Hi,

I'm going to be in NY for one night in July. I'm arriving in the afternoon and will want to hit the shops, before my parents arrive later that evening. We will spend one night before heading to Brooklyn the following day to board a cruise ship. Can you advise me on a good place to stay? We will have the morning before we board to do something, so I don't want to be too out of the way. Any ideas?

Laura

Anywhere in Manhattan would work, Laura. What sort of shopping do you want to do (ie discount, dept. store, boutique). What kind of budget?

WashingtonSquarehotel.com is in Greenwich Village in a charming location near Wash. Sq. park. They have a room with 2 double beds. It's a European type hotel (small) and I think includes breakfast. From there you could hit boutiques in the area and further downtown, there's a stretch of Fifth Ave. north of there 14th-23 st. that has lots of shops and it's not far from some discount stores like Loehmann's and TJ Maxx.

If you want to do the more standard dept. store shopping like Macy's and Bloomingdales, you'd be better in midtown. Too many choices there to begin without a budget or type of hotel.

Thanks for the help Mclaurie. Washington Square Hotel is fully booked. The sort of shopping I was is dept. store and chain stores - like LOFT. I don't mind taking the subway to the stores if it makes life easier the following day. The budget is about $350 per night.

Laura

It would be easier if I knew the exact date since rates vary greatly in July. But here are some general ideas to check.

For 3 to a room, staying at one of the Affinia suite hotels would be ideal for a bit more space and not much more money.

If you're talking about Macy's (my least favorite area and store) the Affinia Manhattan is near there and one of the less expensive of their hotels.

If you want to be near Bloomingdales, the Affinia Gardens is near there.

The Shelburne Murray Hill is offering good value both on the Affinia website (www.affinia.com) and also on quikbook.com The best prices are often now non cancelable though. It's a short walk to Lord & Taylor, there's a Daffy's near it on Madison Ave. (discount) and you're not that far from Rockefeller Center where there are loads of stores.

The Affinia Dumont is also very nice but may be over your budget. I know they have some rooms with 2 queen beds.

The Fitzpatrick Manhattan is an Irish owned hotel that's very close to Bloomingdales. They have some family suites as well but look heavily booked for July.

HI again,

The hotels I have been looking at are the the Belvedere, the Blakely and the Affinia Dumont. Is the Dumont worth the extra $120 dollars? Looked at the Affinia Gardens, but it's too much.

Thanks! Laura

The Belvedere is not as nice as the others and someone mentioned may be under renovation. It's also not as convenient for shopping imo as it's further west. I love the Blakely, but poster TC recently reported the a/c in the one bedroom suites is insufficient. Evidently the regular rooms are ok, though. I'm not sure I'd pay $120 more for the Aff. Dumont, but I've got to believe there are other options too. What about the Michelangelo?

Thanks for the advice. I tried the Michelanglo, but it's full. Will scrap the idea of the Belvedere. So I guess we'll choose between the Blakely and the Dumont.

Laura

How about the Roger Williams hotel on Madison Ave. IT is quite nice and the price is a little less than your budget. I had a couple of friends stay there not long ago and really liked the room and location.

Also you might check www.hotels.com, www.expedia.com and www.hotwire.com for more suggestions in your price range and your dates of travel.

Have a great time while you are here.

Laura, did you try booking the Michelangelo on quikbook.com? Sometimes the hotel themselves may not have inventory but a 3rd party website will.

Some other good ones
The Omni Berkshire (there's a special for weekend nights here http://hotels.travelzoo.com/new-york-hotels/305431), the Barclay Intercontinental, the San Carlos.

HI again,

I've tried everyting suggested and either they are full, or we would need two rooms which we don't want as it's only one night. The San Carlos is available but it's the same price as the Dumont, so I'm wondering which is better? Judging the the reviews on TripAdvisor, the Dumont is better.

Laura

Both the San Carlos and the Aff. Dumont have different size rooms so are you comparing apples to apples? (ie studio or one bedroom suite etc.)? I'd say they're comparable but their locations are slightly different. The Affinia is on 34 st. so closer to Macy's and the shops around there while the San Carlos is closer to Bloomingdales and the shops around there which I prefer. The San Carlos is also pretty close to Rockefeller Center where there are lots of shops and Saks. Would you share the date you need?

Sorry, forgot to say that it's the 17th!

Laura

Don't know if you booked yet. Just wanted to say the 2 websites I check are quikbook.com and kayak.com (which checks LOTS of other sites). If you want a traditional hotel, the Omni Bershire and the Intercontinental Barcaly are both well located and have rooms with 2 double beds within your budget. Look for links on kayak.

The Shelburne Murray Hill has some good prices on quikbook (I think slightly better than on the Affinia site).

The Courtyard by Marriott Times Square South (or the Fifth Ave.) has a $299 rate for a double double and they're both good. Actually, the Fifth Ave. location is almost across from Lord & Taylor. (these are on kayak) If you decided to go for the San Carlos, I think you'll be happy with that too.

Many thanks for all your help - haven't looked yet, but I'll let you know what we decide on!