New York City, and specifically the Manhattan/Times Square area, is the place we visit more often than anywhere else. We have a list of hotels where we like to stay and will choose from those, depending on the reason for our stay. There are the hotels good for a quick weekend of seeing shows. Other hotels are better for longer stays because they have larger rooms and are less expensive, even if they’re a bit further away from the theater district.
We had one hotel we saved for a particular type of stay; one where we were traveling with friends and were willing to split a room to save some money. At this hotel, every room was a two room suite with a main bedroom and and a large sofa bed in the living room. I was sad when I read this hotel was set to close as part of a massive redevelopment project.
The DoubleTree Suites New York City – Times Square stopped taking any reservations for after January 31, 2019.
The closing of the 468 suite room DoubleTree is part of a massive project, including the hotel and the adjoining Palace Theater, that’s been in the works for quite some time. The big hurdle for the developers to overcome was that the interior of the Palace Theater, built in 1913, is a historic landmark (designated in 1987) and could not be demolished. Here’s some information I found on ny.curbed.com on how they plan to solve the problem:
The theater itself will be raised about 30 feet, which will create more space for its operations, and also open space for retail on the ground level. The existing DoubleTree hotel above the theater will start getting demolished later this year, and in its place will rise a soaring new tower with retail, dining, and a hotel.
The $2.5 billion development will have 75,000 square feet of retail across 10 floors, above the theater. The two floors above that will 30,000 square feet of food and beverage venues, including a 10,000-square-foot outdoor terrace, which will reportedly be the largest such terrace in the Times Square area. The floors above that will have a 669-room hotel.
The plans for the redevelopment of the site, including how they plan on raising and suspending an entire theater thirty feet above where it currently sits, can be found here.
This will bring an additional 200 rooms to the location but the loss of the only all-suite hotel in Times Square is a tough pill to swallow. No word yet on what brand the new hotel will be but the revamp is expected to take three years.
It’s no secret that the DoubleTree was a great location to view Times Square. Here’s the view we had from our room during one of our stays.
The new developers plan on taking advantage of that view. (from 6sqft)
The hotel will feature direct views of Times Square and floor-to-ceiling glass windows. Thirty “Ball Drop Suites” will be positioned to view the festivities on New Year’s Eve.
The DoubleTree wasn’t the fanciest hotel but it served specific need, a suite hotel in Times Square. I’m sad to see it go. I’m just wondering what they will do with all the lamps from the rooms, since they were on the list of the strangest things we’ve ever seen in a hotel room.
H/T: Loyalty Lobby
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This post first appeared on Your Mileage May Vary
