Hotwire Hotel: NY or NJ May 28-31/2008 - suggestions?

[berwick]

Hello! I'm new to this board, but have found a lot of useful information - THANK YOU ALL!

I'm heading to NYC May 28-31/2008, flying in to MacArthur Airport in Islip. Manhattan is definitely out of my price range, and I'm thinking that Jersey City looks like a great alternative. I tried PL this morning, and bid $100 for a 3-star (hoping for the Hyatt), but was turned down.

My question(s)... should I keep trying, hoping that chances get better closer to my travel date, or should I be looking elsewhere (e.g. Islip in Long Island, or some other area of NJ)? It's my brother's wedding, so there's no play in my travel dates. We're not renting a car, so have to rely on public transportation. Also, I'm staying with another sibling, so would like a room with 2 beds.

Additionally, in case I can't find a deal until the last minute, can anyone suggest a reasonably-priced hotel (<$125), with good 24/7 public transport to Manhattan, that I could book as insurance, with the option to cancel if I actually get a better deal?

Any suggestions are welcome, and greatly appreciated! BTW, this is my first forum posting ever, anywhere, so please accept my apologies if I've committed some faux-pas with this posting!

Regards,

Berwick

[thereuare]

Welcome to BetterBidding!

Where is the wedding... in Manhattan?

If you were to receive a room with only one bed, would that be acceptable? (although as per your post, not desirable)

[berwick]

Yes, the wedding is in Manhattan and, yes, a place with one bed would be acceptable, but as you commented, not ultimately desirable. Thanks for asking!

[thereuare]

Are you not able to rent a car or opposed to doing so in order to keep costs down? You can get from Islip to Manhattan via mass transit... but it's not that easy or convenient (or cheap).

I see 2 or 3 options that i can see...

1) if you can stretch your budget to $175 HOTWIRE has a 3* hotel in the Midtown South zone for $173/nite which will put you directly in the city and save you the time and expense of commuting each day, but it is above your budget mentioned above

2) in Jersey City the Ramada Limited is available for $142/nite. The area isn't that great, but it is walkable to the PATH train which can easily get you into either Midtown or Downtown Manhattan (i'm not in this area at nite so can't comment how safe it is to walk late at nite from PATH to the hotel)

3) what appears to be the the La Quinta Clifton is available on HOTWIRE for $56/nite. Not the most convenient to get to NYC, but should be do-able and serve your purpose. This location would be much more convenient if you had access to a car, as that would ensure you're 24/7 access to Manhattan (busses stop running from NYC to NJ at about midnite-2am depending upon location), and give you first need to get here from (and return) to Islip, renting a car may be a good option, given that it could save the expense of mass transit to/from Islip.

Do any of the above work for your needs?

[berwick]

Thanks for getting back to me, thereuare, and my apologies for the delay in responding. With regards to your suggestions:

Unfortunately, I don't drive (trust me, the streets are far safer without me behind a steering wheel!), so renting a car is not an option. I'm an aficionado of public transit and legs!

1) I'm definitely on a very strict budget, so $175/night is beyond my means - I know that NYC would be far more reasonable re: transportation, convenience etc. I'm just not able to do it, given that I also have flight & wedding gifts to allow for!

2) Thank you for the Ramada suggestion. I'll talk with my sib about booking it - it's always good to have insurance (although Ramada has a $25 cancellation fee)

3) And again, thank you for the La Quinta Clifton lead... I'm going to check out the location/transportation options in greater detail and see if it's a possibility. The down-time for bus transport concerns me (but maybe the PATH train, with inconvenience, would suffice?)

Again, thank you for your help... you seem to be the Guru of this board!

Regards,

berwick

[thereuare]

Most of the NJ Transit Bus system shuts down by 2am (last bus leaving Port Authority), so there is little to no mass transit to get you from PATH to a hotel in NJ (if it isn't walkable from the PATH)