Super 8 by Wyndham Brooklyn Williamsburg

We had no trouble coming back late at night, and nothing unpleasant happened on the street. The hotel is a bit isolated, though the L train is only a five-minute walk away. Our room was clean, the bed was soft and comfortable, the receptionists were nice, and we had good hot water despite the other comments I'd read. We stayed for a week over New Year. The weak point was breakfast: just a bottle of water, yogurt, and a few cookies. I hope they improve that. Still, I'd recommend the place.

It was clean, and the staff seemed to be trying, but small problems kept wasting our time. Check-in took longer than any other budget hotel I've used, and the front desk seemed confused about simple requests. Our keys stopped working halfway through the stay, the elevator doors took ages to close, and the TVs still had their new stickers on. Wi-Fi worked only sometimes, the on-demand movies didn't work, and none of the rooms we were given had a hair dryer. We also had to change rooms because the first had no shower water; in the next one, the pressure was barely more than a trickle. They only told us about the hot water problem at check-in. I don't know whether the advertised free breakfast even exists. It's a new hotel, so everything was very clean, but for all the time and trouble, I'd only stay again as a last resort.

The bed was comfortable, and at least the shower had hot water. Everything else felt very bare-bones: thin walls, no heat or AC, weak water pressure, scratchy thin towels with no hooks, a broken phone, slow internet, and a TV with odd local digital channels but no cable. I can't speak to breakfast, but it didn't seem like I missed much. I got what I paid for. I was there for two nights in December. I called ahead with my name and number to say I'd arrive late and was told that was fine. Then, after I got off the plane, I got a message saying they'd cancel my reservation if I didn't contact them by 9 PM, even though I'd specifically said I'd be later. JFK was still an hour away, and repeated calls went unanswered. Somehow I was still able to check in, and maybe I'd have wound up at a better hotel if they'd cancelled.

The room looked new, had the essentials, and the bed was comfortable, but the water problem ruined the stay. I knew about the cold water before arriving and was mostly okay with that. Then I saw two guests tell the manager they had no water at all. He offered them only a 20% discount on a future stay, and when I raised my concern, he told me it wasn't an issue. In my room, the shower pressure was so weak I couldn't shower. With a price that high, I can't imagine staying more than one night. This hotel shouldn't be open yet. Avoid it.