The William Vale — Hotel in New York

TLDR: The William Vale is a decent hotel but is in a league below the one which it advertises and prices itself. Some things met the expectations of this level, such as the view, some things were decent but fell short of 'world class luxury hotel' standards such as the professionalism and helpfulness of the staff, and some things fell below any level of acceptability at any price point for a hotel, such as room cleanliness and the presentation and functionality of amenities.||After writing this review I read other reviews, and notice there is a pattern with almost all the issues I have described here. The hotel has responded to many of these reviews; therefore they are definitely aware of them and have apparently been unable or unwilling to fix them. No amount of honeyed words or compensation will get me to return to this hotel because I wanted an amazing experience, not a bargain. Only a change in management or overhaul of policy could lure me back. Buyer beware.||I stayed three nights in a 'gotham corner suite with wraparound balcony', which for context is one of the more premium offerings this hotel has short of the penthouse suites. The William Vale advertises itself as a world class luxury hotel and prices itself pretty similarly to other hotels making the same claims in similar locations (for example The Shangri-La, Shard, London, UK).||Things that met or exceeded expectations of a 'world class luxury hotel':||The view: The view from our hotel room was absolutely stunning. This was the single thing about this hotel that did not disappoint from the hype. At night the city twinkled like urban stars and in the morning, we got to watch the sun rise over the city. and this was an unforgettable way to experience New York.||Things that did not meet our expectations of a 'world class luxury hotel':||Service staff: The service staff were friendly and tried to be helpful when engaged but did not seem set up for success. For example before I arrived at the hotel I was trying to e-mail the 'concierge team' (that turned out to be just one apparently overworked person) to arrange various things such as transportation from the airport to the hotel and restaurant reservations, and many of my e-mails would go unanswered or delayed and eventually all I got was an out of office message saying the head concierge was out on vacation for a few weeks and wouldn't be responding to messages. When I actually arrived at the hotel and asked to speak to the concierge team that's when I found out there was no team, and the front desk tried to field my requests but seemed ill-equipped to do so as it was outside their normal tasks. I consider this a management/policy/training problem, no reflection on any of the service staff themselves. The 'luxury' transportation driver that they did eventually book for me was just plain rude and dumped me on the street round the back entrance of the hotel with all my bags before taking off in a hurry. I used Lyft for the rest of the trip and had a much better experience for about a quarter of the price.||Dining: I only dined at the Leuca restaurant once (not the Westlight), and the experience was pleasant but very forgettable. Considering this hotel has some of the best views in New York it's puzzling they chose to put this restaurant in what appears to be some sort of cellar in the basement of the hotel. Nothing stood out about the food and service good or bad. I was unable to make a reservation at the Westlight because I was travelling with my 18-year-old son, and they would not seat anyone under the age of 21 in the evening.||Pool: The pool area was declared off-limits to my 18-year-old son that was travelling with me from 12pm onwards, so I mostly skipped it. I did go there once by myself to order some drinks to take up to my room, and they were served in cheap plastic cups and I could barely hear the waitress over the party music that was constantly blaring. Definitely Vegas vibes, and not the class I was expecting.||Room amenities: I paid extra to get a premium 'Wi-Fi' service, which turned out to be intermittently laggy and reset connections often. I would not have been able to rely on this internet for any kind of serious productivity. The mini bar had the basics, and puzzlingly enough a 'lovers kit' which was the source of a few jokes between my son and I and really felt tacky for a hotel like this. There was an ironing board, but difficult to find any space to actually use it since the bed and the cot took almost all the space in the suite up. There was no space to even sit down or get to the balcony entrance from the suite's 'living room' once the cot was deployed.||Things that did not meet expectations of any class of hotel:||Room cleanliness and maintenance: The room didn't feel pristine; the windows were a bit dirty as was the floor of the balcony. The bathroom felt like it had been tidied but not cleaned. There were stains on the outside balcony furniture, and a cigarette burn. There were also visible stains on some of the walls. The shower truly lowered the bar, it felt like it was just shoved in there with a flimsy soft curtain not doing much to stop water splashing and controls that made absolutely no sense. The first time we used it, the drain backed up and flooded the room. This was rectified by the staff promptly after I notified them. The coffee table in the suite was not assembled correctly and almost came to pieces when we tried to move it to make space for the cot which filled...

This hotel almost ruined our honeymoon. While there were MANY issues with this hotel, the main ones boil down to disorganization, and disinterest in actual hospitality.

We were not informed at any time, prior to or at check-in, that there would be construction happening on our floor. As you can imagine, it being our honeymoon, we had a rather late night and were planning on sleeping in. We were woken up around 7am by hammering and drilling. We weren't moved to a new room (with the same amount of noise) until after 1pm — which was also conveniently after check-out time. In order to even get to that point, we were forced to constantly follow-up in order to get any updates on what was happening. We ended up spending the first 6 hours of our first day as a married couple being absolutely miserable.

At at least 2 points, members of staff tried to tell us to simply leave the hotel until 5pm, when the construction would be completed. We had told them that we booked with the intention of having a staycation, and actually enjoying a luxury hotel. We're locals, and had no need for exploring the city.

Speaking of it being our honeymoon: Isn't it typical for hotels to get very excited to have newlyweds stay with them? Maybe even offer them a free bottle of champagne or some such thing? Not at the William Vale! At this luxury hotel, you can have the privilege of paying extra for any of that stuff, and an additional service fee that will not be disclosed to you until it's too late.

Oh hey! Speaking of undisclosed fees: Do you know that this hotel will charge you a $50 "destination fee" for some of their seasonal offerings, whether you use them or not? I was also told that the "destination fee" covered the complimentary water and coffee in the room. Which is not what "complimentary" means.

When we kept asking for updates about when our new room would be available, the Rooms Control Manager tried to use a technically-already-paid-for trip to their sauna as some sort of consolation, but we weren't interested.

After we were finally allowed into our second room (the attendant who showed up to help us move our things rushed us as if the room were on fire, such that my spouse had to return to the room to retrieve their wedding ring and another piece of jewelry of mine), no one checked in to make sure all was well. We reached out to the Rooms Control Manager again to tell her it was still noisy and that we were considering changing hotels. The response we got was (and I am quoting here, because it was in text) "If you choose to spend the night in another hotel we would absolutely understand". It was already after check-out time, so our options were to go back home, or try to salvage things.

We called a hotel just a couple of blocks away, that shares the name of a street it's on. Unlike the William Vale, we did not tell them it was our honeymoon, only that we were having a terrible time in our current hotel. Their front desk person was incredibly accommodating, got back to us when she said she would, and upgraded our room for free. When we arrived, they gave us 2 free drink tickets for their bar, a free mini bottle of champagne, and a branded tote bag. It probably cost them all of $5, but it meant a lot to us.

It's now been a full week since we've checked out. We emailed the address that's being left on everyone else's bad reviews. Two days later, The Front Desk Manager contacted us from a different address. They offered to refund us from the terrible dinner we had our one night there (long story short, they're unprepared for vegetarians) and the ridiculous "destination fee". I told him the whole rest of the story, and it was clear that he had not been brought up to speed. He asked to schedule a phone call, but when I asked when he is typically in the office, I did not get a response for 3 days. When I responded saying I'd leave my review today, the Rooms Control Manager emailed me offering to refund us for half of the night that we didn't actually spend in their hotel.

The...

The William Vale didn't honor my confirmed reservation due to their own incompetence, told me and my family there was nothing they could do, left us with no accommodations, didn't help us find anything, and charged me for one night's stay. I've stayed at hundreds of hotels, BnBs, and vacation rentals across the globe.

I've been travelling for business and pleasure for 30 years, and so far, the customer service at the William Vale was the worst I've ever had at any hotel, much less one as large and prestigious. I was travelling to NY for family reasons and wanted to show my daughter the city since she had never been.

Due to the issues I and many others have been having with vacation rentals, I decided to stay in hotels or with family when possible. I didn't want to impose on family more than a day or two in each location, and other family was in town from all over, so there was more demand for the spare rooms than I expected.

This was my daughter's first trip to NYC and I had fond memories of Brooklyn, so I wanted to stay a couple of days to see how it had changed. I picked the William Vale as a unique experience. Since accommodations were tight with family, I sent a message to the William Vale asking if I could extend my stay by one day earlier. I received a response that "it wasn't possible to extend my reservation, but they could offer an upgraded room for $200 more per night". The room was already expensive and spending an additional $1250 plus taxes was too much. The message didn't say anything about replying so I thought nothing of it at the time. I didn't receive another message from the William Vale until 2:23 AM on the day of my original check-in saying I had to check-in by 4AM. I was planning to check-in in the early evening, so I assumed all was well.

When I arrived at the hotel in the early evening, I walked up to the counter and gave my name. The front desk clerk said that she couldn't find my reservation and was somewhat rude. I was very surprised, so I brought up the only email confirmation I had received, which listed the correct check-in and check-out dates. It had no confirmation number, which is strange, but perhaps indicates the lack of a sophisticated reservation system at WV. I then told the clerk I had inquired about an additional night for the prior day. They checked and then said that they had modified my reservation, I had not "showed up", so they cancelled my reservation and rented the room to someone else. I explained that no one had contacted me about the extra day other than to say it wasn't possible to extend my reservation, and I hadn't received any new confirmation of the change. The duty manager stepped over and said she was sorry and that "she would build me a room if she could" but there was nothing they could do. I asked if they could help in any way, and they said no.

I went outside to collect my thoughts and decide on a course of action. I checked several hotels nearby and there were no vacancies. I checked on the William Vale's site, and it showed a King room available, so I went back in and spoke to the desk again. I mentioned the room and they said the website was wrong. I still don't know the truth of that statement. I asked again if there was anything they could or would do and they said no and just stared silently until I left. I ended up getting the only room I could find on such short notice - a 240 sq ft shoebox for 3 people at the Penny Williamsburg. The suite I had booked at the William Vale was 380 sq ft with a 309 sq ft wraparound balcony, so almost triple the space (and price!).

If you are a trust fund baby looking to party, maybe the William Vale will suit your tastes, but business travelers, families and people who care about customer service should avoid at all costs. If I could give negative stars, I would. They wasted my time, ruined a portion of my trip and tried to charge me for services I...