The Jane Hotel

Part SRO (Single Room Occupancy) and part hipster den, the Jane Hotel is a beautiful beast, a glammed-up flophouse in a gorgeous ‘hood. And best of all for visiting Cheapos, the Jane offers twin rooms with shared bath for prices as low as $88 a night.

Until relatively recently, the entire hotel was an SRO with an impoverished clientele. The new management mixes existing SRO residents with the hotel guests.

The Jane features two types of rooms: tiny ones and splashy ones. The “tiny” group—150 of them, inspired by luxury ship cabins—includes rooms with single beds and rooms with bunkbeds. These rooms are quite small (they were also inspired by the size of the ship cabins) and spot rich retro decor.

Quite notably, these cheaper rooms share bathrooms down the hall, which are mixed gender.

The 40 splashier "Captain’s Cabin" rooms have more space, daintier and lighter-hued interiors, private bathrooms, and much higher rates.

All rooms offer flat-panel TVs, mirrored walls, iPod docks, DVD players, safes and telephones. Free Wi-Fi is accessible throughout the hotel and in the rooms.

There is something so perfect, so uncanny and so delicious about this hotel. In the months after its launch, it became difficult to open a travel magazine without coming across a Jane mention, and this was the case not merely in budget-friendly publications but also in swanky aspirational travel mags. It's a remarkable hotel both aesthetically and conceptually, and its publication mentions are deserved.

At the time of our last visit, there were around 60 SRO tenants living in the hotel side-by-side with hotel guests. We noticed staff, long-term tenants and guests mingling effortlessly, though we sensed that staying here may indeed prove to be more lively than a stay at a conventional hotel.

One more cool perk: The Jane offers free bicycle rentals to guests.

Lastly, the combination of old building and booming nightclub makes for noisy nights, so light sleepers should remember to pack earplugs.

The hotel's bar has also emerged as a hipster magnet, something that might either prove to be an appealing or depressing dimension of the place depending on perspective. Regardless, it’s an animated, hopping scene, attracting crowds every night.

On the other hand, there is nothing depressing about the sunny, Frenchy Café Gitane (just off the hotel lobby), with its cheery atmosphere and scrumptious French-Moroccan bites.

Location

The Jane is located in the West Village, one block from the super-trendy Meatpacking District. The hotel is at the corner of Jane and West Street, just off the West Side Highway and parks lining the Hudson River. Joggers, cyclists and rollerbladers will dig the hotel's easy access to the park across the street. 

This puts you about two blocks from Gansevoort Street and the trendy crowds that descend nightly upon the Meatpacking District, with its pricey restaurants and cocktail bars. This will obviously be a hit with younger travelers looking to hit the town in style, while older travelers may appreciate the charms (and great eats and shopping) in the West Village.

Transportation

Subways: The Jane is located within a 5-10 minute walk of the 14th Street A/C/E and L station.

JFK: To reach the hotel from JFK, take the Air Train to the Howard Beach Station, then take the A train toward Manhattan to 14th Street, and then walk to the hotel (about 5-10 minutes).

LaGuardia: From LaGuardia, we’d recommend either taking the New York Airport Service bus to Penn Station, then taking the A/C/E subway “Downtown” to 14th Street. Or simply take a taxi to the hotel.

Newark: From Newark Airport, take the Air Train to the NJ Transit station, and then any NJ Transit train into Penn Station. From there, take the A/C/E/ subway “Downtown” to 14th Street and walk to the hotel.

Read more about airport transportation in New York.