Brooklyn, Brooklyn, take me in

October 22, 2009 7:37 AM

Brooklynfilter: Does anyone have any experience with the Holiday Inns that have cropped up in Park Slope (Union St. and Butler St.) over the past few years?

Planning a trip to revisit the old hood in Brooklyn (Park Slope), and thought we would splurge on a hotel for this visit. I used to live near the Union Street location (between 3rd and 4th) but can't recall that part of Butler St. (between 3rd and 4th)

Has anyone had any experience with either of these hotels? We don't need fancy, but clean and unsleazy would be nice.

Any other recommendations would be much appreciated. If there's anything in Cobble Hill/Carroll Gardens/Boerum Hill/Windsor Terrace, we'd be open (also, I would be very surprised). Downtown Brooklyn or downtown Manhattan would be okay, too, but I doubt we could afford anything palatable there.

posted by thinkingwoman to travel & transportation (11 comments total)

The one on Union Street is nice and clean. You should have no issues there.
posted by josher71 at 7:51 AM on October 22

I have no direct experience but I have heard that they are pretty pricey for what they offer. I live in Park Slope and my mom and aunt once stayed in the basement of a brownstone that is rented out as a room. I will try to get the details from her, but I remember that is was both nicer and cheaper than staying at the Holiday Inn (although she was splitting the cost with my aunt). The brownstone was on Fifth St. near Fifth Ave.

In downtown Manhattan, the Wall Street Inn is fairly inexpensive and close to the Whitehall R, so easy access to Park Slope.
posted by Falconetti at 7:53 AM on October 22 [1 favorite]

I stayed at the one on Union Street about two years ago and it was definitely clean and unsleazy.

More recently, I've stayed at the "NU Hotel" in Boerum Hill. It was also clean and unsleazy. It's got a minimal vibe with friendly staff. We had a few really minor issues (it took forever to refill the communal morning coffee urn, and the room had weird plumbing sounds and weird placement of lights and light switches), but would go again.
posted by exogenous at 8:15 AM on October 22

A friend of mine who moved from Park Slope to Boston stays at the Holiday Inn Express (note: it's an Express- we're talking pretty basic) when he comes to town. It's, as I said, pretty basic, but clean. It's convenient to the R line, one stop from a major subway juncture.

my mom and aunt once stayed in the basement of a brownstone that is rented out as a room

There are a bunch of places on CraigsList like this. If you're staying more than a couple days, I'd definitely consider it.
posted by mkultra at 8:28 AM on October 22

We are only staying 2 nights, over a weekend. Would like to keep this under $225 a night if at all possible.
posted by thinkingwoman at 8:35 AM on October 22

You should check out the Craigslist apartment rentals, they are mostly $100/night in Park Slope and are cuter and more central than the Holiday Inn, plus they give you more of the Brooklyn experience that you'll remember than a bland hotel.
I also rent out my apartment, memail me if interested!
posted by rmless at 8:58 AM on October 22 [1 favorite]

My friends have had great luck in Brooklyn and Manhattan with Vacation Rentals by Owner.
posted by Lieber Frau at 9:15 AM on October 22

I've stayed at the one on Union. It's nothing special, but Brooklyn is so underserved by hotels that, eh, whatever. It may be technically in historic Park Slope, but it's surrounded by a few auto repair shops, a gas station, etc. and is not very welcoming (I lived in PS, too, so I know the area). If you're going to be out most of the day and evening, then fine.

I highly recommend (I can't believe I'm going to let other people know about this place...) The Sophia Inn for location, price, amenities, and charm. You can also try AirBnB, which looks pretty cool.
posted by cocoagirl at 9:32 AM on October 22

My parents have stayed at the one on Union. Like someone else said, it's really on the border of PS. They thought it was expensive, but there really aren't a lot of hotels around.

On one of their visits they found the elevator to be broken... I believe the only elevator, and they were up several flights.
posted by schmoppa at 11:16 AM on October 22

My parents and friends have stayed at the one on Union and it was fine. I used to live right near there too and it was convenient. The rooms are TINY though.

fwiw, I find TripAdvisor to be a great resource for this sort of thing! I never book a hotel without checking there first. Looks like this one has decent reviews, posted recently.
posted by min at 12:48 PM on October 22

I currently live in Park Slope. While I've never stayed in a hotel in Brooklyn, I have used Air BnB to find nightly/weekly apartment rentals during the silly time I decided to try living outside of NYC. This included a place on St John's in the Slope. I think it's better than using Craigslist for this kind of thing as you have a little more protection from getting scammed.

Not to derail, but 2 well-travelled friends of mine who live in the UK - one a native NY'er - just got scammed trying to rent a place last week in NYC while visiting. Be careful.
posted by jacquilinala at 1:51 PM on October 22