Hotel Riu Plaza New York Times Square

“great”

great hotel! the location is absolutely perfect! so walkable to everything and right by time square but not too close so that it’s noisy! the room was small (for 4 people) but it was very clean, but the bathroom you could see into it from the bedroom, not fully but when the lights were on you cou… more

great hotel! the location is absolutely perfect! so walkable to everything and right by time square but not too close so that it’s noisy! the room was small (for 4 people) but it was very clean, but the bathroom you could see into it from the bedroom, not fully but when the lights were on you could see into it a fair bit . breakfast was lovely! so so much choice sweet and savoury, and was very tasty! never had to wait long to be seated either even though it was always pretty busy the lift was a bit tough to use, found other people having similar issues as well staff all friendly and helpful, beds were very comfy and a great base for a trip to new york!

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“Well located but watch out for the gouging 'Facility Fee'”

There are things this hotel does well. And there are things it does less well. And much to my surprise, when I mentioned that phrase at checkout, the clerk just laughed and didn’t ask the obvious follow up question. So I guess Customer Service & care is one of the things that falls into the latter… more

There are things this hotel does well. And there are things it does less well. And much to my surprise, when I mentioned that phrase at checkout, the clerk just laughed and didn’t ask the obvious follow up question. So I guess Customer Service & care is one of the things that falls into the latter category… This is a hotel with a rather cold, industrialised feel to it. It’s well placed on a busy road (aren’t they all? This is NYC after all!) with lots of eating establishments close by and only a 10 minute or so walk to Times Square, Theatreland and several subway stations. There’s plenty of rooms, served by a rather quirky lift system which sometimes requires the swipe of a card – but sometimes doesn’t. The card restricts you to your floor which is a positive security measure – particularly for solo travellers but in practice, doesn’t work reliably. Once one person has swiped the card, selected their floor, other lift passengers were able to select their floors with no additional authentication. It’s also a pain if you have other members of your party staying on different floors and you want to meet up to pass over a charger for example. The breakfast is included and quite good. It’s a huge buffet style, in several locations and run with the efficiency of a Swiss boarding school! You will sit where you’re told and woe betide any stragglers to your group! But on the flip side, the challenge of feeding such a large number of people is quite considerable. Not particularly American food, usual generic International fare with a few local-ish variations. But as it’s included, you don’t feel like going out anywhere else… Don’t bother with the hashbrowns, whatever they do to them, I’ve never tasted anything so bad! But the cheese quesadillas are great… I did get a piece of plastic in one mouthful of yoghurt/cranberries through which rather put me off. Rooms are clean, not huge but perfectly ok. Bathroom fine but watch out for the shower leaking through the door, make sure you use the bath mat on the floor outside. Be aware that the bellhop WILL grab your cases when you arrive so make sure you have suitable denomination notes for tipping. They charge a room damage deposit which is a bit annoying and shows a lack of trust in my opinion. And what really gets my goat… the addition of a ‘facility fee’. It is legal as it’s mentioned in the booking (albeit they don’t make it too obvious) but it is, in my opinion, sharp practice. It’s price gouging. It’s a way of making the headline price look more attractive on searches and it’s downright unethical. It means I am most unlikely to stay at this, or other, Riu hotels in the future. So what does this facility fee get you? It cost us £155 for a 6 night stay. It gets you WiFi. Oh wow! Every other decent hotel just provides guest WiFi. It’s expected. It’s 2026, not 2000… It gets you TWO bottles of water in the fridge. But only on the day you check in. Such unparalleled generosity… Use of the lobby computers. Really? That was probably useful. In 1996. When no-one carried massive computing power around in their hands all day. I didn’t see a single soul making use of these. And nor did I hear of anyone making use of the gym. A gym is something that you could charge a small fee for, but for the majority of people on holiday, racking up 25,000 steps a day in the NYC heat & humidity, going to the gym is the last thing on their minds! Can you tell this facility fee really grates with me? In the long term, these sort of tricks tell you far more about Riu’s brand values and doubtless cost them returning visitors in the longer term. I’m told the Riu restaurant was nice by those that used it. Staff generally polite but reserved. Good work by André the bellhop in getting us a yellow cab to take us back to the airport. Although did try to upsell us to the hotel’s linked limo hire.

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“Great Location - The Rest Is Just About Okay”

The hotel’s main selling point is its prime location right at Times Square and the great views, but other than that, it feels like a total assembly line where individual guests don't really matter. The food and drink options are also pretty disappointing. Regarding the rooms, they are rated above a… more

The hotel’s main selling point is its prime location right at Times Square and the great views, but other than that, it feels like a total assembly line where individual guests don't really matter. The food and drink options are also pretty disappointing. Regarding the rooms, they are rated above average; as is typical for New York, they are tiny, and there was nowhere for us to open our suitcases. The bathroom is just a frosted glass cubicle inside the room, and the AC is quite loud, though the bed is comfortable. All in all, the room was nothing special—except for the view from our room on the 28th floor, which was incredible. Dining was poor: breakfast is fine, but not up to standard for this category of hotel. There’s only sour drip coffee and no fresh juices, and while the food selection is okay, it’s nothing special. The biggest issues are the noise and the lack of space, as the next table is literally an inch or two away. Service was also poor. On a positive note, the bellhops did a great job taking care of our luggage, but beyond that, the service falls completely short of what you’d expect at this price point. Breakfast feels like a massive, chaotic operation with the atmosphere of a busy train station. One day we arrived a bit later than usual and would have had to wait half an hour in a separate queue—we decided against standing there like cattle for a breakfast we’d paid good money for. At check-out, no one even asked how our stay was, as surface-level American pleasantries don't equal real hospitality in our book. There wasn't a trace of a premium experience here. On the other hand, the location and surroundings are excellent and could hardly be better. It is right at Times Square and conveniently situated in Hell’s Kitchen, where you can always find fantastic restaurants. Countless subway stations are nearby, as well as many attractions within walking distance, and being up on the 28th floor, we hardly noticed any street noise. Overall value for money: poor.

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