We will be coming to N.Y. in Sept with our 11-1/2 yr old granddaughter and the hotel rates are 'out of sight' . We looked at the Embassy Suites Secaucus as an option, with bus service across the street, and are wonderfing if anyone has stayed there and bussed it into the city on a daily basis (we will be there for 6 nights)..

You will hate doing this. Traffic can turn what should be a 10-15 min. trip into 45. If your dates are flexible, you will find hotel prices in Manhattan much cheaper if you can come the first week in Sept. before Labor Day. If that's not possible, stay within a train ride (not a bus) from Manhattan either on the PATH line from New Jersey http://www.panynj.gov/path/schedule.html or in Long Island City in Queens, which is served by the NYC subway system. If you're arriving by plane, the New Jersey side is better for Newark airport (there's a Hyatt in Jersey City along with a Doubletree Club, a Candlewood suites and a very nice Westin to name a few) while Queens is better for JFK or LGA. The relatively new http://www.countryinns.com/queensny in Long Island City has become a popular option in Queens.

I'm in Manhattan every mid-Sept to celebrate my birthday and I've never paid more than $170.00 a night including taxes and fees. Last year we stayed at Gild Hall, a lovely boutique hotel downtown for $149.00. (this place won't work for you though, as the rooms are for 2 people only)

If you can put off booking until a 4-6 weeks before your arrival, you might do well by checking travelzoo.com for specials.

However, my favorite site for discounted rooms is quikbook.com. Most of their reservations (almost all, but read the fine print) are cancellable.

What are your exact dates and what's the budget per night?

Two bedded rooms aren't so easy to find in NYC but you might have more luck if someone is willing to sleep on a sofa bed.

One place that tends to offer bargains and would be perfect for you (basic lodging, but clean and well situated) would be Radio City Apartments. You'd be able to have some meals in and you'd have a bit more room.

http://www.radiocityapartments.com/

Keep checking quikbook.com, orbitz.com and travelzoo for bargains. Others here will recommend other good sites, but those are the ones I use regularly.

We did this one year and it was well worth the $1000 savings over 6 nights. The bus takes a special non-traffic lane and we never had any annoying delays.

That said....you might be trying to book too early to get a "deal" as hotels seem to be discounting only 2 or 3 months in advance these days.

>

Very lucky. A friend commutes along this line and his 50-minute trip often turns into a 2-hour trip.

I'm assuming "we" plus granddaughter = 3 people. I'm wondering what kind of deal TYGER is looking at in Secaucus, and also what TYGER would be willing to pay elsewhere. What's the budget? With that information we might offer more help.

I would do anything possible to stay i Manhattan. Secaucus is not a place to stay without a car (office complexes and discount malls - so you need to drive to restaurants).

And while the bus is theoretically 15 minutes traffic through the tunnels to Manhattan is tied up by something - an accident, a misplaced oversize vehicle or just plain traffic several times a week - and you can easily 3 hours a day just sitting in traffic.

Agree if you MUST stay in Jersey stay in one of the hotels on top of a PATH station.

Thank you Fodorites for the input.. Our budget is $250.per night including taxes. Anything less would be grand. I will check out Radio City Apartments, thanks. Our dates are fixed, within a day or 2 either way, but I don't think that will make the difference. We definitely need some 'space' in the room as we will be arriving with one suitcase each and I have seen some of the Hotel rooms in N.Y. which were tiny even for 2. Again, thanks to all. If you come up with any more ideas, I'll keep checking this post.

I am seeing rates of about %140 a night at that ES in Secaucus for most of Sept. If having lots of space in the room is your #1 priority, I am not sure you'll find a hotel w/that much room in Manhattan for that price in Sept., even as the date gets closer, but you never know til you try. Why don't you reserve ES Secaucus but keep checking for rates at Manhattan hotels- you have a lot of time to check btwn now and Sept. Check Travelzoo.com as the date gets closer. I have gotten incredibly good rates on that site for Manhattan.

oops, I menat to say $140 at ES Secaucus

i give up, need more coffee

Does anyone know what the Specific dates are?? I read in the op that they're sometime in September, but don't know when, Exactly. Tough to check on deals without specific dates! And rates change during the week vs. weekend and even Sunday night stays.

Tyger! come back!

I do want to say that I would be very surprised if you couldn't meet your budget in Manhattan and that's what I'd be searching for if I were to make this trip.

I agree , it is a temptation to think of a nice place, big rooms etc out of Manhattan, but the truth is that location is such an important factor.
During the day there is always a need to go to the hotel for many reasons. Drop a heavy package, leave or take a coat, etc, sometimes you might be simply tired and wish to relax for a while, have a shower in the middle of the day .....all these is denied if your hotel if out of town.

The dates are important because rates will be cheaper before Labor Day in September. The U.S. Open takes place in Sept. and the U.N. has their sessions starting mid-Sept. too.

Check on the Affinia site for specials; they have one running now and there were rooms available at the Affinia's for $215.00 for some Sept. nights:

https://www.affinia.com/

Also: The Salisbury Hotel is showing rooms in Sept. for under $210.00 for some dates. I like this hotel and the location is great.

Good luck.

You might want to look at the Hotel Newton on the upper west side. They are listing a junior suite for random nights in Sept for only $199 per night - and this might fit your needs. the hotel is only moderate but reliable and fairly recently redone. And the area is great for kids - only a coup;e of blocks from Central Park and near a bunch of major museums (esp Natural History). But - you would have to book soon - as this hotel typically sells out far in advance due to the bargain rates.

ONe other option I've thought of using myself is this place in Jersey City - one mile from the Path Train that goes into Manhattan. This place gets good reviews and you get lots of space in the big 2 rm. suite (look at that one online, there is a video of it as well as pictures). And it is very affordable- that big suite with king bed, Italian leather sofa bed, and leather futon bed woudl be $85 a night in Sept if staying 6 nights. The owner will drive you to the Path train if he is there and there are taxis to bring you back ($5 fare). Or it is a 10 min walk.

http://www.bandb2.com/LocationandDirections.html

http://www.bedandbreakfast.com/new-j...breakfast.html

If you end up in Secaucus, don't spend months worrying about 3-hour delays and wondering what you've gotten yourself into. Reviews of hotels that are right at the Port Authority bus stops or at the Path trains will convince you that time and time again, people do this to save hundreds of dollars, and come out without a scratch. I remember a recent thread where a woman was warned repeatedly NOT to stay in NJ for New Years....do people REALLY believe there are enough rooms in Manhattan for everyone that visits over New Years? Preposterous. Half of these people stay elsewhere and survive to tell about it.

Well, for that matter, the visitor could then just stay in Stamford, CT and take metro North into GCT if merely looking to survive a visit rather than experiencing NYC.

I think the $250.00 a night budget is probably do-able for a Manhattan hotel in September and think it is perhaps too early to discount the possibility of a Manhattan stay. Surely, rooms in Secaucus or Jersey City will be available in Sept. if all else fails.

OP: You might check on rooms in Long Island City..much more convenient than Secaucus imo but still very affordable.

L.I.C. is in Queens. Not the 'in the middle of it all' kind of experience you may have expected, but here are two decent hotels that might work:

The Quality Inn and the Clarion Collection