By Julie Shapiro
DNAinfo Reporter/Producer
LOWER MANHATTAN — If you're looking for a vacancy, lower Manhattan is your best bet.
The number of hotels in lower Manhattan has tripled since 9/11, and more are on the way, according to a Downtown Alliance report released Wednesday.
The neighborhood below Chambers Street now has 16 hotels, compared to five just after 9/11. The W New York Downtown, opening later this summer, will bring the number to 17, and two more are under construction.
“The volume of investment pouring into Downtown’s hospitality industry is further proof that lower Manhattan is now New York City’s most desirable and dynamic location,” Downtown Alliance President Liz Berger said in a statement.
So far this year, the 253-room Andaz Wall Street opened at 75 Wall St. in January; the 112-room Holiday Inn Express opened at 126 Water St. in May; and the 169-room World Center Hotel opened at 144 Washington St. in June.
The W, at 123 Washington St., will add another 220 rooms, bringing downtown’s total to nearly 3,700 rooms.
Lower Manhattan’s hotels had an 86 percent occupancy rate in the fourth quarter of 2009, the most recent date for which statistics are available, the Alliance said. The neighborhood sees almost 6 million visitors a year.
