On the Ave Hotel New York

I have stayed at this hotel for about 10 weeks in 2009. It is a location that was booked by me by corporate travel. I will not be going back.

1) In January, their valet service damage my vehicle while it was parked. I had the claim ticket, etc. It took 3 months, dozens of calls, and a few threats to get them to pay for the damages.

2) No vending in the hotel at all. No room amenities (micro, refrig, etc). Just a very overpriced mini bar. Request a fridge and expect to pay $10 a night extra for it.

3) TV reception on major network channels is terrible. If you are a tourist, probably not a big deal as you wont be here to watch TV. As a business traveler, this is my home away from home. I want to be able to watch TV and not feel like I am using rabbit ears in the 1970s. I commented about this situation every week for the first 5 weeks I was there. The situation is the same in every room. The desk will blame it on the wiring. The truth is, I believe, that the local channels are over the air reception and the cable channels are satellite.

4) During the week ending May 1st, 2009, I stayed in room 1001. On Thursday morning, I woke up to severely itchy forearms. By the next Monday, I had well over 100 raised hard welts on my forearms and ankles. A trip to my physician revealed that these were bedbug bites. I realize that this can happen in ANY hotel, but the reaction here was stupefying. I simply requested a refund for the visit. Again, I went through the routine of multiple phone calls that weren't returned, emails that were ignored, etc. End result? Nothing. I have at least three coworkers that now refuse to stay here after they saw the bites I sustained and the unwillingness of the hotel to do anything about it.

5) Most staff here seem ok, but they are overshadowed by the incompetent minority. Several front desk staff are flat out rude. No other way to put it. They make is as if they are doing you a favor by allowing you to stay there. I think that they may have missed the point that they are in the hospitality industry?

We stayed at the hotel for 5 days for my wife's 40th birthday and we had a fabulous time there. We were looking for a good hotel within easy reach of all of New York's sights but away from the usual noisey tourist areas. We found just that in On The Ave Hotel. Our room was very clean and very large, although our friends room was a little smaller with a larger bathroom. We had a huge plasma tv,excellent service from the staff, and enjoyed breakfast American style in the diner across the road which was very cheap considering how much we ate. We hired a rental car from 666carhire.com which gave us the freedom to explore a little further afield quite easily. The concierge couldn't have been more helpful with suggestions for us to visit. All in all no complaints about this hotel and will likely visit again.