Doubletree Metropolitan (April 2018) – Lodging in Turtle Bay/Midtown East
My spouse and I stayed at the Doubletree Metropolitan for one night on a
Wednesday evening in early February 2018, then again on a Monday night in early
May 2018. (We stayed at this hotel previously in December 2014.) We booked
our stay using the Hilton HHonors website. Although we attempted to check in
online several times on the day prior to and the day of our stay, we could
never successfully choose a room. (We had used the online check-in successfully
for our February 2018 stay, however.)
The Doubletree Metropolitan
is located on Lexington Avenue and East 51st Street in Midtown
East/Turtle Bay. In 1962, Morris Lapidus designed the Metropolitan, which
features an Art Deco look, including an unusual color, stainless-steel design,
and shape that increases the daylight in each room. The hotel was most recently
renovated in 2012. A 24-hour Duane Reade pharmacy store is located across East
51st Street. (Besides pharmacy items, Duane Reade sells drinks,
snacks, reading material, and so on.) A healthy fast-food option, a
chocolatier, and a hair salon are located on either side of the main hotel
entrance, and many restaurants, bars, and shops are located within steps of the
hotel.
The Metropolitan
features more than 750 rooms (including 22 suites) spread across 18 floors
(plus the penthouse). The hotel dedicates two floors for Hilton HHonors members,
although we’ve never been placed on either of those floors; we have also never
received a Diamond upgrade at this property. Private meeting and event space is
available, including a ballroom and two glass-enclosed rooftop penthouses. Both
the business center and the fitness center are accessible 24 hours a day. The
business center and the main restaurant are located toward the back of the
property (away from Lexington Avenue) a few steps down from street level,
although the busy Met Bar and lounge is located across from the front desk and
closer to Lex. The fitness center is located on the second floor. The hotel
gift shop is open generous hours and sells a nice selection of snacks, drinks,
souvenirs, clothing, luggage, and so on. A tour desk/concierge is positioned on
the main level past the front desk and the Met Bar and adjacent to the gift
shop. The
hotel also offers meeting/banquet space, currency exchange vendor, nail salon,
and a barber shop. Many restaurants and shops are located steps from the
hotel entrance.
The continental Diamond breakfast in the Met
Grill includes cold boxed cereals, homemade granola, oatmeal with toppings,
juice and coffee, breads and pastries (English muffins, bagels, muffins,
croissants, donuts, Danish), hard-cooked eggs, sliced ham and cheese, fresh
fruit, and yogurt. For an additional $8 per person, you can add cooked-to-order
hot items including pancakes, scrambled eggs, and breakfast meats.
On our most recent visit, we were assigned
room 1131, a smaller room that faces the back of the hotel. (Our most recent
room had no small sofa/seating unit as we had on a previous stay in a room
ending with -10.) Our
room contained a king-size bed with a nightstand on either side, plus space for
an easy chair (although it had no accompanying ottoman). The room contained no
mini-bar or empty mini-fridge. The closet held an iron, ironing board, and safe
(without charging capabilities). The sink/vanity for the bathroom was located
in the hallway between the bedroom area and the bathroom, which allowed one of
us to shower while the other used the sink – a room design that we find useful
when we travel and must share space. The Doubletree supplies Crabtree and
Evelyn toiletries (including shampoo, conditioner, and body lotion).
We will stay at the
Doubletree Metropolitan again, but we will make every effort to receive a room
number that ends in -08 or -10 for a bit more space.
