Hotwire Hotel: 3.5* New York City (Madison Square Garden - Hell's Kitchen) Yotel Times Square

[Goldust]

Hi,

Other than a hotel in Florida a few years ago I've never used Priceline before. Travelling to NYC from the UK 1st January for a week.

Firstly I don't know where I should look to stay. Would like somewhere with a few tourist spots within walking distance but I know the subway is pretty good for getting around.

Price range I was hoping for something around $100 per night, 3.5 star or above. Is that realistic? If a little more would get me something much better in terms of stars or location I would consider it.

So where do I start? If I know the areas then I can start to think about the strategy in more detail so walking me through the process would be much appreciated :)

Thanks!

[thereuare]

Welcome to BetterBidding!

Fortunately you're coming to NYC during a slow time of year so something in the ~$100 range is do-able (where as it usually is not during other times of the year)

HOTWIRE is offering what i believe to be the following:

3.5* Yotel Times Square for $96/nite

4* Hotel Chandler for $136/nite

Are either of these of interest (if so we'll provide further details for each) OR if you'd like to try bidding on PRICELINE...

At the 3.5* or better level the most frequently bid zones are: ESB, MSG, MTW, and TS

I have left out MTE as rates are not high for your dates and there are some hotels/locates in that zone i'd suggest avoiding unless you have to (and i don't think it is necessary since you should be able to receive something within your budget)... but you may also want to consider Chelsea, which can be a little further from the subway, but is a 'happening' area right now with lots of bars, restaurants, cafes, etc.

Let us know if you are interested in the HOTWIRE offers, or if you prefer to bid on PRICELINE, let us know which zone(s) are acceptable and we'll suggest a strategy for you to follow.

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

[Goldust]

Hi!

Thanks for the quick reply. Yotel looks good but I'm happy to go with Priceline if I can get a better hotel for similar money.

Times Square seems the best choice do you think? Like I said I'm happy to go elsewhere - I'll be guided by you as I'm not sure where I should be considering for a first time visit :)

[AaronJB]

In terms of deciding on a location, do you have any particular plans/sights you want to see? TS is arguably the most popular area, but it's also the most expensive and busy - I like MTE as a (usually) less expensive (and still convenient) option.

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

[Goldust]

Not particularly - probably somewhere we can walk round at night and see the sights, eat out, etc which I guess kind of covers most places! It would be nice to walk round Times Square at night I suppose. The Yotel price above seems pretty good and gets good reviews, I'm tempted to go for that unless there are better options on PRICELINE....

[thereuare]

The Yotel has not yet been reported to the board thru PRICELINE, only HOTWIRE, so while it may have recently been added to the PRICELINE system (and not yet reported to the board) it would not be a high probability outcome if you chose to bid on PRICELINE.

So it comes down to HOTWIRE and the 'known' likely outcome of the well reviewed Yotel, vs. rolling the dice with PRICELINE.

I will add that while the reviews of the Yotel are generally excellent, the immediate location is not the best (imo)... the subway is 2 long blocks away (but as it will likely be cold in January) you can mitigate this by entering the Port Authority on Ninth Ave and then heading to indoor entrance to the subway that is inside the Port Authority, making just one long outside block of walking. At Ninth Ave you can also head North which will lead you to many of the restaurants in Hell's Kitchen (don't be fooled by the name which it obtained 20 years ago... it's a safe area now)

If you do go with HOTWIRE, please change the drop down menu on the top right of HOTWIRE's page to United States and the currency dropdown to US Dollars. Then continue to search HOTWIRE and post to the board in US Dollars so that rates are consistent and not subject to interpretation due to future currency fluctuation. Once you're ready to purchase stay on the US version of their site and simply change the drop down menu to whatever currency you'd like to use and complete your purchase.

The hotel i believe is likely the Yotel is 3.5* rated and in the MSG-HK zone with:

Free Internet

Boutique

Smoke Free

Fitness

Restaurant

Business

Hi-Speed Internet

Blind Accessible

Travel Accessible

Room Accessible

Wheelchair Accessible

Bathroom Accessible

Handicapped Parking

Roll-in Shower

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

Let us know what you decide and/or how we can be of further help.

[Goldust]

Thanks! Before I go ahead can you find / recommend anything better located based on the information you've given about walking distances? Don't mind going up in cost a bit more...

[thereuare]

If i'm correct on the 4* ESB hotel being the Hotel Chandler it gets very good reviews and is well located, imo. The details of the hotel i'm referring to are:

4* Empire State Building

Free Internet

Boutique

Smoke Free

Fitness

Business

Laundry

Hi-Speed Internet

Blind Accessible

Deaf Accessible

Room Accessible

Bathroom Accessible

Handicapped Parking

Roll-in Shower

However, at $136/nite it becomes a question if it's worth $40/nite for than what we believe to be the Yotel. Don't get me wrong, the Yotel location isn't bad, but my preference would be to not be so far west.

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

Let us know what you decide and how it goes or how we can be of further help with any questions you have about this trip.

[Goldust]

Hi,

OK I booked the Yotel - reckon I can use the $40 I save as extra spending money :)

The description was as you said:

3.5* rated and in the MSG Hell's Kitchen zone

Free Internet

Boutique

Smoke Free

Fitness

Restaurant

Business

Hi-Speed Internet

Blind Accessible

Travel Accessible

Room Accessible

Wheelchair Accessible

Bathroom Accessible

Handicapped Parking

Roll-in Shower

I clicked your link and kept it in USD which worked out $94 before taxes and charges - this was the published rate on HOTWIRE in case that helps anyone else looking to book the same hotel.

Will also share this on the main page to help anyone else :)

Thanks again!

[Goldust]

Just paid $94 per night (before taxes and charges) for the Yotel near Times Square.

Details were as follows:

3.5* rated and in the MSG Hell's Kitchen zone

Free Internet

Boutique

Smoke Free

Fitness

Restaurant

Business

Hi-Speed Internet

Blind Accessible

Travel Accessible

Room Accessible

Wheelchair Accessible

Bathroom Accessible

Handicapped Parking

Roll-in Shower

Booked using the HOTWIRE link from this site (which incidentally works out less than if you use the UK Hotwire site!)

[thereuare]

Congratulations on your success!

Glad to see you received the hotel you were hoping for and are pleased with the result.

Not too far from your hotel is this place which is worthy of a visit (get any of their 'pizzas', which aren't really pizzas at all, and whatever is still hot/warm from the oven (or ask them if they will heat it up):

Sullivan Street Bakery

533 W 47th St

New York, NY 10036

Thank you for sharing your results and using the HOTWIRE links on the board to begin your purchase.

Enjoy your stay.