nyer

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.

michelleNYC

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?

puffinx

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.

puffinx

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.

nytraveler

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.

Christina

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.

K_brklyn

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).