First Impressions of the Brand-New Kimpton Era Midtown New York [Review]

My most recent visit to New York City was a 5-day stopover en route from Central America to Europe at the end of April 2026. Honestly, I’ll take any excuse for a few days in New York.

Sometimes I stay with friends, and sometimes I check into a hotel. Mainly, I stay in a hotel to get to know a hotel or brand I’ve never stayed in before, but also because this job has turned me into a bon vivant, and I love a hotel stay. It was a very last-minute decision, so when I saw the Kimpton Era Midtown New York had recently opened in March and was a new build rather than a renovation, I locked it in for 2 nights.

From the prerenovation Waldorf Astoria back in 2009 to a cheap and cheerful Hyatt Place, I’ve stayed at somewhere in the region of 10 to 15 hotels in the city, in all styles, brands, and both ends of the luxury scale. The Kimpton brand falls under IHG’s luxury lifestyle category, so I was hoping for an experience more akin to the Waldorf than a Hyatt Place. Shall we check in and find out?

How To Book a Stay at the Kimpton Era Midtown New York

As the Kimpton Era Midtown New York is part of the InterContinental Hotels Group, you can book award nights starting at around 44,000 IHG One Rewards points.

Since I didn’t have any IHG One Rewards points, I compared prices when booking directly with IHG and various other hotel booking websites. My go-to at the moment is Agoda, because the British Airways shopping portal often offers a great bonus. When I booked, it was 15 Avios per £1 spent.

It turned out that the prices on Agoda and IHG’s website were similar. However, Agoda’s price included the nightly $45 destination fee, whereas booking via IHG would mean I’d have to pay the additional $90 for 2 nights on arrival at the hotel.

Given the bonus of earning several thousand Avios and the fact that I’m not actively chasing any IHG elite status, booking via Agoda was a no-brainer on this occasion. I paid the $754 for the 2-night stay in a queen room using my U.K. version of the Platinum Card^® from American Express. The U.S. version earns 5x Membership Rewards points on prepaid hotel bookings through AmexTravel.com.

Hot Tip:

When staying at a Kimpton, be sure to mention the current social password. Saying a special phrase at check-in should unlock a surprise perk that could even include a room upgrade. I wish I’d known this hack when I checked in!

You Can Get Value Back for the $45 Daily Resort Fee

I despise having to pay resort and destination fees in the U.S. In almost every other country in the world, the amenities that you’re being charged for are complimentary!

The Kimpton advertises the following inclusions as part of its resort fee:

• Complimentary La Colombe drip coffee every morning from 6:30 to 9 a.m.
• Daily 30-minute Citi Bike rides
• Complimentary beer and wine during a social hour from 5 to 6 p.m.
• Restockable in-room soda fridge
• Gym access

Morning coffee and afternoon evening social hour drinks are served in The Parlor, the hotel’s aesthetically pleasing lobby café and restaurant.

Outside of these hours, I got a couple of snacks and drinks from The Parlor. No matter how much time (and money) I spend in New York, its prices still manage to make me gasp: $7 for an espresso and $8 for a croissant. That’s daylight robbery!

Thankfully, I was able to quench my hangover thirst with a complimentary Coke Zero from my room’s minifridge.

Considering I was able to do a proper workout in the gym, it saved me from having to pay for pricey gym passes elsewhere. However, I still find it cheeky to build a gym in your hotel and then charge your paying guests to use it.

I didn’t indulge in evening drinks or use the Citi Bike vouchers, but even without those, I still feel like I got decent value from the resort fee. That said, I’d rather have had breakfast included than free morning coffee and an evening happy hour.

Hot Tip:

If you stay here, I’d recommend Delis 48 for breakfast. It’s just a few doors west along W. 48th Street.

Rooms Are Thoughtfully, Practically, and Beautifully Designed

When checking in, I tried my luck and asked if there was any chance I could get a room with a view. Daylee at reception was more than happy to look into it for me and asked if I’d be fine with sacrificing the size of my base-level queen room for a better view. She recommended it, and since she knew the hotel better than I did, I downsized.

This was the view from my 21st-floor room that I got in exchange for space:

I was impressed with the decor and fixtures. Everything from the linens to the marble-effect side table felt high quality.

At no more than 180 square feet, everything about the room’s design was curated with space utilization in mind. It also had all the right light fittings in all the right places — like above the full-length mirror and behind the sideboard of the bed. To summarize, it felt more like a modern apartment than a cookie-cutter hotel room.

As is becoming commonplace in hotels these days, the sink was in the room itself rather than in the bathroom.

My favorite design element of the room has to be this cozy window reading nook. When there’s not much spare floor space to add seating besides the bed, this was a very useful and appreciated addition.

To help visualize the room’s size, there wasn’t much of a gap between the end of the bed and the massive wall-mounted TV.

It’s certainly nice to have, but who watches TV when they’re in New York?

Fantastic Gym

The gym is another reason I booked this hotel over the other options I was considering. Lots of hotels say they have a gym or some kind of fitness room, and then it turns out to be just a broken treadmill and a mismatch of ancient equipment that needs an instruction manual to use.

The quality of the Kimpton Era’s gym wasn’t clear from the photos on its website, but some of the reviews I read gave me confidence that it would be decent.

I’m happy to report that it was kitted out with the latest Technogym equipment, including several resistance machines, a rope pulley machine, and even Peloton bikes.

Great Location for Tourists

If you’re visiting New York for the first time or you absolutely need to be in Midtown, the Kimpton Era is the perfect hotel for you. It’s directly across the street from Rockefeller Center.

Central Park, Times Square, Grand Central, and the Empire State Building are also all within walking distance. I say that as a European who is so used to walking everywhere that wandering 10 blocks to Central Park doesn’t seem far at first, but …

… but as someone who knows New York well and has visited more than 20 times, the location was the least ideal aspect for me personally. I usually try to avoid the chaos and crowds of Midtown for somewhere in Lower Manhattan, like Nolita. On this occasion, I basically stayed in the hotel working the whole time, so it didn’t bother me too much.

There Are Excellent Common Spaces and Places To Eat

Kimpton Era’s combined third-floor reception and social area really works. It’s a bustling yet inviting space where I enjoyed my morning coffee and spent several hours working during my stay.

I think I must have been lucky with my timing when I checked in, as it was the only time during my visit when I didn’t see at least 3 or 4 people standing in line.

There was a self-check-in area on the ground floor, which I never saw anyone using.

With an additional 3 brand-new restaurants, Kimpton Era clearly wants to be a destination for locals, not just tourists.

Bar Rocco is the restaurant I wanted to try the most, but I didn’t get around to it. The Italian brasserie by chef Rocco DiSpirito was always busy when I passed by at lunch and dinner times.

Amasa, on the ground floor, is a Latin steakhouse.

The last of the 4 eateries is a rooftop bar and restaurant called Jade Rabbit, a pan-Asian izakaya serving small plates and cocktails. It was closed during my stay, so I’ll have to head up for a drink next time I’m in town.

Final Thoughts

I love being pleasantly surprised by a hotel, especially in a city like New York, where, even for those with deeper pockets, paying for quality means stretching the budget.

I think I found the sweet spot with the brand-new Kimpton Era Midtown New York: The thoughtful layout and design of the room masqueraded its tininess, there was enough variety in the high-quality gym equipment that I was actually able to do a full workout at a New York hotel, and thanks to the inclusions, I didn’t feel like I was getting robbed blind by the resort fee.

The only slight downside for me was the location, but I know this might actually be a huge positive for others.

My stay at the Kimpton Era is one I will remember for all the right reasons. I am now actively planning my next Kimpton stay, wherever in the world that may be.