Essence Hotel

The old adage of you get what you paid for is true in this hotel. I usually stay in Manhattan but most of the rooms were sold out or pricey. I haven’t been to Park Slope since I lived there in 2001 so I was excited to be back in the area. I arrived late on Friday night and the young lady in the front desk gave me my key. Upon entering , there isn’t much of a lobby just a chair and the hallway is narrow. At least there is an elevator to the 4th floor. I open my room and was disgusted and annoyed that the room was small. I had to put my backpack on the bed. The bathroom wasn’t the cleanest as I saw some hair on the sink. I pretty much wiped the door knobs, light switches, faucet, toilet and shower handles with Lysol wipes and sprayed Lysol in the shower. The room didn’t feel clean to me and I I didn’t sleep for the two nights I was there. The radiator was loud and I didn't feel the door lock was locked at all. I didn’t feel safe when I was in the room, hence why I didn’t sleep.

I had an extremely disappointing experience at this hotel. From the moment I arrived, it was clear that the property was outdated and poorly maintained. The building itself was old and crusty, with an overall sense of neglect that made me uncomfortable. The cleanliness was unacceptable—filthy carpets, dusty surfaces, and a lingering smell that made staying in the room unbearable. The room was shockingly small, offering barely enough space to move around. To make matters worse, the TV was unreliable, freezing every few minutes while trying to watch something, which added to the frustration. The entire experience left me feeling mortified. I made sure to document everything with pictures because the state of the room was beyond unacceptable. I cannot recommend this hotel to anyone and strongly suggest looking elsewhere for accommodations.

The rooms are very very small. The main door didn't lock all the way. Bed wasn't the great. Barely any space to move around in the room. Good views but wouldn't recommend.

Although the staff are friendly, but I don't recommend this hotel at all for these reasons: - the rooms are very small. You can barely even open your luggage. - the room was not Cleaner at the beginning. I even asked to change my pillow and bedsheets. - the shower is also not clean. - the electricity plug was very bad. - there is no hanger for hanging up the clothes. - the heater is annoying and loud. If you turn it off, the room will be cold. - the windows can hardly be opened. - the breakfast is literally junk food. Just a snacks full of sugar! - the price is too high for such a room. In summary, the owner needs to invest to renovate the rooms and make them comfortable instead of just earning money from the tourists.

Reviews seem honest so know what you’re getting before you go. The room was half the price of any other hotel for a Saturday night. That said, room (King size) was small (but hey as a studio apartment, you’d get 3 grand a month for it). Despite signs saying no smoking everywhere, the room smelled like cigarettes. Could’ve been the previous guests’ clothes, if they were heavy smokers, but slightly unpleasant nonetheless. The coffee tray had ash or dust in it. The furniture is old and even the walls could’ve used a little more care painting them. The air and heat unit is tricky and we ended up shutting it off. The pillows are flat and the bedding thin, but the bed itself wasn’t bad. Our room view was fine, looking out over the street to an indoor community pool. I wouldn’t say the walls were any thinner than a normal hotel. The hallways were overwhelmingly febrezed, which stung the nostrils more than feeling clean. Staff was nice enough. There were breakfast bags to go in the morning. The location is clutch. We did Brooklyn-pizza, pho, basketball, ice cream, and bagels-all within short walking distance. And, half the cost anywhere else. Oh, and we did feel safe, despite the “armed security on premises sign” on the hotel door and the sliding bolt with lock on the room next to ours., which was strange. (We were in room 302.)