NYC-Marriott Marquis or Intercontinental Times Square
 

My daughter and I will be in NY the weekend of October 8. We can't decide between these 2 hotels. Does anyone have any experience with them?

The InterContinental is brand-new and more upscale. It has a location that's equally convenient to that of the Marriott, but both are good hotels. (The IC does have a Shake Shack on the ground floor, but that's hardly a reason to stay there.) I'd pick the hotel that offers the best deal.

Do both these hotels have views of Times Square?

I guess it depends on what you consider Times Square, which is actually the relatively small, pedestrian-only triangle with the TKTS booth on the north and the old NY Times building on the south (about 4 blocks). The Marriott is right there, so it has a good view, but only from some rooms (and you will probably have to pay extra to get it). The Intercontinental is on 8th Avenue, so I doubt very much it will have views except perhaps for the rooms on the very top floors, but there are large buildings between it and Broadway, so I really doubt that it will.

Does this matter? Not in the slightest for me since the "view" is not something you'll stare at constantly and not actually a good thing when you realize that all that neon and light never turns off all night long. But I guess you're a tourist and want that. You probably won't get it at the IC hotel. You might look at the Renaissance Times Square, a Marriott sister property. Some rooms there will have views of the madness.

The Intercontinental Times Square is located on W 44th St between 8th and 9th Avenues. This location is a block and a half away from Times Square, so no view.

The Marriott Marquis is in the middle of Times Square. Some (but not all) rooms have excellent views of Times Square.

I was typing while Doug was posting!

We stayed at the Marriott Marquis in April and were very satisfied with it. I bid on Priceline and got it for $174.

Thanks everyone! Do you know if either hotel has had a problem with bed bugs?? These pests seem to be in the news lately.

There's a bed bug registry website you can check.