New York City: Hampton Inn SoHo (December 2012)

My spouse and I stayed at the Hampton Inn SoHo in mid-December 2012. We remitted Hilton Hhonors points for a free night's stay, although we think at that time of year, the room rate was about $350 per night.

This smallish property contains 19 floors (actually 18 floors, because there is no floor 13), and there are approximately 10 rooms per floor. Corner rooms end in 00, 01, 08, and 09, but according to the map in the hotel directory, they do not appear larger than others on the floor. Rooms ending in 03 and 05 are adjacent to the elevator, so they may be a little smaller than others, and maybe a little noisier. (We had one of the rooms next to the elevator, which was a bit small but not necessarily noisy.) Some rooms on the 17th and 18th floor are larger than on other floors; those room numbers end in 00, 02, 04, 06. The choicest rooms are on the top/19th floor: number 1901, 1095, and 1907 because they are penthouse suites with balconies.

Also on the 19th floor, for use by anyone, is an outdoor terrace, where there are comfy chairs and some small tables arranged around some plants. Smoking is permitted on the terrace. There were no umbrellas on the deck, but that may have been because we visited in December. It would be a great place to hang out and catch some sunshine on a beautiful day!

There is no on-site parking at the hotel, nor is there valet parking service available. Some street parking exists (if you pay careful attention to the parking meter restrictions), and there is a garage nearby at the corner of Varick and Broome Streets, just at the entrance to the Holland Tunnel (which makes exiting the city by car easy). Supposedly, the hotel has special rates at the garage, but we did not find them to be any less than we could have found without the hotel relationship; the charge is $35 for 24 hours, with no in/out privileges; any hours over 24 incur a pricey hourly charge, so it may make sense to pay for 2 days instead.

The hotel has a small pull-in driveway to use for loading and unloading passengers and luggage. The hotel provides a complimentary buffet breakfast, which is held in two adjoining rooms - one "regular" room, and the other a glass-type atrium with sky views. (On weekdays, you can pick up a “grab-and-go” breakfast bag instead of spending precious time at the serve-yourself buffet.) There is a small outdoor area off the atrium with a table and chairs for smokers; there are also a few tiny tables and chairs outside the entrance to the bar where you can smoke or enjoy a drink outdoors. The small, on-site Artifakt Bar has a separate entrance from the street; open evenings only, it doubles as the baggage storeroom during daylight hours. There are some computers in a corner of the small lobby for guest use. Wi-Fi is free throughout the hotel.

We like the location of this hotel in lower Manhattan. It is just on the edge of SoHo, adjacent to Greenwich Village, and is within easy walking distance of Chinatown, Little Italy, and Canal Street. It is located on a small, somewhat quiet block very close to the entrance of the Holland Tunnel.

This hotel fit our needs nicely, and we would stay here again without hesitation, especially if we could reserve a room on the 19th floor!