I usually check out hotel reviews prior to any trip and understand that "one man's trash is another man's treasure" is the order of the day, so usually as long as the hotel gets decent reviews for cleanliness and location, I'm okay with it.

I am looking into staying at the Holiday Inn Midtown at 57th St. in NYC for a work-related trip a group of us will be taking in December, with about 100 university students staying in the Columbus Circle Hostel at 120 West 60th Street, and the staff members accompanying them wanting to stay within a somewhat close proximity to them. We won't actually be "watching" them, but wanted to be two to three blocks away just in case. We are not staying in the hostel, because frankly, we're just too old for that kind of stuff anymore!

The Holiday Inn Midtown at 57th Street has your typical reviews - several guests found it "outdated" and in need of a cleaning, while an equal number said that it was clean, comfortable, the staff was helpful, etc. One of the reviews, though, has me wondering if someone was just trying to scam a free room or upgrade.

He writes "We were also initially happy with the comfortable beds and the fact that it had a pool for our children. Unfortunately things took a turn for the worse later that night. At about two in the morning I got up out of bed, flipped on the light switch and went to walk over to use the bathroom--to my shock and horror sitting on the floor in front of me was a large brown rat. Needless to say I stumbled backwards and nearly broke the mirror to the closet behind me trying to backpeddle as quickly as possible. I have heard of bed bugs and roaches in hotel rooms, but rats!? Wow! Anyway, the rat scurried by me and went under my bed probably trying to get away from me as quickly as I was trying to get away from it. What was unsettling was when I called the front desk for assistance the clerk stated,"Welcome to New York City. Rats are everywhere. Get used to it.'"

My thoughts? First off, who gets up in the middle of the night with three young children in the room and flips on the light switch to walk to the bathroom? Secondly, I really find it hard to believe that the clerk respond with such a flippant statement.

Have any of you stayed at this hotel?

Here's a trip report in which a group from Switzerland stayed at that hotel:

http://www.fodors.com/community/unit...rip-report.cfm

Never stayed at that hotel, but there was a mouse running around our room in NYC at an older property, so I'm not shocked that it happened. But other than that, if the majority of reviews are average to good, I wouldn't worry too much.

more reviews on FT
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/inter...-street-2.html


all the HI's throughout the US are in the process of getting renovated so I''m sure this one os one of the more outdated ones from recent reports.

As with many Tripadvisor reviews, this one doesn't exactly ring true. I can't imagine a desk clerk at anything but the Hotel Carter actually saying something like that, and the whole situation is far too contrived to be believable. But maybe it's just me. Whether trying to get a free room or not, the poster probably has an axe to grind with the hotel.

A lot of people choose the hotel because of the pool. I don't know anyone personally who has stayed there. It wouldn't be my choice. I'd probably try to stay at 6 Columbus if staying around Columbus Circle, but that may not be in your price range.

Twina49

I remember your frantic questions from your last trip to NYC with your college students, which worked out extremely well.

Trip Advisor is notorious for false reviews both complimentary and toxic. I have been the lobby and the metting rooms, but never the rooms. It was always bustling.

There are many people on these boards who offer excellent hotel advice. Go to the box above "view by state" and click on New York, hotels have been discussed ad infinitum.

I agree that TripAdvisor reviews are always to be taken with a grain of salt. But I don't find that story all that unbelievable, lol! The clerk's response is maybe too flip to be true, but it's true that rats are everywhere. One of my favorite statistics is this: as a human being, you are never more than 10 feet away from a rat. And while I'd surely be horrified in the moment, I wouldn't assume there's anything wrong with the hotel just b/c a rat got in. These things happen. Let's hope they don't happen to any of us!

Yes, and now about the people who slam Florida hotels because they saw a cockroach in one. Hey, those things are called Palmetto bugs in Florida and they happen sometimes in the best of hotels.

But, yes, I smell a rat in that review and I don't think it's the one the critic smelled.

I really find it hard to believe that the clerk respond with such a flippant statement.

Are you the manager of the hotel? That's the reaction I got when I described an employee's rude behavior to a hotel manager. He refused to accept that a "nice woman," whom others have praised and who always sucks up to him, would ever treat anybody rudely.

I have learned to approach hotel reception desks cautiously in case there is an angry clerk waiting there to take out on me what he/she can't take out on the boss.

HTTY

A co-worker of my husband's stayed there earlier this month for a week and his room was very unsatisfactory. He doesn't strike me as a terribly fussy customer either. I don't know the details, but for what it's worth, I do know their company has scratched that one off their list for NYC.

It is difficult, because anything in that price range ($300 in December) all have pros & cons. Sine we're a state system school, we're obviously always being warned about budget issues. As I mentioned, as long as the room/bedding are clean, I'm not too fussy, especially given the fact that the night before will be spent on a tour bus, as well as the night after.... ;(

Speaking of hotel prices, I swear they raise them in December....

I'm more curious about the hostel in Columbus Circle

Of course they raise prices in December. Prices in NYC go up around October 1 and stay high through the new year. It's called the high season. Here's what I'd do. Book the room in the Holiday Inn as long as you can cancel without a penalty, and then keep looking for something better. But $300 in December is a very good price, as you have acknowledged. However, there are some other options you can look into.

For example, if you pay in advance, you can get the Hampton Inn for $339 per night in December. Would that be acceptable to your school?

Doug - the $339 sounds good, so I'll have to look into that. I am also contacting various hotels about group rates, because we had a meeting yesterday and it looks as if we could reserve ten rooms or more for the staff and faculty who will going to this networking event.

SueNYC - other depts. on campus have used this hostel, and the reviews indicated that it was clean and secure, plus we are reserving the whole hostel (100 beds) for the night and getting them for $50 per bed, which I think the students (and/or their parents) will think is a very reasonable price.

First, I have never heard of the Columbus Circle hostel before your post. You need to find out if they have proper paperwork in hand to run as a hostel. If not, they could be closed down before your visit. There are dozens of illegal hostels and the city has been cracking down and closing them. http://www.timesnewsweekly.com/news/...rce=everyblock

To my knowledge, there are currently only 3 legal hostels in Manhattan; the Westside Y and the Vanderbilt Y are 2 of them with Hostelling International being the third.

As for the hotel question, there are lots of other hotels near there including the nycsalisbury.com The Holiday Inn is old and well past it's prime. Rather than debate whether the review is truthful (which you'll never know) why not check out what your options are? The Park Savoy is another budget hotel in that area. You might also look at the timeshare the Manhattan Club. Map the hostel on maps.google.com and use the search nearby function for hotels.

There are actually dozens of perfectly legal private hostels in NYC. They just aren't part of Hostelling International's network. A hostel is just a cheap hotel that caters to backpackers and low-budget travelers. Most are grungy dumps (basically, they are converted SROs). I don't know specifically about this one, but just because it's not part of Hostelling International doesn't make it illegal. That's a needlessly scary comment.

The 'chaperones' could save a bundle for their state university system by staying in the hostel with their group of students and parents. If it's good enough for them why wouldn't the other adults just stay there? It's clean, cheap and cheery, right? This is an educational trip, right? It isn't a friends' getaway or team building retreat for a department at work, is it? It seems frivolous to book something different. Which state university? I hope it's not Connecticut! Not many here would be pleased to see their tax dollars at work in that way.

Bowsprit - however well-meaning and budget-conscious your statement may be, since I travel one time a year or so on university business and I'm in my mid-50's and not as adventuresome nor as tolerant as I used to be, I am not willing to stay at a hostel. None of us are looking to have a no-holds-barred trip to the "big" city. If I wanted to be frivolous, I'd book a room at the Waldorf-Astoria where one of the alumni/student networking events will be taking place, but I can't see spending $700.

I'm in my mid-50's too and am not self-indulgent. $300.00 for a hotel room for school business is a frivolous expense. You should be encouraged to reassess your 'needs' and compare your 'deal' of $300.00 a night to the $154.00 a night room in a new Country Inn and Suites in Long Island City that will accomodate 4 adults from Dec. 2-5th (random dates, didn't have yours). I'm sure your HR dept. would be much more 'understanding' of your 'need' to have a separate hotel space at this budget price.

My post was not meant to be well meaning. I am gobsmacked by all of your posts. Western Pennsylvania must be rolling in it.