NYC - accomm prices in summer and theatre
 

Hi, we're starting to contemplate a trip to New York for next year, maybe add Washington DC, with a stopover in LA to break the journey.

Two questions at this early stage, out of the warmer months of the year, when are hotel prices in NYC highest/lowest? I know accommodation is going to be pricey and we want to be there when it's warm or mild. We live in a hot climate in Australia and would be miserable if it was cold, even worse if it's rainy.

We are keen on theatre, architecture, museums, food, shopping, etc. So second question, do theatres in NYC generally shut down for any period? Like a break for summer or similar?

Thanks
Kay

Lowest are in August, same as most big cities in the US or Europe, barring beach resort areas. But big business cities, it's always August seems to me, because business travel is down so more hotel vacancies.

Mot expensive would be June.

no, theatre doesn't shut down but in general august is also a slow performing arts month in the US and Europe. There will be some theater shows, though, depends what you are looking for. You can find that out by looking at some booking sites and when productions end. A lot of new ones start in the Fall, of course, but the big years-long runnign blockbusters will be no problem, depends what you want. I'm sure Wicked, etc. will be on.

June July August & September are pretty much the same regarding hotel rates, or not enough difference to plan around.

Stopover in Los Angeles will be less pricey in early June.

Airfares are much higher in August & September, and slightly higher late June through mid July.

So , budget-wise.....look at first half of June or.... after July 10th but with return before August.

Thanks for the info. I'll check out weather in May and September too. I just started looking at hotel costs in New York - prices are pretty jaw-dropping. Hopefully I can find something more reasonable than what I've seen so far. Staying outside Manhattan is a possibility, I've read a bit about visitors staying in Brooklyn for example but staying really centrally is usually important to us so that might not work. Someone mentioned Long Island City on another thread but time and cost of transportation to reach museums, theatre etc is something I need to check. Lots of research to do...

Kay

The best way to get an idea of what costs will be is to choose a hotel and check the same hotel on different dates. December is always expensive due to people coming to see Christmas lights. May through September is next, with a dip in August. October is also usually very high.

I decided to see if I was right so checked Hotel Belleclaire, a hotel on the upper west side that I've stayed in several times. This is what I found:

January $96
May $330
June $217
July $200
August $166
Sept $252
Nov $165

These are mid week, mid month prices. Obviously more on weekends.

I've found NY at the end of Aug/beg September to be very pleasant weatherwise. Have you considered booking a package instead of piecing this trip together yourself? I've used BA Holidays couple of times, it's not like booking a cheap charter to Spain on the Costas where you are herded into a tour bus, it is the same flight and same hotel I would have booked anyway, no transfers, but less expensive. Alot of tour operators such as BA Hols are flexible with the number of nights in a city with hotel or without. Qantas have a vacation section, so do Emirates, Virgin Atlantic or Expedia etc there are many travel agents in Australia (Flight Centre, Trailfinders etc).

LIC is an ok area to stay in for access to Manhattan. The hotels are not by the waterfront which is the most attractive area in LIC with great views towards Manhattan. If you stay somewhere close to Court Square or Queens Plaza, it is very quick to get to Grand Central for instance. The sights and museums are spread out all over Manhattan so no one area is convenient to it all. There is also the NY Ferry which connects LIC to Wall Street & East 34th Street and other locations. LIC is where I stay each time I go to NY which is 1/2 times a year.

I think you should try to avoid NYC and especially D.C. in July and August despite lower hotel prices then. We were in DC in late July this year to help our son and DIL move and it was far too hot for comfortable sightseeing. We had the same experience in NYC two years ago.

I agree with the last post that no matter where you stay you have to expect some amount of travel to reach the different things you will want to do. We still prefer to stay in Manhattan mostly because I like to walk around the neighborhoods where we stay (usually upper west side) in the evenings and early mornings.

In comparing hotel prices it is important to take into account that many hotels have started adding "resort fees" that are mandatory fees added to the posted price for a room. there was a thread about this recently.

Thanks everyone, this is all useful. We are used to humidity but hear what you're saying. Heat and humidity aren't great for lots of walking and exploring, which is what we like to do.

Odin, thanks for the thought but I've been booking all our travel for years. I've worked in the travel industry and there is no way a travel agent is going to spend as much time as I would on research and finding what suits us. I'm much happier doing it myself. I'll look into Long Island City a bit more. I must admit I didn't know where it was until the other day.

Vttraveller - I have heard of resort fees but managed to avoid them so far. Do they have them in New York? The only place I've come across them is Hawaii. I find the concept irritating, if they aren't optional then why not just put the room price up?

Kay

Exactly, even Qantas has a vacation division, so does Emirates. If they are not offering what you want you could easily research air + hotel pricing through Expedia or other online TAs to compare booking it separately vs booking it as a package. It can make a big difference to the price using a package. I mostly use BA Hols, again as janisj mentions, diff destination but same concept, 1 week in T&C using BA Hols is almost 50% less expensive than booking the same things separately. It might not always be such a big price difference but I would have thought it worth investigating esp for NY hotels. And most websites are flexible or trips are customisable so you are not obliged to book a hotel in DC or LAX if you find something better yourself.

@Kay: Sadly, resort fees are very common in NYC, so do be on the lookout for them. While I think their days are numbered (at least here), they are also increasingly prevalent, but not every hotel has them. You've written several times about being concerned about transport. If you are willing to take the subway, most of the hotels in Long Island City are between one and three subway stops from Midtown Manhattan, close enough that you can take a taxi or Uber back affordably if you need to. I consider it a very convenient neighborhood and the best value in all of NYC for hotels, with many hotels that are under $200 per night (which is cheap for NYC). Prices are not at their absolute lowest in the summer, but they are much cheaper than the fall (after the first weekend in September, prices rise dramatically). I'd urge you NOT to stay outside the city itself since that usually necessitates separate transportation (not only time but money) unless you can stay near a PATH station in NJ, which would require just one more payment of $2.75 each way. There are also an increasing number of hotels in Brooklyn, and anything in Downtown Brooklyn is especially convenient to lower Manhattan (really anything below 14th Street), but it's less convenient to anything above 14th Street.

You've written several

If you search the NYC section of this forum, there were other discussions about hotel options recently.Just FYI -- Be aware that short term apartment rentals (like AirBnB) are illegal in NY.

<< I have heard of resort fees but managed to avoid them so far. Do they have them in New York? The only place I've come across them is Hawaii. I find the concept irritating, if they aren't optional then why not just put the room price up?>>
Yes they are becoming quite common in NYC and I have also encountered them in DC. I think that hotels lower their advertised prices then add in these fees so that people who are trying to compare hotels based on price will think the rates are better than they really are. You often won't see the fees mentioned up front when you are starting to book a room.

Check the rates (and reviews) for Hotel Mimosa in Chinatown.

Thanks for all this info. We've been to NY once before and used the subway a fair bit but that was a while ago. We're more than happy to use public transport or walk if possible. Last trip we stayed at the Beacon Hotel (upper west side I think) which was in a good location but might be out of our price range now. We're no longer working so costs are important.

Thanks for the tip about AirBnB in NY, I had read that before on Fodors but (really) good to know. We had a kitchenette at the Beacon which was useful, we used the great little supermarket across the road a few times and could heat up a quick dinner.

I've added Hotel Mimosa to my list to check out, thanks.

To DougStallings - when you say not to stay outside the city, what does that mean? I Google mapped NYC and it shows all of Manhattan, Staten Island, Brooklyn, Queens, the Bronx etc. Forgive my ignorance, but is all of that the 'city'? And if we stay within that area, will subways and buses work for us? Also what area is downtown Brooklyn - between which streets?

Thanks again,
Kay

I might be wrong but I don't think it is illegal to stay in an AirBNB if you are just renting a bedroom within an apartment where someone else lives and occupies the apartment. I thought it was only illegal if the whole apartment was offered for rental. It would be interesting to know.
The City means the 5 boroughs AFAIK but even staying somewhere in Queens or the Bronx can be quite far out which is why LIC is mentioned as a convenient place to stay, with 2 or 3 subway stops to Grand Central and a ferry service from LIC to various places in Manhattan. It is easy to underestimate the distances and travel times when looking at a map.

Kay-- we have stayed at the Beacon quite often because my BIL and SIL like to stay there and we try to meet them when they are visiting NYC from California. I find that the rates are pretty reasonable if you book far ahead. As you say, having the kitchenette and the Fairway supermarket across the street is very convenient and can save quite a lot of money.

When I say "don't stay outside the city" I mean specifically New Jersey (most especially the areas that are not served by the PATH train), where there are a lot of well-priced hotels. It will typically cost you a little more than double the cost of the subway for each trip to a nearby NJ destination like Seacaucus, up to $10 per ride for a ferry, and those costs are each way and definitely add up if you are two people, possibly negating any savings on the accommodations. Manhattan, parts of Queens within a subway stop or two of Manhattan (Long Island City especially), and Downtown Brooklyn are the most convenient places to stay and have the most hotels. But there are hotels further out (say 8 to 10 stops on the 7 train along Queens Boulevard or Roosevelt Avenue). These hotels can be much cheaper but add at least 20 or 30 minutes to your commute. Staten Island does have hotels, but they are inconvenient if your plans are to visit tourist destinations since Staten Island itself is a 20-minute ferry ride from Manhattan.