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At the Edge of Central Park, a timeless classic.
The Experience
I planned our trip somewhat around this stay at the JW Marriott Essex House, as we had a Suite upgrade reward and Titanium status. I figured between these two we would get an exceptional upgrade, and club access, both of which I was really excited for, as this was our first “mom and dad only” vacation in a long time.
The Lounge
The Lounge was truly exquisite and one of the most well stocked lounges I have seen. On top of having a plethora of food for breakfast and appetizer hour, they had a huge coffee bar, and waters and soft drinks stocked throughout the day. The service here was consistently top notch.
The Room
As I previously mentioned, I had set my expectations high for this hotel, and while I think much of it lived up to that, I definitely felt like we wasted a suite night award upgrade. Our “suite” was right next to the elevator, which we heard going up and down and dinging constantly, and looked very different than the basic junior suite they had diagramed on their website. Honestly, it reminded me of a slightly upgraded Springhill suite, with a view of brick walls. I wrongly assumed that as Titanium Marriott, they would try to give us a good upgrade.
However, It was still an upscale hotel that I never would have paid cash for, so I can’t complain too much.
The Service
All the staff we encountered were helpful and kind and I really felt like they were eager to make our stay as lovely as possible. We got free tickets to the Central Park Zoo, and a $35 food and beverage credit each day. You could use this credit for alcohol or food in the restaurant or alcohol in the lounge. They also brought us a small cake to celebrate our anniversary, which was very delicious.
Location
This hotel’s location could not be more perfect. You are right at the edge of central park. Year-round this is a delightful spot with great views if you get a room that can see the park, and great access to the park from any other room. We were equidistant from a Starbucks and Pret for coffee. The walk to 5th Avenue, the Zoo, and even Times square were easy to do.
Transportation
Walking was easy to many places, but as with most spots in NYC, access to public transportation is easy too. The subway and the bus both stopped about a block from the hotel, and we used each of these quite easily. More detail on that HERE. The hotel was also happy to arrange private transportation via the concierge if that’s more your style. And, as one would expect, Lyft and Uber drivers are mere seconds away at all times.
Price
We paid 158,000 points and 0 dollars for two nights at this hotel. The lowest cash price I saw for this hotel was $458, and that was one single night. The average price seems to be closer to $600/night. For points pricing, they ranged from 80k-105k pts per night. Now this is a lot of points, but for us, this was a hotel we really wanted to stay at while we had Marriott Titanium, so we made it happen.
If you wanted to stay at this hotel, we would recommend a Marriott Credit Card to earn the large amount of points required. Marriott cards can be really confusing, but we appreciate this guide from Frequent Miler which helps curb the confusion a considerable amount.
We earned the points for this from a move. We stayed in a Marriott hotel, on the companies dime while waiting for our house to close, and received the points, even though they paid the bill.
Conclusion
This hotel is stunning and the location cannot be beat. If you have status, the lounge is one of the best we have experienced. However, I would hold back any suite night awards and go for the standard room. I think if you were bringing one kiddo to NYC for a treat, this would work for kids, but I would not bring my gaggle of young children here, as it is far too upscale for our rowdy crew! If you are wanting to pursue this, a MARRIOTT CARD is the best bet for getting you here.
