mamamia2

That's the reason we didn't consider that place when we first looked up hotels East of Manhattan. The place looked isolated. But then we read reviews, and they were all VERY positive, some from guests with kids... After all, those guests are tourists, and tourists travel daily to Manhattan.... TripAdvisor, whom I trust, places The Box House as number 1 out of 47 hotels in Brooklyn. So one must trust that place to be good...

5alive

Mamamia, forgive me but you have an error in your logic. Trip Advisor has people rate individual properties. Most of those tourists only stay at one hotel in Brooklyn. They cannot say it is better or worse than any other in Brooklyn, per se. Just that it was very nice or only so-so compared to their own past life experiences and preferences.

Then, a computer "aggregates" or compiles those to get a ranking. But the devil is in the details. Let's say you really care most about good location but other people don't. They care about the amenities or the charm, so they give it a top score Here's some comments from two of the most recent reviews which both gave very high numbers:

" We loved the location and preferred this rather than being more central."

"My only complaint...I wish the car service ran later to the subway station, or when the car service is not running, perhaps hand the guests a card with the number of a few cab services. We tried to call Java Car Service when we got to the train station late one night and got NO service at all!! Luckily we found a cab. The hotel is not far from the Greenpoint Station on the G train; definitely within walking distance; however, at night, 3 girls alone, it's a little scary to walk down Box St. in the dark."

nytraveler

Agree - you can;t look at the rankig numbers - you need to look at this specific factor. It sounds like the statin with good service is NOT enarby - you have to wwait for a shuttle - which runs who knows how often? And the walk from the nearer station seems to be unpleasant.'

Again - you are giving up something very important - getting away from the Pulaski skyway and into Manhattan.

Seems a really bad choice unless you have a car.

doug_stallings

Just to clarify, this hotel is in Greenpoint, which is NOT near the Pulaski Skyway in northern New Jersey. It's near the much shorter and more pedestrian-friendly Pulaski Bridge, which goes over Newtown Creek.

As I wrote before, I think the hotel exaggerates the distance to the Vernon-Jackson stop on the 7 (which is on 50th Avenue), and I'd estimate it's more like a 20 or 25 minute walk, but I could be wrong. I also find that area confusing and forbidding, particularly at night. Nevertheless, there are several new residential buildings immediately across Newtown Creek by the entrance to the Queens Midtown Tunnel.

I do think that the Greenpoint station on the G train is probably more walkable (10 or 12 blocks). But finding a cab or car service at night is near impossible, and I probably wouldn't walk there at night, though I'm sure it's safe enough. But this is a very deserted area, and as I said before, transit-poor.

If other tourists like this area and the OP is willing to take the chance, then fine. It just wouldn't be my choice.

nytraveler

I fear the OP is beleiving the information provided by the hotel and has not asked the hard questions:

How many shuttles are there?
How often do they run to the subway?
What hours do they run to the subway?
Do you need to reserve them in advance?

We all know aout the games hotels play in describing their locations. The ones I love are the Jersey hotels that say 3 miles from Times Square - only they mean as the bird flies and most of the 3 miles is the Hudson River. Unless one can walk across water - a major factor.

sf7307

I know less than zero about this location, but I did just google the walking distance, and google does say it's a 10-min. walk from the hotel to the Vernon-Jackson subway station.

mamamia2

There's no shuttle per se, we're suppose to call the hotel and they'll send a car (they say they're working with a local company) to pick us up, as long as it's a radius of a mile or two from the hotel.

Listen, this place is not perfect. When money is a bit tight (I couldn't afford paying more than $200 a night), one needs to accept SOME compromises... If there were only 5 people reviewing that place, and all would have rated it as 5/5 — I wouldn't have relied on that to chose ANY hotel. But when 128 people review it (TripAdvisor), of which 121 describe it as excellent to very good, and Booking.com has 165 reviews, with an average of 8.8/10 === Hey, guys, SOMETHING must be good, or even very good about that place... Still, I know we're taking a gamble here... Again, when money is tight....

...But I promise to come back here with my own honest review!

And I do appreciate all the feedback here, you guys have been extremely helpful !

alya

I think the big question which has not been asked is when are you visiting?

Hotel Stanford, where we have stayed and I have recommended here before, is showing rates of less than $200 a night in July and August for a double double with 3 adults sharing

https://www.reservations-page.com/c0...f02&preserve=1

alya

If you give dates you might get some advice on hotels in Manhattan that are within your budget.

doug_stallings

We don't even need to know the OP's dates to be able to say that there are many other cheaper options significantly closer to the subway than the hotel in Greenpoint. There are several hotels near Queen's Plaza that would fit the bill nicely. These are not stylish by any means, but they offer reliable, reasonably priced lodging (Country Inn & Suites Long Island City, Comfort Inn, and a few others). All these hotels are typically under $150 a night, are within short walking distance to a subway station offering a 1- to 3-stop ride into Manhattan, and would be much better choices in terms of convenience for a short stay.

But the OP has her mind made up I think, and that's fine. I do want to hear how the stay goes.

mamamia2

We're visiting NYC the week of March 25, which has MANY hotels sold out (incl. the Stanford suggested above), or offering higher rates....

No, Doug, I'm actually open to new ideas. I have until Monday to cancel my current reservation... We did spend time online, we found a number of alternatives but: Some had only double-rooms, not fit for 3 adults, or were located right next to a busy, noisy highway, or in some crummy neighborhoods, or old and worn-out hotels. I also prefer breakfast included (continental is OK), or the option to prepare one in our room (like the current place reserved).

I would be happy and appreciative to get other, good ideas. I still have a couple days, I'm not sold on anything.

SusieQQ

Did you try Country Inn & Suites and Comfort Inn in Long Island City?

mamamia2

Yes, both fully booked and/or not fit for 3 adults....

SusieQQ

Well, we hope you will post a review of your hotel after your trip. Have a great time!

5alive

Mamamia--There are better rooms out there as I type this.

Used Kayak.com, entered March 25-29, 3 adults.

$181/night, two double beds, Days Inn New York Broadway (ie IN MANHATTAN)

$227/night, two queen beds, Hotel Newton. Three rooms left. Great area for this hotel in Manhattan. I clicked Kayak and then Orbitz to get the Newton's price.

I would take either of those in a heartbeat over your choice. You do need to act fast though.

5alive

Should have mentioned before, that I am not from New York but spent hours and hours putting together our trip there last summer. We had 5 people in our family which made it much harder to find lodgings and I looked at many and checked here a lot. I know the Newton gets suggested as a good moderate-income hotel in Manhattan, by some of the New Yorkers posting on Fodors. I do know less about the Days Inn because they had no rooms for our family, so I didn't pursue it.

If neither of these suit, check into Hotwire. It seems to let me put 3 adults in but I would post a new thread or go over to betterbidding.com for advice on this point. If it works for 3 people, Kayak was showing a Hotwire price of $214/night in Financial district downtown 3.5 Star Hotel for March 25-29.

mamamia2

Days in is blaaa.... Newton looks REALLY attractive, but can't give us the 4 days we need (I also called them).

As far as bidding? No, I wouldn't blindly bid on accommodations, I would do that on car rental, even flights, but not a hotel.

5alive

Sorry I didn't see your reply sooner. I don't think bidding a 3.5 hotel in one of the wealthiest areas in the world is a terrible idea. In the end, though, if you don't feel good about a bidding site or a property, then you won't enjoy your vacation. Please post back after your trip to let us know how it went. People do read these reports (like me last year).

musicfan

I have to agree with 5alive...I'm not sure what you think could go wrong with a 3.5* hotel in the Financial District of New York City, but everyone has their own comfort level. I would rather chance an unknown hotel than haul myself in from New Jersey or wherever, but that's me. And, using Hotwire is not bidding--you already know the price, you just don't know the hotel. Regardless, we DO hope you will come back and tell us about your trip--you never know what might be helpful to someone someday.

mamamia2

As I mentioned, some services I don't mind bidding the unknown, like car rental (who cares if it's from Avis or Hertz?), or a flight (AA? United? Delta? not much significance).... But hotels have just too many variants, like street noise, how old and how well-kept the establishment is, double- or queen-beds? Different people have different priorities. I HATE staying in a room that shows signs of hundreds of other guests have been using it before me, and would not sleep in an establishment next to a noisy construction site...

Yes, I'll be back, early April, I promise.