Little Hiccups: Untitled at 3 Freeman Alley

Disclaimer: Our stay at Untitled at 3 Freeman Alley was discounted in exchange for this post. All photos and views are my own.

Calling all street art lovers!

I've found THE perfect hotel for you in New York!

During our visit to New York earlier this Summer, we stayed at Untitled at 3 Freeman Alley, and it was one of my favorite hotels we've ever stayed at. A handy location in the Lower East Side neighborhood, well-thought-out guest rooms, an onsite cafe and bar, stunning views over the city, fun and well designed communal facilities, friendly and helpful staff, delicious breakfast included, an onsite tattoo studio... oh, and did I mention street art?

Untitled is located in New York's iconic Freeman Alley. This short alleyway is home to an ever changing array of street art. And when I say ever changing, I mean it. Each day when we walked out of the hotel in the morning we were met with new art. When we returned each evening, there was yet more new art. If we saw a mural we wanted a picture with, we quickly learned to snap a shot right away, because we never knew what we'd find the next time we walked past!

The street art aesthetic continues through Freeman Alley and into Untitled itself, where murals and local art meet modern design. Colorful artworks decorate the walls, while the plush fabrics and warm natural woods and stone of the furniture create a balanced and comfortable environment. Everywhere you look there's something to see, but it doesn't overwhelm. It's the perfect mix of street art and Scandinavian inspired design. A little edgy, but also cozy. Just like the city itself.

Let's take a look...

Location

Untitled at 3 Freeman Alley is located at, you guessed it, 3 Freeman Alley! Tucked away amongst the street art, the entrance of the hotel feels a little like a secret. An urban secret garden hidden in an alleyway of color. There's no grandiose entrance or signage, just a gateway and a small tiled address on the left hand side toward the end of the alley. The gate leads to a small courtyard where the street art extends all the way to the hotel door.

You'll find Freeman Alley off Rivington Street, between Bowery and Chrystie Street. The location is just two blocks south of Houston Street in a neighborhood full of restaurants, bars, shopping, and galleries. A Whole Foods is just two blocks away.

It's a very easy location to navigate, and just a short walk from many tourist destinations including Sloomoo, Museum of Ice Cream, and Tenement Museum, as well as popular neighborhoods such as Chinatown, Nolita, East Village, and SoHo.

If you're heading further afield, subway stations servicing the F, J, Z, B and D lines are just a few block away and easily accessible.

Arrival

Once you enter through the hotel doors, the modern, yet retro, lines of the decor are instantly welcoming. The lobby area features plenty of seating, while books, plants and retro games create the feeling of home. The art continues from outside the hotel, making the space really connected to its location.

The check in process really couldn't be any easier. Prior to our arrival I was able to check in through a secure link sent via text message and email. Once this was complete, I received a message containing our room details, the wifi login information, and the after hours gate code, should we find ourselves out late at night or choose to enter the garden courtyard from Bowery Street.

We arrived fairly early in the day, so our rooms weren't quite ready, but the helpful staff were able to take our luggage while we went out to eat lunch and explore the neighborhood.

Communal Facilities

Untitled features plenty of communal space for relaxing or working. Just off the lobby there is a large sitting area with retro arcade games. This space leads into the elevator lobby and Untitled Lobby Cafe.

The cafe is open from 7am to 4pm daily and features a full coffee bar with espresso drinks, matcha, chai and more. Complimentary breakfast is served here from 7am to 11am. More on that below.

The cafe space is accessible to hotel guests at all times and features plenty of tables and couches. You'll also find a piano for guests to play, a photobooth, and a pool table.

Outside of the cafe is the Bowery Garden. This is a great spot to eat breakfast, enjoy a little outside time with a coffee, eat a take out lunch, work on your laptop, relax with a book, or play giant games including Connect 4 and Jenga. Access is via the cafe, as well as a locked gate on Bowery, which can be opened with the code given at check in.

E-scooters are available to rent in the hotel lobby, as are a whole host of electronic items such as high end hair dryers, printers, charging devices, massage guns, Instax cameras, and more. A small shop can also be found just off the lobby with a range of toiletries, snacks and NYC themed gifts.

A guest gym is available by reservation of level 12. I never remember to pack gym clothes or sneakers when we travel, so I didn't make use of the gym. Plus, let's face it, we all got plenty of exercise walking around New York!

Rooms

On to the most important part of any hotel; the rooms!

As a family of five, finding hotel rooms big enough to accommodate all of us can be tricky, and this is especially true in New York. Our days of squeezing all five of us into two queen sized beds are long gone now that the kids are older. While Untitled may not generally be marketed toward families, I found it to be the perfect family hotel, and the main reason for this is their double bunk rooms.

Now, admittedly, we didn't all fit in just one room, but with space for four people, the double bunk room is a great option for families. The room features double bunk beds, each with their own lighting and a shelf with outlets. The bed area of our double bunk room also came with a gorgeous view over the city. The 210sf room features a decent amount of seating and storage space for luggage, a desk, a mini fridge, a smart tv, a bluetooth speaker, a coat rack with hanging space, a sink and mirror in the main space, and a bathroom with shower and toilet.

The second room we booked was a studio queen room. At 125sf, this room was quite a bit smaller, but still had everything we needed. With smart furniture, such as the bed with storage underneath, we really didn't need more space than what this room provided. Along with a queen sized bed, this room features a fold down desk which hides the smart tv, a coat rack, a bluetooth speaker, a full size mirror, a tiny fridge, a small sink and mirror in the main space, and a shower and toilet in the bathroom. The fridge in this room was really only designed to hold drinks, so we mostly used the larger fridge in the double bunk room. Our window in this room looked directly onto the wall of the neighboring New Museum, however, if I stood on the right angle I could see a little more.

Our two rooms were located directly across the hall from each other, which made it very easy to go between the two. This was made even easier by the hotel's use of electronic keypads on the doors. This was the first hotel we've stayed at that uses these keypads, and I loved it. Rather than using swipe cards to enter our rooms, we simply entered a four digit number. These numbers were sent to us in the check in text message, and they made our stay that little bit easier.

All rooms feature double glazed windows which block out most of the city sounds. The blinds did a good job of blocking out most light too, although I prefer to sleep with blinds open so as to let in as much light as possible in the morning. I struggle to wake up in dark rooms, so no black out curtains for me!

All rooms feature basics like a hairdryer, shampoo and bodywash. The hotel does not provide conditioner, so keep in mind to bring your own. All rooms also include a carafe of water with metal cups. In the hallway of each floor you'll find a handy station that includes a chilled and filtered drinking water tap, a microwave, a kettle, and iron and ironing board, a clothes steamer, extra towels, and extra toilet paper. This is such a simple touch, but it really made a difference.

Complimentary Breakfast

To be honest, I don't think I've ever stayed at a hotel in New York that offers a complimentary breakfast until we stayed at Untitled. In fact, when I was originally planning our trip to New York, I figured we'd just grab bagels each morning. So when I learned that staying at Untitled includes a complimentary breakfast I was pretty excited, especially when I learned what the breakfast included. Most hotels that we've stayed at only include drip coffee or tea with their complimentary breakfast, and as an Aussie, I need espresso to start my days. The complimentary breakfast at Untitled includes a a drink from their cafe, which includes a full menu of espresso drinks, chai and matcha, as well as a croissant or pastry. Fresh fruit and boiled eggs are also available, as is fruit juice.

Breakfast is served in the Lobby Cafe, and the best part is that it's available daily until 11am. So many hotels finish their breakfast service too early when you're on vacation, so I loved that this one stayed open a little longer.

Unlisted Rooftop Bar

One of the highlights of Untitled for many visitors is the rooftop bar, Unlisted. Seeing as this was a family vacation for us, we didn't spend much time in Unlisted, but we did venture upstairs a few times to check it out and take in the views from the outdoor area.

Unlisted is located on the 11th floor of the building, and features both indoor and outdoor spaces. The indoor bar area features plenty of seating, a full cocktail bar, and a DJ space. Outside you'll find a pergola with fairy lights, lots of seating, heat lamps for chilly evenings, and stunning views looking north, west and south.

A bar menu is available and features classics such as burgers, nachos, hot dogs, chicken tenders and more. You can find the full menu here https://unlisted.nyc/menu.

Unlisted is open Sunday through Thursday from 4pm to 11pm, and Friday and Saturday from 4pm to 1am.

Unscripted Ink

You may have noticed that at the very top of this post I mentioned that Untitled includes an onsite tattoo studio. You read that correctly! Untitled is the only New York hotel with its own tattoo studio. This wasn't something we made use of during our stay, but I must admit that I was pretty tempted to get a little NYC tattoo to remind me of my favorite city. Maybe next time.

Unscripted Ink is located on the ground floor at the back of the building just beyond the lobby cafe.

Unscripted Ink is open Tuesday through Sunday from 12pm to 8pm.

For a full list of services and to book visit https://unscripted.nyc/.

Freeman Alley

I've mentioned Freeman Alley's street art quite a bit in this post, so let's take a look at some of it.

Keep in mind, the art here is constantly evolving, and we saw artists painting new pieces every day of our stay, so what I'm sharing here very well may have been covered with something new since our stay. Probably many times over.

If you're a fan of street art like me, stay tuned for my post on where to find the best New York street art. I'll make sure to link it here once it's up.