I've just heard from the Hyatt that the Stanhope is now condominiums. Oh no! I've been staying there for years. Anybody have any suggestions for uppereast or upperwest side hotels in the same ambience? Looking for the $400 range, good service, charm.

The Pierre, Sherry-Netherland, Plaza Athenee, The Surrey, and the Carlyle.

For good measure, I'll throw in the St. Regis.

It does depend on what time of year if you can get in any of those hotels for $400 but with a little bit of work, you should.

The Pierre (A Four Seasons hotel) is my favorite.

All of GoTravel's suggestions are good ones. I'll throw out another on the UES: The Mark.

The Lowell on E. 65th is very nice too, all suite.

The Mark would be the closest both geographically and I think ambiance wise too. The Surrey is also in the same neighborhood and is an all suite hotel owned by Affinia. I don't know what the rooms are like. Ofcourse so is the Carlyle.

The Lowell is an interesting idea but it's closer to midtown and while I love the Post House restaurant off the lobby of the Lowell, I find the lobby a bit too dark and wonder whether the rooms are too.

The Plaza Athenee has a bit of the same feel as the Stanhope but may be much pricier. Also in the 60s.

None of the upper west side hotels are of the same caliber. They're nice but more 3 star quality. I'd guess the Lucerne would be the nicest.

Just for the record:
The aforementioned "The Pierre" is no longer affiliated with Four Seasons.

The Pierre, which used to be a Four Seasons Hotel is now operated by Taj Hotels.

Cannot contribute otherwise, and I am not even sure whether this helps, just wanted to clarify.

Thanks everyone. The first three I tried are all around $600. Yikes! Doesn't seem to be much in between $200 and $600. This is for 10 days in October. Any suggestions on how to go about getting the best rate?

I amend: The Surrey @$399 for a studio or the Lucerne at $295 for a one bedroom both look very good. The former is east side; the latter west but both are well located.

Any personal experiences on these two?

Thanks again. I am always amazed at how effient this board is!

The Surrey is the neighborhood you're used to. Cafe Boulud is off the lobby (!) Great food (and desserts which they'll serve w/o dinner). I haven't seen the rooms. Several good places nearby for breakfast from coffee shops to Via Quadronno (Italian-great coffee)

I have actually seen a room at the Lucerne. Marble bathroom nicely done, traditional decor. Nice Matin, a nice French rest., is off the lobby here and I believe you can get breakfast there. For $100/night less and more space maybe you should try the Lucerne and a new neighborhood? But if you use the park, the Surrey is closer.

mclaurie, we actually lived on the Upper Westside so the Lucerne is our old stomping ground. After we moved to Asia we stayed at the Mayflower for years and when that hotel closed we migrated across town to the Stanhope. REally like the museum proximity.

This is getting irritating; I don't like change!

So both locations have advantages and you're right the Surrey will be about $100 more for less space. This one might be a coin toss.

I've stayed in the Surrey Hotel and it is one of my favorites.

The Surrey is all suite. Our room had a living room/dining room combo, full kitchen, large bedroom, and full bath.

From my understanding, all the rooms are quite large because it is an old apartment building, is this not the case?

I don't understand the less space. I did not think The Surrey had standard hotel rooms.

Location is across the street from The Carlyle and we made Bemeleman's our stomping ground. Also saw the late Bobby Short on that visit.

I highly recommend this hotel.

GoTravel, marmot's post said the price at the Surrey was for a studio suite and at the Lucerne a one bedroom.

One more question: I was told that the Lucerne was similar to the Excelsior. I haven't been to the Excelsior lately, but a few years ago I thought it was a little too, shall we say, bohemian? Could anyone compare the Lucerne to the Excelsior?