The Roosevelt Is Not a 4 Star Hotel
Wow, does this place need an upgrade. While the lobby is nice enough -- there is no doorman to open the door or help you with your bags half the time, however -- it's not THAT nice. The good location is about all the hotel has going for it at the moment, considering how EXPENSIVE it still is, and how many hotels there are in mid-town that are nicer. The public areas are good but the rooms are very tired. My bed was lumpy, the air conditioner was INSANELY loud (it seems five minutes from exploding at any moment), and the service was terrible. We arrived at 11pm or so -- in NYC, the city that never sleeps -- to find that the room service was closed, the bar wasn't serving food any more, and no one was around to tell us where to eat -- we called the front desk four times and no one answered. (Eventually, we managed to speak to security, who was very helpful and sent us to a pizza place.) Not once was the door opened for us. No one helped us with our luggage. The doorman, when he was there, never tried to hail us a cab. (Pro tip: just walk to Madison and hail your own, easily). The elevators rarely ran in a timely fashion. One day, our room wasn't made up despite the fact that we were gone for hours. Check in and out was insane. The staff, simply put, seemed TOTALLY CHECKED OUT. The rooms themselves desperately need new carpet and wall paper, and the bathrooms are in serious need of renovation. There are no robes, and the towels are rough. I could go on. Worst of all, if you are there and need to work, the WiFi is TERRRRRRIBLE. Sporadic is a kind word for it. It goes out all the time. It's essentially impossible to work if you need the internet in your room. I will say that when I needed to be connected to their IT specialist -- YES, I had to get on the phone with IT to get their NON-FREE WIFI to work -- he was the most helpful and nicest IT person I've ever dealt with. But other than that....there are MANY better hotels in NYC. I would not come back unless this hotel changed management.