The GEM Hotel - SoHo

The itsy bitsy GEM Hotel - SoHo is clean, comfortable and reliable. And its location—on the border of the cool East Village and hip Lower East Side—makes this three-star spot a (dare we say it?) gem of a home base for exploration.

Quick read

Pros: Attentive, friendly staff. Clean, comfortable rooms. Excellent location.

Cons: Street noise. Small rooms.

Rooms

The GEM Hotel’s 45 guest rooms are cramped but comfortable. Décor is modern and streamlined (if sometimes a bit worn) and in-room amenities include down pillows, air conditioning, a safe, flat-screen television, iPod docking station and free Wi-Fi.

The hotel also offers business rooms, which are outfitted with a mini-fridge, microwave and coffee maker.

Note that some rooms are on the basement level with only small, street-level windows. (We advise requesting a room on an upper level.)

Bathrooms

The bathrooms are clean and modern. Bathrobes and Gilchrist & Soames toiletries make the experience a bit more luxurious.

Hotel

The Soho property is one of three GEM hotels in New York (the other two are located in Chelsea and Midtown West). The small chain aims to offer unpretentious yet quality accommodations, with a focus on primo hospitality and service. Mission accomplished. The GEM Hotel - Soho is rather simple, but its small reception area is stylish, and its staff is friendly. What's more, it offers comfortable accommodations in a fantastic location. 

Added bonus: The GEM Hotel group is committed to giving back to the communities in which its hotels reside. Ask at reception about the hotel’s various community projects.

Location

Despite its name, the GEM Hotel - SoHo is situated east of Soho proper (which begins west of Broadway, a few blocks away). Its street, East Houston, is the dividing line between the East Village to the north and Lower East Side to the south, which means that the GEM Hotel - SoHo has about as prime a location as you can get—especially if you want to explore the incredible variety that downtown Manhattan has to offer.

Fabulous shopping, trendy eateries, vibrant nightlife and more are all at your fingertips here. The GEM Hotel -SoHo is located within walking distance of shopping in Soho and Nolita and affordable restaurants and bars in the Lower East Side, Little Italy, Chinatown and the East Village. Those looking to save on foods can stock up on gourmet eats from the enormous Whole Foods a block away from the hotel.

The hotel is also just down the street from legendary eateries like Katz’s Deli, the city’s oldest and perhaps best deli, as well as Russ & Daughters and Yonah Schimmel Knishery, which both offer Old World breakfast experiences.

Transportation

Subways: The F train’s 2nd Avenue Station is just steps from the hotel, while the 6 at Bleecker Street and the B/D/F/M at Broadway/Lafayette are each a few blocks away.

JFK: Take the Air Train to Howard Beach Station, then the A train toward Manhattan to West 4th Street. From there, transfer to a Brooklyn-bound F train and get off at 2nd Avenue (two stops), which is just steps from the GEM Hotel - SoHo.

LaGuardia: Take an airport bus service to Grand Central and then a downtown 6 subway train from Grand Central to Bleecker Street. From here it’s about a 10-minute walk to the hotel, or you can transfer to a Brooklyn-bound F train at the adjacent Broadway-Lafayette Station and travel one stop to 2nd Avenue.

Newark: Take the Air Train to the NJ Transit station, and then any NJ Transit train into New York Penn Station. From there, take a downtown A, C or E train to West 4th Street and transfer to a Brooklyn-bound F train to 2nd Avenue (two stops). The hotel is a quick walk from either end of the station.