While quite a splurge, I gave the 47-room Casa Cipriani a try during my last visit to New York City. This hotel was impeccable in every way, but at the price point, it should be expected.
Casa Cipriani New York Review
I’m generally a loyal Hyatt guest, but this year I’ve been branching out and testing the waters at more luxurious hotels and resorts. My friend had reserved a nice suite so I decided to join, though I reserved my own room.
History
Casa Cipriani is not only a hotel but a private membership club that opened in the old Battery Maritime Building, a ferry terminal, in Lower Manhattan. The Beaux-Arts building was completed in 1909 and is owned by the Italian company Cipriani SA, which operates several hotels and restaurants around the world. Giuseppe Cipriani, the family patriarch, started the business in Italy. There, he founded the famous Harry’s Bar in Venice and purportedly invented cocktails including the Bellini and Negroni. As the hotel tells the story, Carpaccio also originated at Harry’s Bar, which was a favorite watering hole of Ernest Hemingway and Humphrey Bogart.
Booking
Quite candidly, trying to justify the $700 plus tax ($800 all-in) price tag was difficult. Very difficult. In the end, I booked it anyway, because I saw no other review of this property online…and as it turned out, I was very fortunate to get the pictures I did.
I’ll jump ahead now and say that I had to be extremely discreet about taking pictures here. Photography is generally frowned upon, especially in the club area. Nevertheless, I was able to capture some great photos which will give you a good impression of what this property is like.
Location + Noise
Located in the Financial District, the Battery Maritime Building sits between the Staten Island Ferry Whitehall Terminal and the Downtown Manhattan Heliport to the east.
If there was one thing I both loved and hated about the hotel, it was the noise. Expect to suddenly be startled by the blaring horn of a ferry throughout the daylight hours. Expect helicopters to fly right by the hotel as they land at the nearby heliport.
And yet, where else can you look out and see Lady Liberty perched nearby?
Check-In
I arrived by subway (Whitehall Street Metro), which was a short walk into the hotel.
I could have had the hotel pick me up, as it offers car service in the immediate vicinity, but the afternoon walk did me well after spending the morning in the Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse.
The lobby is small I was promptly greeted by a bellman as I walked in, who grabbed my bag and escorted me to the check-in desk. Upon checking in, I was assigned room 327 and directed to an elevator in the rear of the lobby.
Guest Room
As I walked down the hall, it certainly felt like I was on a ship.
My room was small. There was no view. But it was extremely comfortable. The leather chairs were high quality (you could smell the leather across the room), the bed comfortable, the carpet plush, and it was a perfectly cozy place to sleep.
The bathroom was small but included a large walk-in shower (no bathtub).
The following morning, I discovered I had a balcony as well (my room category was Deluxe City Patio King). It may have been helpful to a smoker, but there wasn’t a view at all and it was a hot summer day.
The Casa Cipriani takes its minibars very seriously. I had a suite-sized minibar with large bottles of booze in my room.
A Lavazza coffee machine with capsules was also present and dispensed very respectable espresso.
So in conclusion, the room was small but very comfortable with nice amenities.
As a point of comparison, my friend booked a premier river view suite and had this amazing terrace:
The Club At Casa Cipriani
Perhaps the biggest draw for this hotel is the members-only Club on the fifth floor. Annual membership is expensive, but hotel guests have access to club facilities, which include a Cipriani restaurant and bar, jazz café, and living room and terrace areas.
Here’s what the club looks like during the day:
As the home of the bellini, I sampled one and found it to be delicious…it’s all about the peach puree.
I thought it would be cool to experience a jazz club (I missed that in New Orleans…) but sadly the jazz café is closed on Mondays.
Note the club rules – a strict dress code is in place, and I loved it.
Breakfast At Casa Cipriani New York
Breakfast is served via in-room dining or on the club floor in the Cipriani restaurant. If you book via American Express Fine Hotels & Resorts, your breakfast is included.
The owner of the hotel was sitting in the restaurant having a lively breakfast with a couple of friends as I had mine. Other than that, the dining room was empty. But breakfast was very delicious. Here’s a look at the menu:
The coffee was superb, berries and orange juice fresh, and my Uovo al Pomodoro (eggs poached in tomato sauce) was excellent precisely because I assumed an Italian hotel would have incredible tomato sauce and indeed it did.
I want to give a special shout-out to Hugo, who took such great care of me during breakfast.
Spa
Another highlight of this property is the spa and wellness area. I found the massages too expensive to justify, but the sauna is such an important part of my daily routine and this hotel offers a great sauna and steam room. Hours are from 6:00 am to 9:00 pm.
I was slightly annoyed that the sauna was not warm enough. 140ºF is too low and I asked that it be turned up to 180º but it cannot seem to go about 160º. At least the steam room was hot.
Here’s the full spa menu:
Fitness Center
I did not have to leave my fitness routine at home thanks to the comprehensive gym offered at this hotel. While there are strength training and cardiovascular machines, the emphasis is on Crossfit-style training. Personal trainers are also available, though I did not use one (two other members or hotel guests took advantage of it during my workout…it seems like a nice perk).
Note, that this hotel does not have a pool.
Room Service
I had some orange juice and sparkling water with my friend upon arrival and went back to my room planning on skipping dinner.
But by 9:00 pm hunger struck and I ordered dinner: tagliardi with veal ragu followed by lamb chops with grilled vegetables.
Pasta is something I will only eat when traveling or on rare occasions and this was a very delicious splurge and the highlight of the meal, though the lamb and vegetables were delicious as well.
Here’s the full room service menu:
Casa Cipriani Courtesy Car
Within a five-mile radius of the hotel, Casa Cipriani offers a courtesy car service, which can be very convenient if you are working or sightseeing in the area or midtown.
Service
I have nothing but great things to say about the staff at this hotel. I mentioned Hugo above and want to give a shoutout to the entire team. From the check-in staff to the concierge (who helped us arrange a car last-minute to the heliport and then transport our bags to JFK since they would not fit on the helicopter) to the bartenders to the restaurant staff…everyone was kind, courteous, and well-trained.
Of course, you’d expect that at a fine hotel in Manhattan, but it was so great to experience flawless service that wasn’t stuffy or pretentious.
CONCLUSION
So I guess the question is whether I would return. The answer is maybe. I truly loved it. It checked off all the boxes for me (great wellness area, great room service, great coffee, great breakfast) and I’d love to return to the jazz club. But I wouldn’t take my children here because there is no swimming pool and I tend to agree with my friend that if you’re going to splurge and stay here, you might as well splurge for a room with a view:
It’s the price tag that gets to me. So much money for one night in a hotel. But truth be told, $700/night isn’t too bad in Manhattan…this isn’t Akron or Sacramento.
I arrived with great expectations and those expectations were exceeded with the kind and well-intentioned service…that earns the Casa Cipriani New York a very positive review.
Little known fact, there will be a pool on the roof. It’s actually up there, but covered up w pavers. They are waiting on a Landmarks approval. Probably 2023.
Good to know!
$700 for one night doesn’t seem wise. This is wasteful and the hotel doesn’t seem that nice to warrant peninsula prices.
Thanks for being the arbiter of what is wasteful.
Really odd location – yes it gets the water view, but very far from main residential, dining, culture areas of Manhattan.
Guess is it’s designed for downtown finance execs who live elsewhere and need a place to entertain clients
Or maybe it’s all a big money laundering front! Which might explain the staten island proximity
I would be tempted to try it via FHR but location? Not for me.
I also appreciate the dress code.
The big box style trash can in the bathroom is odd.
“I ordered dinner: a lamb followed by lamb chops with grilled vegetables.”
On the one hand, I believe this is a typo. On the other hand, I also would believe it if it wasn’t.
So where do you sauna/steam room when you’re back in LA?
Maybe it’s the perspective of the angle in which you took the photo, but there seems to be a lack of a railing on your friend’s terrace.
Looks like a good hotel, but as others pointed out, the location might not be the best.
You’re quite right. I meant to say tagliardi with veal ragu followed by lamb chops.
In LA, my gym has spa/steam – perfect way to end a workout.
Club Memberships are starting to be all the rage now and I actually think the concept is going to take off at hotels around the country. I’m curious what they charge there. I saw the new Aman is doing it in NYC as well but, omg, are they crazy with the pricing?
My reasoning is that for people living close by and working from home (so many are now) the club memberships serve well as a spot to meet clients etc. Cheaper in the end (unless it’s Aman, lol) then having an actual office. So many meetings are over lunch anyway it works well in this idea. Someone is going to run with this concept to team team up with a brand to start offering this in different cities.
By the by, that gym, wow, it’s incredible. Great review, Matthew…I will give this one a try now.
“Club Memberships are starting to be all the rage now”
While not restricted to hotels, in the UK private clubs (social and otherwise) have been a thing for decades and decades.
I was speaking in relation to Hotel brands. Yes, I am aware of London clubs. As well in DC where I live. My point being that linking them to branded hotels is a potential new trend.
But given the fact that there are lots of “exclusive” clubs in NYC, I think branding with a hotel would probably appeal more to the guests who would have access to them, like they are able to at Casa Cipriani.
https://gothammag.com/members-only-social-clubs-nyc-2022-ned-nomad
https://gothammag.com/exclusive-members-only-clubs-nyc
I like the idea though that clients can book into the hotel at special “club” rates. It makes for a total package much like a meeting planner would have. Let’s say I run a consulting business out of my apartment, I have two clients needing to come to meet, I can offer them special negotiated rates and VIP treatment at the Cipriani and have a built in space for everyone to come together for meals etc. The bonus being I get access for other things as well as needed (personal use). It’s a really interesting concept. I would just add small conference rooms that are available for free with reservation.
$700 for one night is extreme. I would like to hear about fine hotels at reasonable prices.
Having lived in Finland, hotel and gym saunas are now very disappointing. The best i find now are steam rooms.
The economics for NYC make sense here. At $800, I’m not a buyer, but it actually doesn’t seem that excessive. That gym is incredible. What I find intriguing is the room service OJ and S. Pellegrino, helicopter trip, and baggage too excessive to fit in the chopper. Who is this friend?
Helicopter is $195 – expensive but not outlandish vs the cost of a car ride to Kennedy, though in this case they had to pay for a car ride too!
And for frequent / high volume users the per flight cost is down to $95 and less for companions
You can only take 25 lbs of luggage on board the helicopter (whether carry-on or in the luggage compartment). Everything else has to go by ground. That’s why I’ve never taken the helicopter, which would otherwise be fantastic to try.
$700 isn’t a bad rate at all, especially given NYC hotel prices these days. Seems like a great hotel although I agree the location isn’t ideal.
Matthew, have you stayed at the Equinox Hotel? That’s the hotel that interests me most in NYC these days.
I became a Globalist to exactly avoid being putting in rooms like this.