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Hotwire Hotel: 2* Newark (Secaucus - Meadowlands) Howard Johnson


Blujaay
By Blujaay,
in

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First bid $115 for a 2.5* for all zones, than lowered to 2*, than lowered once again to 1*.

$115 is the max as I am booking this for someone else. I already have rooms in MTE for $85 for 1/1-1/5.

My next option would be to try and get a room across the river in NJ in the Secaucus or North Bergen areas.

A quick question to those that are experts in the area. What would be the best way to get to and from the Secaucus area from mid-town and how long would it take. Thanks.

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Actually that's my neck of the woods...

I'd sooner first recommend the Jersey City area as it's an easier commute to/from NYC, but after that the Secaucus/Meadowlands and Rutherford/Meadowlands area is fine too. There are some pretty nasty hotels in the North Bergen/Union City area so if you do try this zone i would avoid 1* and 2* ratings (and this would be my last zone choice).

From the Secaucus area, travel would be by bus. The bus would arrive/depart from the Port Authority in NYC... 40th St and 8th Ave and would take about 20 minutes without traffic (but i wouldn't expect traffic to be light on NYE).

From the Jersey City area travel would be by PATH train and would be about 15-20 minutes to/from mid-town NYC or less than 5 minutes to/from downtown Manhattan.

I can advise further depending upon where your cousin wants to be in NYC to celebrate NYE and what times s/he'll be travelling. Busses will probably stop running at some point while the PATH train is 24/7.

Please use this HOTWIRE and these PRICELINE LINKS: HOTELS, CAR RENTALS, and AIRFARE to begin your travel purchases

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I appreciate all the help you have been, this site is truly a great resource! :)

Thanks for the advice on North Bergen and Union City. I'm leaning towards the Secaucus area as this is closer to Mid-town. They will be spending NYE in Times Square. I'm guessing the earliest they will be finished would be by 2am. I suspect the buses would not be running at that time, so I would imagine them taking a taxi back to the hotel for the night and probably back the following morning to their hotel in MTE. I wouldn't imagine the taxi fare to be too high as many have said that the bus shouldn't take more than 20 minutes.

Once again thanks for all your help.

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I wouldn't imagine the taxi fare to be too high...

That depends upon what you consider to be too high!

A taxi, if you can get one that is willing to take you to NJ (they're allowed to turn down a fare outside of NYC) will be double the meter plus tolls and tip. The fare is double since the driver can't pick up a fare back into NYC, so he's essentially entitled to the roundtrip fare. Assuming no traffic, again, not very likely, you're probably looking at a meter of about $25, so the fare will likely be closer to $56 ($25 x 2 + $6 toll) without tip... so with tip you're now looking at about $65. Compare that to the PATH train fare of $1.50.

I would HIGHLY recommend the Jersey City area over either of the above. I know inventory is tight for this nite, but make sure you calculate the total cost, including commuting, when you figure out your maximum bid in each zone. I'd even be willing to pay a little more 'total' cost to stay in the Jersey City area than the Secaucus area simply for the convenience/mass transit options.

If you're not successful bidding this on Priceline, i currently see Expedia has a AAA rate (hopefully your cousin is a member or can become a 'trial' member before the stay :) )at the Jersey City Candelwood Suites for $129. More than you're probably expecting to pay, but i throw it out there to give you a feel for things as i don't think it's too bad of a traditional rate for NYE and can give you an idea of another option in case your not successful with lower bids and you need to raise your Priceline bid.

Please use this HOTWIRE and these PRICELINE LINKS: HOTELS, CAR RENTALS, and AIRFARE to begin your travel purchases

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Thanks for the tip in regards to the taxi, you are right that would be too high. Jersey City might be a better option in the long run. Also, do you know what time the buses stop running to the NJ side (Secaucus) of the Hudson. If they choose Jersey City, I imagine that they would have to take two trains from Times Square, one to Downtown Manhattan and than another across the river.

Once again, thanks for the tips they have proved quite useful.

I see that the Candlewood Suites have gone for $55 that night on Priceline so it is quite reasonable.

Merry Christmas!

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Yes, 2 trains would be neccessary but it's still the best option (IMO).

The best plan would be NYC subway to downtown and then 4 minute PATH ride to Jersey City, but if 'caught' in mid-town could always take the PATH and transfer at Newport or Grove (depending upon which schedule is in effect).

The busses will probably provide additional service, but i don't know how late. Below are some links which may prove helpful:

PATH System Map

PATH Timetable

NJ Transit Bus Home Page (call them to see if extended hours for the route you're interested in.. can ask PATH the same question, their number is 800-234-PATH)

I traveled to Tallahassee today and am on a dial-up connection but will be checking in with the board as i can (at least twice a day) so feel free to ask any more questions that you come up with.

Please use this HOTWIRE and these PRICELINE LINKS: HOTELS, CAR RENTALS, and AIRFARE to begin your travel purchases

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The scenario above will work fine.

The PATH from midtown is still an option but a connection would be necessary. Good chance the PATH will run extra trains that nite as well. One of the links in my prior post has a timetable and your cousin can try to coordinate times, but i would give the PATH a call in the next day or two to find out if they'll be going with their regular schedule or running add'l trains. Usually i'll just "show up and hope for the best", but at the wee hours of the morning 30 minutes can be a long time.

Let me know if/when they're successful with the hotel, then i'll try to go thru all of their commuting options depending upon where they will be (will they hang out in Times Square after the ball drops or end up at a bar in another part of town?)

Please use this HOTWIRE and these PRICELINE LINKS: HOTELS, CAR RENTALS, and AIRFARE to begin your travel purchases

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Failed bids all around. I bid $85 for a 3*, 2.5* and 2* in Jersey City and they were all rejected. I also added

Secaucus and Union city. They were all rejected. I was hoping for the Doubletree in Jersey City for $75 that was posted yesterday, but could not get that today.

Since I needed a room badly, I went to Hotwire and booked the $54 2* property in Secaucus. They had no rooms available in Jersey City. The hotel I got was the HoJo in Clifton (680 W Route 3). After looking at a map I realized that this is quite the journey from Mid-Town.

I was wondering what are my options for returning to the hotel after New Year's Celebrations in Mid-town at around 2-3am.

I wish I had bid a day earlier so I could have gotten the Doubletree in Jersey City.

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Was the only amenity icon shown a laundry icon?

It looks like the NJ Transit Bus #192 has a special schedule that will have the last bus leaving at 2:15am (although it does say that the bus is subject to change!!)

I'm not sure how close this will get them to the HoJo, but i would try to enter the bus stop intersections into MapQuest, along with the hotel's address, and see how far they are from each other.

Actually, at the bottom of THIS PAGE it shows all the routes with Holiday Schedules and how late they run.

There is also a train station in Clifton (Main and Bergen Line) that will have extra service from Hoboken as per this schedule: Main and Bergen Line from Hoboken

(NOTE: they need the MAIN Line to get to Clifton, not the Bergen Line)

I'm not really certain where the train station is relative to the hotel, but i'd call the hotel and ask. It may be closer than the but option, but at the very least it will get them closer in the event they don't get to the bus in time.

Getting to Hoboken (to catch the train) shouldn't be a problem as it appears that bus service runs until 4:30am (with the next day's schedule picking up shortly thereafter) and the PATH runs 24/7.

If none of the above work as worthwhile options, report back and i'll try to think of other alternatives. I'd be interested in hearing how they eventually make this trip and how easy/difficult it proved to be.

Hope the above helps!

PS- this thread will soon be moved to the NJ >> Hotwire section of the board so if you look here and it's not to be found, please check that area

Please use this HOTWIRE and these PRICELINE LINKS: HOTELS, CAR RENTALS, and AIRFARE to begin your travel purchases

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  • 2 weeks later...

thereuare,

Thanks for all your help. My cousin and his wife enjoyed their trip to NYC greatly and appreciated all the help. They had no problem figuring out the bus system once they have there after looking at all the websites before they left.

Everything worked out great. Thanks once again for all the help that you provided during that time.

Thanks.

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