We are planning on seeing a few Broadway and off'-Broadway shows and are still in search of accomodations. Can anyone recommend a convenient hotel for dinner and theater between $150-$250 a night?

I'm not usually a fan of hotel restaurants, so I'm not sure why you combined the two into one, but Foley's in the Renaissance is excellent. And it should also be just within your price range if you hit a weekend or any other special on their website -- www.marriott.com
While there you can also check the Marriott Marquis, usually about the same price, but again you need to find a special.
Doubletree Suites, the Times Square Hilton, and the Millenium are also good possibilities. A step down in my opinion would be the New York Hilton or one of the Sheratons.

Of course you can follow the crowds and do a Priceline bid to save money if you aren't too picky about which hotel they put you in and you can pay your entire stay at the time of booking and risk losing the entire thing should you have to cancel for any reason.

The Millenium Broadway is a very nice hotel just a half of a block from Times Square and very convenient to most theatres. I also thought the restaurant there was excellent and reasonably priced for NYC.

I should have been clearer about the hotel/dinner recommendation. What I meant to say was a hotel near not only Broadway/theaters but also good restaurants for pre or post theater dining. Thanks!

Here's another vote for Foley's Fish house. Any reason you must stay in Times Square?

Patrick, I don't know what your point was to add a negative post about Priceline in your recommendation to banana89. All of the hotels that you mentioned happen to be in Priceline's inventory (rated as 4 and 3 star hotels), and they are all decent hotels. They are even better when a successful bid is made that is less than the rack rate, weekend rate or any other internet special available. By the way, if banana89 is buying theatre tickets in advance and not the day of the performance, banana89 would also be out the cost of the tickets besides the cost of the hotel room if banana89 was successful in securing a room through Priceline.

Huh? I didn't know I was being at all negative about Priceline. Weren't those accurate statements? In fact I was the first one to suggest that banana look at Priceline, but of course, I was making it clear what their restrictions are. Of course what you say is true, I was merely pointing out (like any priceline user is aware) that if you are picky about having a specific hotel then it won't work, and of course it comes with the risk of losing your money IF a change is necessary. This is always pointed out in Priceline posts, why would you call this negative???

OK, but now that you bring it up, your analogy of the theatre tickets is not quite right. It is relatively easy to resell good Broadway theatre tickets if your trip was cancelled. It is not possible to resell your hotel reservation if I understand it right. And who even mentioned pre buying theatre tickets anyway??
Leslie I'm not sure what your point is. I've just reread my post and I still don't see a single reason for you to have called my comments "negative". It was merely a suggestion of where banana could look if she wanted a better price.

Patrick, "too picky" is not a positive comment. banana89 said that s/he wanted to go to the theatre, and was looking for a convenient hotel and restaurant, therefore, one has to surmise that banana89 will either buy theatre tickets days in advance of the performance or the day of the performance. Sure, one can try to resell tickets, but sometimes you can't, so if the tickets are purchased in advance and aren't resold, then the person who bought them is out of pocket the cost of the tickets.

Patrick, also it is not just Priceline where one can lose money if a person needs to cancel a reservation. Some of the hotels are actually charging for cancellations, as are many of the internet booking agents. Granted, you might not lose all of the money for a multi-night stay, but you might be penalized for one night, even if you do cancel out prior to 6pm for the day of arrival or 24 hours or more before arrival.

Patrick, you've also made another assumption. No where in banana89's posts does it infer what his/her gender is. You've made an assumption that banana89 is female.

We stayed at The Muse over Christmas/New Years and thought it was wonderful. Good service, clean and very convenient. I highly recommend it. I think we paid $189 a night (and that was holiday time) through quikbook.com The hotel is located on 46th between 6th and 7th Ave.

There are fabulous hotels on 44th between 5th & 6th, a block and a half from Times Square and the theaters, but seems a world away (it's a quiet street). Here you'll find the Algonquin, Sofitel, Royalton, Mansfield, Iroquois. All have wonderful restaurants and bars within, too.

Many hotels offer reduced rates at their websites if you're booking way ahead and agree to a less liberal cancellation policy (3 days as opposed to by 6PM day of arrival, for example).

"Too picky" would also apply to convenience of location. An few extra short and long blocks is quite the distance when it's hot, freezing, pouring down rain, and there are no taxis in sight. Especially when you need to be someplace on time.

I've had excellent luck with both Priceline and Hotwire. I've gotten better rates with Priceline, but have been more pleased with the Hotwire hotels. For the ridiculously low rates, and what it would have cost to stay at my top choice at the best rates I could find (or even the Priceline/Hotwire results), I've never had cause to quibble. Even if the hotel turns out to require much more walking. The savings more than covers parking, taxis, and then some.

I can't remember the last time I paid more than $150 for a 4* hotel room in NYC, but you do have to shop like the dickens. Even if you have a particular hotel in mind, rates vary enormously through the various web resources. Phoning the hotel directly AND the 800 reservations number for a chain can produce significantly different results, as well. And, more and more chains have "internet only" rates.

And, I've seen the rates fluctuate enormously every day within a week or two prior to departure.

I book with Hotwire or Priceline whenever I'm sure I'm going. Considering the savings over the years, I'd still be way ahead if I ever had to cancel my plans.

As recommended on BFT, you can always book something you can cancel, then bid on Priceline or book with Hotwire closer to your dates. Or check Hoteldiscount.com or Expedia. Though, you have to be very careful with Expedia. Sometimes the rates are astonishingly low, sometimes ridiculously high.

Best bet is to select a hotel (or Priceline or Hotwire area) based upon your destinations during your visit.

I usually line up show tickets first, then the hotel. Then, there are various websites for selecting restaurants nearby. Zagats has them categorized by area. At www.newyork.citysearch.com you can search for your hotel, then click on Restaurants, Bars, whatever, under "What's Nearby". Or you can search for a theater, and then nearby hotels. Digital City has this feature as well.

www.portlandsquarehotel.com

definitely a budget choice, almost European in it's basic-budget simplicity, but in a great location by Times Square.

OK Leslie, now I'll make the comparison. If I book a hotel for five nights directly and have to cancel, at most they will charge me one night -- let's say, for the sake of argument, $175. If I had booked at Priceline and had to pay in full for five nights at a fantastic rate of $95.00, I'd lose $475.00. I do not know of a single hotel that will charge you in full your entire stay if you need to cancel ahead -- lets's even say a month ahead, or if you prefer a day ahead. So now, what exactly is your point? Yes, "too picky" is the appropriate phrase. Not just picky, but "too picky" since Priceline will give you a hotel in your "star range" but not a specific hotel. That's what I call being "too picky". I was not negative about Priceline originally, but the more you bring up these points, the more likely I am to become so.

I'm all for Priceline. In fact I admire people for whom it can work, But to ignore the fact that for those who may have to change their plans, or who have certain hotels they DO NOT want to stay at ("too picky") then it is not the answer. But if you are looking for a good hotel at a great price and willing and able to take the risks it is a wonderful idea. I'm sorry if the truth somehow hurts you, but please explain what I have said which is not the truth.

stayed at the Sheraton Manhattan (in one room, w/a husband and 10 yr old an 12 yr old; a king and two roll aways) in Dec. and liked it. Huge indoor pool, bigger than any I'd seen in NY and it was warm, lifguarded, and not crowded, and had lap lanes. The club level (which I think you can ask for when you book your room) had a wonderful breakfast every morning; fresh berries and other fruits, cereals, starbucks coffee, breads). Only glitch was the elevators, which are well documented on the web as being slow. We just gave ourselves extra time to get them. Every service need we had was addressed promptly. Would stay there again. Room was quiet in spite of being busy season. It is next door to Winter Garden if that helps on your location hunting.