Aloft by Marriott Harlem

Clean hotel with nice staff, rooms are adequate but not large. They only offer valet parking but don’t offer any way to tip with a credit card so bring cash if you care. As a Titanium Elite you get a food voucher but they don’t tell you it’s actually a breakfast voucher and expires after 10am. I was on top floor but no view of anything aside from parking lot. I would book here again but with managed expectations next time. Not trying to wow you here.

So close to Columbia and Manhattan School of Music. I'm giving it thee stars on the rooms because by Marriott Standards, this is a 2-3 star hotel. AC The air conditioning needs to be updated. It’s extremely loud, it’s antiquated so freezing air blows in your face at eye level while sleeping, but you can’t turn it off because it’s too hot otherwise. So the AC makes it very uncomfortable to sleep or rest. LIGHTING The lighting is uncomfortable. It’s fluorescent. The individual room floor plan is designed if you want to shower at night or go to the bathroom, and someone else wants to go to sleep, there is no single light in the shower. The entire bathroom has to light up and there is no door to close it off. So bring a plugin nightlight. SOUND NOISE Depending on which side you are on in the hotel, the street side may be louder than the interior side. Which is wonderfully quiet. Also, I’ve been here twice and the rooms I have had, have wonderful morning light. ROOMS A decent size for a couple. The bathroom has a single sink and a single closet. So it will be tight. Ask housekeeping for extra hangers if you are traveling with two. They are clean, but outdated. The corners are grimy,

Our room was spacious, in the heart of Harlem and the staff were so nice and accommodating. There wasn't a iron or ironing board in the room, but the steamer worked for what we needed. The hallway was clean and smelled fresh. The shower could have been a little cleaner; just bring your shower shoes. The location is perfect, in the heart of Harlem. I felt safe walking around people walk the streets all night and the locals do not approach you. I would definitely stay here again if I'm back in NY, it's very convenient to the A ( express train) and M60 bus, which takes you right to LGA airport, so you can save on the $80 Uber ride.

DO NOT BOOK HERE. Aloft Harlem has a "Gotcha" refund policy. I had to cancel my reservation on the day of check-in due to flight cancelation. They advertise short-notice cancellations receive a refund minus first night, taxes, and fees, but they kept my entire booking cost, over $1300. They claim there is fine print that they can keep up to 100% of the booking, but this is not the verbiage used in confirmation email or advertised on website.

Pros: Free water and coffee in your room Luxury quality towels Hot water and water pressure Tissue box Strong wi-fi Cons: Rude, unprofessional & immature staff No food No gym No pool No patio/balcony No rooftop No private outdoor space No vending machines No consistent cleaning schedule Smell of marijuana in hallways Predominantly Latinx staff in a predominantly and historically black neighborhood Sleeping night auditor that tries to intimidate guests The stay could have been marvelous simply due to its location and proximity to shopping. Nonetheless, we picked up on the hostile and unfriendly nature of the staff. It says a lot about a company and its business based on who they choose to hire and I can tell there is a focus on getting the most staff at the cheapest price. I’m almost certain you don’t need a degree of any kind in order to work at this place hence the low-quality customer service since they don’t want to pay more high-quality workers. The behavior displayed by at least 50% of the staff was outright obnoxious. I have included video and photo evidence with a simple example of what we experienced. Had there been a more well-behaved and pleasant staff, this place cou