An Elegant and Historic Hotel, however.......
My wife and I planned a four day visit to NYC this month in celebration of her 40th birthday. To mark the occasion I redeemed about 160,000 Hilton Points and booked us in at the Waldorf Astoria in NYC. I am a Diamond member with Hilton so I try to use my accumulated points and stay in their nicer hotels for our vacations.
The hotel has a long and storied history. The building lobby is very elegant with copious amounts of marble, brass and Art Deco adornments. The halls are lined with black and white photos of world leaders, politicians and movie stars. You can certainly feel the history in the place. There is also an incredible antiques shop in the lobby with some of the coolest statues and carvings I have ever seen.
The hotel is very well located, just a few blocks from Rockefeller Center and about a 15 minute walk from Times Square. Park Avenue, Madison Avenue and 5th Avenue are just steps away.
Those are all the good things about the hotel, but there are also some improvements to be made.
First - I booked our room nearly two months in advance. I specifically reserved a King bed as my wife and I were traveling together and being married and all we generally like to share a bed. When I checked in at the Diamond desk I was informed that there were no King (or Queen) beds available. Apparently the hotel was "very busy" that day. The concept of a "Reservation" seems not to apply at the Waldorf. Instead, my wife and i were put into a room on the seventh floor at the far end of the hall with two double beds, "Fred and Wilma" style. No effort was made to follow-up or remedy the situation at a later time even though we were there for four days. I was somehow reminded of Seinfeld at the Rental Car counter. 
Second - The hotel, while elegant and historic needs some updating. The lights, wall-plates and bathroom fixtures look like they were last updated about twenty years ago. The bathroom vanity, toilet and shower fixtures are all worn and tired looking. The shower-head and water pressure were unimpressive. We also had a challenge finding electrical outlets to plug our mobile phones, iPad's etc. into for charging. They are scarce and difficult to reach. 
Third - We were looking forward to dining at the hotel but were completely put off by the prices. New York City dining is expensive, granted. And we were staying at a luxury hotel, granted. But there is a difference between expensive cuisine and highway robbery. We stopped in to the Peacock Alley for a drink and quick bite before heading to an evening show. For one beer, one glass of wine, a salad and a plate of three small sliders $85. We also stopped in the Bull and Bear for two drinks - $36. If you want Brunch on Sunday, $95 per person and $65 per child under twelve. I like fine dining and i'm willing to pay, but pricing like this is an insult to the guests.
I'm glad to have stayed at the Waldorf to see the history and benefit from its central location but we won't be back anytime soon. We stayed at the Ritz Carlton in Sarasota FL earlier this year and had a far, far better experience. The Waldorf seems to be a hotel that is comfortably resting on its laurels of yester-year rather than seeking to earn new ones.