. This was a Super 8 hotel stay with a four star NYC price. If all you want are clean sheets and your bed made each day, this is a good choice. If you want superior service, look elsewhere.

Loved the Shelburn Murray Hill

Loved this hotel. Rooms were large, clean and great location. Walking distance to everything, friendly staff, especially the doormen, very helpful! Absolutely will stay here again.

excellent choice

We had a family of 6 and it was a great choice for the double room. Good location for most everything one wants to see in NY city

Traveler's tip on saving a few bucks

Parking 1-2 blocks on your own.

Attractive and quiet

We were there at the end of June 2009 and the hotel had been newly renovated. A very attractive facility, room was comfortable and quiet. The hotel is 4 1/2 blocks from Grand Central, a little farther from the subway than we’re used to staying. Plenty of various priced restaurants nearby. We had an appetizer at the hotel’s restaurant, Rare, and it was delicious.

Below Expectation

Pros: Our room has microwave and fridge Pillow menu At the Rare Grill. Awesome fresh squeeze OJ. Great parking tip from the bellboy. Cons: The room is small Noisy. Our room is located litterally next to the elevator. I can hear people talking in the elevator and hallway and other machinery noises (like a vaccum cleaner noise in the morning and night) Clogged drain in the bath up. They fixed it the first time then it happened again the next day. Long wait for the elevator. Only 2 elevators to serve 15 floors. The staff are not super friendly At the Rare Grill. I ordered savory brioche only to be told 25 minutes later that they ran out of it. We booked 4 rooms. The other 3 rooms didnt seemed have the noise nor the slow tub drain problems. I guess it’s just my luck and I was the one who picked the hotel and was excited to stay there.

Best hotel stay in 5+ years-Don’t miss this hotel!

This was our first trip to NY and WOW, what a wonderful surprise! We had made reservation for a standard suite and at the last minute we needed a room with a microwave/fridge for milk/bottles for our baby-this was no problem. And they even had a crib waiting in our room! The room, for NY, was a great size for our family of 4. There are great restaraunts close by. Make sure you try Rare for breakfast and for dinner don’t miss El Rio Grande (try the fajita’s) and Duke’s (best burger I have had in years, great for family, but does get loud), they are both within walking distance. This hotel was so quiet and we were able to walk to almost every place we went, but, if you need a cab, one will easily be ready for you out front. I could go on about the hotel, but what really made the stay was Denis, the doorman. He was incredible!! He told us how to get anywhere we wanted to go, how long it would take, how much a cab ride would be, etc. Denis was so great that my 11 year old son would be so excited to get back to the hotel just to tell him how our day was and would run up and give him a high five. My son was truly disappointed when Denis had a day off. When, not if, we go back to NY we will not stay anywhere else!! What a truly wonderful, enjoyable vacation this was. I can’t wait for the next

*Get a room with a kitchen and visit D’Agostino’s market (right around the corner) to stock the fridge with what snacks and drinks your family likes. * Buy a NY pass( I think there is a 1, 3 and 5 day pass-this will get you into all of the tourist attractions **BUT, be aware-we purchased a 3 day pass and activated it on Wed at 1 pm and it was only good until the 3rd day at midnight, so we actually didn’t get a full 3 days.

Wonderful hotel will stay again.

My three days stay at Afffinia was great. My room was larger than I expected from a New York Hotel. The staff was very friendly and helpful. My next New York trip I plan to stay at Affinia again.

best hotel i’ve stayed in

everything was fresh, clean, hip and much attention paid to detail. the cost for the room was worth every penny. loved the location. i can’t say enough.......i would go back in a heartbeat.

A lovely hotel

This hotel is owned by a chain but doesn’t feel bland. Great location and comfortable rooms. The only detriments are the extra (expensive) charges for things like wifi and computer terminal use in the business center.

Traveler's tip on dining

The restaurant in the hotel is very popular; try to go at off-peak times.