Up all night: NYC hotels that generate the most noise complaints

New York City saw a record number of tourists last year with 65 million visitors, and expects to bust that number with as many as 67 million this year, according to the New York Times. All those people need a place to stay, of course, and there’s a corresponding hotel boom happening in the city as well, with 65 new hotels set to open this year, Hotel Business reports.

What does that mean for you, as a NYC renter or owner who already has place to lay your head at night? A new hotel opening near you may mean you're getting a noisy neighbor. (Of course, if you already live near a hotel, especially one with an outdoor bar, you're probably already well aware of the impact on your quality of life.)

A new report released by Localize.city, a real estate website that provides the pros and cons for neighborhoods in NYC, looked at noise complaints and identified the top 10 hotels throughout the five boroughs that are keeping New Yorkers up. Many of these hotels have rooftop bars and lounges where guests can party until 4 a.m.—something that new renters and buyers should consider.

The top offender was Midtown’s Dream hotel, where neighbors complained about noise on 49 days over 12 months. The hotel has a 2,500-square-foot rooftop bar and community board members have asked the bar to take steps to muffle the noise, the report said.

Some guests have a hard time sleeping there as well, according to reviews that the report cited, which mentioned “blaring music” and “teenagers goofing off until 2 a.m.,” making it impossible to sleep.

All 10 hotels are either in Manhattan or Brooklyn, with the Lower East Side, Downtown Brooklyn, and Williamsburg being the worst offenders. The full list includes:

1. Dream Hotel: Midtown, Manhattan
2. McCarren Hotel, Williamsburg, Brooklyn
3. 1 Hotel Brooklyn Bridge, Downtown Brooklyn
4. Hotel on Rivington, LES, Manhattan
5. SIXTY LES, LES, Manhattan
6. PUBLIC Hotel, LES, Manhattan
7. Aloft New York Brooklyn, Downtown Brooklyn
8. The Empire Hotel, UWS, Manhattan
9. MOXY NYC, Midtown, Manhattan
10. 10. Arlo SoHo, SoHo, Manhattan 

Williamsburg’s McCarren Hotel, number two on the list, received 40 complaints over 22 days. The hotel has a 4,800-square-foot rooftop pool and bar where parties are held on the weekend. Even guests find the music disruptive. 

“It’s so loud and the bass is so strong that it’s impossible to sleep,” according to one Trip Advisor review.

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