My hubby and I are planning a trip to NYC for the week following New Years. Can we get a clean room in a central location on the cheap? Is it better to book now or play the odds and wait?

Any advice/recommendations are appreciated.

Stacey
Baton Rouge, LA

I don't know what your definition of cheap is, but you should consider using priceline. Check biddingfortravel.com for more information. Twice we used priceline for visiting relatives and paid about $100 for very nice hotels.

I've been to NYC 4 times in the last 3 years and have always stayed in nice hotels in Times Square and near Grand Central Station. After checking for online specials (yahoo travel, hotels.com, put in keyword "New York City hotels" and many discount sites will appear) I usually call the hotel directly to see if they can beat the price. Last November we stayed at the Roosevelt just across from Grand Central Station. Beautiful hotel, great location and got a great deal by using my "entertainment card". If you don't have one, it's worth it to get one. Just ask for the entertainment rate when you call and it's usually much cheaper if it's available at the time you want to go. Have also stayed at the Best Western Presidente - 2 block from Times Square - smaller, but still nice and clean. The Hampshire Suites is right in Times Square and we got a reasonable deal there also. I would definitely book now - seems like the longer we waited the more expensive the rates were. Have fun - NYC is my favorite city to visit!

You should be able to get good hotel bargains at that time through any number of source, such as Hotwire, Priceline, Expedia, etc.

January is the least expensive and least crowded time of year to visit NYC.

Do not go without taking a winter coat, hat, gloves, and scarf for both you and your husband.

I go seveal times/year and always in January for the motorcycle convention. Anyway- I really like the Days Inn and Hojo on 8th Ave. Subway stop a block away and only a long Avenue block to Times Sqare and all the theaters. Booking online offers great deals- last paid $79, easy to cancel and frequent price adjustments so it pays to keep checking. This would be a good choice for a back up for Priceline- I would only consider midtown east or west for my heavy theater priorities.

The first week in Jan. is a good time to get great deals as the city is a bit quiet. Priceline or Hotwire are great ways to get 4* hotels at 2 star prices BUT it may be too early to bid now. I would go to betterbidding.com (advice & info for Priceline AND hotwire) or biddingforttravel.com (Priceline only) and ask their staff whether they think you should wait. My understanding is hotels release rooms to these services and are more liekly to accept lower bids closer to the actual stay dates, when they feel they won't book them at higher prices.

Both sites also have some listings of the winning bids people got & the dates for those bids. You might check to see whether any are listed for the time you plan to be here.

Good luck & have a great trip.

Here's another recommendation for Priceline and Hotwire. Rates are their lowest in January, so waiting is probably not going to be beneficial.

Get theater tickets in advance - sign up at Playbill, Theatermania, Broadwaybox, etc., and watch for discounts for your dates.

Go to BIDINGFORTRAVEL.com and you will see the hotels that you would get on priceline. I would definately go for this option. of the areas they have I would prefer Upper Midtown - Central Park South or Midtown East. I would start bidding early.

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www.quikbook.com and www.hotels.com are two sites for getting discounted prices on hotels --- in both these cases you'll be able to know exactly what/where your hotel is. Alternatively as others have suggested, you can snag a good buy going thru Priceline, and that is what I'd do for a January visit. Do your research prior to any bidding; also check a site, http://savingsbarn.com which sometimes offers addl savings when you link to Priceline thru their website. Oh, and one more site to check out --- www.smarterliving.com