Where to stay for broadway performance?
 

My BFF and I are researching a trip for next month to see a musical for her birthday. We are 39 and 40. Theater is near West 49th.

Which would be more feasible, to lodge near near LGA, Brooklyn, maybe Harlem for lower rates? Looking for something around $100-200 a night. Appreciate any suggestions. cdg

Others are sure to chime in, but it should be possible to find something in midtown Manhattan for less than $200. I'd certainly opt for that rather than the areas you mentioned (although Harlem wouldn't be that difficult via subway...though probably not much cheaper, either). Are you familiar with the city?

Try the Milford Plaza Hotel. It is right in the middle of theatreland. We stayed there a few years ago and it was very reasonable.It is on 48th street and 8th avenue.

Azzure, No. Not terribly familiar with NYC. However, years ago I twice visited for a day while staying in NJ for work. Also, in 06, my hubby surprised me with a b-day trip for another musical. We stayed at the Moderne. Rates there are above our $200 nightly budget. I'm usually good at figuring out logistics, but admit I feel a little overwhelmed with the geography of the city. Studying a map now...

Thanks, Marly. Will check out the Milford.

We've had good luck with Priceline. Read betterbidding and biddingfortravel first.

Looks like the Milford is closed. Per their home page:
"The Milford Plaza Hotel closed on December 12, 2009, and the planned renovation of the hotel has been suspended while the owner assesses its options with respect to the property. This page will be updated as further information becomes available."

Given your suggestions, I'd choose Harlem over Laguardia and even Brooklyn. If you can get something close-in Brooklyn, it could work.

You won't find anything for $100, not even near LaGuardia, but $200 is possible if it's a weekend when there isn't much going on.

Thanks, Mike. It'd be great to find something in mid-town as azzure mentioned. Any suggestions? What about the financial district?

Look here too - you can get some especially nice rooms at low prices if you are open to B&B listings and/or rooms with shared bath:
http://www.eurocheapo.com/newyork/

$100 per night will not be possible - but $200 might be.

Do not stay near LGA - and avoid Brookklyn if possible. Have you lookde at kayak and travelzoo for deals in Manhattan? Whatare your specific dtes?

Bookmarking.

Check out the Bentley, you may get something for around $200. Not the most convenient but much more convenient than LGA, Harlem or Bklyn.

http://www.hotelbentleynewyork.com/

You're creeping in to the busy fall season in NYC. Try hotwire. Travelzoo currently has a deal for Hotel Mela for $209.

The Financial District is fine. It's pretty quiet at night, but not unsafe. Not a ton of great restaurants or nightlife, but you can definitely get that in other parts of the city, and it's not a bad walk to soho. It's about a 20-30 minute subway ride to midtown.

I got Hotel Mela through Priceline for wayyy under $200/nt. It was a perfect location and a very nice hotel. For me, I'd hate having to get back to Brooklyn or LGA at night after a show.

thanks, bardo. will keep checking eurocheapo as we search.

nytraveler, we're looking for Oct. 22-24.

the Bentley looks nice, frank, but for our dates it's $369 a night.

hotel mela looks good, too. i'm not at the point where i feel like 'playing' with priceline. i have limited experience in the city and friend has never been, so would like to hold the reins a little tighter on choosing where we stay. actually $209 isn't bad and location is perfect.

Don't forget that tax at the hotel is approx. another 15%. Have you looked at any hotels in Queens. There are some that are easy walks from subways.

I would grab Hotel Mela. i did some looking aorund and there are hotels out there but quie a few that you wouldn;t touch with a barge pole (the Carter, the dreaded Pennsylvannia, Riverside Studios etc).

Hotels for your dates are running $300 and up for your dates. I know, I'm visiting about 10 days before you and have been looking at hotels for weeks. Try quikbook.com, they have a few deals but little in the $200 range. I would suggest looking at hotels in Long Island City which is in Queens. An industrial type area but generally safe and only 10-15 minutes to Times Square on the subway. Otherwise try Priceline. It's a busy time of year so don't know what deal you'd get but it's worth a try.

Didn't see about Hotel Mela. I agree with others. Make a reservation right away.

Turns out, for our dates, Mela is $259. Haven't looked at hotels in Queens. Did see a very nice hotel for $163 per night in Secaucus. It's next to the convention center and looks like there's it's across a low-traffic street from the bus stop where #320 takes you right into the city. Would that be crazy? To stay there?

I would definitely look at Long Island City. There are hotels there that are only one stop from Manhattan on the subway. Yes the area is a bit industrial but so close to the city, and the prices are reasonable.

A poster called jet29 recently wrote about a stay at the LaQuinta Meadowlands hotel in Secaucus; if that is where you are considering staying it doesn't sound too bad. About a 30 minute bus ride to midtown (Port Authority terminal).

Have you looked at the TripAdvisor listings? (Search hotels in NYC and organize by price.) There might be something there. Didn't realize your trip was in high season.

Personally I would rather stay in Long Island City and take a short subway ride as opposed to a longer bus ride. Especially since you are going for theater, you would be able to go back, take a rest or change before the show. There are definitely hotels in Long Island City available for your dates and they are all under $200, some under $150 (without tax). I would check tripadvisor for the most recommended. Looks like The Verve has rooms for $179 a night and it's #1 in Long Island City.

Azzure is right about jet29's recent report. Secaucus worked out alright for them.

<i>..Looking for something around $100-200 a night...we're looking for Oct. 22-24</i>

<b>Here are 7 Manhattan hotels with rooms for your dates and within your budget:</b>

Hotel Chelsea - 222 W. 23rd St.- $199/night

Hotel 17 - 225 East 17th Street - $186/night

Murray Hill Inn - 143 E. 30th Street - $169/night

Mayor Hotel - 9 Division Street (Lower East Side) - $165/night

Seton Hotel - 144 East 40th Street - $159/night

New York Inn - 765 8th Avenue - $159/night

Royal Park Hotel and Hostel - 258 West 97 Street - $118/night

Thanks for pointing us to LIC, y'all. Sounds like a much better option than a 30 minute bus ride to the PA, where I'm assuming we'd have to hop on another bus or take the subway.

Is LGA the best airport to fly into, if we were to stay in LIC? Is there a direct bus or subway from the airport to the Verve?

Ow, wow, Bardo. I missed your post earlier. Thanks for listing these. I'll look into 'em.

Have you stayed at any of these?

oh. one more ? where did you find these rates?

CDG,

I got those rates on the booking engine at Eurocheapo.com/newyork

I have not stayed at these particular hotels but they are all in good areas. Try tripadvisor.com for reviews.

Be sure to check out the tripadvisor reports. Almost all of these hotels get terrible reviews and are in the bottom of recommended hotels for NYC. Bardo did mention he hadn't stayed in any of them. Hotel 17 gets the best review and Chelsea Hotel might be a possibility.

Yes, Paula. I'm a TA-holic and noticed they are great for the pocket book, but a bit hard on the eyes. One option we recently located was a condo in Jersey for $120 a night. Very close to PATH. So far, seems the only issue with that is getting from LGA to the property. We may need to check on flights to Newark instead, but for some reason I recall that airport doesn't have as easy access to the city. Am I right?

If you are talking about access to the city via public transportation, then LGA is the airport that is the most difficult. From Newark, the AirTrain connect to NJ Transit which takes you to Penn Station. Quick, easy and not expensive. I did it for the first time last December and had no problem and it was during rush hour. Can't imagine how long a taxi would have taken. You could look on the NJ Transit page and see about stops closer to your condo.

Chicago/d/g:

I feel your pain! That time of the year is most expensive for NYC Hotels.

Newark to NYC has a few options: Airport Bus to NYC is probably the quickest! But Newark to the condo in New Jersey would probably be better served by a car service out of Newark AP.

Keep trying to get into Manhattan Hotel, it is sooooooo much better than the outer burbs!

Give Priceline the shot! Keep it at 3* and higher, read Betterbidding.com BEFORE hitting 'enter'!!

Good Luck

-john

ok. ok, john. arm sufficiently twisted by the suggestions to go to pl. i'm biting, but why read betterbidding.com before hitting 'enter'??? to see what hotels folks are getting and what they're bidding? is that the strategy?

I would NOT advise staying anywhere but mid-town for your theater experience! There are many options for hotels within walking distance of the theaters and the area is generally very safe for travelers. Someone suggested the Murray Hill Inn - I have stayed there and found the accommodations very nice and the location excellent! Many nice little restaurants and pubs to be found on 3rd Ave between 30th and 35th - I think you would like the area. A dinner spot with great Italian food and very reasonable prices is DaCiro's, I believe it's on Lexington between 33rd and 34th. Also, from that location you can easily walk to other sites such as Rockefeller Center, Saks, Central Park, etc. and there is excellent subway service downtown [I think it's the #6 line, but not certain]
Have fun!

Thanks everyone for all your help. I tried and tried for a hotel we'd be comfortable with in Manhattan, but just couldn't. Last night I was a bidding madwoman and nothing was accepted until I selected LCI. Previously, I'd fallen in love with the idea of booking the Holiday Inn Manhattan View but the rates were $277 minimum! eeek

Well, low and behold, that's the very hotel that came up when I bid $160. All in, we are at $398, just three subway stops from Central Park, and five stops from the theater.

Normally, I'd opt for something a bit diff than the trusty standard HI chain, but considering this is my friend's first visit to NYC, I wanted the condition and price of the hotel to not be an issue. She's excited and I'm pretty pleased, too.

Thank you all because without your feedback my journey to find lodging would have been mcuh more daunting.

Now, on to crafting our sightseeing itinerary. The only "must" for her is to have a good meal in Harlem. I know next to nothing about where to go there. So, if anyone has tips, I'm all ears... um I mean eyes. :o)

I think that hotel will work fine for you. It is convenient for the subway and getting into Manhattan. Since you said you are a TA-holic, I am sure you read about the area around the hotel. It's safe, convenient just not that attractive but how much time are you going to spend in your hotel? Glad you made a succesful bid.

A good meal in Harlem?? That's an interesting request.

The only place I ever wanted to eat in Harlem is Rao's!

But unless your name is DiNero, Pesci or even Marshall (as in Penny) you can forget it!!

-john

Thanks, Paula! Yeah, HI got great reviews on TA and was ranked 2 out of 17 or so. I did a street view walk around the neighborhood (from the hotel to the subway stop) via google and looks typical of an area that's "turning". Kinda rough/re-developing right now, but you're right. We won't be there much.

BMW, my friend said she has always wanted to visit the area and as long as she gets up there and enjoys a great lunch or dinner, then she's open to anything else. It's interesting what people 'must' see when they travel.

For me, in Paris for example, it was Versailles. Tons of people thought it was a waste of time because our stay was so brief, but it was one of the top highlights of our visit.

The Mayfair hotel is right in the middle of the theater district and can be affordable. Rooms are tiny and basically just for sleeping, but they are all ensuite and the location is great.

I stayed at the Day's Inn on W. 94th Street in fall 2008 when I took a group of students to NYC. it is close to Broadway subway line, and easy to get to theater district. I even walked up Broadway. I read recently that it had bed bugs, so I would check to see if there still is an infestation problem. I plan to stay at Marriott Marquis in Times Square, but it is more expensive.
Another thought is the Holiday Inn Express on 7th Avenue at 29th Street, where my students stayed in 2009 and are staying again. It is only one subway stop from NY Penn Station to Times Square, and I can walk the distance.