I may have to get a hotel in mid-town south area because of the lower prices; anyone familar with this area, please tell me if it is relatively safe for walking in early ev

ening, as I will be traveling solo.

It's a perfectly fine area, near EMprie State Building, Macy's, etc.

Curious to know where you got the term mid town south & what you mean by it. The area that MFNYC assumes you're talking about (west 30's) is safe but not terribly attractive nor are there many restaurant options close by. There are also some not very nice hotels (the Pennsylvania is one to avoid). The east 30's and east 20's have some decent hotels. But if you're traveling alone, why not try bidding on Priceline? You could get a much nicer place for perhaps the same or less $$$. Someone this morning reported getting the 4* Grand Hyatt for $110/night. Or, people have gotten the Courtyard by Marriott Midtown east for $65-75/night. If you go to biddingfortravel.com you can see what people are paying, there's an explanation of how it all works & they will also help you bid.

to mclaurie
thanks for reply. I got
midtown south from Priceline, and have been trying for weeks to get something for 110-120 dollars.Have gotten info from BFT. Have tried MTE 4 and three star

Two of my favorite hotels in NYC are in Midtown South. Both The Park South Hotel and The Shelburne Murray Hill are in Midtown South. I also love the Murray Hill area. If I'm not mistaken, the Shelburne Murray Hill comes up on priceline.

For Priceline help, you can also check out betterbidding.com for help, and of course keep looking at biddingfortravel.com also. What are your travel dates? Is there a big event in the city on your dates that might be driving up prices and limiting availability?

If you "have to get" a hotel, and you haven't mentioned your dates, the best bet is shop diligently and book a cancellable reservation forthwith. Recommend Quikbook.

Then, keep checking Hotwire, and see www.biddingfortravel.com for all you need to know about bidding with Priceline.

There is virtually no area of Manhattan not relatively safe for walking in early evening.

Sorry cwill, I didn't remember PL using that term. Have just checked the hotels in that area listed on bft & the ones I know are on the east side which IMO is a good thing. Why wouldn't you consider Upper midtown-CPS? The 4* in that area are great.

People have reported difficulty finding rooms around May 1 b/c of a race. Is that the time you're looking for? You might want to go to a few of the websites of the hotels in the area you're bidding & check room availability. If your stay is more than a few days, you might consider breaking it up with 2 separate bids. Sometimes a place is available for 3 days but not 4 etc. Also, you might consider trying 2.5 stars in MTE at $65-75. People love the Marriott Courtyard MTE which used to be the only hotel thus rated. The risk is the Metropolitan is now also included in that section & is not great.

Good luck.

mclaurie
you are right! my travel dates may be the problem, they are 5/15 to 5/20 with a sat. nite check in.Had I known or have been more familar with priceline I would not pick Sat. nite check : I am a first time user. It has been suggested to others on BFT. to book a Sat. on my own. thanks