Dive brief:
- Crowne Plaza by IHG opened its Newly renovated Crowne Plaza Manhattan Times Square in New York City on Sept. 2, according to a Wednesday press release from IHG Hotels & Resorts.
- The 22-story, 685-key hotel was developed by Qatar-based Al Rayyan Tourism Investment Company and is managed by New York-based Highgate. Previously operating as The Manhattan at Times Square, it is now positioned as Crowne Plaza’s flagship property in America, according to the release.
- According to the statement, half of the Crowne Plaza brand’s global properties are now new or recently renovated. Last year, IHG Hotels & Resorts, the parent company of Crowne Plaza Hotels & Resorts, projected that 70% of its properties in America would undergo a transformation at the end of 2025.
Diving knowledge:
Built in 1962 in anticipation of the 1964 New York World’s Fair, the landmark property is located just north of New York City’s Times Square and near the city’s theater district and Central Park.
“Our new flagship hotel for Crowne Plaza represents a defining moment for the brand,” Ginger Taggart, vice president of brand management for global premium brands at IHG Hotels & Resorts, said in a statement. “Guided by our New Modern design philosophy, every aspect of the traveler experience has been carefully developed to meet the needs of today’s blended traveler.”
The hotel will offer branded experiences, including weekly food and beverage-focused social events, as well as daily wellness-focused rituals. In addition, there will be several meeting spaces such as The Studio, designed “for a more intimate environment”, according to the statement.
A new bar and restaurant, named Fifty-First Street Social after one of the hotel’s nearby intersections, offers all-day dining and nightly cocktails, while the hotel’s 24/7 market sells takeout options.
“This transformation represents much more than a renovation; it reflects our long-term vision for the asset and our confidence in New York and the strong U.S. hotel market,” Tarek El Sayed, ARTIC’s managing director and CEO, said in a statement.
In the first semester of 2025, the Manhattan lodging market it was driven by a strong RevPAR increase of more than 7% year-on-year and an ADR gain of 5.7%, according to a PwC index. Luxury hotels in particular drove market performance, experiencing RevPAR growth of more than 10% year-over-year for half, or nearly double the growth of upper midscale properties through luxury properties, according to the index.
Crowne Plaza has more than 400 hotels open worldwide with a pipeline of nearly 150. The brand is expected to add more than 36,000 rooms in the coming years, growing its global footprint by more than 35%, per IHG.
