Have 2 potential options for our stay next week. small boutique hotel Mela between times sq and central park.
The other is a basement apartment on east 3rd/2nd avenue, close to east village ,little italy chinatown etc.
The hotel feel a safer option but the apartment may be a better "new york experience. I have read that nearby areas can be intimidating. also slight concern returning by subway at night. any thoughts. thanks. (please reply soon.

Personally, I'm always a little stressed about cockroaches in NYC apartments (and other big cities too!).

I would be hesitant about a basement apartment for several reasons:

Safety - do you know if they have secure iron guards on all the windows

View - you may end up seeing a lot of things you don;t want to know about (esp in that neighborhood) (A friend of mine in a middle class neighborhood on the upper west side opened the doors to her building's garbage bin compartment at 8pm - but full daylight - to find a yong couple in flagrante - both completely naked.)

Nor do you want to find strangers using your window area for a urinal

It's likely to be very noisy

I would definitely go for a hotel - unless the apartment was much more attractive than the one you describe

I wouldn't be too concerned about returning by subway. It's a very safe area. 2nd Ave and 3rd may not be Times Square, but it's where locals live and play. The surrounding area is great for nightlife, and it's not intimidating, in my estimation.

But if you're that concerned go with the hotel and visit the Village.

True, a basement apartment might be a little off-putting. I can't say I've ever rented an apartment for a short stay; I just meant that the area is fun.

Hotel Mela.

More than cockroaches, I'd be concerned about air conditioning . .. . is there AC ? Is the place truly the basement, that is, below street level, or is it a ground floor apartment? Is it in the front or back of the building? Are there windows and what do they look out onto, an interior courtyard, the garbage cans for the building, or the street?

The neighborhood itself is very safe - a new, huge Whole Foods supermarket on the ground floor of a big luxury condo building (the ony kind of building now permitted to be built in NYC) just opened 3 blocks away, and there are plenty of terrific restaurants and bars. In fact, I'd be mostly concerned about noise at night - it's a young neighborhood . . .

If you could get some pix of the place emailed to you, that might help you decide . . .