Hi mclaurie,
you're a great help -- thanks. I checked the Salisbury and it's more expensive than other prettier hotels. The Millenium UN Plaza looks nice but I know the area and it's farther east than I was hoping for (I didn't want to go much farther east than Park). While price was a consideration, that wasn't why I narrowed the HK Group down to the Giraffe. It just had the most positive things said about it on the whole.

A rooftop pool is not a big draw since we're going in December but we like to walk a lot so being central helps since the weather may be uncertain.

I'll look at that website. Unfortunately, I have Visa so Priceline is a no go. Still, I'm finding some reasonable prices as I do a search. I'm keeping the Hilton NY and Grand Hyatt NY as a fallbacks. I can get pretty good rates there($270 -$280 Cdn. including taxes) and I don't really mind a big hotel in a tourist area. I just thought I'd check out something more 'boutique-y' this time.

Hi everyone,
Thanks for all your help with hotels and other general suggestions on this board. I ended up booking at the Grand Hyatt because I got a great rate there for an oversized room with a view. I called the hotel directly with the website in front of me and did better than I would have on expedia.ca or hotels.ca. Boutique hotels will have to wait till next time.
I'm not quite eligible for it but for anyone who is, they have great seniors' rates (not AARP -- you have to be 62 or over).
Thanks again!