Blooming Personalities C/D 30Th November
Quizzes & Puzzles3 mins ago
New York hotels
18 Answers
Hi
I want to do a long weekend in New York in either Jan or Feb, can anyone recommend a decent hotel ?
Thanks
I want to do a long weekend in New York in either Jan or Feb, can anyone recommend a decent hotel ?
Thanks
Answers
1 to 18 of 18
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I have a long list of favourites...and...I always encourage people to consider not buying packages, but buying airfares and hotels individually as you can realise much better savings...also..I'd add that you can also stop over in Boston for a night, if you're really into the sightseeing bits..
Currently, at the top of my lower-mid price hotels are the courtyards in Manhattan...not far from Times Square, but not so close to it that you suffer from the noise...
Older hotels include the Drake, the famous Algonquin (home of the famous Round-Table of literaries).
Some of the 'cheaper' branded hotels are getting some severe mixed reviews... you can check trip-advisor, however, in some instances (certainly not all) the reviews can be spiked.
The Holiday Inn on the West Side is rather nice and the rooms are large.
If you want something that is uniquely memorable, top of my lists are The Pierre, The Ritz Carlton on Central Park South and the Mandarin Oriental at Columbus Circle..also, the Essex House has been completely refurbished..it's a massive hotel, but the rooms are quite nice.
I'm still hesitant to recommend 'The Plaza.' I lived there as a child. It is closed this month but is reopening..Sadly, however, it will be nothing as it was before. All the guest rooms are facing the 'back' of the hotel and no longer overlooking Central Park. Those have been converted to private homes.
http://bigworldsmallboat.blogspot.com/search?q =meet+me+at+the+plaza
If you're looking for something creative..let us know..I'll share some links you can consider..
best regards
Fr Bill
Currently, at the top of my lower-mid price hotels are the courtyards in Manhattan...not far from Times Square, but not so close to it that you suffer from the noise...
Older hotels include the Drake, the famous Algonquin (home of the famous Round-Table of literaries).
Some of the 'cheaper' branded hotels are getting some severe mixed reviews... you can check trip-advisor, however, in some instances (certainly not all) the reviews can be spiked.
The Holiday Inn on the West Side is rather nice and the rooms are large.
If you want something that is uniquely memorable, top of my lists are The Pierre, The Ritz Carlton on Central Park South and the Mandarin Oriental at Columbus Circle..also, the Essex House has been completely refurbished..it's a massive hotel, but the rooms are quite nice.
I'm still hesitant to recommend 'The Plaza.' I lived there as a child. It is closed this month but is reopening..Sadly, however, it will be nothing as it was before. All the guest rooms are facing the 'back' of the hotel and no longer overlooking Central Park. Those have been converted to private homes.
http://bigworldsmallboat.blogspot.com/search?q =meet+me+at+the+plaza
If you're looking for something creative..let us know..I'll share some links you can consider..
best regards
Fr Bill
I would recommend the Milford Plaza. It is just one block from Times Square, and unlike some other hotels which claim that you need to show your room card to get to the lifts this hotel actually does this.
http://www.milfordplaza.com/
http://www.milfordplaza.com/
Are you after cheap or luxury? I want last december and stayed at the Hampton Inn in Chelsea, quite conveniently located but much cheaper than anything else around. Nice clean rooms, free breakfast (and cookies in the afternoon mmmm), generally pretty good.
There was nothing super special about it, but you could see the empire state building from our window and for the price we paid I'd definitely recommend it.
There was nothing super special about it, but you could see the empire state building from our window and for the price we paid I'd definitely recommend it.
like the Algonquin. It has always been one of my favourite haunts for lunch. I�ve been in some of the rooms, although I�ve never stayed there. It�s on 6th Ave (Ave of the Americas) at 44th, right at the Diamond District and is just a few blocks south of Rockefeller Centre and the same for Times Square and Herald Square. I really do love the place. Sadly, the famous characters of the Round Table are no longer there, but the �club� style still exists and the rates are spot on.
http://www.algonquinhotel.com/
I�ll also offer you the link for the Boston Stopover to consider. I'm a big BA fan. However, if you want to do the Boston stopover, you�ll need to fly American out of LHR or MAN..
http://www.bostonstopover.blogpsot.com
Another hotel, in a much different style, but still a �boutique� hotel is the Time, which is just at Times Square. I have spent one night there due to an invitation. There was nothing wrong with it at all, but it�s not one I would typically stay in. Within your request, I think you�d prefer the Algonquin.
Also, due to its size, the Essex House does have some promotional rate rooms. If you�re not afraid of pot luck, but will rely upon the US hotel rating system, (which is among the best in the world), then try Priceline for a room. You choose the star rating you want, then pitch the price you�re willing to pay. Subscribing hotels will check their inventory and decide if they want to take you or lose you (as it were). You can get some fantastic deals that way. However, I will tell you in advance: the 5 star hotels do not participate�although it suggests they do. They�re actually 5 diamonds as rated by the AAA. However, they�re still among the best in the city.
17:33 Wed 07th Nov 2007
http://www.algonquinhotel.com/
I�ll also offer you the link for the Boston Stopover to consider. I'm a big BA fan. However, if you want to do the Boston stopover, you�ll need to fly American out of LHR or MAN..
http://www.bostonstopover.blogpsot.com
Another hotel, in a much different style, but still a �boutique� hotel is the Time, which is just at Times Square. I have spent one night there due to an invitation. There was nothing wrong with it at all, but it�s not one I would typically stay in. Within your request, I think you�d prefer the Algonquin.
Also, due to its size, the Essex House does have some promotional rate rooms. If you�re not afraid of pot luck, but will rely upon the US hotel rating system, (which is among the best in the world), then try Priceline for a room. You choose the star rating you want, then pitch the price you�re willing to pay. Subscribing hotels will check their inventory and decide if they want to take you or lose you (as it were). You can get some fantastic deals that way. However, I will tell you in advance: the 5 star hotels do not participate�although it suggests they do. They�re actually 5 diamonds as rated by the AAA. However, they�re still among the best in the city.
17:33 Wed 07th Nov 2007
The Boston Stopover was wrong...
http://bostonstopover.blogspot.com/
frightened me for a second where I ended up with the other link...it has nothing to do with me!
Be well
Fr Bill
http://bostonstopover.blogspot.com/
frightened me for a second where I ended up with the other link...it has nothing to do with me!
Be well
Fr Bill
hi there,
i work in a travel agency in chester and we get really good feed back on the milford plaza, its really good in price and in a great location just off times square. also the roosevelt get really good reports.
if you are looking for a bit of luxary then you can go any of the millennium hotels on times squate of the "w" hotel...they are alot of money though for a place where ,really ,you are just going to shower and sleep...my reccomendation would be book a 3-4 * hotel in the times square area and spend you money on tours and , of cousre, shopping...make sure you head to woodbury common if you are a shopper...its a designer outlet..i picked up versace jeans for �38!!!!!!!
i work in a travel agency in chester and we get really good feed back on the milford plaza, its really good in price and in a great location just off times square. also the roosevelt get really good reports.
if you are looking for a bit of luxary then you can go any of the millennium hotels on times squate of the "w" hotel...they are alot of money though for a place where ,really ,you are just going to shower and sleep...my reccomendation would be book a 3-4 * hotel in the times square area and spend you money on tours and , of cousre, shopping...make sure you head to woodbury common if you are a shopper...its a designer outlet..i picked up versace jeans for �38!!!!!!!
Naroline is right. The Warwick is a lovely hotel. Been in there many times. And Shale is right about the Roosevelt. I�ve never stayed in the rooms, but I often meet people there. It�s an old Georgian style lobby, just steps away from Grand Central Station and my favourite Oyster Bar Restaurant, down in the bowels of Grand Central, and it�s right on the corner of Madison Ave.
The only thing I�d say about the Milford Plaza is that the area is actually not very nice. Interesting, in Manhattan, all it takes is two city blocks before the entire patina of the community changes. The Milford is a very old �theatre� hotel. It has been through many permutations, catering to an array of starving artists who eventually made it to the big time. It�s clean and there�s nothing wrong with any part of the hotel, except perhaps being a bit worn in places. But with it�s proximity to the East Side Bus Station, you�re quite apt to encounter some of New York�s less salubrious inhabitants and at night time, if you accidentally turn towards downtown, you may have to navigate around some of the fresh urine puddles as you get closer to the station.
Continued
The only thing I�d say about the Milford Plaza is that the area is actually not very nice. Interesting, in Manhattan, all it takes is two city blocks before the entire patina of the community changes. The Milford is a very old �theatre� hotel. It has been through many permutations, catering to an array of starving artists who eventually made it to the big time. It�s clean and there�s nothing wrong with any part of the hotel, except perhaps being a bit worn in places. But with it�s proximity to the East Side Bus Station, you�re quite apt to encounter some of New York�s less salubrious inhabitants and at night time, if you accidentally turn towards downtown, you may have to navigate around some of the fresh urine puddles as you get closer to the station.
Continued
Part 2
I�ve stayed in many of the W hotels, which are part of the Starwood Group (Westin, Sheraton, etc.) They have an excellent reputation. My favourite one being on Lexington Ave, directly behind the Waldorf. However, it is quite pricey and within that price structure, I �might� prefer a minimum rate at one of the hotels on Central Park South for the ultimate impact of a memorable trip.
Great suggestions everyone.
Lastly, travelling in to Manhattan: Don�t subject yourself to being caged in a taxi. Book through Tel Aviv Car service. I�ve used them almost 25 years. You get a large sedan and no barriers. And the prices are actually the same as the cabs. You can take the train from Kennedy into Manhattan, but I don�t recommend it for someone who has never been to New York before and is schlepping bags. There�s a safety and convenience issue here. Once you �become� a New Yorker, I�m sure you�d be fine.
Best travel
Fr Bill
I�ve stayed in many of the W hotels, which are part of the Starwood Group (Westin, Sheraton, etc.) They have an excellent reputation. My favourite one being on Lexington Ave, directly behind the Waldorf. However, it is quite pricey and within that price structure, I �might� prefer a minimum rate at one of the hotels on Central Park South for the ultimate impact of a memorable trip.
Great suggestions everyone.
Lastly, travelling in to Manhattan: Don�t subject yourself to being caged in a taxi. Book through Tel Aviv Car service. I�ve used them almost 25 years. You get a large sedan and no barriers. And the prices are actually the same as the cabs. You can take the train from Kennedy into Manhattan, but I don�t recommend it for someone who has never been to New York before and is schlepping bags. There�s a safety and convenience issue here. Once you �become� a New Yorker, I�m sure you�d be fine.
Best travel
Fr Bill
Morning Dee! You touched a nerve there for me�although a humorous one. I spent part of my life in and out of Marriotts ..to the extent that I literally stopped staying in them for several years. I just got burn out from them. I used to keep people in the Marquis, especially the year they opened. But the hotel is predominantly a convention hotel. Yes, the atrium is interesting. However, with over a thousand rooms, it hardly appeals to anyone who wants an �intimate� hotel. And, being smack on Times Square, the noise and shoving, etc, just don�t appeal for me.
Many years ago, the Marquis made two terrible errors in a row on the same night with me. I was given a four room suite with a beautiful dining room. The airline, as usual, had lost my luggage. But I had a United States canvas mail bag, where I collected post that had been forwarded to me in New York ( I had just come off a ship). I spread all the post on the dining table and went out to dinner and theatre.
When I returned, it was all gone! The housekeeper dumped ALL of it down the rubbish shute.
I have lovely photos of six staff, wearing ecology outfits, climbing in and out of the largest dumpster I�ve ever seen in my life! Now, it�s funny. I wasn�t back then. The second �boo boo� they made was with a car I brought from England to New York. It was the car�s first day in America and I drove it from the port to the Marriott. The following morning, the valet, when delivering the car, wrecked it. I had warned him that it was a right hand drive and he swore he could handle it. Nope!
The repair costs was in the thousands! Exasperatingly, about ten days later, a valet at The Pierre hit the car against guard rails, removing the paint from the entire left side of the car. After that, whenever I took it out of the garage, the doorman at The Plaza just let me leave it out front.
You brought back a great memory!
08:11 Thu 08th Nov 2007
Many years ago, the Marquis made two terrible errors in a row on the same night with me. I was given a four room suite with a beautiful dining room. The airline, as usual, had lost my luggage. But I had a United States canvas mail bag, where I collected post that had been forwarded to me in New York ( I had just come off a ship). I spread all the post on the dining table and went out to dinner and theatre.
When I returned, it was all gone! The housekeeper dumped ALL of it down the rubbish shute.
I have lovely photos of six staff, wearing ecology outfits, climbing in and out of the largest dumpster I�ve ever seen in my life! Now, it�s funny. I wasn�t back then. The second �boo boo� they made was with a car I brought from England to New York. It was the car�s first day in America and I drove it from the port to the Marriott. The following morning, the valet, when delivering the car, wrecked it. I had warned him that it was a right hand drive and he swore he could handle it. Nope!
The repair costs was in the thousands! Exasperatingly, about ten days later, a valet at The Pierre hit the car against guard rails, removing the paint from the entire left side of the car. After that, whenever I took it out of the garage, the doorman at The Plaza just let me leave it out front.
You brought back a great memory!
08:11 Thu 08th Nov 2007
I toured the hotel last year. I thought it was nice, but I tend to religiously follow the �Mobil philosophy� when it comes to rating hotels. When they�re new, virtually every hotel goes through growing pains. As staff become trained and come and go, service levels can vary. And, I�m always slightly cautious when I see a hotel advertise itself as �boutique.� My reasoning is that these �trendy� hotels quickly fall out of �trend� It�s part of the American psyche, especially in New York, that young hotel staff love being part of what is trendy. But when the trend ends, they move on. That means service levels can swing drastically, and certainly can�t be measured by any specific benchmark. Fidelity among the staff to the hotel and its concept has yet to be formed. It�s just a personal/professional view. But it�s a tried and true one. I�m constantly reminding myself about all the �boutique� hotels I�ve visited 24 months earlier that have since changed their names, sold out to condominiums, or simply disappeared. It can be a gamble.
The area�77th, is what I call the �tasteful� upper West Side. The hotel is just off of Columbus Avenue, which is indeed trendy. It�s predominantly a residential area, but you�re within short walking distance of the riding stables, Central Park, one of my favourite �cheap� eats called �Dallas� at 27 W. 72nd, next to the Dakota and it�s not that far a trek down to Lincoln Centre. And you can catch a train to South Ferry from there. Finally, the largest Cathedral in the World, St John The Divine is north of there 110th & Amsterdam�so all in all, you�d have plenty of sights to see.
Might be worth a try.
Best of luck
Fr Bill
The area�77th, is what I call the �tasteful� upper West Side. The hotel is just off of Columbus Avenue, which is indeed trendy. It�s predominantly a residential area, but you�re within short walking distance of the riding stables, Central Park, one of my favourite �cheap� eats called �Dallas� at 27 W. 72nd, next to the Dakota and it�s not that far a trek down to Lincoln Centre. And you can catch a train to South Ferry from there. Finally, the largest Cathedral in the World, St John The Divine is north of there 110th & Amsterdam�so all in all, you�d have plenty of sights to see.
Might be worth a try.
Best of luck
Fr Bill
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