Where to stay in N.J.?
 

In May we are planning a family vacation to N.Y.C. with our 20 yr. old Daughter and 17 yr old Son ( most likley last trip before they marry or last one is off to college)
We would like to stay on the "Jersey Side" and either take public transportation or dive our "still owe the bank" mini-van.
The latter scares me. I heard traffic is horrible and both "kids" say they will drive in N.Y. C. while Dad and I sit in the back. Just the thought makes me ill.
Can anyone suggest a nice area with nice hotels in N.J. Also what is the age for gambling in New Jersey.
Thank You
Mom from Wisconsin

This topic has been asked many times and the same answer always come through loud and clear:

WHY would you want to visit NYC and stay in NJ?? You will waste more time and money driving back and forth than you will save if you stay at NJ hotel.

There are many places to stay in NYC that are reasonable priced. Do yourselves a favor and don't stay in NJ unless that is where you want to visit. And mama, don't let your children grow up to drive in NYC!

Hope this helps..
Debi

Debi-too funny.

I live in NJ and say stay in NYC. Don't drive in the city if you can avoid it, unless you grew up here it can be frightening, especially at rush hour.

Gambling in NJ is only in Atlantic City and the legal age to gamble is 21.

Don't do it.

If you want to sightsee in Manhattan, stay in Manhattan.

If you want to sightsee in New Jersey, stay in New Jersey.

The time and energy you use up dicking around commuting back and forth will eat up any hotel savings.

Out of curiousity, who said this was a good idea?

The hotels with the easiest and fastest commute are about as expensive as Manhattan hotels and many times of year are on par with price.

O.K.! NYC it is! and thank you for the help! Now, where to stay. My daughter wants to stay at, I think it is called the Roosevelt, because it's haunted. Is this in NY or did I dream this up?

GoT - now tell us how you really feel!

:o)

The time and energy you use up dicking around commuting back and forth will eat up any hotel savings.

My husband just asked if parking, daily at a hotel in NYC is expensive?
In Chicago, we've paid up to $30.00 a day, to park in the hotel parking structure.

Yup, parking will be similar to Chicago. You won't be sorry staying in Manhattan.

You might want to check the Affinia Group of hotels. They have one and two bedroom suites with kitchens. affinia.com

Are you driving from WI? If not, you won't need a car in NYC. If you are driving, there should be long term places to leave your car the entire time you are in NYC which will be cheaper than paying daily rate at NYC hotel. Use public transportation.

The scariest part of driving in NYC is finding someplace to park the car that won;t cost a fortune. To drive aound the city during the day means using a garage each time you park - at $25 each per shot. So - if you park 3 times - $75 - at least. If you just put the car in a garage for the day more like $40 - but them you also have to pay for subway for all 4 of you. (Also note that oversize vehicles - don;t know how big your van is - are $10 extra every time you park.)

Separately - takng the subway is usually way faster/more conveninet than driving - even for me - and I've been driving here for 25 years and know all the secret shortcuts around traffic.

Also- agree that staying in Jersey is NOT nearly the same thing as staying in the city. And trekking in and out - by commuter bus or train can easily use up 2 hours per day - never mind the cost.

Do yourselves a favor and stay in Manhattan - so you can start to see things as soon as you walk out the door. If you're driving from wherever to NYC - just park the car in Jersey (at a train station or ferry lot) and forget it and all the hassles of a car in the city.

I disagree with the NY snobs. Many people stay in Jersey City to save money. It's an easy 5 minute Path (subway) ride to the World Trade Center or Greenwich Village. Check out the Hyatt Regency or Doubletree.

We've done it both ways with kids - stayed at the Sheraton Suites in Weehawken and took the ferry over, and also at the Pennsylvania in Manhattan. On balance I would say go into Manhattan. The worst part about driving into Manhattan for us (bearing in mind that we're British and were driving on the 'wrong' side of the road) was the 4 kids we had in the back of the car - hopefully yours are past the age of trying to kill each other whilst you're trying to concentrate on where you're going. Yes, the drivers were more aggressive than usual in the USA - but no worse than we're used to at home.

dragon, I would think the worst part about your stay in Manhattan would be your hotel, The Pennsylvania.

GomomGo, you can find economical (relatively speaking, $25 per day) in Manhattan but you need to just leave the car until you decide to leave.

The Affinia hotels (www.Affinia.com), at least the moderate ones would be a good idea for your family. Check out The Shelburne Murray Hill, The Beekman, and The Dumont.

Also, The Travel Inn in Midtown has free parking and gets pretty good reviews.

The Apple Core Hotels also are moderate and get good reviews.

The last two I would recommend would be The NY Salisbury and The Milford Plaza. You will find bad reviews on The Milford Plaza but I stayed there last February and had a really good stay; good room, clean, great service, and CHEAP! I got it off priceline for $85.

Lastly, you could always get two rooms off priceline.

If you use Priceline you will have to bid on 2 rooms - since many hotel rooms in NYC have only 1 double bed or 2 twins - and no room for anything else. And Pricline bids are valid only for 2 people. If you try to add extras - and even if the room is large enough - the hotel can charge whatever it wants.

Actually we got lucky with the Pennsylvania as they didn't have the rooms we booked and so gave us a huge suite of rooms. I take your point though, GoTravel, never have I met such a rude bunch of staff in a hotel - it was quite an experience - but the price and location were great.

Iconparking.com is a good place to look for a garage in Manhattan. It helps to know which hotel you're at so you can find one that's near.

The Roosevelt hotel is in Manhattan and is "ok." I hadn't heard the haunted bit. It's an old hotel with "uneven" rooms meaning some are decent sized and some are not. It's very centrally located but wouldn't be my choice. I don't think you'll find a room for 4 there.

I think finding a suite hotel is an option to 2 regular hotel rooms. I would make a cancellable reservation at one of the Affinia.com hotels or radiocityapartments.com (if they're booked, phone them and ask), or Best Western Hospitality. Then you can decide whether you want to try bidding on Priceline. BUT fyi, Priceline only guarantees one room for two people with ONE bed in NYC.

FYI, there are people who stay in Jersey City or even Weehawken to save money. This is not a terrible idea if you have young kids and don't plan to do much in the evenings. But with grown kids who may want to go out at night, it's a pain to be in N.J. You either have to make 2 roundttrips a day back and forth or go out in the evening in the same clothes with shopping bags etc. Not fun.

To answer your question about the Roosevelt Hotel. Yes, there is a hotel by that name located on the East side. I'm not sure if it's haunted but it's a decent place to stay, good size rooms (for NYC) and nice service.

There is no need to drive in NY if you are visiting for vacation. It will just take you more time and aggravation trying to park etc. Take the subway.

If you wanted to stay in NJ look into Weehawkin from there you can take the ferry across to mid town and there are free buses to the theatre district. But it's much easier to just stay in the city.

21 to gamble - but there are only casino's in Atlantic City which is 2 1/2 hours from NY. A.C. has changed a lot in just the past few years. A lot more nice casino's restaurants etc. Check out Tropicana's The Quarter and the Borgata as well as the Pier at Caesars if you go.