NEW YORK—It’ll be a walk in the park—literally—for guests staying at the 379-room Loews Regency New York between now and Sept. 30, when they take advantage of the hotel’s new promotional package that will get them up close and personal with a Big Apple icon.
Dubbed the “New Yorker’s Guide to Central Park,” the promotion is a collaboration between the Loews Regency and the private, nonprofit Central Park Conservancy. It offers guests an intimate look at the celebrated park, an 843-acre oasis created by Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux, that is two blocks from the hotel located at 61st St. and Park Ave.
The package includes overnight accommodations at the hotel, an autographed copy of Central Park: An American Masterpiece by Sarah Cedar Miller, a Central Park Conservancy historian/photographer; a $50 donation to the Tulips and Daffodils program that sees thousands of bulbs planted in the park annually; and a 20% discount on merchandise purchased from the park’s Visitor Center.
The highlight, however, is the one-hour, private walking tour of the sprawling park, led by a Conservancy tour guide, who is able to bring greater depth to the park’s history, clarity to some of its lesser-known aspects and is able to knowledgeably answer guest questions.
According to Loews Regency New York Managing Director Jim McPartlin, some 23 packages have been booked thus far and the response has been very positive. “I spoke with a woman just last week and she was really kind of raving about it. It was just really fun and something different,” he said.
Finding authentic experiences in a city as large as New York is often an experience in itself; however, McPartlin views the park, the hotel and environs as its own community.
The GM indicated the Loews/Conservancy partnership stems from the efforts and philosophy of Loews Chairman Jonathan Tisch, who, in 1990, created the Loews Good Neighbor Policy, which addresses a variety of needs in the communities where Loews hotels are, creating beneficial relationships that can impact guests, employees and the community at large.
For example, McPartlin said hotel staff takes part in the park’s “A Day in the Dirt.” Held in late May, “Dirt Day” finds the Conservancy’s executive committee and the hotel’s management team planting and weeding the park.
“We really believe in it [the Central Park package]because of what the Central Park Conservancy does; 75% of all funding comes from private citizens,” said McPartlin.
The 35-year-old organization enhances, restores and manages the park. One such enhancement is bulb planting to ensure a variety of floral displays throughout the park. As part of the Loews package, a $50 donation is made to the Conservancy, by which it will plant tulips and daffodils for spring flowering in honor of the guest (or a designated individual). The donation comes with a certificate confirming the date and type of bulb/flower planted.
“I really like the fact that they really make it a point to personalize the experience…it gets you outside and shows you a different side of New York. To me, that’s kind of why it works,” said McPartlin.
The managing director expects the Central Park package will provide incremental revenue to the hotel; however, he noted while it’s “great to get the revenue, for me it’s more the sense of the community portion of it. To really it put it out there that we’re part of the New York community and we’re aligned with a worthy organization,” said McPartlin.
Depending on how well the promotion goes, the hotel may consider extending the package farther into autumn to capture the color changes in Central Park’s landscape.
—Stefani C. O’Connor