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Thirty-five floors above Columbus Circle, the brand-new Mandarin Oriental hotel provides sprawling views, various cuisine choices and some of New York's priciest and best-designed accommodations to its upscale clientele. Yet, many Mandarin patrons equally are pleased by the property's discreet but effective barring of any unwanted or potentially dangerous intruders.
The 250-room property, accessible only via closely scrutinized elevators at its sole 60th Street entrance, hardly is alone in this quest. In fact, many recently opened New York City properties are confident that by reducing property access, they've expanded guests' peace of mind. And that, in turn, has proven to be an increasingly powerful force in hotel choice, particularly for female business travelers.
Above-street-level lobbies are at the heart of this strategy, and reasons for such choices are not always obvious. For example, the two-year-old, 863-room Westin New York at Times Square is accessible only via a tightly guarded escalator linking its 43rd Street and Eighth Avenue entrance and second floor lobby. "We operate on a security level determined by local conditions as to how strictly we enforce entry conditions," said general manager John Sweeney. "During most nighttime periods, as well as when we are alerted that there may be problems in the neighborhood, we will ask to see guest key cards before anyone steps on the escalator. In that way, we know that only those who should be in the lobby can get there."
Even beyond this concept, Sweeney said his policy has produced another...