I'm travelling to New York for work this August, and would love some advice on where to stay and also any shopping tips. I am a fashion designer from Australia and am coming to the US to meet with some sales agents, but would also like to check out some interesting stores while I'm there.

You do realize that there are hundreds of hotels (at least) to choose from in New York at a wide variety of prices in a wide variety of locations!
How about at least some idea on how much you want to spend?

Oh yeah. I completely forgot to mention budget or location. Well, I haven't been to New York for 7 years so I can't remember what hotel prices are like there now. I want to stay in Manhattan, but don't really have a preference where. It's probably best to stay wherever the shops are interesting (which is probably everywhere). I don't think I can spend more than $250 US a night on accommopation.

Hotels have become quite pricey in NYC, most start at closer to $300 but there are some occasional good deals. You may consider trying priceline. You could probably get a nice 4* hotel for $200 or less. Check biddingfortravel.com for more info.

You can do a search here on 'shopping and nyc'. There have been many posts. Nolita has become the trendy boutique type shopping area. Nolita is 'north of little italy' (southern part of Soho).

You might also enjoy shopping in Brooklyn for the day. The stores tend to be more independent and designer-focuesed, and you'll find a lot of unique stores vs. national chains. This is a good map that lets you zoom in by neighborhood to see different types of shops. It also gives a brief description of each notable store and the nearest subway.

http://www.brooklynnow.com/waterfront/map.html

Suki -- I'll make my standard rec. that you check out www.affinia.com. This company manages several properties in Manhattan and has earned a reputation for excellent quality and service for the $. Most of their properties are in the midtown east section of the city - close to 5th Ave. shops, etc.

Holiday Inn Express Manhattan is in your price range and also is in the midtown area, close to 5th Ave. It's a newer, no frills hotel, but by all accounts is clean and comfortable.

Also -- www.quikbook.com usually has some excellent specials.

Best of luck --

I always recommend that people who travel for business do not make reservations through any agency/website that do not allow cancelations.

Business travel should be left flexible.

Hotel prices have skyrocketed but August is a relatively inexpensive time. My favorite site for hotel shopping is quikbook.com. Travelzoo.com is another good place to look for specials but all Aug. specials are not up there yet.

But much bigger issue is what kind of stores you want and what sort of designing you do. Are you more mainstream or younger/funky? Do you want dept. stores? High end or middle?

If you're more avant garde, I'd suggest staying south of midtown and checking out the boutiques in Nolita, Noho, Soho, the village etc.

I think NY Magazine has a good handle of shopping. Their website is mymetro.com and you can do searches on different sorts of shops.

Finally, if you describe the kind of hotel you'd like (big/small, modern/traditional, regular room/suite with kitchen) we can make more specific recos.

I agree with Suerich on the flexibility issue, one of the nice things about quikbook. Most of the booking there is cancellable. Where will you be meeting these sales agents is another question? If they're coming to your hotel and you're bringing samples, a 1 bedroom suite might be best.