Priceline Hotel: First timer in New york

[dolphin1]

Hi! Will be heading over to new york for the first time next year end of march to first week of april for about 8 to 9 days. First trip for both husband and me to the US. Chose new york to celebrate our 10 year wedding anniversary and hubby's 40th. Would love to know what is the best location to stay as we will be doing all the tourisy stuff, eating as well as shopping! Was hoping to stay in a hotel with at least a 4 star rating but as we will be there for at least a week, the cost tends to accumulate. :) Where and when should I start? hotwire or priceline? Priceline on first look appears more complicated! budget is about 150-180 per night. Amenities should include non smoking, room safe and internet access. Any advise is greatly appreciated.

[AaronJB]

Welcome to Betterbidding. :)

Happy (early) Anniversary and b-day!

Once you confirm the date/s of travel and we would be happy to look into options available.

There is no way to guarantee a particular amenity on PRICELINE, and while HOTWIRE does show a "smoke-free" icon with some listings, there usually isn't many. There is no way to guarantee room safe or free internet access.

Thank you for using the site's HOTWIRE or PRICELINE links to start your purchases and searches.

[thereuare]

Just to add to the above...

While internet access is not guaranteed, it is offered in almost all but some of the very lowest rated hotels, although there may be a fee involved and not included in the room rate. Given you're looking for a higher rated hotel, i don't think this should be a concern.

Let us know once you confirm your plans/dates and we'll take it from there.

Please use the PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links on the board to begin your travel purchases.

[dolphin1]

Thanks! Currently we will reach LAX on the 27/3. Hoping then to catch a flight to DC and stay there for 3 nights (will need accommodation advice here as well), then DC to new york on the 30/3. New york from the 30/3 till maybe the 8/4. Our flight leaves LAX in the evening on the 10/4, so we were thinking maybe leave new york on the 8/4 for LA (2 nights, accommodation also needed), then at least won't be in danger of missing or running late for our international flight. Cannot afford to be delayed. I just thought once we have the accommodation settled, then look for the internal flights? (LAX to DC, DC to NY, NY to LAX). Should I look for that thru hotwire/priceline as well?

[thereuare]

Everyone has their own trip planning routine, but i usually look for flights first since their prices is a bit more volatile and tends to fluctuate more erratically then hotel. Then once i find acceptable flights, i reserve it (assuming there is a 24 hour hold available) and make sure that hotel rates are acceptable for the days i'm looking to travel (ie- this ensures that you're not committed to airline tix only to find that you arrive in a city when a major event (NYC marathon, super bowl, large convention, etc) is taking place and blows the hotel budget or you need to stay in a less centralized location.

We have been seeing more PRICELINE airfare bids being won lately, but it might not be the best option for you this trip since you have to agree to a layover, and can only choose the travel date, not the flight times (nor layover city nor length of layover)... so not sure you would want to take flights with potentially 2-3 hour layovers, which if it happens frequently enough will begin to eat into your vacation time touring the States. However, if budget is more of a concern then time, then of course, it's an option available to you.

Please use the PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links on the board to begin your travel purchases.

[dolphin1]

Thanks. Will try to organise the flights first. Now that you mentioned it, apart from easter, are there any major events that you know off involving the dates / places mentioned above?

Also, I noticed that there are 3 different airports listed for washington (baltimore, DCA, IAD) and NY (JFK, newark and LGA), which or these airport locations will be more convenient for our travel?

[thereuare]

Typically take whichever airport is least expensive.... for NY my own preference is EWR, LGA, JFK, but for the right price will fly out of any of them.

[dolphin1]

Typically take whichever airport is least expensive.... for NY my own preference is EWR, LGA, JFK, but for the right price will fly out of any of them.

Which route would you suggest for dc to NY: amtrak express or fly? Cost is probably similar and the time travel all inclusive of checking in and out is maybe also the same? Pros and Cons? Thanks

[AaronJB]

Amtrak can definitely be late or run into other issues, but does stop at Penn Station - you don't have to commute into the city. However, it would appear to be about 2hr 45min (according to the Amtrak website), while I'm guessing the flight from DC to Newark is somewhere around 45 minutes +/-

Thank you for using the site's HOTWIRE or PRICELINE links to start your purchases and searches.