New York Hotels (Again)
 

I am traveling to New York in April with my 7 year old son, got a nice rate at the Hotel Wolcott, can not find any revues on it. And how far from Time Square. My first trip to New York City and would like to make it as stess free as possible.<BR><BR>Thanks

It's about 1/2 mile from Times Square - perhaps a 10-15 minute walk or very inexpensive cab ride ($5 w/tip). It's quiite close to the Empire State Building. The hotel is in an area that has many business and is busy during the day but quiet at night. There are some other moderately prcied but decent hotels in that area including the Grand Union and the Herald Square. The impression I have of all three places is that they are clean, safe and acceptable for the budget minded traveler. It will tend to be a relatively small room as is typical in NYC. Be sure they know that you need two beds as many hotels in NYC have mostly rooms with one bed. It's a fairly convenient location although you won't find much for evening dining in the immediate area of the hotel. It seems to get mostly good reviews from folks who've stayed there - see reviews from citysearch.com at<BR><BR>http://newyork.citysearch.com/user_review?fid=9&id=7081772<BR><BR>

Rose, we just were in NY this past weekend & stayed at the Washington Square in Greenwich Village. The rooms were clean, but measured only 10'x10', so Owen is quite right about small rooms. Also, the subway system is an easy & inexpensive travel option. An all-day pass is $4.

We just stayed five days at the Belvedere Hotel on 48th. street near everything and yet quiet. The hotel had a number of women traveling in groups, families, and some Europeans. We found the location safe, near dozens of restaurants, near four subway lines, and rooms had two double beds and a kitchenette which is great with a child. We booked through Quikbook and thought the rate was very good for NYC.<BR>You can also see the deals they are running as part of the Empire Chain by using the net at www.newyorkhotel.com. We have stayed in many hotels in the city and would defintely go back to this one.

Hi, Rose!<BR><BR>Now I realise that nothing polarises people's opinions more than their experiences in a given hotel, so you may not want to take any notice of this... but last October there were several comments on the Wolcott hotel on Frommer's Budget Travel board (www.frommers.com/cgi-bin/WebX) and they were uniformly bad... really bad. The general consensus seemed to be that this was one place to avoid at all costs. I am only telling you this because of your seven-year-old son... I brought two young kids with me to New York, so I was most anxious to avoid a really traumatic hotel experience! I checked Frommers board (click USA, then click "New York") a few minutes ago, and there is still one comment about the Wolcott on the board... click on the heading "Beware Hotel Wolcott" and you will see what it says... it starts "everything seemed fine until we turned the sheets down..."<BR><BR>Now, just so I am not accused of being totally negative, I will give you a bargain-basement alternative where your son will be welcome and where you won't (I hope) have anything but a happy experience. The Hotel Madison on Madison Ave and 27th. Close to the subway. Close to Macy's. Clean and honest, but not swank, with a breakfast thrown in. They charged us $88 for four people.. I think the double rooms are about $75. The Madison has a website, and you can check to see if these special rates ("Stand Up For America")are still available. You have to phone the hotel to book... they don't use internet booking agencies. It's by no means the hotel of your dreams, but there's nothing dire to worry you, and with the cost savings on accommodation<BR>you can treat your son to something from F.A.O. Schwartz. Good luck... and I bet you love New York, one of the five great cities of the world and the best place (in an Aussie family's opinion) in the whole of the United States!

For $75-90 why stay at some economy dump when you can stay at the Hilton, Marriott or Grand Hyatt for the same price by using Priceline? Check out www.biddingfortravel.com before using priceline though.

Have to share this great rate and hope you get same! GRAND HYATT HOTEL @ <BR>$85.00/night!!!! Family of 3 (2 adults, 12-yr old daughter) tried Priceline.com for first time today and asked for 4 star hotel in Midtown East at $85.00 thinking this probably next to impossible, but took advice from other traveller on msg board to try low, then go up in $10-15 increments to see what you can get - BINGO, first time and got the $85.00 here. You might try this too?<BR><BR>Olympia, WA

Hi,<BR><BR>Just wanted to thank everyone for all there help. I took Laura's advice and booked through pricline. Happy to say I got the Hyatt Grand Regency.

Laura's advice? If I am reading correctly it was me who first suggested using Priceline!!!

Oh yes Gerald, it is SO important that you get credit for suggesting Priceline!<BR><BR>Rose, what do you and your son plan to do in NYC? Do you need any restaurant, theater or activity suggestions? Glad things worked at with the Hyatt, it's a very convenient location.

Hi Adam,<BR><BR>I was planning on taking him to as many of the popular spots that first time visitor go too. I don't think he is ready to sit through a play yet. But any suggestions on were to take him to eat would be helpful. He likes his pancakes.<BR><BR>Thanks Again<BR><BR>

Hi Rose, It's great that you are taking you son to NYC - you'll have a fantastic time! I'm bringing your post back to the top for suggestions on the pancakes! I'm sure someone can suggest a few restaurants - maybe some of our "regulars" (Owen, rfq, Howard, Ellen/bugswife - or anyone else!) know of a nice place? . . . .

He may not have the patience for a "regular" play but there seems to be a consensus that Blue Man Group holds great appeal for folks of all ages and keeps their attention (even 7 year old boys with short attention spans!). I would suggest the Staten Island ferry - a nice ride with a good view fo the skyline and the Statue of Liberty (plus it's free!). A half day bus tour of the type where you can get on and off would be fun and when he gets restless you just get off to wander around. get the one that has double decker bus with open top - should be fun for both of you. NYC has loads of neighborhood coffee shops that will have pancakes - I'll report back with a few suggestions when I dig up the names. Although not noted for fine cuisine, there are two restaurants you may consider taking him to for lunch or dinner. Both are known to have great appeal to the younger set- Mars 2112 is (I think) on Broadway at the upper end of Times Square area and has a space theme. Jekkyl and Hyde has some sort of monsters/explorer theme and has two locations - the one I'm familiar with is in the Village near West 4th Street and 7th Ave South. Depending on which film is playing... there's a 3D Imax theatre (several Imax films - only one is in 3D). It can be great fun and is on Broadway in Sony Theatre complex. The Pink Tea Cup in the Village (Grove Street) is a soul food restaurant well known for its weekend breakfasts. It's crowded and fun but i suspect big portions are the order of the day and it might be overkill for someone his age. A better breakfast idea might be the brunch at Cafe St. Bart's. It's an outdoor cafe operated by a Catholic church on Park Avenue near corner of 49th or 50th (a few short blocks north of the Helmsley building - easy walk from the Hyatt). The prcies are quite resaonable by NYC standards and when i was there there were a number of familes with children. Good food and you can order just a few small items for him if you like, rather than buying a whole breakfast. I really like it there because it's a relaxed and down to earth atmosphere - good people watching and a friendly young staff. Definitely take him to

Make sure you include the American Museum of Natural History in your visit. The Smithsonian Baseball exhibit is there now. The new planetarium show is good. The musuem has terrific exhibits and children can always find something they like. When you get bored, go across to Central Park and find a playground. It is perfectly safe!!! The musuem's website is www.amnh.org.

I hate to disappoint all of you people excited about the Hyatt. I am a regular traveler to NY and Hyatt Gold Passport and I can say without a doubt that the Grand Hyatt (42/Lex) is the worst Hyatt I've stayed in ever. It's more like a two to three star hotel. The rooms are dated and smell old. The service is terrible. The only nice part of the Hotel is the lobby and that's got a 1980's feel to it.

You all DO know that the "Grand" is because the Hyatt is next to Grand Central Station, right?

I just stayed three nights at the Sheraton Manhattan. I had two adjoining rooms and felt the services and amenities were wonderful. It was a great location to get to Rockefeller Center, theatres, etc.<BR><BR>Theresa

For those of you reading this site for the first time. I have found that people tend to criticize much more than needed. We just were in NYC and stayed at the Hotel Pennsylvania which had gotten some bad reviews....we were 2 couples......our room was large with king sized bed......clean and convenient to everywhere..especially Penn station so i dont think you can trust the critics on everything alto they were great help in other ways. There are lots of good places to eat that are reasonable....enjoy

ttt

As hokey as it sounds, be sure to take your son to the Empire State Building - my grandma took me there when i was seven and i took my daughter when she was seven - and took her back last year (when she was 18) -it's still a thrill. <BR><BR>And save your time and energy (and moeny) and don't go out to the Statue of Liberty - but take the Staten Island Ferry over to Staten Island - it goes right by the statue and you can get some great views - for FREE - just turn around and take the return boat back - they leave about every half hour. And I agree about the Natural History Museum - it's wonderful. <BR><BR>Have fun - NYC is a great place to discover with your little one.

Why is someone topping a 9 month old post and still offering Rose advice for a trip she and her son took in April of 2002?