New York: Inside and All Around The Paul NYC

THE ROOMS:
We didn’t get a show round (more on the customer service later) so we only saw our own room, a standard queen. First impressions? It was tiny. Welcome to New York! They’ve made good use of the space with part of the bed cut out underneath for suitcase storage (flagged by a suitcase on the carpet), but it’s still the kind of room that’s so small it adds a lot of time to navigate it.

Big plus – the bed is extremely comfortable and flanked by power and USB outlets on either nightstand. The drawback – these didn’t work in our room. Luckily there were outlets on either side right by the bed. We liked that, despite the size, they still put in a full-size desk (with Keurig machine). We liked the closet less – tiny and already filled with ironing board and a safe, meaning there was no space at all to hang a dress.

View from room 2006

One thing distracting us from the tininess of the room: the décor. It was simple but very stylish. That trompe l’oeil on one wall, an almost pencil scratched wall behind the bed. The corridors sport watertank wallpaper, which we loved. The other thing we loved? Empire State views. To get these, ask for a room ending in 4, 5 or 6 – the building is small and square-shaped, and these three face onto the ESB.

The bathroom was tiny but less awkward to deal with than the room. Shower pressure was good, and the Pharmacopia amenities – in huge, Paul-branded bottles (with separate tiny body lotions) – were really good quality (yay for a hotel conditioner that actually works). The bathroom mirror was prone to steaming up but no biggie.

One problem – yes, this is New York, but it was noisy. Even with earplugs, even on the 20th floor, we were still disturbed by street noise. And while we didn’t hear anything from neighboring rooms, the soundproofing through the door is non-existent. Every time someone would close a door in the corridor outside (and we were by some housekeeping closet) we would hear it. It woke us up, through the earplugs.

PUBLIC AREAS:
Not the most functional. There’s a terrace on the 22nd floor with to-die-for views of the Empire State Building. This will become a bar, but for now it’s closed (opening date TBA).

The lobby is tiny with nowhere to sit. There is literally one chair in a weird corridor-style space behind it, with a pot of coffee. Follow that corridor and it opens out into “The Den”, more of a lobby area with seating (though right now it’s rather atmosphere-less). Continental breakfast is served here from 7am-10am every day, but being in a no-carbs phase we didn’t fancy the pastries on offer. Still, props for a New York hotel to offer anything for breakfast.

There are also seats and tables outside on a little patio set back from 29th St. This would be a nice place to sit in nice weather (it was not nice weather this past weekend).

WHAT WE LIKED:
Despite its size, the room was very comfortable and we loved the sassy décor – not trying too hard. The bathroom was great and it was spotlessly clean. Oh and those Empire State Building views are amazing. The rooftop bar will be fab.

WHAT WE DIDN’T LIKE:
Apart from the niggles mentioned above, we’d love more of a theme to the hotel. We love the decor but why is it The Paul? It needs more than a Paul McCartney quote over the door to explain the name.

The only major problem with The Paul for us is the customer service. We found it pretty much non-existent. Where to start?

We drove to NYC and called ahead to check there was some kind of parking or valet service at The Paul. Yes, we were told, $ 45. When we arrived, around 9.30pm, there was no valet or doorman outside. We parked (illegally) outside and went in to ask. “Valet is $ 50,” said the guy at check-in. “Your colleague said $ 45,” we said. “Well she was wrong,” he said. “Self parking is $ 45 but it’s two blocks away.” It’s late and we’ll valet, we said, but your colleague definitely said $ 45. “Well it’s $ 50,” he said. Did we expect him to cut the rate for an external garage? Of course not, but we expected him to deliver the news with some kind of charm or apology that we hadn’t been told the whole deal over the phone.

We asked where the valet was. “Just get your stuff from the car and give me the keys,” he said (we – ok I – was walking with a cane). We (ok, I – I was alone) fetched my stuff – two suitcases, three big bags! – and hobbled in with it. He did check-in without saying a word, and handed over a key. We asked for two, he silently made another. We asked how to get all our stuff to our room (HINT HINT) and he pointed to the elevator. We’ve dealt with rude people before, obviously, but this guy wasn’t rude – he was almost fascinating in that he was utterly devoid of charm. The next day, we walked past people commandeering a luggage holder thing to take to their own room.

The following morning, we requested extra shampoo and conditioner (long story, totally our fault) and the front desk staff (who answered the housekeeping line) asked three times whether it was just shampoo we needed. No, conditioner as well we said three times. A housekeeper duly arrived – with body wash. She was mortified that she’d brought the wrong thing.

Staffing is something The Paul really needs to work on – training the front desk staff to a) give a monkey’s and b) listen to people. Getting some kind of bellboy would be great, for a hotel that starts at $ 200 – there was a friendly guy greeting people in the lobby during the day, but we didn’t see him past about 7pm. We were also mildly surprised that there was no manager on duty on Sunday when we checked out and had planned to ask to see other room categories – but, sorry, we couldn’t face asking the charmless man on duty.

BOTTOM LINE:
There’s a lot going for the Paul and it wouldn’t take much to make it really good. Staff training (or better staff selection), door soundproofing, finish the rooftop and it’d be a great little choice for a relatively affordable New York stay. Would we return? We’d certainly bear it in mind, and if the rate was right we’d certainly do it, but we wouldn’t hurry back. At the moment, we felt it charged a bit too much for what it offered – the prices of a midrange hotel, which the rooms definitely lived up to, but the service was decidedly budget. It’d be interesting to check back in in a few months to see if things are going smoother. TripAdvisor reviews are like us – pretty mixed.

Want to sleep with Paul? Rooms tonight start from $ 209. As a comparison, the Ace starts at $ 329.

Julia stayed as a guest of The Paul

[Photos: Julia Buckley/HotelChatter]