spending my final spring break in Times Square. [the time new York, part of JDV by Hyatt mini review]

I’m finishing up my Master of Fine Arts degree at New York University, and last week was, perhaps, my final spring break ever.

There’s some nostalgia there, but not much: I didn’t do the typical spring break in undergrad, anyway. I volunteered in Chicago and Haiti for three of the four years I was in college (which is how I got into traveling, but that’s a story for another day). The idea of scrambling for beach chairs alongside undergrads in Miami or jostling for parking spaces in Houston isn’t appealing in my thirties. Nor did traveling abroad make much sense, given the partial government shutdown.

This year, I decided to stick closer to home and take a staycation, using the time off to make some progress on my master’s thesis. Hyatt invited me on a 2-night stay at The Time New York, part of JDV by Hyatt. I loved its boutique charm, making it the perfect way to spend a relaxing yet productive spring break.

Here’s how my workcation in the heart of Times Square went.

JDV (“joie de vivre,” or the joy of living) is a collection of luxury lifestyle hotels that marry comfort and charm at an affordable price point. I’ve stayed in a few JDV by Hyatt hotels before, including a birthday staycation at Hotel 50 Bowery during the pandemic. You’ll appreciate the brand if you like luxury that isn’t pretentious, and affordable stays that won’t break the budget. Many JDV by Hyatt hotels are under $250 per night during the spring, making it an accessible brand for solo travelers, families, or business travelers.

I checked into The Time on a rainy March weekend, hopping off the 50 Street 1 train and walking a few short blocks over to the hotel.

The Time has 193 guest rooms, plus 26 suites, including a top-floor penthouse suite. The Time is a boutique hotel, but it packs a lot of amenities into a relatively small space, such as a ground-floor Italian restaurant, a bar, and a small gym. When you arrive, you’re greeted with a check-in counter along with some water to grab for the room. My reservation also included two passes for a nearby gym and breakfast vouchers for Serafina on the ground floor.

The lobby has a small area to cowork, and I spent much of the afternoon writing from here. It was pretty quiet, even a floor above street level.

The Time offers a daily wine-and-cheese happy hour in the LeGrande Lounge bar, which I thought was pretty classy. Most of the folks I chatted with at LeGrande were heading to nearby Broadway shows, like The Book of Mormon and Chicago (which is directly across the street!).

The main restaurant, Serafina, is on the ground floor. My breakfast voucher covered an entree and a drink, so I settled on a Belgian waffle topped with fruit and Nutella and a coffee.

Serafina was pretty quiet, so I brought a book I’m reading for my thesis and hung out downstairs for a while.

I had a King room on the 16th floor, which included a large bed, a TV disguised as a mirror, and a desk to write.

As this was part-relaxation, part-work, I needed strong Wi-Fi and The Time didn’t disappoint. Nor was there much noise from the street from my room, which would’ve been completely understandable given the location.

I divided my time by focusing on writing on Saturday and resting on Sunday. Some of my favorite writers, such as James Baldwin, wrote some of their best work from hotels, so I tried to channel that energy. I spent much of the afternoon and evening working on my thesis outline, conducting research, and writing a good portion of a chapter.

I dedicated Sunday to a more traditional spring break experience: self-care. I let the sounds of Midtown lull me to sleep and wake me up: I slipped into the fluffy terry robe in the wardrobe, ordered a glass of wine and chocolate, and settled in with a few shows.

I’m always good for a New York staycation because it lets me explore new neighborhoods, breaking up the monotony of everyday life here.

Times Square is, at best, an overstimulating experience. I have lived in New York for nearly seven years now, and it’s not a neighborhood I visit often. Still, something was charming about the ads, the M&M store, and the throngs of tourists. I’m not joking here, either. I found walking through Times Square oddly peaceful.

You can’t beat the location, especially if you’re coming from out of town. It’s across the street from the Ambassador Theatre, and the main Times Square thoroughfare is just a few blocks away.

Overall, Time New York gave me a peaceful weekend in one of the world’s busiest neighborhoods. JDV by Hyatt is one of my favorite hotel brands as it keeps things high-end yet simple, with comfortable rooms, a solid food and beverage program, and hard-to-beat locations.

Most importantly, for me, it was a perfect way to recharge during what was my last spring break ever. I started the weekend with 10,000 words written for my thesis. I ended the week with 12,000. Not too shabby.