Hotel Review: The Harlem Flophouse, New York

The Flophouse is situated just north of Central Park in a lovely quiet street in the heart of Harlem, amongst other similarly historic residential buildings. North of the main Manhattan areas tourists usually frequent, a short subway ride will take you there in minutes.

By plane: flights from London, Manchester or Edinburgh to New York take 7 hours. A taxi will take 40 minutes from JFK airport. Parking costs $20 per day. Book flights to New York.

This place is the antithesis of an ultra modern, carbon copy chain hotel. Full of character, with a dark-wood interior and moody lighting, it really does conjure up staying in a flophouse of the 1930s, a very low cost hotel catering for jazz musicians, artists, dancers, poets, writers, transient workers and the homeless. Still, it is rather more comfortable than such residents during those times would have experienced!

There are no facilities to speak of here, but that's not the reason you would stay. There's no restaurant or bar, but there are some great options nearby. There are no TVs and bathrooms are shared. There's no reception or concierge; you make an appointment to collect the keys. There is no air conditioning, however there is a fan in each room. There's a small lounge by the entrance with books and some board games. Free parking can often be found on the street, otherwise there is a secure lot nearby. There are occasional live music nights.

• Shared lounge
• Free Wi-Fi

The rooms are lovely but are not for everyone, being a bit rough around the edges. On the upper floors there are four bedrooms, identical in size, each with a sink in the room. They share two bathrooms with baths with antique clawfoot tubs, antique brass and chrome fixtures.

Room types: Thelonious Monk, Cozy Cole, Corky Hale, Chester Himes

Key amenities: shared bathroom, fan, radio, free Wi-Fi

There is no restaurant or bar, so food and drink is not provided.

Nearby: for breakfast, the Harlem Breakfast Club offers takeaway options, including sandwiches and pancakes. Other local eateries include soul food restaurant Manna's, Babbalucci for Italian, and French bistro Maison Harlem.