New York

[Toomanycats99]

Can anyone recommend a hotel in New York. There are so many to choose from it's a bit overwhelming and I'm not sure where to start.

Doesn't need to be anything fancy - just basic and clean really. It's me and 2 children.

I'm assuming mid town (?) but are there any better places to be that in terms of ease of access to main sites and plenty of local places to eat (again nothing fancy needed!)

I'm a New Yorker. I assume you are coming on holiday. Midtown is very convenient for seeing the sights and ease of access. It really depends on your budget. The big chain hotels are a safe bet, Marriot or possibly Hilton.

When are you coming?

Looking at Easter or end of May next year. Not for a while but planning is helping me have something to look forward too!

If I look at price for late this year packages seem to start at £750 ish but flights separately are £325 up. And looks like I could get a hotel for a fair bit less than the difference if that makes sense. I hoping fo8 £8/900 per person I guess for 4 nights.

I have stayed at the Royalton, which I booked as a package deal via British Airways, and thought it was fabulous! This was a while back though.

Also stayed at the Roosevelt a few times, but believed this has now closed

We stayed in the Stewart Hotel in April 2019 - opposite Penn Station, lots of eating options within walking distance, and we had a studio room with a double bed, sofa bed for the children, and small kitchen. It was £1400 for 7 nights non-refundable through hotels.com. Pretty happy with it, great base for exploring NYC! All hotel options were £££, but not that surprising.

May is usually nice weather here. A bit longer visit would be nice, but it depends on the types of things you want to do. Do you have a preliminary list of things to visit and do, and how old are your DC?

@MissConductUS

If I can get a hotel not too badly priced will probably go for 5 nights. I guess main sites but we also quite like wandering which is why I was wondering whether there were any nicer neighbourhoods to be based in for that or good areas to explore.

If we do 5 nights I'd also like to spend maybe 1 day doing a trip outside New York City. I'm not seeing much come up though in first glances though. Either outlet mall / Niagara or some private tours that are really pricey. I went to Niagara on my honeymoon and no real desire to go back! Also looked at Washington but seems a long trip for a day and not sure my DD would particularly enjoy. They will be 14 & 11.

They are already excited about the breakfasts.....!

@Wigeon I stayed at the Stewart May 2016 and had a good experience too - nice and clean - easy access to subways and shops and restaurants would stay there again

@whatever1980 @Wigeon

Thanks for that. Like the idea of a little kitchen especially if we do 5 nights.

I know the outlet mall you're referring to, and I can't be bothered to shop there. Niagra is way too far for a day trip. One that I do think is worthwhile is the Corning Museum of Glass, but even that is a bit of a trip from NYC:

home.cmog.org/

I think with the limited time you have you'll find better or more interesting things to do staying in the city.

If you haven't found them already, I recommend these websites

www.timeout.com/newyork

www.nycgo.com/

and for the kids,

ny.curbed.com/maps/things-to-do-new-york-city-kids

Do block out half a day for the 9/11 museum. It's so worth it, and very tastefully done. We took our kids there when they were about that same age.

PM me if you want my email address in case you have questions as you continue to plan the trip. We do love our UK tourists in New York.

Ooh, if you like your breakfasts, then there’s a lovely little bagel shop called Browns Bagels less than a minute from the Stewart Hotel - we had them most mornings! Got them to takeaway and had them back in the room. Plus they did porridge which was nice too. We also found having the kitchen quite handy.

Also we went to a great diner for breakfast nearby the hotel on our first morning, when we were jet lagged and all woke up at 6am starving hungry - called Tick Tock, about 3 blocks from the hotel and open that early. Had total classic American diner breakfast - coffee, pancakes, stuff like that. It was brilliant!

The Knickerbocker was gorgeous. Huge room and bathroom, lovely comfy bed, great location. Expensive full price, but we managed to get a deal and it was worth it.

I've eaten at Tick Tock. It's on 8th, near 34th St. Huge place, with good solid diner food. Lots of restaurants have gone under due to the pandemic or switched to pick up only.

Americans love a big breakfast.

Thank you for the advice! The oldest loves friends and the youngest streams Disney 24 hours a day so I am sure they will want to see stuff linked in to that.

I have been but over 25 years ago and that was a very short visit so still lots I didn't see then.

I would like to see statue of Liberty / Ellis Island as I had previously found my grandparents records online in the Ellis Island records - my gran ran away to America at a young age and worked in New York as a house maid in the mid 1920's and met my grandad who was a valet in Long Island. It would be good to see if I could trace where they lived. She only came back as my grandad could not get a permanent work visa.

I am so excited but it's so long away!

I've stayed at the New Yorker a couple of times and it had a great location on 34th street, and a 24 hour diner on the ground floor, ideal for oddly timed jet-lag meals!

Oh I just read the above posts! Tick Tock diner is the one that's on the ground floor of the New Yorker!

We're hoping to go next year too. I've been looking at the Hotel Beacon as it has larger rooms / small suites and has a kitchenette so we could have some 'deli picnics' on some evenings if we wanted a quieter evening. We're hoping to go for a week though so this may not be so relevant for you.

Friends stayed at The New Yorker. They are the ultimate cheap skates and said it was dirty and very rough around the edges. It’s cheap for a reason. It also offers intern long stays. You can do better!

For 3 of you, you need family rooms. Places similar to the Citadenes. There are apartment style hotels and that’s what you need to look for. Or you will get allocated two rooms if you are not careful!

I actually like Greenwich Village and Soho. Bags of character and local restaurants. With 4 days I’m not sure there’s time to go out of the city area. Try the Brooklyn Bridge and Brooklyn! Really recommend the High Line and Radio City Music Hall is great. Just walking around gives you a real taste of the sheer size of the buildings. Take a walk in a Central Park. We found the Metroplitan Museum did Pay What You Like day and this is a real bonus. We were not keen on 911 museum. Not sure all DC would like if either. We visited the memorial though. Much prefer art galleries , eg MoMa. The Tenement museum is great too.

I'm a bit underwhelmed by Brooklyn, but agree with the rest of @PresentingPercy's suggestions. We did a backstage tour at Radio City that was really fun, especially for the kids.

www.rockettes.com/christmas/experiences/tour/

@PresentingPercy Oh that's a shame. It was back about 5 years ago since I last stayed so maybe it's changed.

I didn't find it dirty at all, felt very safe and while they do take long staying students etc they're in a different part of the building accessed by different lifts to leisure guests. I think this is quite a common thing in America, not so much here in the UK.

Loved the Beacon, really did, great location and huge rooms

We stayed in The Roger Smith hotel in a suite and it was fabulous - massive and close to everything on Lexington Avenue.

The New Yorker always comes up first with the flight/hotel packages. There are loads of options. I would plot where the attractions are you want to see, then choose n area that’s nearest to the majority. Central Park is a long way from Soho and the Brooklyn Bridge for example. The subway in NY has its limitations too! DD lived there for a bit and needed to travel round. She never got used to it and live train info can be lacking.

Brooklyn appeals to some and not others. If you go there and walk back across the bridge, if is a change of scene. However I think planning what you want to see over the 4 days is best.

Bumping, because I'm hoping to go to New York at about the same time. Probably just me and teen DD.

@LynetteScavo
What do you want to know?

Just wanted to say that Washington is great for a day trip by train. We’ve always got one out of Penn at around 7am and returned on an evening train and it takes around 3 hours iirc, but the trains are so much nicer and more spacious than what we’re used to here.

Of course there are the sites to see there and all are within walking distance of the station and there are some wonderful museums. Our sons loved visiting when they were young.