We returned from NYC Thursday evening. I was traveling with my parents and my 20yo daughter. My daughter and I had been there previously in Oct., 2000. My parents had never been. We are from Topeka, KS. My mom made the arrangements through AAA, which I feel was a mistake.
We stayed at the Marriott Marquis for 5 nights. I’m not sure but I think the room was probably over $300 a night. The room was pretty ordinary but had a fantastic view of Times Square. The beds were only double sized. A rollaway would have cost an extra $25 per night. Local calls were $1 apiece. There was a note that if we didn’t want a newspaper .50 would be deducted from the bill. So even the paper wasn’t free. As much as this room cost, I feel that these costs were too much. We had no problems with the elevators that has been reported here in the past.
We took a Super Shuttle to and from the airport. It cost $15 per person. We had to wait over ½ hour at the airport for it. Then we had to ride all over the place as it dropped off others. On the way back, it got us to the airport (LaGaurdia) a totally unnecessary 3 hours early. A cab would have been cheaper and faster.
I can’t report much on what we ate. My parents are very conservative when it comes to food. My dad won’t let me pay for anything, but won’t spend money on anything he considers frivolous. Unfortunately my mom loves McDonalds. I tried to compromise by finding deli’s and diners. The best meal we had was at the café in the Hotel Edison. It had what I think of as NY food, e.g. matzoh ball soup and pastrami. One morning we made the mistake of going to the Roxie deli on Times Square. The bill was over $20 for 4 pastries. None of us had drinks. All over NY are street vendors you can get a donut and coffee for $1. From past experience I also know that Lucky Lindy’s is another place you can get ripped off at Times Square.
We did most of the typical tourist stuff because my parents had never been to NY. We went to the Metro Museum. The rooftop is definitely worth a visit. We went to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island. You can go to Liberty Island but cannot enter the statue or base. It is still a very worthwhile trip.
NYC trip report part 1
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Hi Denise YOU LEFT ALREADY???
Does not sound like you had a great time, too bad. Did you do the double decker tours? They give you a good introduction to the city, how about the circleline tour around the city rivers.
Don't blame AAA on hotel size, space comes at a premium in Manhattan and chances are you would have experienced a smaller than usual hotel room in most hotels.
Deli food was more of a NY Icon in the fifties/Sixties. We are better known for our European food now more specifically French and Italian. I have never had a positive food experience and don't even look for one in the neighborhood of where your hotel was located and I have lived in this city for 20 years.
Sounds like you just had some money shock. This is one the most notable difference between your home and my home Denise but a teeny tiny bit more research and I think you could have been better prepared for this. You should always inquire if there is a more direct route to catch hotel shuttle to any airport in any city. This problem of stopping at every hotel before going to airport is a problem everywhere. All you needed to do was leave from either port authority or Grand Central to bypass the delay . A cab would have been about 25 dollar and 20 minutes.
But it is just hard to get a pretty picture of Manhattan in Time Square. Oh heck it takes years to get use to the dirt and congestion in this city. I am always amazed when people love this city on a first visit. Nevertheless we do have some extraordinary travel experiences for someone who seeks them out. Too bad it was tough for you on this trip Denise. Next time explore some of our world class museums, music, shopping strips (Madison Avenue, Soho), and the like. Hope a cab for five dollars downtown and checkout Balthazar's, Gotham Bar and Grill, or Zen Palate (vegitarian Chinese), Haveli (Indian) if money is a concern.
$300 per night?
Times Square?
Super Shuttle?
McDonald's???
It's great you enjoyed yourself enough to call it a worthwhile trip. Next time you'll know what NOT to do, I guess. Glad you enjoyed the Metropolitan Museum of Art's roof garden.
I went to NYC for the first time about three weeks ago. I hate that you got such sticker shock. We got rooms at the Grand Hyatt for 120/night on priceline. Got a cab to and from LaGuardia for about $20 and it took no more than 25 minutes each way. Getting around was pretty easy since we were at Grand Central Station. We ate at the food stands some, it seems like they're everywhere. There was one in particular at the SE corner that was really good. We went to several restaurants that we enjoyed and thought were reasonable- John's Pizzeria and Ellen's stardust Diner in Times Square was our favorite. We did hit one place before a show that was ridiculously high and terrible food, right on Broadway, don't remember the name. I was there for a conference, so I didn't have much time to sight-see. But I absolutely loved the city and cannot wait to go back. All in all, it wasn't as expensive as I thought it would be, but I can see how it could be (especially without priceline).