Travel is a unique and wonderful blessing. It enriches and forever changes the fabric of one’s life experience, no matter how small the trip or how apparently uneventful the adventure. My latest business trip took me through a layover and rather than spend another night in a cookie cutter business hotel in the city, I opted for something a little different. I booked the Wythe on a whim wanting something near a taproom in Brooklyn that I’d always wanted to visit, and discovered why life can be wonderful. It’s always these little surprises that make life interesting and so very worth drawing breath...the stay and not the bar turned out to be the star!
The Wythe as a facility has an appeal that my words will never begin to adequately capture. To use words like refreshing, hip, hipster, chic, cool, quirky, charming, and unconventional or phrases like full of character, local flavor, proudly independent, and not your average hotel experience, are to use words as carelessly as space is used by large chain hotels. The way the Wythe describes itself on the website as a “Brooklyn Original” is a good start to understanding the ethos of the place, and to begin to sketch the outline of what a stay at the Wythe might look like.
I don’t want to fill this review with a lot of meaningless gushing, because that is what it’ll be until you’ve actually spent some time at the Wythe, but suffice it to say that staying at the Wythe will renew your love of travel. I say this because it’s locales like the Wythe that refresh a jaded travel palate and are a bright citrusy burst of a reminder that you don’t have to be on a beach in Bali to experience something different.
Another thing I will say is that attention to detail sets hotel stays apart. The Wythe is no exception. Management has paid attention to every small detail in the way is decorated, staffed, and outfitted to wrap you in everything that suggests you might just be right at home. All this is done while respectfully paying homage to the original building, thoughtfully highlighting wood and stone in the service of reminding you of the building that you’re in, rather than just highlighting the stay. It is a holistic experience, not unlike a stay in an ice hotel or an eco-hut in an equatorial rainforest. The experience is all around you while the carefully appointed creature comforts.
Lastly, I will finish by congratulating the Wythe on first being a good neighbor. Paying attention to first being a part of the local community, supporting local events, and adding color and character, and ultimately value to the neighborhood is to be commended and appreciated! Kudos, Wythe! I hope you guys keep doing what you’re doing, it is a good and righteous thing.
