WG

we are having an engagement party for our daughter -at a midtown pub (43rd - not far from grand central station) in june - many folks from out of town - including his relatives (parents and grandparents,etc) and my daughter and fiance's (20-something) friends, not far out of college, and with more modest means... any recommendations for a couple of hotel choices nearby that would be reasonable yet nice? we would love to recommend a hotel that was in the 150$ range..... thanks!

nytraveler

That's a very difficult price point for New York in the summer. For 2 people they could bid on Priceline for midtown east - and might end up with something nice (but Priceline's 3* are not reliable - your really need to do 4*) - and obviously people can end up in many different hotels.

Travelzoo isn;t showing anything and Quickbook only has the Pod hotel - a tiny room with bunk beds and a shared bath - for $169 plus tax.

I think you should probably broaden your area to all of Manhattan and do a search of kayak - which is showing some rooms in the more downscale Marriott brands for $199 per night. And - also check the Marriott web site.

But - since I don;t know your exact dates - you may be able to find something if your really do a heavy duty search of all the websites.

WG

thanks - any further thoughts from fodorites, if we said 200$ range??

lovetolaugh

What are your dates in June?

travelbuff

The Tudor Hotel, close to the United Nations is probably close to that range, and I'd also recommend the Hotel Grand Union on E32nd St.

Also check www.hotels.com and www.hotwire.com for more suggestions.

WG

hi thanks for ideas - the date is june 15-16th weekend.

mclaurie

Tough date. For college friends who might be willing to do a shared bathroom thing, the Vanderbilt YMCA right near Grand Central gets decent reviews and they have private rooms (just shared bath I think).

The New York Helmsley is right near Grand Central and can sometimes be had for around $200/night plus tax (check quikbook.com)

The Millenium UN Plaza is sometimes $199/night.

The Shelburne Murray Hill, the Eastgate Tower and the Beekman Tower, all www.affinia.com hotels are sometimes within that range. They're all suite hotels so some of the family or friends that can stay together might do well to share suites. Check quikbook for prices vs. their own website.

Bidding for a 4* hotel in midtown east on Priceline often yields the Grand Hyatt, a good option for this, esp. since it can sometimes be had for $120-160 plus tax.

mclaurie

Just did some searching and boy are prices high that weekend. I think it may be possible to get the Grand Hyatt on Priceline for a decent price. I also see a price of $199 plus tax for the Courtyard by Marriott Times Square and the Residence Inn by Marriott Times Square-both on (found thru kayak.com) on their respective websites. The Residence Inn has a sofabed plus king or queen regular bed so could theoretically sleep 4.

WG

thank you - will check today on some of these options. have not used quikbook or kayak before... so many thanks!

NeoPatrick

You do need to remember that taxes are not included in the quoted prices. Those taxes are now -- what -- 16.5% or so? So a $199 room becomes more like $238. Just something else to keep in mind. Maybe someone else has a more exact current figure on the tax rate.

nytraveler

Also - suggest you get reservations ASAP - since rooms seem to be scarce, not just expensive for that weekend - Affinia are all over $300 per night (even for the basic rooms) and Marriott prices are going up as I watch.

michelleNYC

My secretary was trying to secure some rooms here in NYC for a couple of clients for the weekend of June 15th (Friday - Sunday) and was/is having such a hard time with availability! And we're talking at the $500+ price point. Note that there seem to be many large scale conferences and events happening during the preceding week (6/11-15).

travelbuff

I just called the Hotel Grand Union and they have rooms available that weekend double/$157 quad/$231.

WG

Thanks all! - have been calling a few -Hotel Gershwin seemed like an option as well and waiting to hear from their group sales, will re call Hotel Grand Union if Gershwin can't provide same range. again many thanks!

WG

hi - some followup - hotel grand union would not take a one night stay, and hotel gershwin would not take a group reservation... despite their initial positive responses. i did get a great rate from hotel thirty-thirty, and a very accommodating person in the group sales dept... for your information. many thanks to all - and enjoy your travels where ever they may be!

Cippers

This is a reach but the people who are really strapped may consider it. There is a hotel in Newark--Hilton Newark Penn Station. It directly connects with the train station, and you are about a 30 minute train ride into NYC

longhorn55

Although it appears that WG's search was successful, there may be others out there looking for a NYC hotel. About a year ago, the Washington Post travel section had a great article about hotels in NYC under $200. My husband and daughter stayed at one of these, the Bedford Hotel, in March and got a great winter rate that included breakfast. Check out their website for more info:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv...0/gallery.html

Ryan

When we arranged rooms for the guests at our wedding, we found the most economical options to be Downtown Manhattan. We arranged for rooms at the Club Quarters near Wall Street and the Marriott by the World Financial Center.

We also found rooms at a couple of more highly priced options in Midtown.

Perhaps rather than trying to meet every budget with one option, you find a place at the lower end and a more moderately priced mid-town option.

BTW, not sure if Club Quarter's is a membership hotel. I knew one of the hotel's owners. But you might want to contact them anyway as it never hurts to ask. If I recall, the cost was significantly below the options in Midtown.

GoTravel

NOOOO!!! Do not stay at a Newark Airport hotel for any reason on earth unless you have a 6AM flight out the next morning and only then should you stay at The Marriott.

The hotels around Newark Airport are worse than death and you have an hour commute into Manhattan.

Ryan

Make that "still a membership only hotel" in reference to Club Quarters.