New York apartments
 

Hello!

I was planning to travel to Los Angeles from Sweden, but then i changed my mind to go to New York instead..

So I would like to find good apartments to rent for 2 weeks (Bec, any good hotel is so expensive), where I can easily go to shopping malls and city center..

Please advice me where can i search/reserve it on the internet.

Thanks in advance

First, I assume you are referring to Manhattan (New York is a state, and New York City is its largest city, but even New York City is made up of 5 distinct boroughs -- Manhattan, Bronx, Brookly, Queens and Staten Island)). If so, you should know that there are no shopping malls in Manhattan. It would be helpful to have some more information.

Hmm,

Well, I think it should be Manhattan, but it doesn't have to be shopping malls, i just mean these big shops like Macy's, Nordstrom, JC Penny, etc...

Thanks

There are also hundreds of unique shops.

There really is no city center. Using the subway, walking, buses, and cabs, most of Manhattan you will want to see is highly acccessible from just about any area.

Tourist epicenter is Times Square, but that is just representative of Times Square and not that rest of Manhattab.

Perhaps you could let us know why you are interested in visiting NYC (aside from Macy's, I don't believe there is a JC Penny and definitely no Nordstrom).

But of course there are other department stores in addition to Macy's -- the flagship Saks Fifth Avenue and Bloomingdale's stores, Bergdorf Goodman, Lord & Taylor.

And there is a brand new Penneys, down at Union Square I believe.

Smagdy, How much do you want to spend on your hotel each night? That way, we can give you good ideas.

And what kind of shopping are you looking for -- JC Penney is quite a bit less "upscale" than Macy's, which is quite a bit less "upscale" than Saks, etc.

Is shopping the primary focus of your trip?

I wonder why everyone is so focused on the shopping part of smagdy's post--I assume that it's just a way of saying being close to many things. But, for your information, there is no Nordstom in NYC but there is a JC Penney a block away from Macy's (in the old "Manhattan Mall"--see we did have a mall, but noone really called it that anyway ;) )

smagdy,
The BIG problem which comes up all the time here is that most apartment rentals in NYC are illegal.
Yes, there are some legal rentals, and some people (including some people here) have had luck with the illegal ones, but usually for longer time periods (one month or more) and with people that they have worked with before.
What is your real budget for lodging and when are you coming? Prices vary a lot depending on the time of the year.
NYC has hostels for $40 a night--and hotels for $1000 a night, with many choices in between. Let us know what you need

Well, thanks for all the replies...

I was planning to visit Los Angeles wit my wife to have fun, visit disney, universal, etc.. plus do shopping (as its very cheap compared to Sweden) but since my wife is pregnant in 3rd month and won't be able to go much around then we decide to just visit New York.

Anyways, hostels are nothing for us, we need a good place, clean and comfortable..
We want to stay 2 weeks and planning to pay up to $1500 for accommodation, maybe more if it was really worth it.

Want to come 25/Sep -09

Thanks again!

So about $110/night inc tax? Probably not feasible.

Ok let say $150/night but cant i find legal appartment for $1500 for 2 weeks? But must be very clean and modern...

smagdy- with your budget, I would be tempted to go to LA. Hotels and shopping are much cheaper there. 0r how about the Mall of America in Minneapolis. They have shopping, hotels and amusement park activities all together!

if you want $1500 for two weeks in NYC, you might need to try Priceline, especially if you want a clean, modern and comfortable place to stay.

Unless your wife is having severe morning sickness, being three months pregnant should not affect your wife, other than she may want to go to bed at 6:30 each night!

Try this link for NYC

http://www.vrbo.com/vacation-rentals...city/manhattan

Come to Palm Beach Florida. Everything you want is here; exclusive shopping (Nordstrom, Saks, Macy's, ++) at 1/2 the price of NYC plus wonderful beaches and no 'sunshine tax'. You can rent a modern -clean- condo as well. It certainly can be a relaxing vacation. But, you may want to rent a car.

Ignore puffinx's suggestion for the apartments.

I agree for big stores, it might make more sense just to go shopping in LA. Now NY does have some good discount places, but you have to know your shopping and stores to go there. So if you are just going to the big chain names, maybe do it in LA (where there are some big malls, Santa Monica, Beverly Blvd, etc). Or Florida isn't a bad idea, actually.

I heard them talking about that new JC PEnneys in Manhattan on NPR, it's supposed to be a very chic JC Penneys and I actually don't think Macys is any great shakes (I hate the store, frankly). I'd actually rather shop at Penneys than Macys, but Bloomingdales, Saks and Nordstrom are better for more upscale.

VRBO is too risky? I have done Chelsea with them a couple of years ago with no problems ($200/night). But again, if it is risky, yes, ignore it!

$1500 for a hotel for two weeks.. hmm... don't think you can make that happen here in NY. Please keep in mind that room taxes are *very* high - for example: your taxes on a $200 per night room are approximately $40 per day. Warning not to go the apartment route - short-term rentals are, for the most part, illegal in Manhattan.

I don't like Macy's either, but I actively dislike JCP!

You turned off the idea of visiting NYC :)

So maybe I should think about Florida, though i choosed New York for 2 important reasons.

1- Less travel distance (About 10 hrs)
2- Not needing to rent a car.

But if Florida would have good relaxation plus all the shopping, cheap hotels.. then it could be great!

I searched in hotels.com and they had very nice hotels with good prices but they are all about 40km away from City Center.

So where can we find good hotels where we can find everything close to us.

Also do we need to rent a car? No trains/buses there ?

Thanks

If you are really interested in shopping as a main activity, here's an idea:
Would you consider staying outside New York City for a few days and renting a car?
I would NOT suggest staying in New Jersey and using it as a base to get into NYC everyday--it will take a long time, be uncomfortable for your wife, and will not save much money. BUT if you want to shop, you can stay 20-30 miles outside the city and "shop till you drop" at malls, outlets etc and stay at much cheaper hotels. Then if you want to be in NYC for other sites (museums, shows, etc)for the other week or so, you can spend a little more per night and still keep to your budget.

I am only suggesting this based on what you've written so far. Again, I do not think this makes sense if you really want to spend most of your time in the city.

Honestly, do you really want to come all this way for two whole weeks just to shop? You can find hotels in the "city centers" such as Miami, South Beach, etc. What part of Florida were you looking at?

September- early December is off season in South Florida; prices are excellent. I’d go for October or November and spend 3 days in South Beach, Miami. (you can take a taxi from the airport). There you will not need a car. South Beach is a chic – but crazy – place. Plenty of shopping but the fashion can be -well- quite extreme. You can rent a nice room or even a condo. Do not hesitate to ask for a discount. You could stay longer and visit Fairchild Gardens and other attractions in Miami.

In Miami, I would rent a car and drive to Palm Beach (about 60 miles). It is a different world with exclusive shopping, exclusive everything, lovely area.

If you want to head north another 20-30 miles check the Jupiter Beach Resort, which is very popular with Europeans. It is right on the beach (nothing else is in Jupiter) and the beach is very lovely and not crowded. But no kitchens. There is a garden style condo complex about ½ mile away but it is on the park , i.e. about 5 minute walk to the beach. I can’t think of the name at the moment and have not seen those units but if you are interested, I will be in the area this week-end and could check it out. I expect they will be quite clean but not super modern or anywhere close Scandinavian style in furnishing.

About 20 minutes west from Jupiter is another shopping mall with very exclusive stores plus tons of discount outlets in the area.

http://www.thegardensmall.com/index....lash&x=4053222


I am sure there are buses but I think you ought to rent a car, if you can drive. You will see more and the driving is easy, hardly any traffic (well Miami may be a little crowded but not on Sundays)

Or, you could take a taxi/limo service from Miami to Palm Beach or Jupiter ($100-$120).
I use Able airport Service and they have been quite reliable.
http://www.ablelimo-online.com/

Once you are in Palm Beach or Jupiter rent a car and drive south and drop it off Miami airport.

There are many ways to negotiate this trip. It all depends, how much you want to see.

The beaches are the best in the morning—shopping is great in the afternoons. At 5:00 pm stores are usually empty. Well, here is the link to the resort, ugly building, but actually not as ugly in person.

http://www.jupiterbeachresort.com/rooms.cfm

You may want to post under FLorida.. others will give you their views, no doubt.

smagdy,

if traveling time – and renting a car- is an issue, you may want to try Washington, D.C. It is one of the most beautiful cities in the good old US of A, I think. Shopping: yes - everywhere. Museums (free). If you stay in the city or even in the suburbs (Virginia or Maryland) on the metro line you will not need a car.

There is no Nordstrom in Manhattan but they have recently opened a Penny - in a small (vertical rather than horizontal) mall. Macy's is huge as are Lord & Taylor, Bloomingdales and a a bunch of more upscale department stores as well as dozens of discounters and many thousand of designer, trendy, not so trendy and every kind of small shop you can think of.

The problem is that most apartment sublets are illegal (if they exist at all) and legitimate corporate apartments will cost you more than a hotel (since you get more room). Unless you plan on cooking significantly in the room I would go for a centrally located hotel rather than an apartment. Even then you might try a hotel with a kitchenette - like Radio City Apartments or one of the Affinia group. (Althouhg there's no way to get anything decent in NYC for $100 a night - except Priceline in January). Most of the year $200 per night is a good deal.

And you really need to stay in Manhattan for easy access to most of the major sights.

I didn't realize the OP wasn't going to California, I missed that. So this was instead of California as it's too far. So Florida actually sounds like a decent option as it is a lot cheaper and you could go to Disney World there if you really like that kind of thing (that was the goal for California). This sounds very doable, it wouldn't be that much farther than flying to NYC.

I don't do shopping that much so don't know about that, but I'm sure there are some big malls in New Jersey if you really wanted to go to NY. But there's got to be lots in Florida.
I live in Wash DC, and that is a good possibility, also, there are some large, very nice malls (like Tysons I and II) which are a city in themself. They have everything from basic chains to the expensive and luxury stores. It wouldn't be a beach vacation, but more cultural. They do have several Nordstroms around here, as well as Saks, Bloomingdales, you name it.

You can also try Club Quarters for long-stay hotel rooms in NYC. Also, you can visit Woodbury Commons from NYC, there is a bus that will take you there, about 45-60 mins ride. Major shopping areas in NYC (you'll see lots of interesting sights along the way): Herald Square (Macy's, JC Penny), Rockefeller Ctr area (Saks, Kid focused stores like American Girl, Build a Bear, high end stores like Bergdorfs, Henri Bendel, and other flagship stores like Kenneth Cole, Armani, Versace, etc), Bloomingdales (Lexington and 59th). Soho (lots of smaller shops). Discount shopping Century 21 (near Ground Zero).