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Reviews of 254 East Vacation

2 out of 5
254 East Vacation
East 74th Street 254,254, New York, NY

Reviews

7.8

Good

Rating 10 - Excellent. 95 out of 267 reviews" "
Rating 8 - Good. 88 out of 267 reviews" "
Rating 6 - Okay. 39 out of 267 reviews" "
Rating 4 - Poor. 28 out of 267 reviews" "
Rating 2 - Terrible. 17 out of 267 reviews" "

8.0/10

Cleanliness

7.2/10

Staff & service

7.4/10

Property conditions & facilities

Reviews

8/10 Good

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Great place to stay!
This was our second time staying here and we really like everything about it. The beds are very comfortable. Plus you are close to everything.

10/10 Excellent

Anne, Washington DC Area

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Hidden gem on NYC's Upper East Side
If you want to feel like a New Yorker, and not a tourist, this is the place for you. 254 East Vacation is full of charm and character--each apartment/room is unique, quiet and private, and even has a small kitchen. Wonderful location on the Upper East, walk to anything you need---food, drug store, shopping and more, just steps away. Enjoy a leasurely walk to Central Park, or stroll along the East River--both are walking disance from the hotel. This is by far and away our favorite place to stay when we are in NYC. I can't say enough good things about 254 East Vacation and the folks who run this hotel--we've been going there for more than 2 years and have never had a problem. It is our home away from home whenever we are in New York!

8/10 Good

Verified traveller

Liked: Room comfort

4/10 Poor

Reasonable Traveller

Disliked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities
Too Bad the landlord can't make an effort
The location is perfect and the apartment adequate, but not clean and not maintained. The fold out couch bedding was DIRTY.- making the charge for an extra guest ridiculous. The bedspreads in the main bedroom were musty and smelly, but the sheets were clean and the beds comfortable enough. The bathroom needed a good cleaning as well. A thorough cleaning would make a world of difference... and just a bit of maintenance.

4/10 Poor

Verified traveller

Disliked: Staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Excellent Location, ordinary hotel
The good: Excellent location, very close to hotels, grocery stores, coffee shop, short walk to central park. The bad: The apartment type living is very affordable since we were 5 people and did not want to get 2 rooms in the city. However, I do think that the amenities were really below par (e.g. The glasses in the kitchen were kept on old/wet kitchen tissues, the spoons were not cleaned properly, the bedsheets were old and unclean, etc.) I have stayed at other service apartments in the same neighborhood before and they provided way better service for marginally higher costs.

8/10 Good

Julia

Liked: Cleanliness, room comfort
Not really a hotel in the sense that there is no hotel staff onsite-& no elevator. The owner gets back with you on the phone pretty quickly if you have a question. Room is large & bathroom nice.

6/10 Okay

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, property conditions & facilities

8/10 Good

Judie

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
East Side Location
I liked it. Unfortunately no wifi.

8/10 Good

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Perfect for low-maintenance travelers
For my purposes, this hotel was perfect. You feel like it is a residence instead of a hotel. If you need high-end amenities, this is not the hotel for you. But if you like simple, clean, private and comfortable, this is for you. There is no front desk and there was no maid service during my weekend stay, but that was fine by me - it gave me a better sense of privacy. There is no elevator in the building - so be aware that you will need to carry your own luggage up stairs (again, fine by me). The bed was memory foam and super comfortable, and the bathroom was much larger than normal hotels in NY. I used to live on E. 70th St., so for me, this felt more like having an apartment and less like staying in a hotel. I will be staying here again.

10/10 Excellent

ES

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Walking distance to Sloan-Kettering Hospital
I was very pleasantly surprised- for the price I knew that it couldn't be a luxury suite. But the apartment was clean; simply but efficiently furnished. Not a lot of options on TV- but they got QVC!! The location is great for upper East side locales- a 10 minute walk to Sloan-Kettering. I was in NYC by myself for a 3-day inservice and felt completely safe in the neighborhood. The manager was very accomodating and helpful. Although not always on the premises, he is always available by phone. He made a special trip to get me a blow dryer. I will definitely stay again if I have the need, and I would highly recommend to anyone.

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Great place to stay for anyone!
Very nice! The beds were very comfortable. My only recommendation is the place needs mini blinds in the living room area and kitchen for privacy.

2/10 Terrible

Ann

Disliked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Not worth it
There was no elevator and we were on the 3rd floor. Our room was not cleaned the entire time of our stay. The air conditioner window unit was right in front of the bed and blew into my face all night. It was very unsatisfactory and drastically overpriced based on its location which was nice on upper east side.

8/10 Good

Bill C

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, room comfort
Excellent
I grew up only blocks from here .Loved it The neighboorhood is great. Felt good to be home. If you want to get at aste of NYC this is the place.

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, property conditions & facilities, room comfort

6/10 Okay

Samantha, South Africa

Liked: Cleanliness
Disliked: Staff & service, property conditions & facilities
Disapointing but value for money.
Firstly to clarify - this is not a hotel. It is an old apartment block where each apartment is has been converted as a unit to let. Although there is fundamentally nothing wrong with the accommodation I was disappointed as I do not think this comes through clearly enough in the advertisement. In addition when one arrives it is rather tricky to figure out how to get inside (one has to phone the number on the address listing and he gives the password and details of key whereabouts. Our unit was double booked ( but we arrived earlier so the other couple has to be elsewhere accommodated). The stairs are very narrow so it is difficult to carry suitcases. The apartment block is also about 7 - 8 blocks from the subway - so also bargain on taxi cost or a lot of walking. Having said all that the accommodation was acceptable, clean and reasonably priced for NY. The unit can sleep 5.

6/10 Okay

Verified traveller

Liked: Staff & service
Disliked: Cleanliness, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Stay in Manhatten
Location was great and staying in a brownstone made the feeling of staying in NYC great. The location was grea, close to everything. The cleanliness of the facility was terrible, there was mold in the bathroom and kitchen, I had to semi-clean before using those rooms.

2/10 Terrible

Gene, Connecticut

Disliked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Do not go there!
The lock for the front entrance did not work, so while we were given a code to use it, we didn't need to bother. There was a deadbolt on the door to the room, but this too was broken. The place had been poorly cleaned, the toaster still had crumbs around it from previous use, the inside of the microwave was sticky, the inteior of the fridge was iffy at best, and there were towels hanging on a hook on the bathroom door which appreared to be used. (there were clean folded towels on the back of the toilet) There wasn't a paper towel or any type of cleaning product available, except for a used sponge at the sink. The most frightening and dangerous problem, the exit window to the fire escape is blocked by a window air conditioner.

8/10 Good

Sue

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Great value
Bedrooms were very spacious and comfortable. It was a very hot weekend, and I wish there had been an air conditioner in the main living area and not just the bedrooms. Other than that, the rooms were clean and the location very convenient. By far the best price I found for that neighborhood.

6/10 Okay

Allison

Disliked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities
A real apartment with NO ELEVATOR
This is not really a hotel, but an apartment building that rents out rooms for the night. This is good and bad. PROS: It's in the middle of a real neighborhood, blocks from where I needed to be. It was bigger than a hotel room, with two rooms plus a kitchen and bathroom. It was pretty comfortable. CONS: There is NO ELEVATOR and we were on the 4th floor. They don't have a front desk or some of the amenities of a real hotel, like baby cribs. The decor is pretty awful and didn't seem particularly clean. Overall, I was glad we stayed there because of the convenience of the location, but don't expect high-end hotel luxury.

6/10 Okay

Diana, PA

Great location
We arrived there and found some hairs (that were not mine) in the tub, some boxers and socks in the upper cabinets in the kitchen, and the underside of the down comforter was a little stained, so needless to say, we didn't use it. We were in room 1, and I'm not sure if all the rooms are like this, but the place is covered in mirrors, so sometimes that got a little creepy because everywhere you looked, you saw yourself. Also the bed is up a narrow set of stairs and its a mattress on the floor. I bumped my toe getting out of bed in the morning, and my boyfriend hit his head getting up in the morning because its a little awkward to move up there. That being said, the place was very convient for us as we have friends that live only 2 blocks over, so we will definitely use this place again. It's a perfect location for us, and we really just used it to sleep and shower there.

6/10 Okay

Verified traveller

8/10 Good

m

Liked: Staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort

8/10 Good

Amanda

Liked: Cleanliness, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Disliked: Staff & service
A fun spot for kids
Great location, nice to have a kitchen, spacious room for four. Make sure you've got a cellphone to contact staff, because there's no front desk and no phone in the room. We would stay here again.

4/10 Poor

Verified traveller

Disliked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
if you have trouble with stairs......
There is no elevator and the flights of stairs to the rooms above the ground level are steep.

8/10 Good

Mary

Liked: Staff & service
Needs an update
The room was really outdated. The spreads on the beds were faded and old. The carpet has seen better days. We didn't need a kitchen, but if we did, I wouldn't consider the hot plate and microwave a kitchen. The room was minimally clean. You could see the gathering of dust around table legs, etc. Obvisouly the furniture was not moved when they vacuumed. One bed was so old and noisy the sounds woke us up. The room definitely needs a makeover, but suited our purpose and location. We really were only sleeping there, but if we had time, the patio off of the back of the room (1A) looked inviting.

4/10 Poor

Verified traveller

Disliked: Staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Too many stairs
My room was in the 5th floor and there is not elevator. The stairs are to steep and the steps too high. The internet service is mediocre at best. The utensils in the kitchen are very limited. The internet did not reach my room unless the door was opened. One of the TV was out of order.

8/10 Good

Verified traveller

Liked: Staff & service, room comfort
Disliked: Cleanliness
Convienent location
Very accessible to upper Manhatten

4/10 Poor

Verified traveller

Disliked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities
Too minimalist
Kitchenette area was not clean and bed sheets not ironed. WIndows not double glazed so traffic noise was too loud. curtains dont close properly to keep room dark and lots of street lights pouring in. There is no front desk per se and no elevator so you lug your own luggage up the stairs which are not clean. location is good enough but not significant enough to make up for the barren room, lack of cleanliness and non-existent support.

2/10 Terrible

Verified traveller

Disliked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities
Rough experience
Not much worked in the room. Coffee maker broken, no ironing board, window air conditioner unit put out hot air and on last leg. Bed was nice and room

10/10 Excellent

Ramon

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Close walking distance to my meeting center
Exactly what I expected. Very satisfied

10/10 Excellent

Jean

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Southern hospitality in NYC
We loved the personal attention and unique smallness of this boutique hotel. Being from a very small town in the south, we felt safe in this neighborhood and enjoyed the nearby restaurants & grocery stores. My husband & I were there with our 6 year old granddaughter, and after a full day of sight-seeing, it was great to come to our room, get a pizza & relax. We also enjoyed EJ's right around the corner - reasonably priced & good food. We plan to stay here every time we go to NY. It was clean, beds were comfortable & my husband loved the price!!!

8/10 Good

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, room comfort

10/10 Excellent

Rick, Waukesha, WI, USA

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Nice place, nice location at a great price
The first floor room is a total bachelor pad, for a younger person or couple. The bed is on the floor on a completely mirrored loft. Since the stairs are right there, it's not like climbing up off the floor in the morning. The shower is a little short, but it's New York. I've also stayed on the 3rd and 5th floors, which are your typical two bedroom suites. Unfortunately with no elevator, the stairs could be a killer for the 5th floor. I love the apartment feel, and it's only a few blocks from the office. I do wish the cable channels were more abundant, but I had the same issue at the Hilton. I had an awesome experience with the owner in the past, who had no problem re-booking me at the last minute when my trip plan changed - multiple times. It's a great

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Excellent Upper East location, great Restaurants
Nice renovated building. Very peaceful stay. This is a great location if you are familar with NYC, close to Lexington Ave Subway, great restaurants and out of the tourist trap prices on food. Best diner, Green Kitchen 77th at 1st Ave, great breakfast prices and good food, best Pizza and cheap Italian, Italian Village Restaurant 79th st and 1st Ave. Best Steakhouse, Spark's 210 E 46th Street.

2/10 Terrible

Torsdag, Atlanta, GA, USA

Disliked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
THIS IS NOT A HOTEL!!! IT'S A RENTED OUT RESIDENCE
THIS IS NOT A HOTEL!!! IT'S A RESIDENCE SOMEONE HAS PASSED OFF AS A HOTEL. IT IS HORRIBLE!!! We had to walk up three flights of stairs with luggage to get to this crappy room. Dark, dingy, cheap satin bedspread...stopped-up sink in the bathroom...overpowering smell of bleach...just all around seedy. Not worth half of what we paid for it. There is no front desk, no management on site. You call the number and a voice tells you where to go. The only thing this place has going for it is the upper East Side neighbourhood. Nothing else. The 'lowlight' of my trip.
main entrance
"lobby" - note magazine rack
bed with cheap spread
bathroom with stopped up sink

8/10 Good

TJ

Liked: Cleanliness, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
would stay again
I was really satisified with this place. The location was great, accomodations were nice, and it was neat staying in a place that wasn't the typical hotel. The only complaint that I have was that there was envelope hand written asking for a tip for the housekeeper. Maybe this is common practice in NY, but I have never given a tip for the housekeeper. In my opinion, this is just part of the daily rate. Overall, I liked the place and would stay again.

10/10 Excellent

Amanda

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort

10/10 Excellent

Mackenzie, South Western Virginia

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Such a great place!!
My girlfriends and I just stayed for 4 nights in room 2A. There were five of us, and the rooms had 2 double beds and a pull out couch. All of the beds were very comfortable and the rooms were very clean. It gave us such a great New York experience! We were in the upper east side and so close to every thing! We all enjoyed E.J.'s diner up the street for breakfast and lunch. It was so central to everything! I cannot say enough good things about this place! Very safe, very quiet, and very cozy. The place was small - But what NYC apartment isn't? We got creative, with five women you have to. We would pull the mirrors (which there were a lot of) off the walls and sit on the beds, or in the kitchen area and get ready for the day. It was so close to everything, we were able to come and go as we pleased and take naps as needed. This was such a great affordable place to stay that was right in the middle of everything and had an amazing feel. The staff was great, we really never saw them, but one time our group separated and the group who went back to the apartment didn't have the key...I simply called the manager Danny and he let them in with no problems once they arrived. I would definitely recommend this to anyone and everyone!

8/10 Good

OddAngle

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Close to Museum Mile
This was my first time renting an apartment instead of a hotel. It was very comfortable and clean and I think if I was staying a few days the experience would have been even better. As was, the hotel was in a convenient location, within walking distance of cafes, restaurants, bars, and shops. The subway station is only a couple of blocks away to bring you into the larger part of the city. Approximately 30 minutes walk brought us to the front steps of the Met. If your interest is in the museums, this is the best stay for the best price.

4/10 Poor

Steve, Edinburgh

Disliked: Staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Very basic, good do better
No reception. No facilities other than your room. No lift and steep, narrow stairs. Room was clean. Air con worked but noisy. Fridge, basic cooker, coffee maker, TV with poor reception, Wireless internet didn't work on 4th floor. All in all very basic but surrounded by good restaurants and easily walkable to Met, Central Park etc.

6/10 Okay

n

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities
convenient and hassle free
its like coming to your very own apartment in the city. some of the studios (i was in #5) need a little updating, but overall very clean (esp the bathroom) and comfortable. having a mini kitchen would be really convenient if you having kind of a long stay and dont want to eat out every single meal. the only issue might be the walk up - i was on the 5th floor. was there for only one night, but i can see that could be difficult with suitcases. or if you are coming back multiple times throughout the day. the best part was the "check in check out process" as in there was NONE. no waiting in line after a long flight to check in! awesome!

10/10 Excellent

Paul

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Easy access
Nice location .Easy in and out. Room was clean and bed was comfortable.

10/10 Excellent

Jean

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Great location
Close to where I wanted to be in Manhattan.

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Great Experience
An Anniversary getaway and 254 East was perfect! Upper East Side location made everything we wanted to do walkable (museums, Central Park). We had street level room #1 and it was clean, comfortable and had the pleasant feel of living in a small NYC apartment. We loved it. A galley kitchen - stove, sink, and frig, and coffee provided. Security to the building and our room was fine. The stairs up to the loft bed were narrow and the bathroom ceiling was low but that added to the charm for us but those might be difficult for someone taller. A little street noise but that's NYC. Interaction with the owner/managers was great - we received a confirmation call the day before with check in instructions and there was a place to keep our luggage between checkout and heading to the airport. Great experience!

8/10 Good

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
This was not a "hotel" but a one bedroom apt in a very nice brownstone building in the east side of Manhattan. The manager was very nice, never meet him, but he called and gave us information on how to get in the building. If you were going to stay a few days in NYC and needed a SMALL kitchen it is great.

2/10 Terrible

Verified traveller

Disliked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Not what you expect
It was not what I expected at all great location but for the price seriously no maid. No clean sheets. No AC or what they had did not work. The bathroom smelled , toilet seat needed fixing. The dishes were not clean. Yuck

8/10 Good

Steve, Indianapolis, IN

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Nice base camp
This was a very nice studio apartment that is used as a rental. I did not need any help from the staff and I did not see any of the staff. This is a very nice affordable place to stay. Subway was 2-3 blocks away.

6/10 Okay

Elmer N., Kansas City

Disliked: Cleanliness
Hit and small Miss...
I've stayed here a few times before; it's in a terrific neighborhood, and although a little far flung from midtown/downtown, reasonably accessible via the subway and a good alternative to hotels when the tourist season heats up from May to December. There are 8 apartments (apparently); I had not stayed in this one before. It seemed older, less clean and less inviting than the others I'd experienced. For the price it is very reasonable, but it wouldn't be confused with "well appointed" or "nice".

6/10 Okay

Mark, Colorado

Liked: Staff & service
An alternative to the standard Hotel room
We were looking for an affordable price and an alternative to the standard hotel room. It was not a "wow" experience but we did fine. There are some great restaurants in the immediate area, that was a nice surprise.It was probably a little too far for us to walk everywhere so what we saved in hotel fare was made up in taxi expense. A walk to Central Park was easy however.

8/10 Good

Bill

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Hotel was actually a apartment building converted into a hotel. It was an interesting idea. Never stayed in Upper East side. I enjoyed the area. Room I stayed in actually had a courtyard. Very nice to sit in after a day of travel and siteseeing. Room did not have cable, so when I woke up, was going thru sportcenter withdrawal. Otherwise, I felt like a New Yorker.