What People are saying
I really wanted to like this place, ...
dmbiaon 09/08/2017 18:55My stay wasn't bad, but the issues started way beforehand. First, my credit card was charged at the time of booking, even though the rate I booked (AAA) was supposed to not be charged until check-in. I e-mailed back and forth with the hotel and with Choice Hotels main office. Eventually they acknowledged that there was a mistake and offered me a complimentary upgrade for my trouble. However, when I came to check-in there was no offer of an upgrade, and I ended up in the cheapest level of room.
I was expecting that room (the cozy queen) to be small. What I was not expecting was that it would be as poorly designed as it is. I've been in small hotel rooms (mostly in Europe) that were very functional. Here, though, they seemed to be trying to fit too many things into too small a space. They also seem to stress style at the expense of function.
The bathroom was surprisingly large, and that took space away from the main part of the room. I did not care for the shower, which barely dripped (very bad pressure) and had to run for five minutes before it was reasonably hot. The toilet clogged at one point, and it took six flushes before that cleared away.
The bed occupies almost literally every inch of the room, to the point that it is difficult to pass at the foot and left sides of it and impossible at the right side. At one point I knocked the TV remote control under the bed, and it was quite an ordeal trying to retrieve it.
The headboard on the bed is enormous, and it provides good (albeit mostly high) storage. Strangely, though, there is no bedside table or even a shelf where I could put my glasses or watch for the night.
Another issue is that there's only a single light in the room. It's good that it is a bright overhead light, but they'd do well to have some sort of lighting that can be used for reading in bed. It's also awkward that the only light in the room is controlled by a switch by the door, so I had to get up from bed, turn it off, and then stumble in darkness back to bed.
A lot of things seemed sort of cobbled together at this hotel. For instance, two of the electrical plugs in my room were sticking out from the wall and could be moved around, which doesn't seem entirely safe. Also while the door locked fine, it didn't fit into the door frame tightly. I could see light showing through it on all sides.
There was no guide to hotel services in the room. It took me until the third day of a five-day stay to realize that there was ice available in the basement and that containers for that ice were stored there. I also went online to google when their check-out time was, since nothing in the room indicated it.
A good aspect of the room was that it offered a wonderful view. I looked out over downtown Brooklyn and could see the towers of Manhattan in the distance. The window also had an easily operated window shade that blocked out the light at night.
The hotel provides free coffee in the basement, but they do not serve breakfast on site. They do provide tickets that can be redeemed at a restaurant four blocks away. Unfortunately that restaurant doesn't even open until 7:30am, and even later on weekends. Coming from the Midwest, this made me wonder if "the city that never sleeps" wasn't really "the city that sleeps in late". I wanted to use the time I had in the city to see things, so I didn't want to stick around for breakfast. I'd have far preferred if they'd made a deal with the bagel place by the subway station or if they'd just not bothered with breakfast and cut the rate by a couple bucks.
Something else that seemed strange to me was that there appear to be no vending machines anywhere in this hotel. It would have been nice at night to have been able to get a soft drink or a small snack, but I had to leave the hotel and go to a nearby deli to get those. There's certainly space to include vending in the basement, but they don't have it.
The staff at the hotel all seemed pleasant, though there were some quirks there as well. I ended up waiting almost twenty minutes in the tiny lobby before checking in. That wasn't really the staff's fault, though. It was because they were trying to check-in a large Chinese family who spoke no English at all. While the staff appears to speak a number of different languages, Chinese was a challenge for them. Also my key card stopped working during my stay (a problem at MANY hotels), and it took surprisingly long to re-program it. Finally at check-out the clerk seemed surprised that I would want a copy of the folio, and it took a while for her to print one out.
Probably the best aspect of this hotel is its location. Gowanus is a rapidly gentrifying neighborhood. It looks skuzzy on the surface, but it's obviously a perfectly safe area. Park Slope (just to the east of here) is one of the poshest areas in the city. The hotel is literally just steps (2 extremely short blocks) to the Union Street subway station, and it's within walking distance (half a mile or so) from the Atlantic station that is beneath Barclay's Center in downtown Brooklyn. On an express train, it's just three stops (15 minutes or so) to midtown Manhattan, and it's not hard to get almost anywhere else in the city. For those who don't want public transportation, there are also a surprising number of cabs in the neighborhood--which is not always true in the outer boroughs.
I actually would probably stay at this hotel again. There's a lot of room for improvement and potential guests need to know what to expect in the tiny rooms. The location can't be beat, though, and it does make up for a lot of the issues.
Smaller than small
fehlowon 04/08/2017 17:57Stay here only if you can't afford better. The room is tiny and it's hard to get around the bed without hurting yourself. The safety latch on our door didn't work. The aircon was basically on the bed which interfered with our sleep. On the positive side the room was clean and the bed is very good but on the small size. The neighborhood is good, the subway and bus are nearby. The best thing about the hotel is the breakfast at Runner and Stone which the hotel provides. If you can afford better do.
Lacking some basics
simulaon 25/07/2017 21:05We stayed at the Union Hotel for 4 nights. We were not expecting luxury by any means but some simple basics that make the difference between bummer experience and satisfaction were missing. The king size bed and bedding were very comfortable, the room small but that's ok. If only there had been a simple bedside light - we suggested they buy a clamp light - they are inexpensive and could be easily mounted on the wooden headboard. As it was there was one overhead light in the middle of the ceiling with the control by the door - away from the bed. We wish there had been a decent light in the clean bathroom - it was so dim you couldn't see to shave or apply makeup - and with only the overhead light in the bedroom the lighting became increasingly annoying over the 4 nights. There was a Kurig coffeemaker in the basement but no milk in the fridge. It's plain stupid not to provide these inexpensive basics that make all the difference. I suggest the owners try out the rooms themselves. If they find them satisfactory they are in the wrong business.
Stay somewhere else
Robyn Son 24/07/2017 03:44The good: it's clean and might be OK for one person.
The bad: these are about the worst designed hotel rooms I have ever stayed in, and I won't go back.
When you walk into the room, you see your bed immediately in front of you - but just the foot of it. The bed, which can't be any bigger than a double, is nearly boxed in by walls on each side. There is no closet, no iron, and no coffee maker, and the most ridiculously tiny desk I've ever seen (unusable). There is nowhere to put an open suitcase.
Once you're finally in the bed, let's say you want to read a bit. Sounds like a normal human activity, correct? You'll need to leave on the overhead light because there was no room for a lamp at a bedside table (there are no bedside tables because there is no room). I had to get out of bed, walk to the door, turn the light out and then try to figure out how to get back in the bed again.
And speaking of the bed, there was only a bottom sheet and a duvet on it - no top sheet. I had to ask for the top sheet and put it on myself, which is really odd. I've never had that happen.
Water pressure is weak at best. Windows are covered by a single blind, and you can easily see into other rooms if your blind is pulled open. I hated not having an option for some light.
yes, there is free continental breakfast, but it is at a coffee shop three blocks away. You'll need to walk over there to get your one pastry, cup of coffee and orange juice. Not really worth it.
Just know that if you can get something else at a similar price point, you should. This was really ridiculous.
Great location, very clean & comfortable
larryyasneron 11/07/2017 01:29Boerum Hill district is close to everything. This quaint property has very nice, clean rooms with stall shower, very comfortable beds, WIFI, Direct TV & a coupon for a small breakfast at a nearby cafe. A few blocks walk to the R line stop and several city bus lines.Good front desk staff.