I don’t think I am alone, especially amongst Global Traveler readers, when I say I have a slight obsession with planning travel. My favorite is selecting hotels, figuring out the best locations within a city and trying to gauge the ambiance of a property through its website and online reviews. I find all too often in New York, a city with seemingly endless hotel options, I am less than satisfied with my choices as I make concessions based on cost or convenience. However, this weekend every one of my expectations was exceeded at Gild Hall.

As I mentioned in a previous post, my sister and I ran the New York Road Runners’ Half Marathon. We selected Gild Hall as our hotel, as it was close to the finish line — a real bonus when you just finished running 13.1 miles, as you don’t have many more steps left in you. From the online photos, Gild Hall looked to perfectly match my image of a New York City hotel, and in reality it was!

Just a few short blocks from the Fulton Street subway, connecting you to the A and C and the 2 and 3, this hotel is simple to get to from Penn Station. The lobby has the feel of an intimate setting, with exposed brick, large wood bookshelves, cozy sofas and rawhide rugs. It almost gives you the feeling of a contemporary ski lodge but without losing a very New York feel. We were checked in — quite early I might add — and on our way to our room within moments of arriving. Our room was well appointed, with a few touches of Gild Hall ambiance, including a large leather headboard and a thick, plaid throw blanket. 

Perfect for the night before our race, we dined at Felice Ristorante & Wine Bar in the hotel and had an excellent Italian dinner. La Soffitta, a bar and lounge, is located up a spiral staircase from the lobby. It would have been the perfect spot for after-dinner drinks, though we opted on this trip to pass because of our early start time. I couldn’t help but stop and snap a few photos of the lobby on our way to our room, as it was filled with candles on the stairs and the bookshelves, further amplifying the evening ambiance.  

The next day when we returned from our race, there was quite a lively brunch crowd filling the bar and restaurant. The hotel granted us a late check-out so we could take a much needed shower before the train ride home. Gild Hall gets one of my highest recommendations if you are visiting or doing business in downtown New York. It is certainly on my list to return.

— Danielle Hudena Pitonyak, executive vice president