I visited a micro-hotel in NYC, where a one-night stay costs more than $300, rooms are half the size of the average hotel, and you have to walk through the bathroom to get to the bed - and it felt way more spacious than I ever expected
We got to Arlo's SoHo location at 9 a.m. to meet with the hotel's managing director, Javier Egipciaco.
I immediately noticed the chic Arlo-branded bikes outside the entrance of the hotel, which Egipciaco later told us were available for guests to borrow free of charge.
Source: Arlo Hotels
We couldn't see inside through the windows, and the front doors were flanked by luggage trolleys like at any other hotel.
Source: Arlo Hotels
We walked inside and my eyes were immediately caught by a colorful candy display, which we learned is a partnership with Dylan's Candy Bar, a confectionary brand based in New York City.
Source: Dylan's Candy Bar
The hotel sees a spike in candy sales between 9 p.m. and 4 a.m., Egipciaco told me.
Source: Arlo Hotels
The candy shop is part of what is internally nicknamed "the bodega" — in homage to New York City — which is a coffee shop and snack bar that's open 24/7.
Source: Arlo Hotels
The "bodega" serves La Colombe coffee made by La Colombe-trained baristas. Egipciaco said they see quite a few customers on the overnight shifts, both guests and locals who need coffee at 4:00 or 5:00 a.m., before other coffee shops open.
Source: Arlo Hotels
Dry snacks sold in the bodega come from a company called Farm to People, which Egipciaco calls an "Etsy for food," and the perishables are made fresh on-site in the hotel's restaurant.
Source: Arlo Hotels
At the check-in station, guests are helped by lobby hosts, who can help you with basically everything. "They're not just front desk agents; they'll help you with your luggage upstairs, they're our concierge," Egipciaco said. "They have a lot of responsibility to provide the full encompassing experience."
Source: Arlo Hotels
There's also a kiosk for self-check in, and Arlo is also set to launch mobile check-in and mobile room keys in the next few weeks.
Source: Arlo Hotels
Displayed in the lobby area are small gifts and products from local partners, including Blind Barbor and footwear retailer Concepts.
Source: Arlo Hotels
Arlo mainly collaborates with start-ups and small businesses. "These are really cool companies that we're sort of discovering and putting front-facing to our guests," Egipciaco said.
Source: Arlo Hotels
Arlo offers nightly events that can include movie nights with classic films screened with a projector in one of the lounge areas, live music nights, and fitness classes on the roof.
Source: Arlo Hotels
The space seemed much more inviting to me than a typical hotel lobby. Several people were hanging out in the common areas, reading or working on their laptops.
Source: Arlo Hotels
Egipciaco said that many people who use the space are not guests, but locals who live or work in the neighborhood — and Arlo is totally fine with it, he said.
Source: Arlo Hotels
One of the pillars of Arlo is that it is approachable and inclusive to the local community as well as to guests, Egipciaco told me.
Source: Arlo Hotels
Near the elevators on the lobby floor are cork boards where guests can leave notes. The colorful index cards have expanded to cover nearly the entire wall.
Source: Arlo Hotels
Arlo SoHo has three "studio" spaces for meetings and this library space, which has a flat screen TV and a boardroom table.
Source: Arlo Hotels
The hotel has a spacious inner courtyard that was occupied by two canvas tents and several umbrella-covered picnic tables at the time of our visit.
Source: Arlo Hotels
Arlo partnered with a company called Tentrr to erect glamping-style tents where guests can hang out and eat and drink year-round. In the winter, the tents are heated.
Source: Arlo Hotels
During the summer, Arlo partnered with the company Tipsy Scoop to serve boozy ice cream in the courtyard.
Source: Arlo Hotels
Soon after our visit, Arlo transformed its courtyard space into an urban apple orchard, complete with glass greenhouses, a farm cart with apples and pumpkins for sale, and autumnal drinks.
Source: Arlo Hotels
The hotel restaurant recently simplified its name from "Harold's Meat + Three" to just Harold's, after chef Harold Moore.
Source: Arlo Hotels
The space was airy and open and didn't seem too formal or stuffy. It seemed like a place where you could have a casual meal.
Source: Arlo Hotels
Harold's serves seasonal American cuisine, which includes dishes such as sea bass with scallops, ricotta gnocchi, and ribeye steak with charred shishito, along with a selection of organic wines.
Source: Arlo Hotels
At brunch, you can find plates that include a matcha and chia seed bowl, buttermilk pancakes, shakshuka, and of course, avocado toast.
Source: Arlo Hotels
The breakfast buffet was one of the fresher and tastier-looking hotel breakfasts I've seen. At this point in the tour, I was feeling like this was a hotel where I could definitely see myself staying. We headed to the elevators to see some guest rooms.
Source: Arlo Hotels
The first room we visited was a queen-sized room. My first thought was that it was indeed small — but the design kept it from feeling cramped.
Source: Arlo Hotels
The rooms are all outfitted with floor-to-ceiling windows to make the space seem larger.
Source: Arlo Hotels
When you step inside the room, you're immediately in the bathroom, which was a bit jarring at first.
Source: Arlo Hotels
From the entryway, the toilet and shower are enclosed behind opaque glass to the left. The sink is to the right.
Source: Arlo Hotels
The bathroom toiletries are from Blind Barber, one of Arlo's New York City partners.
Source: Arlo Hotels
Instead of the mini bottles you might see in a typical hotel, the toiletries are full-sized with pump dispensers.
Source: Arlo Hotels
When opened, the desk looks like this, but the white section can also fold up vertically against the wall when it's not in use.
Source: Arlo Hotels
Instead of a closet, there's an open hanging rack between the bathroom and the bed.
Source: Arlo Hotels
We headed to another floor to see a king-sized room, as I wondered how the larger bed would fit in a room of the same size.
Source: Arlo Hotels
As it turned out, the side of the bed stretched all the way to the window and the foot of the bed touched the wall where the TV was attached. There's no room to walk around to the other side of the bed.
Source: Arlo Hotels
While it might make for a difficult sleeping situation for two people, the configuration almost made the bed seem like a cozy little nook. I don't think I'd mind sleeping on this bed (even on the window side), but I can see how some people would find it uncomfortable.
Source: Arlo Hotels
But some people do find the rooms to be too small, according to Yelp. One person left a one-star review calling the hotel an "overpriced fancy hostel." Egipciaco, however, was not offended when I brought up the hostel comparison.
Source: Yelp
"I think it's sort of flattering," he said. "I think you'll find hostels are making a move toward refining even their experience. I think the hostel feel comes from the size of the rooms..."
Source: Arlo Hotels
"...But we're never comparing ourselves or we've never gone to market saying that we want to be a hostel," he said. Of all the rooms, the bunk bed room — which we didn't get to see in person because they were all occupied or being cleaned — is perhaps most reminiscent of a hostel.
Source: Arlo Hotels
But I've definitely never stayed in a hostel with the same cleanliness and design of Arlo. The last stop — and one of my favorite parts of the tour — was the rooftop bar.
Source: Arlo Hotels
The indoor section is decorated with nostalgic sketches, including one of R2-D2 from "Star Wars" and the Starship Enterprise from "Star Trek."
Source: Arlo Hotels
With the dark-colored walls and leather furnishings, the bar had the feel of a swanky lounge.
Source: Arlo Hotels
We stepped outside to the outdoor area, which felt very laid-back with its wooden furniture, assorted plants, and vintage-style string lights. It offers a decent view of New York City's tallest building, One World Trade Center.
Source: Arlo Hotels
The rooftop is going for an an "elevated urban oasis vibe," according to Arlo's website.
Source: Arlo Hotels
I didn't know about Arlo's rooftop bar before, but seeing as it's open to the public, I'm seriously considering going back for a drink at some point.
Source: Arlo Hotels
The hotel offers fitness classes on the roof such as yoga and Surfset, which takes place on surfboard-inspired machines. The classes are free for guests, but they're also open to non-guests for $25 for first-timers and $32 for returning guests.
Source: Arlo Hotels
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