Embassy Suites Hotel New York351

Located on the waterfront in Lower Manhattan's Battery Park area, Embassy Suites Hotel New York offers spacious two-room suites, each with separate living areas (including surprisingly comfy pull-out sofabeds), bedrooms, and a mini-kitchen (including a coffeemaker, sink, microwave, refrigerator, and minibar).

Bathrooms - stocked with scented Bath and Body Works products - are roomy, with deep tubs perfect for bathing small children. The showerheads are adjustable, so spray-wary kids won't be scared.

Each suite is equipped with two 27-inch color televisions - featuring cable television (Nickelodeon, Comedy Central, HBO, and Disney Channel), pay-per-view movies, and video game controls - two telephones with voice mail and data ports, and an iron with ironing board.

High-speed Internet access (via ethernet cable) is available in suites for a small daily access fee, as well as in the front lobby, where guests can find kiosks with online access. Cribs and rollaway beds are available upon request, and suites are large enough to accommodate them without making families feel cramped.

Harbor view suites offer a spectacular view of the Hudson, including prime sunset viewing each evening. During the summer months, and particularly on July 4, you might even be lucky enough to catch a fireworks show above the water.

Embassy Suites offers a complimentary, full, cooked-to-order breakfast every morning and a Manager's Reception each evening (featuring free hors d'oeuvres and both alcoholic and nonalcoholic drinks) in the second-floor lounge area.

Room service options are plentiful, and a children's menu is reasonably priced ($5.95 and up) and more extensive than most hotel fare. Four restaurants are on site - Chevys Fresh Mix (Mexican food), Applebees (American fare), PacRim (sushi), and Lili's Noodle Cuisine (Chinese) - and they each offer a variety of kids' meals for families who don't want to venture too far for a bite to eat. A convenience store is available in the lobby for snacks, medicine, maps, and other easily forgotten necessities.

The hotel's Kids-Eye View program features a Kid Passport - "stamped" with a sticker - and a customized list of local attractions, including outdoor activities, shopping, ice cream, pizza, educational activities, and family outings. Kids can keep their passports for future trips around the country and get their passports stamped at any of the 26 participating Embassy Suites locations.

Embassy Suites is located within walking distance of the New York Stock Exchange, Ground Zero, Battery Park, the Statue of Liberty/Ellis Island ferries, Century 21 Department store, and the neighborhoods of TriBeCa, SoHo, and Greenwich Village.

The Rockefeller Park and Teardrop Park playgrounds - two of the nicest in the city - are just a block away.

Other city attractions further uptown are accessible via subway, bus, and cab rides.

Check-in is at 4pm, and check-out is 12n, but hotel staff are accommodating in arranging earlier or later times, and luggage storage is available at the front desk for no additional fee.