Looking for hotel in NYC with great views and kitchenette for b-day party
 

Hi all! I'm looking for a nice place in NYC to have my birthday party this November, and I'm thinking I might rent a hotel for the night. I actually live in the city (in a tiny, tiny apartment not suitable for a party), but I know very little about hotel accommodations, so I'd love some ideas.

The main thing I'm looking for is a hotel room/suite with a great view (preferably Times Square, though I'm interested in other recommendations) and a kitchen/kitchenette. It'd also be great if the hotel had a game room.

Any ideas?

Also, I'm planning to invite 10-15 people to the party, few (if any) of whom I think would actually need to stay overnight at the hotel. What type/size of room or suite should I book? Do you have to tell a hotel that you're planning on using the room for a party - do they care? For the record, it will be quite tame (I don't even plan on having any alcohol there).

Thanks for your help!

Happy Birthday (Almost!) The Marriott Marquis has a beautiful view of Times Square on one side of the building. The other side faces the river, We have stayed in the suite & it is a nice size. Good luck.

In the back of the Blue Zagats for food and flower shops there are hundreds of suggestions for places for parties. We are having a birthday party in November but with an entirely different atmosphere.

As a rule of thumb, the higher the retaurant the lower the
food.

Way out of the neighborhood which will present logistical problems is The Terrace.

http://www.terraceinthesky.com/

http://www.opentable.com/rest_profile.aspx?rid=223

I'm wondering whether you'll be able to hold a gathering for 10-15 people in a hotel room.

Of course, the hotel will care if you are planning to throw a party. Regardless of how tame you may believe a group to be, there will be extra people wandering the halls, making noise in the room which may disturb guests in nearby rooms...I have no idea what you mean by "game room", but facilities are meant for hotel guests only.

Note that more and more hotels require presenting a key to get past the lobby and to the elevators.

A restaurant, perhaps a private dining room, would be a better bet.

You're throwing yourself a birthday party?

Sure I'm organizing my birthday party - I always have a get-together with my closest friends for my birthday, but I thought it'd be nice to do something other than a restaurant this year. I found one hotel, Flatotel, that appears to accommodate small parties, but I imagine you're right that most hotels discourage it for the reasons you mention. I may just go with a private rental space.

Thanks for the early birthday wishes, usermom! And thank you for the heads-up about the Blue Zagats, Aduchamp, I'll have to check it out (hope your November party goes well!).

Thanks, you as well.

If you are using the hotel for a party you definitely need to tell them you're doing it. You can;t just invite a bunch of people to a hotel room. Also, not at all sure the Marriott Marquis has kitchenettes - very few hotels do. And if you're going to have a party the hotel will want to do the catering. (They won;t say anything about a guest or couple bringing a brown bag up to their room - but if you plan on hauling in food and beverages for 15 people plus cooking implements - they will definitely notice and want to know what is going on.)

Hotel rooms have legal capacities - due to fire laws - and it's the hotel's responsibility to make sure they're not being contravened.

Have you considered a meal in a private room in a restaurant?

Your plan is totally confusing, at least to me. What do you intend doing in this hotel room? Sleeping some of your guests? Having a meal brought in from elsewhere? Cooking a meal? Do you intend on trying to comfortably seat a group of 10-15 in this room??? The largest suites you'll find are 2 bedroom suites that still won't comfortably seat that many people. The Doubletree Guest Suites is the only suite hotel in Times Square but even they don't have kitchens. What you can do is rent a party room in a hotel but to do that, the hotel will likely expect to cater/provide the food.

OK, I have an idea. Choose a hotel with a restaurant you like. Have your birthday dinner in a private room or secluded area of the restaurant. Also, reserve a suite in the same hotel (plus whatever rooms your overnight guests will need). Have a quiet gathering after dinner in your suite, with cake, bubbly (oops, no alcohol--well, you get the idea). (Even better would be a hotel wiht a rooftop area of some sort--unless it's too cold out, that would be swell!) The hotel will not insist on providing the cake and beverages for your after-dinner gathering, unless you're hauling in a caseload of something; you could order the cake or dessert of your choice from anywhere and have it delivered to the hotel in advance, to be served in the restaurant after dinner or in your suite later. And since you'll be dining in the restaurant, you won't require a kitchenette.

I really wish I could help with the details, but I am not familiar with Manhattan hotels. I hope others will help. Don't mind the snarkers. People here will sometimes pick your plan apart before settling in to help you with it.

Happy Birthday! (Your 30th, I assume?)

Hey NewbE, that's a really neat idea! Unfortunately it might start getting too pricey for me, though. Basically right now I'm just investigating different possibilities. I had a birthday party in a hotel once many years ago and it worked fine, but it was a bit smaller and it wasn't in NYC. I've been thinking of doing a pot luck type thing (which is why I asked about kitchenettes - just to have it handy) since a lot of my friends love to cook, but I'm leaning towards renting some private space (there are several organizations in Manhattan that rent space for small parties). I also know somebody who has a nice apartment with a backyard garden, so I might see if I could work something out with her. Thanks again for the great idea! (And, yep, it's the big 3-0 that's coming up!)

The Antique Cafe has B and B apartments that might be right for you- they are big enough for 10-15 people cocktail party type thing. About $350+/nt. But you'd still have to bring in all the food and drink, so it prob wouldn't be much more exp than doing it in a restaurant. There are hundreds of rest private rooms here that will do something good for $35/pp.

If that's too much, look into the yoga and dance studios. You can rent spaces for around $40/hour if you're somewhat quiet (don't blast music).

I know people who have had kids (around 8 or so 10-12 year old girls) birthday parties at two hotels in NYC - the Parker Meridian on 57th St. and the UN Millenium plaza. They rented a suite or adjoining rooms, took the kids to the hotel pool, then had pizza delivered to the suites and watched movies. Then the kids slept over, had breakfast in the morning and went home.

Crazy right? Hotels never made a peep. I'm not sure if they were told what was happening, but they seemed to roll with it. Ended up costing less than $300. - which in NYC for a kid party, isn't bad!

The Affinia Dumont in Murray Hill has kitchenettes as well as amazing views of ESB. The rooms there are quite large as well. Another option might be the Affinia Shelburne at 37th and Lexington. They have big 1 bedroom suites with kitchenettes as well. No stoves there though, just microwaves. Some rooms have great views and they have a fab rooftop bar. Prices are great at both properties.

www.affinia.com

The AKA Central Park has what you need except for the game room http://en.tripter.com/hotels/United-...-Park/56106/h/ but on Times Square the W New York-Times Square seems much more birthday party like. Check it out http://en.tripter.com/hotels/United-...quare/22296/h/ It seems hard to find sthg with a kitchen that wouldn't just look like the small apt you are trying to escape from ;) I hope it helps and Happy Birthday.

I think glimmer2 has made a good suggestion. The Affinia Dumont is very tall with completely unobstructed views all the way downtown (if you get a room on a very high floor). The large one-bedroom suites are very large (almost bigger than my apartment) and would have plenty of room for 10 to 15 people as long as you don't have a sit-down dinner. The kitchen is a full kitchen, so you could actually prepare food there, though you'd be better off ordering in and just keeping food warm. There are some good restaurants in Murray Hill that could provide catering for you. For example, I go to Benjamin a lot at the corner of 33rd and 2nd Ave. That restaurant has a catering branch and could provide the food.

The Marriot Marquis does have some large suites with dining tables, but I'm not sure they have a kitchenette, and I suspect the suite would be really really expensive. But if you wanted to cater a buffet meal, the hotel could accommodate that, though it would be expensive. I'm not sure they allow outside companies to come in and cater.

I would be pretty mad if I rented a hotel room and there was a party going on in the next room with 15 people!

agree with janiekins...it is really inappropriate and inconsiderate to book a hotel room, which is meant to provide rest and relaxation for traveler, to throw a party. there is no possible way a party for 10-15 people to have a party in a hotel room and confine the noise to that room. have you given any thought to the other guests of the hotel and their reasonable expectation for peace and quiet? I think you need to rethink what you are thinking.