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I don't think the OP is asking about the hostel, although if you mean the one at 120 West 60th Street they look pretty good

betterbidding.com awesome deals bidding priceline.com

on Hyatt Hilton from $120/nt sans rats usually for me

But rodential infestations rarely happen even at good hotels

as do deadbedbugs.com They closed Abercrombie and Fitch recently

for fumigation...

twizi.com NYC has a tonne of "legal hostiles" where

chance of infestations of all types much higher...

Yeah, there are not "dozens of perfectly legal private hostels in NYC", and the fact that someone is running a hotel/hostel operation out of a former SRO doesn't mean it's A-OK. Hotel 99 is just one example of such a "stealth" operation where tourists have had their reservations canceled unexpectedly before arrival -- and, if already staying there when shuttered by the City, found themselves "homeless".

CCH's premises were most recently used -- lawfully -- for a residential foster care program, under the auspices of Good Shepherd Services, known as the St. Helena Residence. And the current Certificate of Occupancy in the City's Department of Buildings file squares with that purpose: it authorizes accommodations for no more than 30 people on the top 3 floors; offices and recreational, dining, etc. areas on the first 2 floors.

Were I responsible for this trip, I'd be loathe to make a booking for 100 people in a place where one has no independently verified assurance that the conversion, done without City-issued permits, meets important construction and fire safety standards.

Plus, the City has been cracking down on hotels & hostels that have been operating without an appropriate Certificate of Occupancy. Big Apple Hostel is perhaps the most recent, most notable example of that, as evidenced by its own home page.
http://www.bigapplehostel.com

So you're gambling with a minimum of $5000 of your students' money. Just about the same amount of money lost by the TripAdvisor poster referenced above, who had booked the Broadway Hotel & Hostel for a student group's stay last month but whose reservation could not be honored because of action taken by the City.

If this alumni event were switched to mid-late January or February, you'll see much better rates for real hotel rooms (and quite possibly, sufficient vacancy at the Y's or Hostelling International that the students can bed there, if a hostel is still more appealing price-wise).

Vanderbuilt YMCA also is a decent place

for large student groups as well as hostels on Twizi...

I will say that in my experience many TripAdvertizer posts

are disreputable touts and fakes they allow competitors who

pay to censor reviews create fake negative reviews

and tout on their forums occultly as

"destination experts"

Personally prefer honest hotel sites like www.booking.com

who only prints HONEST reviews from Recent documented guests.

I have never run into a fake one there so might check with

them for most accurate reviews.

But I have seen rodents in a number of NY hotels in the past.

http://www.booking.com/hotel/us/holi...-new-york-city...

good honest reviews here before booking join Priority Club on

ichotels.com for A TONNE of free hotel points perks upgrades

maybe better group rates usually free room/suite upgrades

if available.

A "professional trvel wrtier"i snot like an attorney. It's someone who knows a lot aobut travel - but not everything. Incertain cases they may not know all the details.

The city has beencracking down onillegal hostels - and booking one that is not fully legal is a recipe for disaster:

- kids in the streets
- who pay their hotel bills (you I'll bet)
- how will thie afecttheir trip - and your job

As the person responsible it is your legal duty to book only legitimate lodgings with all necessary city certificates and necessary fire safety regulations.

Anything else is foolhardy in the extreme.

qwovadis, the Department of Buildings' online records bear out the fact that Broadway Hotel & Hostel was "hit" by the City. The woman who posted of her plight asked the TripAdvisor NYC forum if there were any other avenues of recourse she might pursue (she'd already been in touch with the Better Business Bureau and the City's Department of Consumer Affairs). If you read her TA profile (she's been a TA "member" for years), her past posts and reviews, you'll see she's a retired schoolteacher from abroad who's been putting together, and leading, budget-conscious trips for teens.

When Broadway Hotel & Hostel pulled the plug on her reservation, she had to really scramble to find another place for the group. Unfortunately, she didn't ask for any advice and booked them into the dumpy Hotel Riverside Studios, akin to jumping out of the frying pan into the fire.

Although she's not said so, I'm sure this woman has a lot of irate parents to deal with (in addition to the loss of more than $5000) & who won't be repeat customers, will be badmouthing her to others.

btwy, the Twizi web site isn't reliable. E.g., the International Student Center was subjected to a full, vacate order in mid-May and appears in the Mayor's Flickr album with the caption "Illegal hotel - International Student Center":
http://www.flickr.com/photos/nycmayo...in/photostream

Thank you for all the comments, suggestions, etc. Although this thread has gone WAY off track, I'll answer some of the questions:

First, I will not lose my job on the very remote chance that this falls through. This hostel was approved by the committee who is overseeing the networking event, plus our purchasing/contract department okayed it after several conversations with the management of the hostel and a signed contract. I will let the contract people know of the concerns expressed on this forum and let them take it from there.

Second, other departments of the university have used this same hostel in the last couple of years and were completely satisfied with its cleanliness, security, etc.

In answer to some of the comments, particularly from Bowsprit - no, we are not going to "wine & dine" anybody at the Holiday Inn as we are using that strictly for accommodations. And while the students do not "need" anyone with them, we are going to network with the alumni as much as provide a presence for the students in case they do have a problem.

While most people were attempting to be helpful, some of the comments were rude and implied I, and others at the university, don't know our a** from a hole in the ground.... It's too bad some people can't get their point across without coming off as ignorant.

Thanks, again, to all those who were being politely helpful - it is greatly appreciate!

Fun times ahead for you. Enjoy.

to the OP

while there was a lot of rudeness here and I'm surprised Fodor's didn't pull some of the rude posts, there is one fact I hope you understand from some who are tying to be helpful.

Starting back around a year ago, but definitely increasing over the past few months, NYC has been cracking down on hostels and rentals that are not not licensed to rent to travelers. Even huge hostels like Big Apple Hostel, a mainstay for many years, has been closed down. So while the hostel may be legitimate and have no intention of stealing your money,it is possible with more likelihood than in the past, that they could be closed down by NYC itself. In that case you would have no recourse.

If I had booked the hostel for myself, would i take a chance? Sure. I have a credit card and could book a rooms somewhere. Would I gamble with a large group? Not in this particular climate in NYC.

Hope this helps.

mztery - thank you for the comments, and yes, I understand the concern from many of the posters and appreciate the advice, particularly when it was presented politely and with good intentions. I spoke with our purchasing/contract people today, and we're going to keep an eye on the hostel. In no way will the students be out any money - even if we get close enough to the date and they have written deposit checks for the accommodations, it will be the several departments who are inviting their students to attend this event, and not the students, who will pick up the costs.

What I still have a problem with is the "what an idiot" tone to some of the posts. Sorry, but my method has always been to try to present the suggestion with politeness, rather than the tone some of these posts have taken. The only post I can tell that was removed in this string is the one where a poster implied that Bowsprit had the wrong user name, which seemed mild compared to some of his comments.

Thank you again!

Having a contract with a hostel that the city has decided to close will be of very little help. The students will still be out in the street.

And someone using it a couple of years ago means notihng. This crackdown is recent - and I have seen several reports on the local news of all of the residents of a hostel (several different illegal hostels) simply being removed from their rooms at night - and told they need to find another place to stay.

I would urge you to make sure any hostel you use has proper credentials from the city - simplyaskthem to provide a copy of their C of O.It's really not dificult.

twina, I think what I find the most mysterious is that you start with "I'm a novice at this and have absolutely no idea what to do" kind of posts and then come back with "I'm not an idiot and I have prior information that I haven't shared with you yet". It's happened twice now - during your planning for this trip and the one before.

Yes, people can have sharp tones and yes, people can be complete jerks on this board. But the majority of the time people offer their time and input to help you (or someone else) plan a better trip - based on the information you provide or the questions you ask.

You run the risk of people saying it's just not worth it.

You should really listen to the people cautioning you about a potential huge mess. I understand that you won't do that. But IMO you really should.

Good luck with this trip and future ones.

twina: Your thinking is a few degress off plumb and your skewed perspective has potential to harm your 'students'. But again, fun times ahead. Enjoy. Do keep those interested updated as the drama unfolds. I'm sure you will.

starrs - I asked a simple question about whether or not a hotel review was perceived as truthful, and it's interpreted as some kind of wholly made-up "I'm a novice" request? Wow - that's a stretch.

Good luck with this trip and future ones

Last year you complained about tone and referenced "idiot" then too -

http://www.fodors.com/community/unit...e-help-me-.cfm

On both threads, folks were trying to be helpful.

There seems to be a pattern - people coming from a good place trying to provide suggestions and/or warnings and your interpreting those suggestions as "What kind of idiot are you?" comments.

It seems to be a losing battle from those trying to be helpful. There is a good chance that 100 of you will be on the street without a place to spend the night - but you find that warning belittling. You are right in that the college students in your care made it through just fine as the bus driver spent enough hours to drive you back home. I hope this trip works out for you too.

Starrs, in both threads, she asked a simple question and the other posters decided to focus on a completely different issue often in a condescending manner. One of the things at places like this is that they attract a lot of "know it alls" who need to dissect posts and ignore the actual questions by offering "advice" the poster never asked for.