Casablanca Hotel — Hotel in New York

I am completely baffled by the positive reviews for this hotel, which we relied on to make our reservation. I've tried to be as honest as possible about objective facts, such as fees and bed size. It's not just that we had a negative experience here; in the 24 hours we were there, people yelled at the front desk about their poor experience in terms of both room quality, amenities and fees AND the front desk staff member at check in told us openly that people consistently get very upset with him about the "resort" fees when they check out.

I can only imagine that the people who left good reviews happened to have one of the few rooms at the hotel that don't look out at an air shaft or (as in our case) the many vents of the nearby buildings with restaurants in the back, which pump out food grease so powerfully that our room either smelled like fried meat (at night) or smoked bacon (in the morning). Or perhaps these people don't realize that, even in NYC, when other hotels say they will give you a queen bed they actually provide a real queen bed, not a double bed with miniature pillows (no joke, and this was in a deluxe queen room, not one of the "petite queen" rooms, which have what the front desk literally called a "modified queen"; that's like saying this is a "modified" good hotel). Maybe the reviewers think that it's unusual for NYC hotels to serve free coffee, tea, water and basic breakfast food (bread, apples and small yogurts), when most hotels in town, including the cheap chains, do this. Maybe people don't read their bill and notice that they're being overcharged for "resort" fees, which the person at check in told us were $25 PER PERSON per night. I was told by someone else later that the fees are "only" $25 per room. I was also told that the person who made the mistake wasn't a new employee, so one wonders how many people were double charged (or more, depending on how many people were in the room). Maybe they also left positive reviews?

Speaking of misinformation about fees: the parking lot next door does not charge $30 per car per day, as the hotel told me. That's just for a small car. It charges $45 for regular cars. The hotel, by the way, also charges $100 for "incidentals". Because there is no mini-bar, spa, restaurant, etc, I asked what the incidentals were for. The man at the front desk pointed to a shelf with some mugs on it and said the hotel takes our money upfront just in case we want to buy any hotel-themed products. I later learned the hotel rooms have slippers and robes in them, so I suspect this fee is to charge people if they "accidentally" take these home (and I suspect that the robes and slippers are there to justify calling the additional fee a resort fee).

People have noted in their reviews that although the hotel is small, shabby and old, the staff are friendly. While the staff are indeed nice, especially the people who oversee the snacks, the main person we dealt with at check in was completely incompetent (but he was really nice to us when he gave us the wrong information about the fees and our room). It's also refreshing that this hotel doesn't have the usual bland corporate theme - it's more 80's themed.

We paid for a queen "deluxe" and instead we got a small, stinky, expensive double that had a terrible view. You may get lucky and get one of the better rooms (they must exist, based on the reviews) and be checked in by a staff member who has accurate information about hotel rooms and fees. Or you could pay less to go to one of the literally dozens of other hotels in the Times Square area that offers the same food, robes and slippers - and also has a gym and other real amenities - for less money and...

My partner and I stayed at the Casablanca for our honeymoon, and I am so deeply glad we did. Our week in New York was fun, but also calamitous: most notably, Tropical Storm Ophelia brought record-breaking amounts of rain to the city all week, and I woke up sick with two days left in our trip. Through all the ups and downs of our stay, the team at the Casablanca ensured that we were, above all else, comfortable. I will forever be grateful for their hospitality.

One of the reasons we chose to stay at the Casablanca was because of its location, and that paid off for us each day. We couldn't have chosen a better place to set up home base for this trip, chiefly because we planned for our honeymoon to be Broadway-heavy. We saw at least one show everyday, some of which we had tickets to before we got to New York, and some of which we got day-of tickets for at the TKTS booth in Times Square. This hotel is literally just steps away from Times Square. A couple blocks from the TKTS booth, and within easy walking distance of almost any Broadway show you could hope to see.

Transit options are also very nearby with one large train (subway) station just one block over and another a block in the other direction, as well as numerous bus stops in the immediate vicinity.

You might think the hotel would be loud, being so close to Times Square, one of the noisiest and most chaotic places in the known world, but my experience was that our room was very quiet. We had no view to speak of; the one window served as the entry point for the air conditioning unit, and it let some natural light in from a small inner courtyard. This could certainly be a detriment to some, but not having a view was fine with us. We needed the room to stay cool, quiet, and comfy for us to be able to rest between excursions, and it was absolutely perfect for that.

There is a small breakfast spread in the lounge each morning, and I loved popping down to grab a banana, a hard-boiled egg, and a bagel -- the staff are happy to take it into the kitchen, toast it, and deliver it to you -- with some peanut butter. The same lounge remains open throughout the day with a small selection of snacks and drinks for guests to take as needed. We deeply appreciated being able to grab a cold Diet Coke out of the mini fridge after walking around town.

Every time we returned to the hotel from a trip out, the staff welcomed us back. When we left, they reminded us to take an umbrella; they had several umbrellas ready and waiting for guests to use throughout the rainy week.

Perhaps my only complaint about our business with the Casablanca Hotel is that I booked directly through their website, months prior to our planned arrival, on a "pay 50% now, pay 50% later" kind of rate, but I was not charged at that time. The initial payment was not charged until about 6 weeks prior to the visit, and the second half was supposed to be charged 30 days out. With both payments so close together, and with no notice that the first half of the payment had not and would not be pulled until a much later time, I was caught off guard by the timing of the payments. The manager I spoke with said they changed their approach to charging guests because the pandemic had made cancellations so much more common, which I completely understand. I think this was simply a communication problem and could have been resolved by updating the language on their website about the likely timing of the charges.

I am truly so grateful that the place we chose for our stay was as comfortable and kind as the Casablanca Hotel. I hope we can return one day in the future, but in the meantime, I look forward to recommending it to all my...

I had the Pleasure staying in this amazing hotel for only one night in Feb 2015.

I must say that originally I booked a different hotel which when I arrived was overbooked, and they had no room for me. After all the reviews here on TripAdvisor I decided to give a call directly the Casablanca hotel and hope they still have rooms available for today. To make a long story short, not that they did welcome me but they charged the lowest rate I could ever hope for and even upgraded to a King room. WOW what a start!!!

Of course as many others wrote here, you cannot beat the location for the tourist in NYC - the Time SQ is actually in front of your room. I must say, I’m personally not a huge fan of this area but Casablanca made me forget all about the noise and the hassle of the crazy Time SQ.

The hotel as you all know dedicated to the legendary Casablanca movie. It is an Old school charm that I personally was skeptical I’m going to like but not only I did, I actually fell involve with it.

When you first enter the hotel, there is more of a luxury building welcome foyer then the “receptions” that you might be used to from another hotels. From the bellboy to the reception team they give you the feeling “Ohh you finally arrived…we’ve been so waiting for you”.

Then on the 2nd floor there is the lounge area where everything happens… this is a chill out oasis in the middle of TimeSQ. You can find an amazing free breakfast, an all-day refreshments, fruits, pastries, a great espresso machine with an actually great espresso!!!!! Every evening between 5pm and 8pm you can find there a great wine-and-cheese reception.

Now let’s go to the room. Well I must say that you will not find here any WOW effect but - they are all beautifully decorated!!!! Supper Supper Supper clean!!!!!! And the most important thing is the variety of amenities which is hard to describe. From sleepers and bathrobes to “make up” towels and amenities like eyes sleep masks and ear plugs. Anything you might desire or maybe forgot to bring with you is here.

Another very important note I’d like to say is about the prices. While the hotel rooms might not be on the very low side aseptically during the travel season, the prices for everything else you might spend while you stay are more than reasonable! This made me very happy and actually gave me the feeling these guys want you to feel comfortable and not just “make money of you”.

I never saw a hotel in NYC that charge only 21$ for a bottle of a very nice Chardonnay for example or 2.5$ for minibar drinks.

You should also try the Tony’s restaurant that is adjacent to the hotel and provides a room service. They are very very good with also a very reasonable prices.

I’m sure I’m even not close to express all the great things about the Casablanca Time SQ hotel, but I sure know that I found a new home away from home for every stay I’ll have in NYC.

And for the hotel team: thank you guys for doing what you do! For loving your work and for making us the travelers have this amazing opportunity to stay in a place where not only our money is important!

Can’t wait for my next...