Tips on staying in NYC for a reasonable price...

[W44NNE]

So I've never been to New York. Got close once but got stuck in the airport. Flights at the moment seem to be quite cheap... I've found a good one at <£400 return from Manchester.

The hotels however are a different story. I thought I'd found a hotel for £600 for 7 nights but of course I was being super naive... That was per night hahaha.

So does anyone have any accommodation tips? I'd prefer to stay as central as possible and preferably not risk getting shot within decent range of said hotel!

Thanks!

[Space Traveller]

So I've never been to New York. Got close once but got stuck in the airport. Flights at the moment seem to be quite cheap... I've found a good one at <£400 return from Manchester.

The hotels however are a different story. I thought I'd found a hotel for £600 for 7 nights but of course I was being super naive... That was per night hahaha.

So does anyone have any accommodation tips? I'd prefer to stay as central as possible and preferably not risk getting shot within decent range of said hotel!

Thanks!

We went for a week last Christmas, and used Airbnb, which worked out brilliantly. Basically, people rent out their houses/apartments, and you usually pay a lot less than a hotel, and have all the flexibility of staying in a proper apartment rather than a hotel.

I don't think the authorities are *too* keen on it, but it's worth checking out. We stayed Downtown not far from Wall Street, and it was very safe. It doesn't take long to get to most places in NYC on the subway.

[thegoat]

AirBnB is brilliant, but frowned upon in New York . Apartments can be tricky too, lots of dodgy subletting going on .
New York seems to be one of those places where there are millions of people and websites that promise so much but fail to deliver. Hotel prices are always high, that's how it is when the place is popular.

Me? , Id stay in the suburbs. Brooklyn is fantastic and a damn sight cheaper. Subway is excellent and easy to use. We travelled from Coney Island to Brooklyn and all the sights in between with no problem.
New York can be scary if you let it but a bit of common sense goes a long way.

[ism123]

We stayed at the H Inn Canal St in Chinatown, nice hotel, price and location.

[chrisparker]

I've stayed at The Hudson in manhatten which was good value.

Don't worry about a flash hotel though, you'll be barely in it.

Also stayed with a friend once in New Jersey and got the tube/path into Manhatten daily which was cheap and quick so don't rule out staying off manhatten.

[oiljam]

We booked our stay through Trailfinders who were doing a 4 nights for the price of 3 offer. Used these quite a few times for our various trips and they're quite knowledgable in the shops/on the phones. A true travellers travel agent I think.
If you get there you'll love it, one of those places where you'll leave hungry to return. We'll defiantly be back.

http://www.trailfinders.com/hotels/u...n-usa/new-york


edit: we stayed in Hotel Metro which was next to the Empire State, fantastic location just a walk away from 5th Avenue and Times Square and a terrific roof terrace beneath the Empire State

[lewie]

We stayed at the hotel Metro in May - really nice and great location - when are you going?
http://www.hotelmetronyc.com/mobile.aspx

[dl_griff]

Stayed here a few times, nothing special but a good base, smack in Times Sq

http://www.manhattanhoteltimessquare...utmk=231002143

[thieuster]

On her last trip to NY a few weeks back, my wife stayed at The Hampton Inn on 8th Avenue / Times Square North. No too expensive. Enough small diners near the hotel for a proper (and even healthy!) & cheap breakfast.

You can find the hotel on Trip Advisory as well.

Menno

[Saint-Just]

You know you want to

[Kingstepper]

AirBnB is brilliant, but frowned upon in New York . Apartments can be tricky too, lots of dodgy subletting going on .

Does AirBnB being 'frowned upon' cause any issues? Was thinking of using it next time.

We stayed in this hotel on Madison Avenue - seemed reasonable value for NY http://www.themavehotel.com/.

[Bradt Pitt]

You know you want to

Ha ha! Just what I was thinking.
I spent a month in NYC a few years ago and if you can handle staying in a hostel, the Vanderbilt YMCA on 47th st was excellent - go for a private room and you have a very clean, comfortable, centrally located stay for quite cheap.

[Beanie]

Have a look on websites such as Expedia, you can get some great deals. We had 4 nights in the Manhattan Sofitel (W44th St, so very centrally located) for about £1600 all in incl flights/transfers. Great city.

[burnsey66]

if you can handle staying in a hostel

Mr Pitt, this is TZ-UK and anymore comments such as that may result in a review of your membership

[ScottA]

Stayed in Barclay Intercontinental last time for a good price but prices have increased. As has been said though your barely in the hotel so a Holiday Inn on Manhattan(we stayed in one first trip and was good enough) maybe a cheaper/better option.

[Space Traveller]

Does AirBnB being 'frowned upon' cause any issues? Was thinking of using it next time.

There are a few horror stories, but we didn't have any problems at all, and a friend of mine has used it once a month for the last year while he's been going over to visit his girlfriend.

I'd definitely use it again if we went back. Having three young kids means that hotels are expensive and inconvenient. When we went for Christmas we had a three bedroom penthouse apartment to stay in, and it was ace, and a fraction of what we'd have paid for a hotel.

[Asupercoolusername]

Stayed in Row NYC, nothing fancy but was good price & very central.

[cgs]

I stayed in the New Yorker,nice hotel just round the corner from Empire State Building,macey etc.

Col

[Kingstepper]

There are a few horror stories, but we didn't have any problems at all, and a friend of mine has used it once a month for the last year while he's been going over to visit his girlfriend.

I'd definitely use it again if we went back. Having three young kids means that hotels are expensive and inconvenient. When we went for Christmas we had a three bedroom penthouse apartment to stay in, and it was ace, and a fraction of what we'd have paid for a hotel.

Thanks. Thought these kind of lets were being made more difficult by local authorities.

[W44NNE]

Thanks... Some fantastic replies so I'll get looking at them all properly tomorrow.

[MikeP]

We've stayed at this place twice now:

http://www.casablancahotel.com/

Its small. But clean and friendly. And its right by Times Square so its touristy and thus cheap but not too bad quality. Its on a cross street too so its a little quieter.

Staying around Times Square is the equivalent of Marble Arch in London. A little souless, not really a neighbourhood. But honestly if its your first time there its a great area to be, right close to everything.

Also if its your first visit its good to be in Manhattan. You want to be able to walk out the door and be in the middle of it all, not commuting from a surburban hotel. But thats just me.

Do you have plans? The thing I love about NY is that its impossible to get lost with that massive grid system. And the buses are so easy, up and down the avenues and criss-crossing on the streets. There's a daily pass you can get. I forget how much.

[Bradt Pitt]

Mr Pitt, this is TZ-UK and anymore comments such as that may result in a review of your membership

I must apologise ;)

[DS3R]

Be careful to check what any price includes. Many headline prices are exclusive of NYC hotel tax (14.75% I think- and privateers not paying thst is why the state hates airbnb, and you may find there are other extras (like anything which is $50 or less per night, and there are plenty of those to choose from), like an additional service charge for cleaning, or for linen, or both. Often small amounts, but if you're paying on departure you can find a bigger figure than you were expecting.

Oh, and ignore the name, and take a look at hostelbookers, more than just hostels, cheap places, and plenty to choose from with often hundreds of reviews, which should give confidence.

[Space Traveller]

Thanks. Thought these kind of lets were being made more difficult by local authorities.

Think it's impossible for them to stamp out, and they only seem to catch one or two people who overdo it. There are still thousands listed on Airbnb in NYC, so it can't be that difficult still.

[davek]

Time before last we stayed here in Brooklyn
http://akwaaba.com/akwaaba-mansion/
Checked in and ten minutes later we were around the corner eating soul food and listening to a hot jazz combo.

Last time we stayed in a relatively downmarket BnB in Queens - it was great too.
http://www.astoriabedandbreakfast.com

With the subway, you're only 10 minutes away from Manhattan and, actually, why would you want to leave Brooklyn?!
pS Queens still has some work to do(-:

[ajw232]

I've only been once a few years back and we stayed here:

http://www.thepodhotel.com/?gclid=CL...FUvpwgodrE4AtA

Cheap, clean, modern and great location! Great as a base considering we hardly spend any time in our hotel rooms when away.

[JasonM]

Dont forget dive watch collector extrordinare and tzuk member Victor Boyd has a couple of pubs in NYC

http://banterbrooklyn.com/
http://bibliobrooklyn.com/

( If you do go, if you could pick up a watch box hes keeping behind the bar at banter and bring it back, I will stick $50 behind the bar there for drinks! )

[drmarkf]

We rented a loft apartment in Green St in SoHo for a week via CitySonnet a few years ago and had a blast and saved a lot of money over a hotel. It was owned by a sculptor and was littered with his artworks: there was masses of space and good equipment & furnishings, and the children thought it was amazingly cool.

This was before they tried to crack down on sublets, but we've been thinking of doing it again and we've pulled together a few links you might find useful:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/tr...York-City.html
http://www.smh.com.au/travel/tripolo...201-2dopv.html
http://www.citysonnet.com/
http://www.vrbo.com/vacation-rentals...city/manhattan
http://www.booking.com/apartments/city/us/new-york.html
http://gonyc.about.com/od/hotels/a/apartment_rent.htm
http://www.frommers.com/articles/6918.html
http://nymag.com/realestate/realesta...ntals-2011-12/
http://nypost.com/2013/11/04/turning...el-is-illegal/

Let us know how you get on if you take this rpute.

[broxie]

The good news is, due to the metro, you should be able to stay pretty much anywhere in Manhattan, or northern Brooklyn/Queens and still be able to access things. I would say take a look at the location of the airbnb and it’s proximity to a train, and make your choice that way. Use mta trip planner nyc to plan your trip thoroughly

I think he's been and gone, this thread is 5 years old!

[Thewatchbloke]

I think he may have been by now.

[thieuster]

My wife travels to NY on a regular basis. Every 5 - 6 weeks. That's more than 10 times/year. Often combined with a train ride to Boston. 80% is business, the rest is pleasure and shopping. It's a Manhattan-based hotel when the company pays the bill. When she has to pay it herself, she always looks for something in Midtown. Sometimes even an AirBnB north of Central Park. Cheaper, sometimes an interesting neighbourhood etc. The metro will bring you where you want. It all depends on the question: 'do you have your itinerary sorted?'

M

[gavsw20]

I go every January and only this year did I realise how much cheaper (and better) Brooklyn is. Easy enough to hop on the metro and get into Manhattan too.

[Malcolm68]

Stayed at The Park Lane a couple of times. Found it very reasonable for New York and has some fantastic views over Central Park.

Has a happy hour each evening round about 6 ish where there are nibbles, beer and wine all free so could fill up on that. Rooms were a little tired but we just used it as a base and for the price, couldn’t really fault it.

Malc

[Mj2k]

Westway Diner in Hell's Kitchen is excellent value food wise & became our regular start to the day. Worked out about 1/4 of the price of the lovely place opposite GCC under the bridge.

Westway looks really old school from the outside, but it is brilliant.

[gerrudd]

You could stay over the water. Both Jersey City (Newport) and Hoboken have great Manhattan views and you can be in midtown in 15 minutes on the PATH.