Hilton Unveils New DoubleTree in NYC’s Times Square

By Barbra Murray, Contributing Editor

Lobby Rendering

New York—Hilton has been in a New York state of mind recently, and the hotel company’s affinity for the Big Apple continues with the debut of DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel New York Times Square West, a 612-key property in Midtown Manhattan.

Located at 350 West 40th St., DoubleTree Times Square West ticks the all-important location box. In a prepared statement, Dianna Vaughan, senior vice president & global head, DoubleTree by Hilton, said it all: “Times Square is the heartbeat of New York City.”

The 37-story hotel, managed by Crescent Hotels and Resorts, features 1,000 square feet of meeting space, a ground-level restaurant, a rooftop lounge and a highly coveted amenity not often found at Manhattan lodging destinations: outdoor seating. But that’s not all DoubleTree Times Square West has—it also has serious competition.

New York logged the seventh highest year-over-year increase in hotel supply from the fourth quarter of 2015 to the fourth quarter of 2016, according to a report by commercial real estate services firm CBRE. However, if any major metropolitan market can withstand an onslaught of new guestrooms, it’s New York. “New York, again, a tough market today. But please keep in mind, all that supply is still getting absorbed,” Thomas Baltimore Jr., CEO of Hilton spin-off Park Hotels & Resorts Inc., said during Hilton’s investor day conference in December.

Research backs up Baltimore’s assertion. “Most markets did not record demand growth sufficient to meet the increase in supply, and therefore experienced declining occupancy. A notable exception was New York, which saw occupancy increase even as supply grew 5 percent year-over-year,” per the report. New York closed 2016 with the highest occupancy in the U.S. at 88.3 percent.

Hilton’s fondness for the New York market resulted in the introduction of two hotels in the city during the fourth quarter of 2016. The company opened the 173-room The Renwick Hotel New York City, Curio Collection by Hilton and Hilton Brooklyn New York, a 196-key property, late last year. Additionally, the 310-key Embassy Suites New York – Midtown Manhattan, the first Embassy Suites by Hilton brand in the city, topped out in June.