first time visit to NYC
 

I am planning a 5 day visit to New York City during the next few weeks. Apologies if this has been posted earlier - I couldn't find it in any recent threads.<BR><BR>1. Does anyone know of any good reservation sites for hotels in New York City? I have seen a few on the web but I don't know how reliable or competitive they are.<BR><BR>2. I will be arriving from the UK. The US government requires that those entering the country under the Visa Wavier program have an onward flight out of the country - does anyone know if they will accept an e-ticket reservation or do I need a proper paper ticket? Some airlines seem to only issue e-tickets.<BR><BR>This will be my first trip to NYC and my first trip to the US since I was a kid, so if anyone has any other suggestions of good hotels to stay in of other things to do, I would be very grateful. I am planning to stay for about 5 days and money is not a huge issue. I am heavily into modern architecture and photography if that helps. At the moment I'm just planning a pretty vague itinerary taking in the well known tourist sites. Thanks in advance for any suggestions.

My own preference is Westin hotels, and they always get awards for having the best frequent guest program of all hotel companies. If you book over the internet, you don't get points, and you can generally get about the same rates by calling directly (1800Westin1). The Essex House on Central Park South is my own personal favorite, beautiful old landmark building, Art Deco style. When you decide your travel dates, the Concierge can assist you in finding out about museum exhibits, etc. that would interest you.<BR><BR>Bon voyage!

Re Question 1. Do a search for NYC hotels. Unless search function isn't working properly or older posts have been deleted, there should be tons of info on various NYC hotels. Normally we spend 1 weekend in June staying in NYC for ballet(live less then 2hrs via train north of city; so most trips there are not over-night). I like using http://www.quikbook.com/<BR>because - your reservation is with hotel; no upfront costs; hotel's standard cancellation policy; good map showing location, etc.; decent prices; pre-internet firm with excellent reputation to the best of my knowledge. <BR>Of course, you can also do priceline etc. once you have a sense of areas/locations.<BR>Do check out the offerings for NYC walking tours. Haven't looked lately but there were several focused on architecture as well as the historic, literary &amp; food ones. Most don't require advance booking &amp; are usually quite good.<BR>

The best side for NYC hotels at good prices is <BR>www.quikbook.com<BR><BR>If you are looking to stay at a nice place and save some money, you can try bidding for a hotel at priceline.com - they also have a website for UK users that you can connect too.<BR><BR>If you can give us your a budget guideline(in US dollars) in terms of how much you want to spend per night, we can make some suggests. Additionally, what hotel amenities do you want? Do you need want/need a pool? Do you want a large hotel with alot of nice public spaces, or a small, boutique type? You want top-of-the-line, just under that, or mid-priced?<BR><BR>Without more detailed info, here are some hotels that might suit your tastes:<BR><BR>Le Parker Meridian<BR>Westin Times Square<BR>Millenium Times Square<BR>W Times Square<BR>W NY<BR>W Union Square<BR>Soho Grand Hotel<BR>Tribeca Grand Hotel<BR>Ritz Carlton Battery Park(Top of the line)<BR>Four Seasons (Top of the Line)<BR>

<BR>I am pretty sure that an E ticket is sufficient to show you are booked to leave on a certain date. You can go to the airlines web site and check or call and ask the airline. They charge extra for paper tickets so I think it is not a problem .<BR>My friends who come visit yearly from LOndon stay at the Warwick Hotel.<BR>Best suggestion on tips for your visit would be to go through the threads here already regarding NYC and just read all you can, then come back with specific questions.<BR>Will you be alone? It is very exciting , you will have such a good time and the weather will most likely (please God) be better than it is now:)

There are several exibitions that would be of major interest for you.<BR>1) There currently is an exhibition of the architecture of Diller + Scofidio<BR>at The Whitney Museum, through June1 .<BR>2) At the Whitney Museum:<BR>National Design Triennial: Inside Design Now <BR>April 22, 2003�January 25, 2004 <BR>The Triennial looks at the breaking developments and future horizons across the fields of design practice, from architecture and interiors to product design, graphic design, and fashion. <BR><BR>3)International Contemporary Furniture Fair - May 17-20; Although this is a trade only convention, the show is open to the general public on May 2o, and is located at the Javits Convention Center.<BR><BR>www.icff.com for more info<BR><BR>As a native NY'er and a modern architiecture buff, I would recommend you check out the following:<BR><BR>The World Financial Center and the surround Battery Park City developments<BR>1 Chase Manhattan Plaza<BR>CitiGroup Center(AKA CitiCorp Center)<BR>Sony Building (AKA At&amp;T Building)<BR>LVMH Building 19 East 57th Street<BR>4 Seasons Hotel<BR>The under construction AOL/TimeWarner Building<BR>American Folk Art Museum<BR>CBS Building<BR>Lever House<BR>Segram Building<BR>Met-Life Building(AKA Pan-Am Building)<BR><BR>There are many more, I will post more must-sees for you<BR><BR><BR>

You may enjoy staying int he Union Sq or Soho area. Some newer, more contemporary hotels are the Union Sq W (much nicer than the times sq W), Soho Grand and 60 Thomspon (I think that's the name). There are architectural tours, when you arrive pick up a new york magazine. Towards the end of the magazine in the Cue section there are listing of walking tours, some free and other events. While in lower Manahattanm visit the Winter Garden. There is a nice model of the new WTC site design there. Any of the main bookings sites should be fine (Expedia, Orbitz, etc.). I would also check the hotel websites. Sometimes the prices do vary depending on how you book.

For others posting suggestions, I would assume that since Johnw has stated he has a deep interest in Modern Architecture, and considering I also have the same interest, it would make more sense to recommend hotels that are designed and/or decorated in the contemporary/modern style. Everyone seems to be recommending traditional hotels.

A pretty funky, modern hotel is the Hudson Hotel, on West 58th street... great bar/restaurant. I've heard the rooms are pretty small though... but that's typical of most NY hotel rooms...<BR><BR>If you're looking for restaurant suggestions, a great website is citysearch.com (also good for local events)... as a native New Yorker, I use this all the time. <BR>Have a great trip!

I am also into photography and NYC can't be beat! Definitely go to the International Center for Photography, icp.org it's around 6th and 44rd. It has amazing exhibitions (huge prints) and a great store. Also, check out bhphoto.com on 9th and 33rd (I think). It's an awesome retail photo equipment store with great prices and extensive selection. It's closed on Saturdays. If you like to shoot street photography, walk the Brooklyn Bridge, check out some of those neighborhoods (old cobblestone streets), the E. Village, FInancial District, etc. You can't go wrong shooting in NYC, just don't buy anything from those little camera shops you see everywhere. Rip-off prices, a lot of out dated film. Go to B&amp;H for everything.<BR><BR>Hotelwise - check priceline, they usually have unbeatable rates in NYC.

Ian Shrager's Hudson Hotel or Morgan Hotel are modern.

One of the BEST books you can buy about NYC architecture is the<BR>The AIA Guide to New York City by Norval White<BR>It lists all the the important architectural buildings in all the 5 bouroughs of NYC, and gives brief but valuable info on each building. The book is think, but not too big, and for an architecture buff, would make a GREAT souvenir of your trip to NYC.<BR><BR>

More buildings in NYC you must-see and/or photograph:<BR><BR>In the Times Square Area:<BR>Conde Nast Building <BR>Reuters Building<BR>Marriot Marquis Hotel (an excellent example of 1970's hotel design as pioneered by John Portman )<BR>Westin Times Square Hotel (the direct opposite of the Marquis, this is an excellent example of the new, latin-flavored design by Miami-based firm of Architectonica)<BR><BR>The Austria Consulate Building, 11 East 52nd Street<BR><BR>Guggenheim Museum<BR>

Stayed in Tribeca Grand last year, needed updating/cleaning up.<BR>Enjoyed Bryant Park Hotel a couple of years ago, modern styling in old building with great restaurant (Ilo), near public library and International Center of Photography.<BR>Hudson has great outdoor patio lounge for nice weather, great indoor lounges as well. Restaurant ok, not great. If you stay, beware of TINY rooms!<BR>Have friends who have stayed a couple of times at new Ritz Carlton Central Park and LOVED it. Very luxe.<BR>Other friends enjoyed Sex and the City package at Soho Grand.<BR>Great museums, check out Frick, Guggenheim (original, upper East Side), Whitney and Cooper-Hewitt for contemporary art. Also, Neue Gallery and cafe.<BR>Esca is great restaurant near theatre district.<BR>Wouldn't rec staying all the way down at Battery Park, too difficult to travel around. Look for something central or near good subway line (check MTA website).<BR>NYC is great, have a wonderful time.

We had good results using express-res.com. Got the Belvedere for $130/night in March and were very pleased.

Many thanks to everyone for your suggestions! I'm reading this info right now and this will help me greatly in putting together an itinerary. <BR><BR><BR><BR>

John,<BR><BR>Even with an e ticket, you will have a printout of your receipt or an itinerary that should suffice for immigration.<BR><BR>As to your interests, you may know the Museum of Modern Art (MOMA) is closed in New York City for renovation. It has temporary quarters in Long Island City (in Queens over the 59th street bridge).<BR><BR>The Metropolitan Museum at Fifth Ave &amp; 82nd St. has plenty to interest you. Here's a website that will tell you about it's photography collection<BR><BR>http://www.metmuseum.org/collections/department.asp?dep=19<BR><BR>In addition to a surprisingly good modern collection, they also have an exhibit on modern design &amp; architecture. Here's an article on it<BR><BR>http://www5.bannerspace.com/asp/getban_lb.asp?MID=18629&amp;f=0000FF&amp;b=FFFFFF& amp;w=_blank&amp;loc=rf_irm&amp;pop=1&amp;s=468x60 &amp;alt=off<BR><BR>The Cooper Hewitt Museum of Design at Fifth Ave &amp; 93th will also be a good stop for you. Here's their website.<BR>http://ndm.si.edu/<BR><BR>If you should want to stay uptown to be near these museums as well as the Guggenheim and the Whitney, there are several hotel options. The Park Hyatt Stanhope is directly across from the Metropolitan Museum. The Carlyle Hotel (which was Princess Diana's place of choice) is on Madison Ave &amp; 76th St. The Mark Hotel is on 77th St between Fifth &amp; Madison. These are all lovely but traditional. They are not quite as convenient for typical sightseeing venues but excellent for museums &amp; galleries.

John, <BR>I'll add one more recommendation to the great ones you've already gotten.<BR>Definitely include the Metropolitan Museum for three reasons:<BR>1. Its aforementioned photography collections.<BR>2. The magnificent special exhibit of the photos of Thomas Struth. It'll take you less than any hour to cover the entire exhibit. For anyone interested in photography, this exhibit is a must.<BR>3. The museum itself is worthy of your camera's attention! The building itself and many of the displays make great subjects. Bring lots of film. Keep in mind that you can't use flash in most areas.<BR>

PS: To read more about the Thomas Struth exhibit, go to:<BR>http://www.menmuseum.org and click on Special Exhibitions.

Johnw:<BR>Some more info.<BR><BR>The National Design Triennial: Inside Design Now April 22, 2003-January 25, 2004 is at the COPPER-Hewitt, NOT The Whitney, as I originally posted.<BR><BR>Another building that is a must-see is the New Planetarium at the Natural History Museum. It is considered one of the most significant new modern architecture buildings in NYC.<BR><BR>One of the best places to walk around, photograph and visit the store is the SoHo and Tribeca neighborhoods. In Soho, there are many stores devoted to contemporary and modern design. Among one of the must-sees in terms of interior design is the Prada store located on Broadway @ Prince St. Designed by Rem Koolhaus,it is considered the most innovative retail store design in Manhattan.<BR><BR>You have many, many things too see and do, so you will need to kinda plan and design what's important to you to see &amp; do.<BR><BR>

Thanks again to everyone for their recommendations. I've booked 4 nights at the Park Central New York Hotel ($115 on Expedia) over the Easter weekend as it seems to have some pretty good reviews from other Fodorites. I'll certainly check out the Met museum exhibit mentioned by several people here and try to get to as many of the others as I can.<BR><BR>I'll post a trip report with photos when I get back.

If you are heavily into modern architecture then you MUST check out the plans/models for the new World Trade Center. They are in the northern building of the World Financial Center (at least I THINK they are still here...anyone else know???). The WFC is just west of the WTC site.

Definitely check out museums, but besides the Met, MoMa, and the Guggenheim, there are lots of other great museums too.<BR>The International Center of Photography (ICP) on 6th Aveune and 43rd street is a great photography museum. It is small and full of great photography exhibits. Check it out (B,D,F,V to 42nd Street, 7 to 5th Avenue)<BR>I guess you could also try Moma Queens. It's also small, but features a lot of great modern art. Not as good as the original, but you cant go there because they're remodeling (7 to 33rd Street)<BR>There are so many great hotels in the city, but lots are expensive. If you want to be near museums, stay in midtown. Museums are only a subway ride away and the subways are so close. W Times Square, Grand Hyatt, Hilton, Sheraton Towers, and Westin are all good<BR><BR>have a great trip

A quirky but extensive website devoted to photography and new york architecture is &quot;Wired New York&quot; which also has pix &amp; links to hotel web sites. (I know you've already booked but...). The web address is http://www.wirednewyork.com<BR><BR>By the way, I'm traveling to NYC about the same time &amp; had many of the same questions, so I really appreciate everyone's posts! I'm going to try quikbook.

It all depends on how much you want to spend. Orbitz has a really nice hotel reservation feature that shows you where the hotel is on a map, that way you have an idea as to how far you're going to be from your main interests. I'd check there. I've had nothing but good experiences with them and have generally found them to be the cheapest way to go.