Serious post for once. Please help. NYC hotels?

[LeftyFingerPop]

I'm planning a 5 day trip to the Big Apple.

Staying in Manhattan and garaging my truck.

Need a somewhat upscale room, but not a five star.

Nice bed, wireless connection, clean, etc.

Walking or cab distance to museums, etc.

Large room or suite.

Must be soundproof to cover the noise of moans, screams, growls, grunts, and vibrations.

Seriously though...any ideas from personal experience?

Thank you.

[LeftyFingerPop]

1. Anyone?

From personal experience I'm talking....

[Ptah]

2. I'll chime in. Oops, there's someone at the door

brb

[madinmaryland]

3. Expect to pay ALOT for what you are asking for.

Probably in the range of 350-500/night.

I had a boss who would occasionally stay in the city (midtown) and it typically ran 250-300/night at the Waldorf. Small rooms though.

[speedoo]

4. Well.....

most of the times I have stayed in such a room in Manhattan (or in Boston, Chicago, LA, etc.) my company picked up the tab, and now that I no longer have the luxury of free hotel rooms, that kind of room is an extravagance I can rarely afford.

So, all I can say is, you are probably looking at $300 a day, minimum. And that does not include garaging your truck.

[mondo joe]

5. I've stayed at the Mansfield in midtown on a couple of trips, and I'd go back.

http://www.mansfieldhotel.com/

Just down the street is the Algonquin, which is cheaper but not a nice: http://www.algonquinhotel.com/

They're basically theater district, near Times Square. I walked everywhere, or took cabs.

[mondo joe]

7. Your best tool is Trip Advisor. You can get hotel info even narrowed down to

neighborhoods, as I recall, and the customer reviews are VERY VERY helpful.

http://www.tripadvisor.com/

I suggest looking at the content of the reviews rather than just the ratings. Some people give negative reviews for such dumb things you know you should discount them (like the bathrooms in Italian hotel rooms being small - duh).

[theredpen]

20. Also, the reviews on hotels.com

The reviews on hotels.com are made by people who actually booked on hotels.com. A few days after you stay at a hotels.com booking, you get an email soliciting feedback on the hotel. I think that generates a more even-handed (and honest) review base.

TripAdvisor is great, but there are some reviews planted either by the hotel staff or the competition. You need to learn to read TripAdvisor (and other) reviews to look for reviews that seem too positive or too negative. Remember, that for unsolicited reviews, you are going to get a lot of people who had a one-off bad experience. You'll also get a few that only stay in a hotel every 10 years and are amazed that they get free shampoo and donuts in the morning. On, TripAdvisor it can be helpful to check the reviewers review history. This tells you what kind of traveler they are and whether they rate hotels consistently and with a broad range of experience, or only when they had something to complain about.

In general on Internet reviews, I find that anyone who is trying to convince the reader to adopt their opinion is "trying to hard," whether negative (the typical case) or positive. If someone says, "I had an awful stay," they are probably being candid, but if someone says, "If you stay here, you will be treated badly," they are trying to be vindictive, which suggests that maybe they aren't telling you the whole story — what's it to them if you choose that hotel anyway?

Another red flag for NYC hotel reviews is anyone who complains that the room was small. Rooms are small in NYC, so anyone who complains about it probably doesn't know enough about hotels to write a valuable review.

I hope this helps.

[MrsMatt]

21. but the Algonquin has a lobby CAT named Matilda and

that, my friend, trumps ALL. Plus, it's historically significant, in a literary sense, if that means anything. Which to me, does.

We stayed there in 2004.

[mondo joe]

24. It's true. There is a lobby cat. I must say, however, I think the Algonquin has banked

more on its past fame than on its current quality.

It was a nice enough place, though I was grateful to get back to the Mansfield down the street. (Work paid for the Algonquin, but I moved to the Mansfield for my personal stay.)

[Corgigal]

6. We stayed here

loved it and one of the largest rooms in NYC.

http://doubletree1.hilton.com/en_US/dt/hotel/LGASFDT-Doubletree-Guest-Suites-Times-Square-New-York-City-New-York/index.do

[Bake]

8. I was always partial to the Marriott Marquis

Traveled a lot on bidness and stayed there often enough to be on a first-name basis with the staff. Excellent service, good room, close to everything (right on Times Square).

Bake

[Rabrrrrrr]

10. I'll second the Marriots and the Doubletree

Both are very nice without being budget busting, and being in Times Square, they're convenient to EVERYTHING subway-wise speaking.

[LeftyFingerPop]

9. Thank you all for the advice...

I do appreciate it. I'm going to go check these things out. :)

[RoadRage]

11. I work for Hyatt..

The Grand Hyatt New York is on top of Grand Central Station.. you can't be closer to every subway line in the city.. just a few blocks from Times square, etc.

The hotel was renovated about 2 years ago- it's very clean, modern & upscale. But, I won't lie.. when I have to go there on business as an employee, I usually have to pay about $300 per night. If there is something big going on in the city.. their rates can run up to $700 per night for a room. NYC is crazy.

If you can get a rate under $300, book it - it's worth it!

[fizzgig]

12. no help, but i am so jealous

have a great trip :)

[skater314159]

13. What borough?

I would recommend staying in another borough than Manhattan (it's waaay too fucking expensive - at least for a person on my budget) and getting the MTA Metro Card with unlimited subway and bus rides - it's 4$ a day I think, but if you get a week pass it's cheaper (can't remember how much) worked great for me.

I would really recommend that, as you can get a really posh place that has all the ammenities (and more!) that you listed, but at a fourth the price what you'd spend on a small shitty room in Manhattan. Also, if you save enough, you can afford to take CABS around and still come out paying less that staying in M.

Also, places in other boroughs won't notice if you're into... uh, how do I say this, weird stuff or things that some people might have problems with... not saying you do (don't know you) but if you do, and you don't wanna get hastled by nosy neighbour-guests or staff, a nice mid-range place outside the orbit of Manhattan would be best. They are good at being cool as long as you're respectful and don't cause problems.

:hippie:

[HamdenRice]

16. I agree -- especially if you are bringing a truck, stay in Brooklyn

Most of the fun stuff to do in NYC and cool neighborhoods to hang out in have migrated out of Manhattan. Manhattan is really, really boring.

If you stay in downtown Brooklyn, you are a short walk across the Brooklyn Bridge from Manhattan (or subway ride, but the walk is astounding). You are in (long) walking distance or short subway ride of Brooklyn Heights, Park Slope, Fort Green, Clinton Hill, Cobble Hill, Williamsburg (Billyburg), Prospect Park, Brooklyn Academy of Music, Brooklyn Museum, etc., and a subway ride from everything in Manhattan.

As a life long New York, I couldn't imagine spending even one night sleeping in Manhattan. The majority of residents of Manhattan are out of towners who have moved to NY and tourists pretending to live the roles of "Friends" and "Sex and the City."

The life of New York City occurs in the outer boroughs.

[skater314159]

18. I stayed in Brooklyn...

and had some friends in Queens and the Bronx... so most of my time was spent in those three bouroughs; Manhattan was where I went for school, the museum, or to watch tourist freaks when I was bored.

[skater314159]

14. Oops

double post.

(duh)

[Arugula Latte]

15. If you're willing to go down the hall to the bathroom, you can save big $$

We stayed in a clean hotel in a pretty nice room on the upper west side (around 92nd St.) awhile back. The rooms were fine but there were no bathrooms in the rooms. If the bathrooms on your floor are occupied, you can go to another floor. Kinda a pain, but it sort of brought me back to dorm life. Also, when you're in New York, who wants to spend lots of time in your room. We used it for sleeping and dressing.

[crispini]

17. Not a large room, but

Let me know if you want it and I can PM you my corporate code for a cheap room for the New Yorker (we're encouraged to give it out). The room is small, but location is good and the price is usually pretty good. Varies by day and by season.

http://www.newyorkerhotel.com/

[Parche]

19. Hey Philboy

PM me and give me dates, and i can check for you!!!

We have wholesalers that we use to get lower rates!!!
:hi:

[Ramsey]

22. I like the W Hotels

There are several W Hotels in Manhattan, and you can often get a good deal there. They are upscale and very funky. There are two in the Washington Square area, and one midtown. Their suites are pretty reasonable.

Last time I went to NYC I wanted a suite and I stayed at The Kimberly Hotel, also midtown. It is all suites, and also pretty reasonable for NYC. The decor is pretty dated, but the room was HUGE! I had a party for 12 people there.

[leftofthedial]

23. how do you feel about roaches?