Hilton Garden Inn New York/Central Park South-Midtown West - New York

Barry R.

The overall experience was awful. To start, we showed up only to find that the elevators were not working properly. The hotel has 34 floors and they had an attendant that would work the few elevators that were working. If you needed an elevator to come get you, you had to call downstairs for it to come up and simply wait until one arrived. Upon arrival they tried to sell it as an amenity by having the elevator staff member talk to you and attempt to make you laugh, but we later found out that it was the complete opposite. ||People were crammed into these small spaces to get to their rooms (adults, pets, and children) and the elevators that they did have available were questionable. We called for the elevator one morning and it never came, causing us to have to come down 29 flights of stairs. One evening we called for the elevator and it was so late, that we missed our dinner reservation. As we were traveling as a family, two teens in our party attempted to take the stairs only to find that the lights in the stair rails went out causing the teens to travel down the steps in the dark. We also overheard a staff member say that he fell in the stair rail due to the dark conditions. One evening a female staff member was in charge of working the elevator and it was so hot in there as they continued to push in 20 plus people into a very small tight space, that she burst into tears while working due to hot conditions that they placed her in without any water to drink. The working conditions and the overall experience was simply awful. Once I spoke to the manager on duty about the experience and mishaps, she wrote me an email stating that I had the option to cancel upon check in which was incorrect because I checked in online as a Hilton Honor Member and received a digital key. Therefore, no one informed us of anything about the elevator mishaps. We just so happen to overhear it upon arrival as the staff were talking about it and complaining to each other about having to work the elevator for the guests. The manager did offer me a discount on my room stay however the treatment by the others and the treatment of the workers there is just unacceptable. ||Covid and Flu continue to be spreading rapidly so having to cram into a small space only to get to your room for an entire weekend is nothing that I signed up for. Not to mention, the hotel is not a cheap one to stay in so at least inform your guests of these mishaps so that we can make an informed decision about whether or not we would like to stay there or not. I have been a Hilton Honors member for years and have enjoyed the brand, however I will no longer support the brand and will be moving my business elsewhere. ||This was the worst experience that I have ever encountered with any Hilton hotel and I will never stay here again.

Gayle V.

Room 1406 for one night. Welcoming street entry with planters filled with colorful primroses on either side of the walkway leading into the lobby. Medium-sized lobby with limited seating; a small store with food and other items near check-in. Restaurant next door (Empire Steak House West) with access from the lobby had good food.||||Room: Comfortable, well appointed room. Semi-soft mattress on wood platform which looks nice, but watch out as it’s easy to bump into the corners. Four pillows with both soft and medium firmness provided; typical amenities we've come to expect: microwave and mini fridge; single serve coffee; large TV; iron and board, safe, and luggage rack; nice sized bathroom with step-in shower, hair dryer, shampoo, conditioner, body wash, hand soap and lotion in containers. Good sized towels. Reasonably quiet. ||||Regardless of the positive impression of the entry and the room, this stay was unfortunately brought down quite a bit because of a situation that happened sometime before Saturday afternoon check-in. At check-in guests were told that there was a flood that knocked out service to one of the three elevators (and later learned it affected the in-room and hallway phones as well). The plan was that one elevator would be used to go up and one for down. Going up wasn't a problem (staff shuttled us up to our floor), however to come down, guests were required to text the front desk so an elevator could be sent to retrieve us. To do this guests were provided with a QR code to put in our phones. Not using a code in this way before, a reminder to save the link would have been helpful. Anyway, later on, not finding the link, I tried calling the hotel twice from my cell phone and while I got through, my calls were quickly disconnected before I could talk with anyone. Ultimately I walked down 14 flights with a bum ankle to retrieve my dinner (from the restaurant next door). Needless to say, all told, the whole situation wasn't great. It just made me think how vulnerable a person would be if they had a major medical issue while staying there. All in all it made for an uncomfortable, stressful and overall bad experience. When you get down to it, an experience like this, though rare, could have been handled better. That planning is the responsibility of property owner / manager and they need do a better job -- make a better plan. I have requested at least a partial refund from the company because of this. We'll see what happens. I would have rather had the inconvenience of being moved to another hotel rather than deal with what I feel was a poorly handled situation.

Minh L.

Since we got there 4/1 at 3AM the elevators were broken and had to be manually operated by an employee. The only problem is when they acknowledge your request saying it'll be only a few mins to go down in the morning, you ask again after waiting for 11 mins to no reply ever. Ever since then we were so dishearten about their lack of communication, we just walked down the 14 flights of stairs every morning. ||We had to wait every night for an elevator from 5-15 mins just to go up though because we weren't going to walk up the stairs after a long day in the city. ||The biggest reason why we chose this hotel is because of their location. It was in the middle of everything and easily walk-able everywhere which makes it a great place to take a mid day break or go back to the hotel to grab things before going out again. Except with this elevator situation, we didn't want to wait 20-40 mins just to go up and down the elevators so we had to pack our backpack of everything we may possibly need for the day and only come back after being done for the day.||A false fire alarm went off at 4/1 ~10AM for about 10 mins which is terrible when we were still sleeping from a redeye flight. ||They clean rooms every other day here, but they didn't refill our coffee sugar/cream. That's fine, we're only human we only make mistakes. The only problem is I asked the hotel staff on 2 separate occasions if we can have sugar/cream, they agree they'll bring some up and nothing. No one ever comes to deliver.||The biggest thing is they didn't even try to make up for the worst stay we've ever had. We are pretty understanding that things happen and sometimes they would be inconveniences, but they didn't even try to make our stay any better and only made it worse with their poor hospitality.

Logan P.

Our group of Hospitality Management students from Penn State stayed at this Hilton Garden Inn while visiting New York City, and the experience was unlike any other—full of learning moments, unexpected challenges, and a truly impressive display of professionalism from the hotel staff.

The hotel itself has potential, but maintenance issues were noticeable. In our room (1409), we had problems with the shower diverter—the dial would shift on its own unless wet and heated—and the toilet constantly ran after flushing. Several others in our group reported similar toilet issues. There was also a loose toilet paper holder and a window that wouldn’t latch properly, causing a draft. The rooms were clean and fairly modern, but quite small, especially with four college students sharing two double beds. That part was on us for booking room types that weren’t ideal for our group size, but it's worth noting for larger parties. Additionally, the on-site Wifi was simply unusable due to how slow it was.

One of the biggest operational concerns was the elevator system. With only three small elevators that are frequently mentioned in past reviews as unreliable, we were not surprised when one or more were intermittently out of service. For a high-occupancy property, this created delays and inconvenience. It’s clear this issue has persisted over time and needs to be prioritized by management.

That said, the service was fantastic. From check-in to departure, staff were welcoming, helpful, and efficient—even with a large group like ours. The standout moment, however, came on our final night.

At approximately 12:30 a.m., a major water main burst on the third floor, directly impacting many members of our group. What followed was something I never expected to see firsthand: water pouring from ceilings in all four corners of the lobby, streams coming down from the elevator shafts, and chaos throughout the building. Even with all of this unfolding, the single front desk agent on duty handled the situation with remarkable composure.

She remained calm, professional, and responsive under immense pressure—fielding calls, coordinating help, and dealing with a lobby full of stressed and displaced guests. Some demanded immediate relocation to other hotels, while others were simply looking for answers, but she handled all of it with grace. Her commitment and clear-headedness during such an extreme, late-night emergency was nothing short of admirable.

By morning, the lobby was impressively cleaned up, water was restored to the unaffected floors, and the staff had a plan for checkouts despite all elevators being out of service. Guests were kept informed and supported through an incident that no one could have predicted. As students studying hospitality, we were in awe—not just of the situation, but of how well the team rose to the occasion.

While this hotel has some operational shortcomings that justify a 3-star rating, the staff deserve 5 stars—especially the front desk associate working alone that night. I didn’t catch her name, but she absolutely deserves recognition for her professionalism, poise, and commitment to guest care in a truly difficult situation.

Thank you to the Hilton Garden Inn team for handling the unimaginable with grace. You showed us what real hospitality looks like when it matters most.

Tim B.

Excellent hotel for the money! No complaints other than the elevators. We had to wait a while for elevators a few times since they were waiting for parts to repair. Old/aged and needing an upgrade()….. outside of that, the room was very nice and the staff was great & accommodating.

Armin H.

Unbelievably greedy from Hilton to rent rooms at this hotel right now. I booked this hotel the day before I went for business meeting in NY. When I arrived, I was informed that they had a pipe burst and two of their three elevators were broken. The third only operated manually, so needed a staff member. This place has 33 floors. Imagine the line forming at any time of day to go up to the rooms. Or down in the morning. Now, I fully understand that things can go wrong and accidents happen. But when you already know that your hotel is not operating properly, HOW ON EARTH DO YOU THEN ACCEPT NEW RESERVATIONS? Remember, I booked one day before traveling. And of course they don't tell you this until you get there. Once you stand there, they tell you its OK to cancel for a full refund. Great option when you learn about this on Sunday night at 10.30pm. I see other reviews now online that this pipe must have burst at least 2 weeks ago. If this was a small mom and pop hotel that is desperately trying to survive I might understand. But this is a HILTON brand hotel! They are probably getting a fat check from insurance for the burst pipe and at the same time, raking in the money from unsuspecting customers like me who rent a room not knowing what awaits them. Oh and even if the pipe had not burst, it would be a horrible place to stay. My room was on the 9th floor, and despite that, I could hear ever single car driving by outside. Not so much the motor noise, but the loud metallic CLANK they make when driving over those steel plates NYC likes to place as temporary repairs in their streets. Don't count on sleeping, at least not past 4am when traffic starts to pick up.

Joe H. R.

The first room smelled like actual feet, but the front desk staff was very helpful and moved me right away. They also brought me towels and sheets within minutes of me asking each time. The rooms had kind of a strange vibe. I liked the bathrooms and the entry area, but the carpet, lamps, curtains, and bed just threw me off a bit. It felt slightly creepy—especially with how modern the bathroom was. Also, they put me in the back of the hotel due to construction in the front, and the view from the back added to the weird vibes.

Brittany B.

Do not book at this hotel. If you have already booked, cancel your reservations and book one at the Marriott next door or a hotel down the street. Anywhere else but this Hilton. This hotel is not worth your time and money.

They will not communicate any changes to your bookings, even if you paid extra for a room with a terrace. We paid an extra $30 for a room with a terrace. We didn't find out there was no terrace until we went up to our room. Apparently their rooms with terraces have been out of order for at least two months. We booked two months ago. There was never communication before we arrived or even at check in. They will not refund your money. They will just offer you breakfast vouchers, which are not worth the paper they are printed on. And they offered us those breakfast vouchers begrudgingly. Simply pathetic.

They will not communicate to you that the elevators are broken, and have been for several months. They will not tell you prior to booking that they are down to one elevator for 33 floors. I met a few people who weren't even told that they need to text downstairs in order to have an elevator come pick them up, an elevator which might take up to 30 minutes to come get you on a busy day. At one point in time we had to walk downstairs 27 flights because the delay was going to affect our schedule. The hotel right now is absolutely a hazard if there was a fire, especially for people with mobility issues. But they won't tell you that.

They won't tell you about the carts that are left in the hall, blocking hotel rooms and are never moved. I stayed for 3 days and the cart was never touched. Not even for cleaning rooms nearby.

They won't tell you that the air conditioning doesn't work appropriately. They won't tell you about the faulty electrical issues in their rooms. They won't tell you about the terrible plumbing issues.

They won't tell you anything. They just want your money, and as soon as they have it they don't care about you. The front staff at this hotel made that very clear to us, and to everyone else around us who was unfortunate enough to have booked with them.

I will never go back to this hotel, I will never give them another penny. And I hope that this review is helpful to others so that you can save your cash and find a hotel that is worth it.