Motto by Hilton New York Metropolis Chelsea assessment: Economical rooms with versatile configurations

What is the Motto by Hilton New York City Chelsea?

Hilton opened its first New York Motto property on 24th Street near Madison Square Park in Chelsea in early 2022.

How to book the Motto by Hilton New York City Chelsea

Guest rooms have clever space-saving options

Motto Chelsea offers eight different room types, though don’t expect any opulent suites, with the largest family rooms measuring just 340 square feet. The design favors flexibility to cater to as many different types of guests and groups as possible, with plenty of connecting rooms, including some with twin bunk beds, bound to be popular with younger guests to give them their own space.

I booked a 165-square-foot “flex room with wall bed.” At first glance, it appeared to be a standard, cozy Manhattan hotel room with a comfortable king-size bed.

On closer inspection, I saw a Murphy-style bed had been pulled over the sofa below, with the sofa cushions stored in a closet next to the bed.

This brilliant room design meant that by raising the bed, the bedroom instantly became a living room, with a full-size chaise lounge and coffee table, quite a luxury in a standard hotel room in this city.

This design did have one significant flaw, however. The bed can only be raised or lowered by the staff, using a special key to release it from the wall and lock it back up. It does not stay up without this key, even if the guest manages to lift the heavy contraption.

While a staff member happily arrived to switch the room over after a quick call to reception, I wish this design allowed guests to switch the room layout without needing to call the staff to assist multiple times each day. I also wish the staff had advised me how it worked during check-in rather than trying to work out how to lift it myself.

Bathrooms are smart and spacious

The bathroom vanity in the entrance hallway rather than the bathroom could lead some guests to feel exposed while getting ready for the day, but this design allowed plenty of bench space for personal toiletries.

With no vanity to squeeze in, the bathroom was a good size for New York, continuing the upmarket color scheme with shining brassware and white and royal blue tiles. Basd toiletries were available in fixed, refillable bottles in the shower and vanity.

Sacrifice some home comforts

Having stayed in some Manhattan hotel rooms where the entry door sweeps the corner of the bed and closing the bathroom door behind you can require significant agility and flexibility around the toilet, I loved the relative spaciousness of Motto Chelsea’s guest rooms.

On closer inspection, however, some basic hotel amenities aren’t included, so set your expectations. While this is certainly not a luxury hotel, it is a huge step up from the hostels it aims to compete with.

There is no desk and with the bed folded down, nowhere to place anything like a laptop beyond the one bedside table or vanity, which may be wet. While there is a small fridge, no tea- or coffee-making facilities are provided, and the single closet is full of sofa cushions, leaving only a few hooks, hangers and a fold-out luggage rack that will have your luggage almost touching the entry door.

Lulla has a wonderful outdoor space with excellent Italian food

The first thing guests will notice when arriving at Motto is the outdoor bar and lounge space on 24th Street. Named Lulla, it is a lovely outdoor area on a nice day, attracting in-house guests and curious passersby alike.

A thoughtful cocktail menu includes an excellent spicy margarita with Del Maguey Vida Mezcal, habanero and grapefruit ($18).

Aperitivo hour from 3 to 7 p.m. each day offers an extensive Italian charcuterie box for two ($26), including house-made focaccia, spiced nuts, marinated olives, nduja crostini and panzanella salad.

The inspired Italian cuisine continues at dinner with a tasty frito misto appetizer containing fried summer vegetables, toasted pine nut pesto and labneh ( $18), followed by an entree of skirt steak with a pink peppercorn rub, citrus gremolata and decadent beef jus ($32), all served by professional and cheerful staff members.

Breakfast from 7 to 11 a.m. daily features traditional favorites like overnight oats ($14), a light avocado toast with two poached eggs, sundried tomato, Italian vinaigrette and puffed faro ($18) and a heavier Italian-inspired breakfast sandwich with a fried egg, cured meats, burrata and spinach ($18).

I would recommend everything that I tried here; it was all excellent.

Indoors, the ground floor is a poor use of space

With real estate at a premium in Manhattan, it is understandable that a new hotel would not give over any more space than is necessary for a reception and lobby area.

Like my guest room, the ground floor had multiple uses, with reception, a lobby-type waiting area, a coffee shop, a bar/lounge and a restaurant, all sharing one space.

The problem is that there isn’t enough space for any one element to function properly. While the staff was efficient and welcoming during my arrival and departure, the reception/concierge area for almost 400 rooms is a single desk for a maximum of only four staff members, with almost no space for guests to line up when checking in or out.

With plenty of the general public enjoying the hospitality options at Lulla, indoors and outdoors, the seating quickly fills up and you will not likely find space for dinner without a reservation, with no priority given to in-house guests.

Each morning, a line formed at the coffee counter in the already tight space with hotel guests and passersby heading into the lobby, looking for their caffeine fix. The vibe was awkward, apologetic and frustrating.

Even more perplexing was that just one floor up, a huge lounge area on the first floor remained completely empty and unused. Perhaps as a new hotel, the owners are still working out the best uses of each common space.

It would have made far more sense to move the restaurant upstairs, allowing reception to occupy the area at the rear of the ground floor with space and furniture for waiting guests, freeing up space around the current entrance.

The fitness center is insufficient

While equipped with basic exercise equipment like treadmills, dumbbells and exercise balls, the fitness center on the fourth floor might be open 24/7, but it is too small for up to 700 guests who could access it each day.

Even at 6 a.m. sharp, there was a line for cardio equipment. If you plan to exercise at a peak time, expect to wait your turn.

Reasons why Motto by Hilton New York City Chelsea might not be for you

• Rooms are compact, and the ground floor common space is cramped.
• If you have a lot of luggage, there isn’t much space in your room to store it.
• You may struggle to find a seat for a drink or meal in the evenings without a reservation, even if you are staying at the hotel.
• The property has eliminated many traditional hotel perks, like room service, minibars and closets, as well as amenities such as a swimming pool and day spa.

Accessibility

Motto’s ground floor is all on the same level, except for one sunken cocktail lounge, though it can be cramped to navigate the multipurpose space during busy periods. All levels can be accessed by the four elevators, and considering the fairly tight measurements of the guest rooms, the hallways and elevators were generously wide.

Each of the eight room types has mobility-accessible (with accessible bathtubs and/or roll-in showers) and hearing-accessible options (with visual displays to indicate fire alarms, doorbells and phone calls) displayed during the booking process.

Checking out of Motto by Hilton New York City Chelsea

If this concept of accommodation is a glimpse of the future of hotels in space-conscious destinations like Manhattan, it was equally impressive and frustrating.

Having a dual-use guest room was a masterstroke — a full-size sofa in a standard room in New York is a step above most hotels I’ve stayed in. However, calling staff members to raise and lower the bed was tiresome. From a safety perspective, I can understand that the bed’s weight cannot be left to guests to wrangle, but I wish they had designed a system so guests could transform the rooms themselves, which would be a huge selling point.

The ground floor is cramped, but if you can find a seat, Lulla has an excellent outdoor space for an aperitif or in the restaurant for great Italian food. I would stop there for a meal or a drink to sit outside on a nice day, even if I were not staying there.

I’m excited to see where multipurpose accommodation concepts can lead, and if I stayed during the off-peak months when rates are reasonable, I would book this property again.

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