With the sheer mayhem present in society today, sometimes you just need to find an appeasing place to clear your mind of it all. So, what better place to take a vacation to than New York City: the most chaotic city in America! In spite of the riots and the hustle and bustle of cars and pedestrians, nobody can deny the beauty of the scenic views in New York City, such as Central Park and Top of the Rock Observation Deck. However, the Chatwal Hotel in Times Square is an entirely different story.

Upon entering the five star hotel, you are treated with a marvelous corridor with a marble floor and a giant vintage clock hanging on the wall. The lobby consists of a bar with first class brands of alcohol such as Jack Daniels and Firestone Walker. There is an ample amount of cushioned seats and chairs and a huge table in the center-also made of marble. Complementing the scenery of the lobby include blooming plants and flowers and a splashing fountain. The overall hushed nature of Chatwal’s lobby allows you to thoroughly enjoy the looks and sounds of the fountain. It is incredible how the most simplistic sounds of nature can make us feel more placid, yet we always seem to take them for granted.

After ordering a beer, the receptionist gave us our room key and, can we just discuss how professional the staff was at Chatwal?! The receptionist’s smile and tone seemed genuine, the bellhop arrived promptly, and the maid was very tidy and affable. At one point, we bumped into one of the workers by accident and the worker kept insisting it was his fault and practically begged for forgiveness. Professionalism like this is something we would never see at a typical Marriott! Anyways, after walking down more marble corridors, we arrived at our hotel room door. When we saw the room for the first time, we immediately knew we were in for an experience like no other. The room was exceptionally spacious and the beds and couches were very comfortable. This is because, according to the bellhop, the beds and couches were made of a special type of cotton called Sea Island cotton. This cotton is softer than other types and makes you drowsy just by sitting in it. Other hotels use Supima cotton, which is much cheaper and can enduce numerous sleepless nights. Who knew a hotel could be so special that even the bed material would be more luxurious?!

Other features of the hotel room include marvelous paintings adorning the walls. These paintings depicted scenic pictures such as a beach sunset, a waterfall surrounded by plants, grassy plains with mountains in the distance, and a mansion with a golden statue outside the Edifice. Fresh towels were delivered every day, snacks such as crackers and cookies were readily available, and there was an observation deck with incredible views of Manhattan. Even the bathroom was very fancy with a heated toilet seat and objects such as perfume and cologne. With such a fancy area, there was almost no point in dealing with the hassle of the city, especially when we could see everything from the observation deck. Besides, the Chatwal hotel had more attractions…

Sure, it may be the dead of January, but sometimes going for a swim is a helpful way to relieve our stress. Thankfully, the Chatwal hotel had both an indoor and outdoor pool and both were gorgeous to observe. The outdoor pool was surrounded by relaxing chairs and a gargantuan pool and hot tub, both of which were as deep as 14 feet! There were more towels, an inner tube for infants, and the buildings of Manhattan only enhanced the scenery. Unfortunately, it was too cold to swim in the outdoor pool, so we settled for the indoor pool. While the pool and hot tub were smaller, these pools also featured diving boards, a spacious restroom, and the walls had designs of plants on them. Adjacent to the pool was the fitness center, which featured almost every exercise equipment you could think of: treadmill, elliptical machines, bicycles, etc. There was a cooling area and a personal trainer was available if needed. There was even a feature on some of the equipment that let you choose your own song to workout to! Songs that our personal trainer recommended us to listen to were “Eye of the Tiger” by Survivor and “Till I Collapse” by Eminem. After working out to these songs, we can assure you that it could be our new routine for 2021.

Other features and attractions at the Chatwal Hotel included a dining area and a spa. Unlike other hotels, the dining area was available for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Breakfast included a wide array of foods such as cereal, bagels, hash browns, biscuits, waffles, pancakes, you name it. There were even signs labelling the number of calories in each food, so you can plan your breakfast accordingly. Regardless of how many people adorned the dining area, they never seemed to run out of food and were quick to restock. The spa, too, was quite exquisite and used first class oils such as “Le Mer Renewal” and “Method Men” soap for the best facials. The aromatherapy proved to be effective as well and, before we knew it, we were out like a light, permanently relieved of all stress and worriment for the rest of the day. Truly a remarkable experience!

Unfortunately, because the hotel was quite expensive (almost $1000 per night!), we could only stay two nights. Still, it is no surprise that Chatwal is considered a five star hotel because our stay at the hotel was unforgettable. Everything, from the scenery to the customer service to the food, felt very special to us and was a phenomenal way to start the year. We would 100% stay there again, and we strongly recommend you staying there too!