Hotel Elysee – New York City

If that trip to Paris that you promised your wife gets turned into a last minute business trip into New York City you might want to bring her along and stay at the Hotel Elysee, which is decorated in a French motif, to lessen the disappointment. That was my first impression of this boutique hotel that treated me to a night’s stay this week. The hotel is located in midtown on 54th between Madison and Park Avenues.

Certainly not everything is Parisian as the elevator will hold both of you and your luggage… and a couple of friends… unlike hotels I have stayed in while visiting Paris where you and your wife would need to take turns using the elevator.

My room had a small foyer just off the hallway with a desk where you could work when you get up early. Just close the door to the bedroom and let your wife sleep-in after her shopping at the fancy shops nearby. Hey, you are the one that cancelled the Paris trip, I never said that it would not cost you.

My room had wi-fi and a flat screen TV (although the internet was having some issues on my visit like every other place I had been in New York previously on that trip, including a friend’s apartment). It also had one of the iPod/iPhone docking alarm clocks which I always appreciate.

The bathroom had a French style but American fixtures (no bidet).

My stay like yours included breakfast in the breakfast room with pastries, cereal, fruit, yogurt, coffee, tea and juice. The Hotel Elysee has wonderful public spaces between the breakfast room and the adjacent library.

The Hotel Elysee also hosts a wine and cheese hour in the afternoon that I was was unable to attend, but I did enjoy the wine and cheese hour at a sister hotel, the Hotel Casablanca. Adele, who arranged my stay, said that their competitors think they should charge for the spread that they put out but that they believe that this is where people fall in love with their hotel and become repeat visitors.

If you have a late night meeting after the shops close your wife might be able to find a good book here in the library to cuddle up with. If she starts to gravitate towards murder mysteries then I would suggest cutting back on those late night meetings.

Listening to some of my fellow guests I discovered that some of them had in fact come into New York City from France and a number of them, from their name badges, were attending the Fancy Food Expo which was taking place in the city. So perhaps my impression of the hotel was not too far off the mark.