Booking an NYC Holiday

The markymoo guide to booking a NYC Holiday.

I'm writing this, because after a good few months on moneysavingexpert, I find the same questions and answers cropping up, month after month. I can't say this is the best way, but this is my guide, something a bit different, and gives you some really basic ground rules to how I book my NYC holidays.
I'm not being sarcastic, (for once), I am stating the obvious, but with all the fun and excitement of thinking about going to NYC, you might get sucked in and jump in and book anything you see.

Cue the theme tune..

Firstly, think about when you are going to book. NYC's high season can be so different to, say, Tenerife's. Mainly, because from June - Aug, no one wants to be in NYC, as it is REALLY REALLY HOT AND HUMID, so actually it is the kinda low season. November, before and straight after thanksgiving (third thursday in nov) is probably the high season, as is New Years.

However, after the first week of Jan, prices are cheap, and probably stay reasonably cheap until April / Easter time. It starts to warm up there.
the low season prices doesn't really affect hotels, they are always expensive, and you always have to grit and bear paying loads, but I'll come onto that later.

So, you've decided when you want to go.

Flights.

Well, you need to get there now. I've subtely put a mini guide in my signature, to let you know my opinion of what a good price of flight is. Now, this is my personal opinion, and it is based on when I go to NYC, which is normally March and September. However, i've been known to go in Nov, Oct, May, and Jan, but that isn't the point. It is there to basically say, if you think £500 is a good price for a flight to NYC, I don't think it is, and you should ask the board if we can find it cheaper for you. If it is £250, its a bargain and you should book straight away, and then tell everyone, rather than asking.

the 3 month rule (i've invented this name now) is probably something you need to think about. When I book my birthday holiday (yes, a holiday for my birthday) in march, i normally book at the beginning of Jan. I've always found that after christmas the airlines put out their offer fares (non refundable, non changable) online. It takes a bit of patience to get a good fare, but daily searching pays off. I always say if i can get a fare as near to £300 as possible it is worth it. Now, i know i can get a return fare today for £400, but i don't want to book just yet, yeah, if i miss out on it, i miss out, but i'm sure if that is being offered now in November, in Jan, i'll get it for £300, which is better.

A useful website is http://www.flyaow.com/classamex.htm because once you've chosen where and when you want to fly, the amex page shows lots of weird letters with numbers. These are the classes the tickets are in, and how many are left in that class. So, you have your bargain fare, and you know it is in class X, you find this out in the details of the fare, so you know whatever price you're paying is that class. you look on flyaow, and see that there are 9 tickets left. that either means there are 9 tickets left OR MORE. if you see it say 2, it means that the last 2 are available, and you need to snap them up. the airline might make more available in the same class and price, but they might not. at least you know how many are at that class. classes on airlines are confusing, a Y class ticket is a full fare economy ticket, costing about £1100 to NYC and back. this is why you need to get discounted tickets. Most discount tickets don't allow for any changes to you schedule, so ensure you've typed everything correctly, as you can't do name changes, date changes, or refund the ticket.

Usual suspects for flights are expedia, ebookers etc etc... i don't need to talk to you about that, I'm sure someone else will mention it.

There are a couple of budget trans-atlantic airlines which are Jet2 (from Leeds Bradford) and FlyGlobeSpan, both of which have had mixed reviews. US Airways are usually cheap from Manchester, but it does involve a change at Philadelphia, (as it does if you fly with them from Gatwick/Heathrow). Recently Delta have come into the marketplace with some unbelievable deals

So, now you understand a bit about getting a bargain flight, lets put that money you saved to good use and find a hotel that you like.


Hotels.

NYC is split into many different areas. Manhattan, Queens, Brooklyn, The Bronx, Staten Island... Most people want to stay in manhattan, and boy don't the hotels there know you want to stay there.

You can pay anything from $20 to $2000 a night, for a hotel room in NYC.

again, i'll reiterate, this is my opinion only, and this is what i think is a fair price to pay.

right, lets talk money. £100 a night is not a bad price for a hotel in NYC. I hate to say it, but to ensure somewhere nice, you have to spend a bit of money.
£400 for 6 nights isn't a budget for a hotel, and it doesn't give you much choice. £600 however for 6 nights, will give you a number of hotels to choose from.

remember, if you travel in a group / family, you can get a larger room, for a little more, making the per person cost even less. I normally travel on my own, so i don't benefit from any of that!!!

so, you've adjusted your budget to make sure you're going to get somewhere nice, and now you need to decide on where to stay,.

I've stayed at various different locations in Manhattan, in a number of different hotels, so hear me out when i say the following.
Now, i know that Times Square has the flashing lights, and the buzz of NYC, but personally, i don't stay there any longer. Why? because that is all it has, flashing lights!
But, most people when they first go to NYC, want to stay around there, or what people know as Midtown.

I hear people say, "i want to stay centrally". Remember, it is manhattan, it's an island, and you can get anywhere in probably around 20 minutes. Maybe think about staying somewhere else. I say this because places like Murray Hill, SoHo, Greenwich, TriBeCa, are all places within Manhattan that are probably the same cost for hotels, than Midtown East / West, but you get a different vibe. You get a true NYC Vibe, rather than a tourist trap vibe. Shops are friendlier, breakfast is cheaper, and the restaurants are higher quality for the same money.

So, pick of hotels,

Edison - Times Square - tatty, old, clean, located just off times square, loud area.
ThirtyThirty - Murray Hill, Now a very expensive hotel for what it is, but if you can get a good price on this, its not in a bad area, reasonably quiet too.
Cosmopolitan Hotel - My preferred hotel - TriBeCa - 15 minutes away from Macy's on the subway, 30 minutes away from central park on the subway. reasonably priced, larger rooms than the thirtythiry, newer looking, better upkept than the edison.

Tripadvisor is a good place to look at to see what other people say about the hotels. Other ones that other moneysavers have recommended, include the Gershwin, and i know some NYC'ers that think that this is a good hotel too..

hotelconxions.com is a good website for hotel booking. they have good prices on most hotels, however, charge in US$, so dust off that Nationwide card when booking!!!

other choices are Priceline and Hotwire. blindman has written a wonderful guide on priceline hotel bidding, so go take a look at that!

Also, remember that if you're only doing 2 - 3 nights, you might save a packet on staying in New Jersey, and travelling into manhattan when you need to via train. This could save considerable $$$ on hotel prices, but you have to weight it up, that you can't drop off your shopping and go back out, (which i've done before) as you're in manhattan til you leave... its worth considering

Right.... i think thats it for a quick guide to booking your NYC holiday, don't forget travel insurance, and book that at the same time as your holiday, because you never know what might happen, and read my other guide on how to get into and around NYC.

Guide to Getting in and around Manhattan

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