upper west side vs. murray hill
 

last december we stayed at the lucerne on the upper west side. Even though we weren't crazy about the hotel, we loved the location, residential, quiet, lots of restaurants. this year we are looking at maybe the murray hill area (70 park avenue hotel). is this area similiar to the upper west side? thank you

Very different neighborhoods. Murray hill is much quieter than UWS. Both are residential but Park is not as frenetic.

The location of 70 Park is a very nice block, but it's really desolate at night, on the fringe of midtown. There are several places within fairly easy walking distance as long as you don't mind going 5 or 10 minutes away. Still the breadth of restaurants in Murray Hill doesn't equal the Upper West Side. For me, though, it's a very convenient location, but as a neighborhood resident I'm probably a bit biased. I'm not fond of the Upper West Side, but I can say that you'll get almost none of the street life on Park Ave. that you would get on the Upper West Side, nor would you have easy access to Central Park. Still, I find 70 Park much more centrally located with easy access to transit and cabs, especially if you want to go downtown. Not to mention that you're perhaps a 15- to 20-minute walk from most Broadway theaters. And this hotel has had a fairly recent renovation.

If you liked the street scene on the UWS, then Murray Hill won't cut it.
The benefit of staying in Murray Hill would be that it's sort of more convenient to places you might like to visit. I say "sort of" because it's not really close to the theater district, destination restaurants, clubs, museums. If you wanted something really centrally located, you'd be happier with something closer to (but not necessarily in ) Times Square.

What didn't you like about the Lucerne? Maybe another hotel in the neighborhood would be a better fit for you?

Thank You so much for the input. I think my daughter (30) liked the atmosphere of the upper west side. We felt comfortable and safe walking around at all hours of the night. There was always a lively night crowd at the restaurants. We always take the subway to shows and we were close to one. The Lucerne was okay. The room we had was shabby and not very clean. Tried for 2 days just to get a coffee pot replaced (dirty). Maybe I should look into another hotel in the uws. We are coming at christmas (dec 2-7) as usual. Our Favorite time to come to New York. Thanks Again

What about the Excelsior Hotel on the UWS, across from the American Museum of Natural History? An excellent new restaurant opened up at the Excelsior - eighty one.

We stayed at On the Ave (Broadway and 77th) and loved it. Great hotel and great location on the UWS.

The upper west side - while being residential - is much livier than Murray Hill.

If you didn't like the Lucerne you might prefer On the Ave. But - none of the upper west side hotels are really luxury - it that's what you're looking for.