Crowne Plaza Edison by IHG

We booked a family stay to spend Christmas weekend in NYC, but sickness meant we couldn’t make the trip. As soon as we found out, we canceled a day or two ahead of time. The cancellation itself went smoothly, but the hotel flatly refused a refund, saying, “We always deny any third party booking’s request for a refund.” I explained we had a doctor’s note and that the rest of the family had to cancel their booking for the same illness. It made no difference. I understand cancellations aren’t ideal and this wasn’t planned. Still, with notice and a doctor’s note, I’d expect a hotel with Crowne Plaza’s reputation to understand that illness happens, especially with flu cases at some of their highest levels in recent memory. Priceline said the hotel only had to authorize the refund, and then Priceline would return my money and send back anything paid to the hotel. To me, that’s straightforward. There was no trouble canceling the room, but it seems Crown Plaza Edison wants to have its cake and eat it too. An entry-level employee may not be able to override a third-party cancellation, but surely a manager could. Mistaken bookings also need to be cleared up. We won’t stay at this property or encourage others to. This was awful customer service, well below what I expected. Thanks for adding that little twist of the knife just before Christmas, a real cherry on top.

I picked this hotel for its convenient location and stayed from 12/24 - 12/27, but several things bothered me. I don’t understand why the room costs an extra $45 for an additional person when a room with two queen beds seems to accommodate four. We booked for four people, three adults and a child, but got breakfast tokens for only two adults. If breakfast is charged to the room, how are tokens meant to work for everyone staying? Room service also required us to put out a door tag. How are guests supposed to know that rule? Is it posted on the website, and if so, who reads it while booking? When I called the front desk to ask about the $45 charge, the woman wasn’t polite. When I asked about her tone, she said that was just how she sounded on the phone. Based on this, I wouldn’t recommend the hotel.

The lobby was clean, nicely arranged, and decorated beautifully for Christmas. Check-in was quick, though the employee helping us seemed overwhelmed by several guest requests. As Platinum members, we weren’t offered a complimentary upgrade. The stay wasn’t awful, but it cost too much for what we got and didn’t meet what we expect from Crowne Plaza. There were maintenance and cleanliness problems in the room. A curtain rod was broken, so the shade wouldn’t close fully, and part of the bathroom sink drain assembly was missing. We also found a used toothpick on the floor by the bed. The shower walls had mold. After my wife gave the stay a three-star rating, a manager contacted her to ask how they could improve it. She pointed out the mold, and housekeeping came by, but only did a routine cleaning and didn’t address it. We took photos after they’d finished. The Wi-Fi was so slow and unstable it was nearly unusable, so we had to use phone hotspots for our laptops and tablets. We usually have good experiences at Crowne Plaza hotels, which made this one especially disappointing. We’ll keep using the brand, but hope this was an exception.

Beautiful hotel, and the staff were amazing. The food and bar service were great too. Pamela the bartender was attentive and pleasant, with a wonderful personality. Definitely my top stay in New Jersey.