Recently read a magazine note about the Ravel Hotel - 'luxury boutique' - across the Queensboro Bridge in Long Island City. Does anyone have any experience/information about this hotel? Neighborhood it's in? Cab fare to midtown Manhattan? Other?

Thanks!

Just Saturday night I stayed at a newish Holiday Inn located about 6 or 7 blocks from there. The neighborhood around the HI is fairly run down/industrial in character. Nothing to do in the immediate vicinity, it's just a place to stay. As long as it is not a long walk from the hotel to the subway station you should find accessibility to be fine.

You won't find a lot of cabs cruising in tha area - but should plan on taking the subway in and out of the city. This is a better choice than Jersey - but nothing ike Manhattan. Don;t know this specific place but many of the hotlels in LIC are in mixed areas (auto bodyshops, warehouses et al) - not very pleasant - but reasonably close if you have a super low budget.

If you tell us your date and budget peopke may be able to make suggestions in Manhattan.

The location is exactly two subway stops from Manhattan on the closest subway (1 stop from Queen's Plaza, which is a few more blocks away), so I'd guess about $20 cab fare to Midtown. I don't know anything about this hotel, but it claims to offer a free shuttle service to subway stops, etc. You do need to be aware that it's a pretty easy thing to take a taxi TO this hotel, and you not be able find a taxi to take you to Manhattan (though there are some taxi garages in the immediate vicinity, so you might find a cab heading onto a shift).

I often recommend hotels in this neighborhood to those who can't afford to stay in Manhattan because the subway makes it so convenient. As nytraveler points out, it's extraordinarily more convenient than New Jersey. But the immediate neighborhood is indeed dismal, but there are some all-night fast-food options nearby, though no real restaurants or services otherwise that I know of.

The hotel looks like it is also one stop away on the 7 train from the nicer area of LIC which includes restaurants like Tournesol, Belle Via, and the LIC waterfront with nice views of Manhattan.

It would be wise to check the tripadvisor reviews as well:
http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserR...ECK_RATES_CONT

Long Island City in Queens has become a popular place for budget hotels, just over the 59th st. bridge. The trick is some are near a subway stop (like the Country Inn & Suites) and some are not like the Ravel. Go to maps.google.com plot the hotel and then use the "search nearby" option for subway station. http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotels-g4...rk-Hotels.html

We recently stayed at Verve in Long Island City. At just over $100 a night, the rooms are as nice as many Marriott rooms. The lobby is minuscule, and the continental breakfast was decent. Two computers provide Internet access for anyone needing it. We were staying there to visit a son who lives in Astoria, but we always felt safe while walking to the subway, and the trip into Manhattan was rapid. The downside - not a lot of nearby food, but otherwise, this place was a real deal!