A Night To Remember: Pros and Cons of The Standard, High Line, in New York City [Review]

Ever since October 2024, when Hyatt acquired Standard Hotels, I’d been curious to check one out.

Whether for work or pleasure, I’ve visited New York at least once a year for the past 10 years. I’ve stayed in around 12 hotels, from basic Hiltons and Hyatts to the Waldorf Astoria (prerenovation), and I’m always looking to add a new experience to my repertoire.

It was while researching where to stay for a night in Manhattan this past summer that I discovered the perfect opportunity to stay at The Standard, High Line. I first learned about the hotel in 2015 while having drinks with friends at Le Bain, the hotel’s rooftop bar.

I remember thinking how cool it would be to stay there, so it was a bit of a full-circle moment that I’d finally be staying there and calling it work.

Would it live up to expectations? You’ll have to read on to find out.

Booking a Stay at The Standard, High Line

Cash rates at The Standard, High Line, in the middle of summer (August 2025) for a 1-night stay started at $275 plus a $35 destination fee. The property is classified as Category 6, and an off-peak award redemption required only 21,000 World of Hyatt points, which is worth approximately $315, according to Upgraded Points valuations. With only $5 difference between paying with cash or points, it wouldn’t have mattered which option I chose. On this occasion, I used points.

Things I Liked About My Stay at The Standard, High Line

Spoiler alert: What I liked about this stay is far overshadowed by what I didn’t, so let’s start on a positive note.

The Room: Timeless NYC Charm Meets Functionality

I’ve stayed in many hotels in New York over the years and have particularly enjoyed those with a distinct New York charm.

I was pleased to see that The Standard, High Line, was one of those hotels. To me, there’s something about the blend of 1960s and 1970s modernism that just screams New York hotel.

The way the bathroom’s dark black tiles juxtaposed against the bright white fixtures and fittings perhaps showcases this style the best.

Soft fabrics, such as the curtains instead of a hard wardrobe door, added a cozy, homey feel. The diner-style banquette was a nice nod to the quintessential New York style that I love.

I also found the room to be extremely practical. The banquette seating was a comfy spot to work, and having a luggage stand ready and waiting in the room is (annoyingly) becoming less common these days.

The minibar was also one of the most well-stocked I’ve come across in recent times. I wasn’t aware of the hotel’s party reputation at the time, but looking back, I realize I missed this glaring clue.

Amazing Views of Manhattan

Getting a Manhattan hotel room with a view can be a bit of a gamble, even in 5-star hotels in prime locations. I’m happy to say that The Standard, High Line, didn’t let me down here.

The floor-to-ceiling windows of my south-facing room afforded uninterrupted views of the skyline as far as Jersey City to the west.

I’m not sure if I think the enormous cruise ship sailing by spoiled the view just a bit.

It was the view looking directly south towards the World Trade Center that I couldn’t get enough of.

Remember my visit back in 2015? Here’s a picture I took from the 17th floor, almost directly above my room on the 16th floor, where I took the previous picture.

I could even enjoy the view from the shower, thanks to the glass partition between the bedroom and bathroom.

For all the flaws you’re about to hear about, this view went a long way to help save the experience from being a total disaster.

It was equally as spectacular by night.

The Location

The Standard, High Line’s location in the heart of the Meatpacking District is perfect for someone like me who has been to New York dozens of times. Within walking distance of Chelsea and the West Village, it was easy for me to enjoy my favorite New York pastime: roaming the streets to discover new cafes, restaurants, and viewpoints.

It was also far enough away from the crowds and bright lights of Times Square that I didn’t feel so much like a tourist.

The cobbled streets and low-rise buildings in the area were a nice break from the concrete jungle of the FiDi and Midtown.

Reception Team Customer Service

Finishing off this section is a shout-out to the reception team who looked after me during my stay. Having had so many issues in such a short space of time (which I’ll get to in the next section), I was on first-name terms with Brent, Rosa, and Serena by the time I checked out.

I could see how genuinely bad they felt for the series of unfortunate events that had unfolded. Not much of what happened was easy to fix, so coming up with an apt service recovery wasn’t easy. Ultimately, I was offered a lunch up to $70 at the hotel’s restaurant.

I believed Brent when he said this was the best he could do. But honestly, when I look back, a full refund would probably have been more fitting.

What I Didn’t Like About My Stay at The Standard, High Line

With the room, the view, the customer service, and the location all ticking the right boxes, I bet you’re wondering what’s left not to like? It was the entire experiential side of my stay that was completely shambolic. Let me explain.

Things in the Room Were Broken

While I really liked the room, it did need a little bit of TLC. For example, one of the lights above the bed was broken.

I also discovered that the phone didn’t work in the middle of the night when I really needed to call down to reception. More on that coming soon.

In the grand scheme of things, these were relatively minor issues compared to what happened during the rest of my stay.

3 of 4 Guest Elevators Were Blocked for a Wedding Party

In all my hotel stays, I’ve never come across something as ludicrous as this.

I had plans to see friends on the Sunday afternoon of my 1-night stay, but after struggling with what felt like food poisoning from my flight from Mexico City to New York, I decided to stay in the hotel and rest.

However, I still needed to head out a couple of times to get medications from the pharmacy and grab some food. It should have taken me a mere matter of minutes to reach the lobby from the 16th floor, but at one point, I waited for an elevator for 30 minutes.

When I finally got downstairs after the first lengthy wait, I went to reception to find out what was going on. It turns out that management deemed it perfectly reasonable that for the rest of the afternoon and evening, 3 out of the 4 elevators would be exclusively for the use of a large wedding party that was taking place at the hotel. My guess is that the couple getting married offered a chunk of money to reserve the elevators that the hotel couldn’t turn down.

It caused long lines in the lobby, where guests could be overheard complaining about being late for plans. Up on the 16th floor, the elevator would sometimes arrive full, and I’d have to wait even longer for the 1 elevator to come back to my floor.

On 1 occasion, an empty guest elevator arrived at my floor. I attempted to enter, but a security guard turned me away as I wasn’t a wedding guest.

I guess what goes around comes around, though. While waiting for the elevator on another occasion, I was joined by 2 very smartly dressed wedding guests. We got to chatting, and I realized that I was waiting with the best man, accompanied by none other than the groom, who was running late to his own wedding because of the elevator situation.

It turns out they’re both lovely chaps. After joking (kinda) that I spent my whole Sunday waiting for the elevator, the groom invited me to the after-party. I didn’t attend, though it was almost as if I was there.

The Most Disrupted Night’s Sleep I’ve Ever Had in a Hotel

I’ve lived in London and visited New York many times, so I’m accustomed to some noise when trying to fall asleep. In some cases, I think it actually helps me drift off to sleep.

Not this night.

The wedding party that I was kindly invited to was on the floor above my room. I’m all for dancing and loud music at a wedding when I’m there, but not being able to sleep because it’s happening above your head just isn’t the same.

After tossing and turning for a while, I blasted background noise from my iPhone as loud as it would go in an attempt to drown out the noisy party. I’m not sure exactly when, but I managed to fall asleep at some point.

Then at 1:50 a.m., I was rudely awakened by what sounded like screaming. It lasted a few minutes and was so startling that I jumped out of bed. The phone didn’t work, so I couldn’t even call the front desk to see if they could address the issue.

Once the noise subsided, exhausted, I got back to sleep until 10 a.m., when absurdly loud hammering started. I don’t usually sleep in late, but because I’d had such a disrupted night of sleep, I needed to catch up.

It turned out they were installing new TVs throughout the entire hotel, and apparently, 10 a.m. on a Monday morning had been deemed an appropriate time to carry out the work.

I dragged myself out of bed and went to the front desk (again) to find out what the noise in the night was about. In my dazed and confused state, I had the bright idea to take a video. When I showed Rosa at reception, she audibly gasped and immediately went to show the video to a manager. She said it was probably the old pipes and apologized profusely.

As I was taking some final snaps of the room before checking out, I found these earplugs.

I don’t think they would have helped much, especially against the loud pipes.

Lack of Respect for Privacy

Just when you thought nothing could possibly add to elevator blocking and a terrible night’s sleep, I was walked in on 4 times by different members of staff.

I’d just confirmed a 2 p.m. late checkout (thanks to my World of Hyatt Explorist status), when at 11:18 a.m. I heard a knock at the door. The person knocked 3 times, after which I shouted “Hello” each time, thinking that would be enough to deter them from entering. They walked in regardless, right as I was getting changed after a shower.

An hour later, at 12:25 p.m., when I was sitting at the desk working, I heard another knock at the door followed by someone saying, “Engineering.” Once again, I shouted “Hello,” but the person on the other side responded with “Engineering” twice more and proceeded to enter the room.

Looking back, I realized the “do not disturb” sign wasn’t on the door, and it wasn’t locked, either.

Precisely 4 minutes after the second interruption, the same pattern of knocking and me shouting that I’m in the room happened. This time, a housekeeper barged in and asked, “Are you checking out today, sir?” At this point, I was pretty furious and wondered if I was on some kind of TV show where people get pranked.

The fourth time was the worst. The woman in charge of the team installing the TVs knocked once and walked into my room without waiting even a second. This was at 1:20 p.m., 40 minutes before my checkout time.

Admittedly, I lost my cool at this point and proceeded to have an argument with her in the corridor, before heading down to reception for a last complaint.

Final Thoughts

I really wanted to love my stay at The Standard, High Line, and while the room (mostly) and the views were to my liking, the experiential aspect of the stay was an utter disaster.

Despite it all, I’d like to think I’d stay at The Standard, High Line, again. Everything that went wrong (the blocked elevators, the loud pipe, being walked in on) was all circumstantial and things that would only probably ever happen once in a blue moon. For me, they all occurred during a single stay, spanning less than 24 hours.

If those things hadn’t happened, this review would probably have focused on how much I loved the room and the view, but it might suggest that the hotel could use a bit of TLC.