Family Hotel Near Wall Street: Q & A Residential Hotel

Unlike my solo visit to New York on a budget, on our most recent trip to New York (Decemebr 2016) we had a new challenge: finding a great family hotel near Wall Street that would provide space, comfort and value. Fortunately, luck would be on our side as we had the pleasure of staying somewhere we'd been meaning to visit for quite some time. The Q&A Residential Hotel is one of the newer hotels in Lower Manhattan, though its located in one of the area’s most iconic buildings. From the outside, you’d expect something classic, though once you pass through the doors it quickly becomes clear this isn’t a place trapped in a time warp.

The Q&A only just opened back in late 2015, and boasts a chic, upbeat atmosphere that immediately puts guests in a good mood. For me, part of the initial appeal of the Q&A was the fact that it isn’t a chain – that is, it’s totally independent, with no links to any major hotel brands. Perhaps this is partly why the Q&A has such a unique feel. You can tell it’s a labor of love more than anything else.

The lobby of the Q & A Residential Hotel

Location

Three minute walk to Wall Street

Service

Superb service by friendly staff

Facilities

Huge hotel rooms a with apartment facilities

Price

Around 155 USD/ night.

Massive & comfortable rooms
Excellent location

Lower level rooms have a bit of street noise in mornings.

Summary

Less than 5 minutes away from Wall Street the Q&A Residential Hotel feels more like an apartment building than a hotel because of its huge and very well appointed rooms including a kitchen- ideal for families. The staff is very helpful and friendly, there's restaurants less than a minute away and a supermarket about three minutes away. Despite the slight morning noise by the trash truck and an occasional honk of a car the Q & A Residential Hotel is a fantastic deal for families looking to stay in the area.

Recommendation rate

Location and Transport

After our morning coffee we hit the city. The Q&A has an absolutely fantastic location, right in the middle of the financial district. It’s a little less insane than the more touristy parts of town, but is still close enough to some of New York’s best attractions. The One World Trade Center is just around the corner from the Q&A. Battery Park is also nearby. There, you can grab a ferry to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island. There's also plenty of restaurants where to eat as well as a supermarket, all less than a three minute walk away. The supermarket comes in very handy if you want to save some money and put the kitchen of this great family hotel near Wall Street to good use.

During your explorations, you’ll probably also pass the stock exchange. It’s a surprisingly enjoyable area, with a lot of dynamism. In a single visit, you’ll probably run into a mix of buskers strumming out tunes, brokers rushing to the trading floor, and the occasional protester. It’s all a bit crazy, but a lot of fun.

Further afield, it’s fairly easy to get to Times Square and other popular attractions from the Q&A. The hotel is lucky enough to be just a minute or so from the Wall Street subway stop. From here, it’s easy enough to head out on trips to other parts of town, such as Central Park. If you’re new to New York, expect to be a little overwhelmed by the subway; but don’t worry, in a day or two you’ll be riding it like a local.

Amenities and Services

Along with spacious, tasteful rooms, this family hotel near Wall street also offers a great range of flexible amenities and features. They get a thumbs up for offering multi-room units, including rollaway beds and in-room laundry services for some. This means the Q&A is suitable for families and large groups-exactly what we were looking for. There’s also a decent range of rooms for individuals and couples, meaning the Q&A has something for pretty much anyone. Obviously, you can also expect private bathrooms and a 24 hour service desk. They also have an on site gym with a good mix of facilities.

During my time at the Q&A, I also fell in love with the on site cafe. The Black Fox is located on the lobby level, and has artisanal coffees on offer throughout the day. I got into the habit of stopping in every morning before hitting the streets, and have to say it was a bit of a life saver. The best thing is that it’s free! Every morning, guests are entitled to a complementary pastry and cup of Joe. How did they know that coffee is the way to my heart?

Rooms at the Q & A Residential Hotel

However, getting into the meat of things, let’s start with the rooms. When you first walk in, you might be a little shocked. By New York standards, these rooms are simply massive. The Q&A claims their rooms are three times the size of the average Manhattan room, and I think that’s probably about right. There’s plenty of space to stretch out. My studio also came with a reasonably sized kitchen. It came with a full size stove, a dishwasher, full size refrigerator and a great array of cookware. This alone is more than you’d expect in most Manhattan hotels, where you’re lucky to get even a microwave.

Nonetheless, this is a luxury hotel, so you expect a bit of glamour. They also offer plenty of decent amenities, including free wifi, USB ports, Bose sound systems and smart TVs. There’s also heating and air conditioning in room, both of which can be controlled with a phone app. I had a little trouble figuring the app out at first, but didn’t have any problems after one of the patient staff members gave me a hand.

Anyway, there’s certainly enough to feel comfortable, but things only gets better when you take the décor into consideration. The Q&A has a running theme of ingenuity and invention. As such, the walls are covered in Byzantine mathematical formulas scrawled in black and white. Some rooms also feature massive, blown up blue prints of famous inventions from the likes of Thomas Edison. Pulled off wrong, and this theme could have come across as pretentious, or just plain weird. But, the Q&A has a real sense of class, and everything just works. Rather than feeling like you’re sleeping in the den of some bad scientist, it instead feels like you’re being urged on to greatness by the very walls of the place! Adding to these theme of invention and brains, each room also features the Q&A’s mascot, an owl.

We loved the modern decor and huge size of the rooms

The room as seen from the window. Look at the hall on the right to get an idea of the size.

The fully equipped kitchen which made feeding so easy.

This is what the entrance to the room looked like. Great space where to leave luggage, specially for extended stays.

Staff

A hotel is nothing without decent staff, so I really think it’s worth commenting on how professional things are over at the Q & A Residential Hotel. I found the concierge staff extremely helpful, friendly and generally an asset to the hotel. Check in/ check out was a breeze, however finding the lobby is not as straight forward as it is in most hotels. Follow the signs along the hallway, turning right once you step into the building.

Conclusion

All up, the Q&A is a great place to stay in Manhattan, and I can’t recommend it enough. The staff in particular deserves a tip of the hat for being just wonderful. Whether they were helping me figure out how to use that air conditioning app, or offering detailed instructions on how to visit tourist sites, I found them invaluable. If there’s anything I could complain about, it’d be the lack of a welcome pack. I would have appreciated an instruction manual for all the amenities, and maybe a little additional information on the hotel. For example, it was only after I left that I heard they even had a roof top terrace! Either way though, that’s a fairly minor complaint for what is otherwise a delightful family hotel near Wall Street and probably one of the best options in all Manhattan. By the way, if you’re flying into or out of Newark Airport check my review a great family hotel by Newark Airport.