There are things I liked about this hotel, but the service issues really left me unimpressed with the property in general. My biggest problem was the inefficiency of the concierge.(just one lady in particular). I was travelling with my husband and 2 boys (6 and 9) for a vacation. I had e-mailed the concierge a week prior to our arrival to get details about top tourist attractions. I had asked about the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island tours. I was told to get tickets at Battery Park early in the morning. I also asked again about this tour when we arrived at the hotel. Well, we got to battery Park before 9 am (on a weekday) and were told that since we didn't have advanced reservations we would have to wait in line to get on a ferry. The line was unbelievably long and it turned out to be nearly a 2 hour wait. Why didn't the concierge tell me I could have purchased tickets in advance and not have to wait in any line!! This was really upsetting. When I asked at the desk upon our return that day, they said we don't sell the tickets! All they had to do was tell me via e-mail (when I inquired a week prior to my arrival) or when I arrived and asked that day!

The concierge also gave us incorrect directions via subway to get to the Museum of Natural History. She obviously had no clue that the B train doesn't run on Saturday. We waited quite a while until someone in the station told us it was never coming! Again, more wasted time! Not impressed!

I also called down to the concierge the night prior to our museum outing to find out what time it opened. She told me 10:30. Guess what, it opens at 10.

So, I called the hotel manager the day prior to our departure to express our displeasure. He never returned our call. Upon checkout, I told the clerk that I had left a message for the manager but was leaving New york. He assured me he would contact me at home. Well, I have been home nearly 2 weeks and nobody bothered to call.

Housekeeping also some issues. We came back to our room, around 5 pm after being out all day and it had been turned down. We still had to shower etc. before going out. I called and asked for fresh towels for the morning and the clock to be fixed, but it never happened.

The hotel itself is fine. The carpet in our room was dirty, but the bed was comfy. Water pressure was excellent. TV's also nice. Having the little kitchen was handy as well. I am not sure if I would stay there again, it wasn't cheap (400ish per night) given the level of service.

My husband and I decided to try The Benjamin in March of 2007 because we wanted a more intimate experience than what the larger hotels provided. We were not disappointed. The staff was exceptional, the lobby was elegant and when we got to our room, we were very pleased with the comfort and luxury. We felt very pampered and our every need was met. We loved it so much, we are returning again this weekend (May 2008) for our annual trip to NYC. I have no doubt The Benjamin will be our hotel of choice whenever we visit New York in the future.

On the big picture items this hotel shines, I would have no problem recommending it to visitors to New York.

The standard New York hotel seems to be somewhat careworn, with rooms that are overpriced and underwhelm somehow. The Benjamin doesn't show this at all.

I stayed in an Executive Deluxe Suite, I needed the space to meet with people and to set up some photography equipment. The last suite I stayed in was at the Royalton, and it was not so fair to call that room a suite, it was a large room.

The Benjamin's suite is what this is all about. It is very large and spacious, and mine had a nice terrace as well. The room was very quiet, little noise from the street level at the 18th floor (the hotel advertises noise-absorbing windows) , and no noise from the rest of the hotel. The bed is very comfortable, and the hotel advertises a pillow menu, with some 18 choices or so, and a spa with extended services.

The work desk is large, and features wired and wireless internet, as well as a fax machine in the room with a dedicated fax line. Suite also has a large fridge and microwave oven, really wonderful to have.

The location is excellent, at 50th and Lexington, and the room service food was above average for 4* hotels.

For this, in New York pricing terms, the room presented good value.

The staff were uniformly friendly and prompt in all things.

Now for the bad part... the hotel runs like a car with loose parts.

I arrived on an international flight at 2:30, and there were no rooms ready on a Saturday... when asked if there was a lounge or somewhere I could wait in I was referred to go outside and check out restaurants. Come back in 45 minutes. The hotel does have a lounge I saw later on in my stay, so I'm unsure why I was told to leave the property... tired after a long flight and airport wait, this was not what I wanted to do... I wanted to use a washroom, freshen up, and stay close rather than wander the city looking for this and food.

On my return, room still not ready. I was switched eventually into something else and moved in.

The hotel on the website allows you to pick from a "pillow menu", none of my choices were there probably because of the room change. Normally, not a big deal except that the standard pillows are overstuffed and really crank your head forward.

Getting them changed, both of the replacement options I chose were ultra thin, and gave the opposite. A lot of choice in pillows is nice but other hotels standard pillows have never been a problem for me so I just don't really understand this approach of a huge choice of bad pillows? Oh well.

My minibar had an empty bottle of Vodka in it. I am getting ready to check out. I will probably be billed for this empty bottle as someone miscounted it. I doubt they will argue but in a 4 or 5 star hotel, not acceptable to leave empties in place.

When I tried to book time in the spa, hitting the spa button on the phone gives an answering machine. Call the hotel operator, again end up with the answering machine. Call the front desk, they say they will go to the spa and have them call me, because there is a "problem with their phone."

No call ever came. Time was not booked. Spa was not used. Minor detail, but kind of silly to give this kind of runaround.

Similarly: fax machine, no dialing out instructions. Tried with 9, tried with no 9. Can't send a fax out. Faxing in: dedicated line, gave it to people and they couldn't reach me. I tried calling it myself, no answer, but the thing is not ringing. I guess I have someone else's number on my fax machine. Calling the front desk did not resolve it but I was told to have it faxed in to the front desk and they'd bring it up. Many struggles later it got through and was brought up.

Room service: order up two teas, and get one mug for two people.

Elevator: sometimes it can take as much as 10 minutes to get out of this hotel once you get to the elevator. The reason I think is because the staff is going up and down with luggage carts, and room service, picking up trays and all that other jazz. There is a service elevator and it should be used for the majority of this load. Because of the things being carted in the two small elevators, guests often have to pass on an existing elevator, and the result is that the need to availability ratio on the elevator during the day is extremely high. If you're leaving for the airport, you need to book yourself 10 minutes of waiting time at the elevator to be sure you get out in time.

And that is how it goes with this hotel. The rooms are great. The location is great. The intention is great, but there are just loose parts rattling around and you have to be prepared for this. It's no Four Seasons that runs seamlessly... but I can easily recommend it because the people are pleasant, and there is a lot to like about the hotel.

We have recently returned from a wonderful 6 night stay at The Benjamin Hotel and were extremely pleased with our decision to stay here.
I emailed the hotel Manager directly with my room request and when we arrived our one bedroom suite was exactly as we wanted, on the top floor of the hotel with a terrace area from which to enjoy the views of the city, the room was also big enough for a party with plenty of space and also extremely clean, as was the hotel in general.

The major attractions are within walking distance of the hotel and there is a subway station directly outside from which you can get the subway anywhere in Manhattan or further afield.
There are also many restaurants and bars in the area and it was also safe to walk around and we had no problems being out and about at all hours without any problems.
We were also equally impressed by how friendly the New Yorkers are, if we needed directions we only needed to ask and they were so helpful and charming and wished us a pleasant stay in their city.

The Cipriani Restaurant in Grand Central Station is an excellent choice for enjoying superb food and enjoying the views in the magnificent building, we went there twice and I would be happy to have eaten here every day, this is only a short walk from the hotel.

This was our first trip to New York and we loved every minute, we did visit several other hotels in the city but found them to be brash and loud and so busy, the Benjamin is more refined and quieter, the staff get to know who you are and after a day out sightseeing you are warmly welcomed back with genuine sincerity.

The staff here are really excellent and the concierge team are very helpful and will arrange anything you need, the doormen are a pleasure to speak to and always good humoured.
We have been really impressed with our stay at the Benjamin and the hotel Manager has made it a mission that the guest should enjoy every aspect of their stay and we certainly did.

My only dissapointed was coming back to the UK and seeing what we have to put up with, I will be returning to New York at the earliest opportunity and would stay at this hotel again and highly recommend it.