Stay in New York City or New Jersey?
 

We are planning a trip to New York City in May of 2009 and have been searching for a hotel room that is reasonably priced. So far, the hotels have been priced higher than we want to pay. Our second option is to stay in New Jersey and take the train over to the city. Does anyone have any information on where we need to stay in New Jersey (or any other location) to take the train or ferry over to the city on a daily basis to sightsee?

Fork over the money and stay in NYC.

A) it's part of the NYC experience to walk out of your hotel and you're right there,

B) travelling back and forth to New Jersey is time consuming and a hassle.

C) you can enjoy NYC without looking at you watch to worry if you're missing your train back to Jersey.

D) if you want a mid-day rest, you can just go up to your hotel.

In May there should be some deals available. Look at Priceline, hotwire or travelzoo for bargains in Manhattan. (The latter will probably not be available yet - since they are only listed several months in advance.)

You should reserve now something cancelable that you can live with - then, when you get closer - look at the discount web sites.

The City. It's part of the total experience. Your time is valuable, too!

Hotel rates in NYC are actually on the way down right now, so I'd second the idea of booking a room that can be cancelled for no penalty and then looking for something better up to your arrival date.

The difficulty with staying in NJ is that most of the hotels near the PATH station are as expensive as Manhattan hotels. Hotels that are on bus lines in NJ are, in my opinion, not terribly convenient (though others disagree and say it's fine to do this).

It is, however, a different story if you want to stay in one of the modest hotels in Queens that are close to subways. Almost all these hotels cost less than $200 per night and are just fine.

The Comfort Inn Long Island City is 2 blocks from a 24-hour subway station and only one stop from Manhattan (you can take a taxi if it's late and you don't want to deal with the subway). That is much much more preferable than staying in NJ.

If you cannot get on the PATH line, then you will probably have to take a bus or NJ Transit train.

I agree, stay in the city. The time, train costs, lack of true NYC experience aren't worth it.

How many of you are there? Do you just need a room for two?

Gotta agree with everyone else..stay in the city. You can find great deals anytime using hotwire or priceline. Enjoy the big apple!

Thanks for all the responses. We are 4 women in our 60's wanting to enjoy the Big Apple!!! The problem is the prices of the hotels are just too high for some of them. We appreciate all the advice and will keep looking at hotel in Manhatten. Maybe we will find a bargain.. !!!

I also suggest staying in Manhattan, but if you really wish to stay in New Jersey here is a nearby option: The Sheraton Hotel at Lincoln Harbor, in Weehawken. This hotel is in a little complex right next to the Hudson River adjacent to the Lincoln Tunnel. The reason it's so convenient is because there is a free hotel shuttle that takes you to the NY Waterway ferry nearby. The ferry goes across to 39th Street about every 20 minutes until midnight during the week and 1 a.m. on Friday and Saturday nights.

www.nywaterway.com

I have stayed there on a weekend trip from my NJ home and while it has all the drawbacks of staying in NJ -- not being able to rest at your hotel during the day, and the commuting time takes away from your tine in the city -- it is much closer than others. I would caution you, however, that the tickets for the ferry are about $7 each way, and if you wish to park your car there it is $10 for parking (all day, one price). You might qualify for the senior discount. There is also a discount if you buy 10 tickets at once -- a "10-strip."

You might try the Grand Union on E32nd ST. www.hotelgrandunion.com The rates are around $175nt but check the website for specifics for your dates of travel. You can't get a much better location, walkable to just about everything midtown, and theatres. There's also subway and bus within a block of the hotel.

You absolutely must stay in Manhattan. With the makeup of your group, some are probably going to want to go-go-go all day, and others are going to want to go back to the hotel to rest, change shoes, drop off packages. If you are in Manhattan, the group can split up without it being a logistical nightmare. Keep looking for deals on Manhattan hotels!

We stayed at the Park Savoy in 2007. It was very very basic but clean and very very inexpensive.
It is on 158 West 58th St-a block from Carnegie Hall.

Another less expensive hotel was the Gershwin (7 E 27th St). It is close to Flat Iron Building.

Check them both out online. Gershwin got more pricey but we couldn't believe Park Savoy!

One thing to consider is even if you find a NJ hotel in your price range you'll "eat up" some of the price differential in the costs to commute into/out of the city.

Also, take it from someone who commuted to NYC from NJ for 20+ years - it is not something you want to do voluntarilly. In order to make the most out of your trip you'll be commuting during normal rush hours and that, to put it mildly, can be a real bear. If you try travelling during off hours your options will be limited and you could actually spend more time getting back and forth.

Do yourself and your friends a favor - find accomodations in the city.

Check out Hotel Beacon -- I think it's considered Upper West Side. We got a large room with two doubles or queens plus a little kitchenette for $240. Split four ways, that wouldn't be too bad. There's a wonderful Fairway grocery across the street and a very nice subway station about a block away. Central Park and the Museum of Natural History are close by, and there are plenty of good restaurants and interesting shops in the area.

Find a hotel in Manhattan that you can afford, or wait to visit until you can afford it.

I agree with everyone who said that staying in the city is part of the experience.

I am jumping on the MUST, MUST, MUST stay in the city bandwagon.