[THREAD CLOSED - SEE PART 2] Anything & Everything New York

M4RKM

Sidmon wrote: »

Been looking for then best price for a holiday for two weeks from Saturday 16th August - 30th August. Me and the other half have never been able to go abroad without the kids before so this was going to be special and a first. I was looking at Dubai, Caribbean, Barcelona and New York. I've been put off Dubai by their possible stance on unmarried couples, the Caribbean by availability and Barcelona by price. This only leaves New York which I am having a problem finding a decent hotel and flight price on. I'm flexible about which UK Airport we go from and would have liked a 4 star hotel or above but again I'm felixible. Been pondering using priceline but having never used it before I am a little sceptical!

before i help, and find you prices... why do you want a 4* hotel, in a city, where you'll spend 8 hours a days there, sleeping, and about 2 hours a day showering, or dropping off shopping... etc...

you really need to think... NYC isn't a beach style holiday, you spend hardly any time in your room... 2 - 3* is more than enough for a week in NYC..

check out the cosmopolitan hotel... basic, but clean, and a lot of people on MSE have stayed there....


M

M4RKM

welshiebeth wrote: »

Ok- have read all the (important!) posts and am still stuck:

Am thinking of taking my Mam to NY for her 65th ...pref leaving 28/29th Dec for around 5 nights- lowest fare I could get was £459 return, which according to Markymoo is just 1*!!!!

where can I find better? Would love to go from Cardiff/Bristol, but am flexible on that, although willing to pay extra for a direct flight.

Have now resigned myself to paying £100 odd a night, hopefully at Cosmo - any other tips/advice? Would love to take her, especially as I've been absent for her last few big birthdays!

Hoping someone here can help me out - am flexi on dates, willing to depart after New years if it makes it cheaper ...

So theres a challenge for you all !

well... my price structure applies from what i think i class as a major airport... this is either Manchester, or London Airports... maybe one of the scottish airports at a push..

smaller airports, like Leeds Bradford, Bristol, Cardiff, are notoriously more expensive,

here are some sample dates and prices from London, all for 5 nights.. i searched the whole of the month from the 28th december onwards

31st december - £392 - Delta - LHR
most days in january £392 - Delta - LHR
cheapest day - 24th Jan - £299 - Kuwait Airways

Manchester

Tuesdays, 6th, 13th, 20th, cheapest at all.. £400... - US Airways, via Philadelphia

£410 most other days, KLM via AMS

Cardiff

Cheapest - £447 - most days - KLM - via AMS

Bristol

7th / 8th
14th / 15th
21st / 22nd all £403 via Continental, the return flight connects in AMS

---

so there you have it... hope that helps.. all flights are bookable through the airlines website

Sidmon

To be fair I hadn't thought about it too much but that's what we normally stay in when we stay anywhere abroad. Whats my best approach for a cheap flight and accommodation....times on my side as we wouldn't mind finding a flight and jumping on board a few hours later!

Savvy_Sue

You do have to have your first night's accommodation booked before you hop on that flight ... you are required to provide your address to immigration before arriving.

And you have looked at the links in the first page of this mega thread for specific advice on NY flights and hotels, haven't you?

If it was me (and I'm no expert here, complete novice in fact!) I'd go for flights first (being flexible on dates would help get the price down in some cases, eg flying out Monday not Saturday, maybe couple of days in 4* hotel in UK first), then try to get the cheapest reasonable accommodation I could. Have never used priceline (but there were five of us, so a bit non-standard) but I did use HotelConxions and got on well with them in the end.

If the Cosmopolitan has vacancies when you want to be there, we were quite happy there, although if your beloved insists on tea in bed it's not geared up for that (I learned to live without it).

The one possible downside to the Cosmo in summer is that the airconditioning in the bedrooms is not exactly quiet. But the bedrooms do have fans, and in a heatwave in July we managed by chilling the room before we tried to sleep and leaving the fan on, and that worked. But it depends how sensitive to hot muggy weather you are ...

Now my next question is, do you REALLY want to spend two weeks in NY? I'm not saying you couldn't fill your time, and it would have the advantage that you could take things at a more leisurely pace than those of us on a mini-break, but unless you really really love hectic city life ... well let's just say that following my recent visit I'm quite sure I couldn't cope for more than a week, if that. Not at the height of summer. It's a personal thing of course, I don't 'do' hot and humid particularly well, so if you do, please ignore me. Just be aware I'm a townie not a country bumpkin, but it really was full-on, 24/7, and I was exhausted ...

Clearly it would be crazy to try and do the whole of the USA in two weeks, but you could look at some time in NY and then do bits of the east coast. Or even fly in to Canada, 'do' Niagara Falls and then work your way south, flying back from either NY or somewhere else. I know we only made one train journey, but the fare was SIGNIFICANTLY cheaper than a similar distance/length of time in the UK. I wouldn't say we found hotels vastly cheaper outside NY, but I was in need of particular locations / facilities at peak holiday times.

So, no answers there then, just more things to think about! :rotfl:

Sidmon

You certainly have given me something to think about, but I thank you for it. It'll be our first time in the US and the first time we've ever left such travel to the last minute.....just hope we haven't left it too long!

Savvy_Sue

We're not long back from our first ever US trip, so another suggestion would be that you don't HAVE to have everything fixed before you go. I was a bit twitchy because I had the first 3 nights in NY booked, and the last four in two other places, BUT that left us 2 nights in between with nowhere to go, and NO suggestions from the boys of where they might WANT to go!

However, once we were IN NY, the boys decided they'd like an extra day there, which they spent cycling round Central Park without us. It was easy enough to book our NY hotel for an extra night, then book the hotel we'd got for our last night for another night, and amend the car hire reservation.

Ah, I say it was 'easy enough' but we did have a laptop with us, and we do have web-based email. I'd say the web-based email was the essential as there are plenty of internet cafes around, but the laptop made it easy! :rotfl:

Of course you might be able to get the flights cheaper if you're NOT flying to NYC, and with two weeks at your disposal that does give time for a more leisurely approach. If it was me planning your trip (and no, I'm not offering!) I would be seeing where I could get to cheap from your local airport, and then seeing where that was in relation to NYC, and what else I might want to do on the way to NYC. Whale watching near Boston was on our agenda until we found we could do it near Wildwood (but I'm really NOT recommending Wildwood to you!) and that was the last thing we did before driving back to a hotel within comfortable driving distance (for me!) of the airport - FANTASTIC way to end the holiday!

One tip (which I know markymoo will endorse because he laughed when he thought I was going to try this!) is do NOT hire a car for any time you spend in NYC. And look for previous posts on getting a car from North White Plains to avoid any NYC driving ...

M4RKM

yup.. you don't need a car in NYC.. it is absolute hell driving in the city... it is only for people who are maniacs...

i've driven, absolutely loved every second, but was !!!! scared at the same time..... but i do drive a lot in a car for my living regardless...

staggy

OK … so here goes…

I’m a first time poster here but I have been reading and digesting several of the forums on MSE for some months now and have picked up some great tips and ideas.

This thread has been of particular interest to me as I am hoping to go to New York at the end of December this year for some post Xmas shopping and hopefully to celebrate the new year.

I’ve never been to NY before so I have looked at prices on Expedia and lastminute but everything seems to be coming in at £1000+ per person. Don’t get me wrong, I appreciate that it is not a cheap place (to get to or stay in) but I’m sure there must be some deals out there that you rather more savvy people can probably track down.

So what am I looking for

1. Flights – leaving 28th December from Manchester, 2 adults, leaving as early as possible because I’d like to get there early afternoon if possible to allow some "orientation" time before the serious sight seeing and shopping ensues. Don’t mind a connection (direct flights from Manchester appear a little thin on the ground anyway) as long as there’s not too long hanging around in airport transit lounges. Return flight to be on 1st January but again since I anticipate a slightly sore head that day and would like to cram as much time as possible into the trip I’d like to leave NY as late as possible (say 8pm).

2. Hotel – I must have looked at hundreds of hotels on Tripadvisor and must admit I’m stunned at the prices of some of them. I would like to stay Midtown (doesn’t everyone) as we do like walking around and drinking in the atmosphere of a city and there seems to loads of stuff within easy striking distance in that area (Macys, 5th Ave, Empire State, Times square, Grand Central, Broadway etc.). I know that nobody spends much time in hotel rooms in New York as the idea is to be out and about but I would appreciate at least a modicum of space and comfort (probably at least 3 star if possible) – definitely no "hostel" type accommodation.

So these are my (rather picky) requirements and I hope someone can at least give me some advice as to wether I’m expecting too much for too little.

I also believe that Times Square is a big No No for New Year (loads of hanging around with nothing to do and then 10 minutes of excitement as the ball comes down). Any suggestions for a good place to celebrate close to the square (so you can nip out and have a look) would also be gratefully received.

The wife has already started her "Tiffany’s" fund so now it’s up to me to make the trip happen and your help would be appreciated.

M4RKM

I'm so glad i'm here first to help you in your quest....

however, there might be some slight tweaks to get you the best price possible, but, i'll give some good reasons why... ready? here goes..

staggy wrote: »

OK … so here goes…

I’m a first time poster here but I have been reading and digesting several of the forums on MSE for some months now and have picked up some great tips and ideas.

This thread has been of particular interest to me as I am hoping to go to New York at the end of December this year for some post Xmas shopping and hopefully to celebrate the new year.

I’ve never been to NY before so I have looked at prices on Expedia and lastminute but everything seems to be coming in at £1000+ per person. Don’t get me wrong, I appreciate that it is not a cheap place (to get to or stay in) but I’m sure there must be some deals out there that you rather more savvy people can probably track down.

Firstly, thank you for actually searching around before you ask on here for our help. I'm sure you'll get plenty more after my post, and you'll have a wealth of information!!!

So what am I looking for

1. Flights – leaving 28th December from Manchester, 2 adults, leaving as early as possible because I’d like to get there early afternoon if possible to allow some "orientation" time before the serious sight seeing and shopping ensues. Don’t mind a connection (direct flights from Manchester appear a little thin on the ground anyway) as long as there’s not too long hanging around in airport transit lounges. Return flight to be on 1st January but again since I anticipate a slightly sore head that day and would like to cram as much time as possible into the trip I’d like to leave NY as late as possible (say 8pm).

Ok.. i've done a quick search, and your cheapest prices for flights alone, on those dates are very very expensive, no wonder it is coming in at over £1000 per person... £743 for a return flight?! woah.. it is pricey... but that is because you're not staying a saturday night.... that makes a difference...

travel out on the 27th, come back on the 1st, 1 night more though. your flight price drops to £480.. that is a much better price, and the £500 saving will easily pay for the hotel room, for the extra night... (delta via brussels on the way out, delta via edinburgh on the way back, flight leaves JFK at 7.55pm)
(btw, £650 direct is available thru continental for the 5 nights!!!)

or, travel out on new years eve, the 31st, 4 nights again, you can get flights for £453 each...

2. Hotel – I must have looked at hundreds of hotels on Tripadvisor and must admit I’m stunned at the prices of some of them. I would like to stay Midtown (doesn’t everyone) as we do like walking around and drinking in the atmosphere of a city and there seems to loads of stuff within easy striking distance in that area (Macys, 5th Ave, Empire State, Times square, Grand Central, Broadway etc.). I know that nobody spends much time in hotel rooms in New York as the idea is to be out and about but I would appreciate at least a modicum of space and comfort (probably at least 3 star if possible) – definitely no "hostel" type accommodation.

No.. everyone doesn't want to stay in midtown.. i've recommended the Cosmopolitan Hotel, which is in Tribeca (a 12 minute subway ride to times square, 8 minutes to Macy's) to first time new yorkers, and so far, i've had no complaints. Midtown is notoriously tackier and noiser, and more expensive... however, i'll do a quick search, and give you 2 choices.. midtown and tribeca... as i'm nice like that..

prices from hotelconxions.com are in dollars... so i've used a rather standard 1.9 rate to convert...

Cosmopolitan Hotel - Tribeca - $219 a night, plus taxes, gives you £672 in total for your stay...
Thirty Thirty Hotel - Gramercy (30th Street, It is midtown) $309 a night, plus taxes gives you £945 for your total stay..

Now i was going to price up the Edison, but there isn't immediate availability on this website, so it may or may not be available.. tis is on 47th / Broadway, right round the corner from times square..

Edison - Midtown - $230 a night - £737 in total..

all stays are based on you taking the cheaper option of going on the saturday, rather than the sunday... obviously, just divide by 5 times by 4 to get the 4 night option if you decide to fly on sunday.

[/quote]

So these are my (rather picky) requirements and I hope someone can at least give me some advice as to wether I’m expecting too much for too little.

I also believe that Times Square is a big No No for New Year (loads of hanging around with nothing to do and then 10 minutes of excitement as the ball comes down). Any suggestions for a good place to celebrate close to the square (so you can nip out and have a look) would also be gratefully received.

The wife has already started her "Tiffany’s" fund so now it’s up to me to make the trip happen and your help would be appreciated.

[/QUOTE]


Ok.. lets tot up the prices..

Cheapest is now a 5 night stay, £1632, so £816 per person! a considerable saving i think!
Midtown prices wil availablilty (so the 30 30 hotel) £1905 , which is £952.. still under the £1000 you've been getting from expedia, so again.. a nice success..

as for tiffany's... yeah... keep saving....

and finally.. celebrations.. go to a bar.. drink, talk to people, and watch it on the tv!!!

staggy

Wow..... that's fantastic (and quick)

Many Many Many Thanks to you sir markymoo (as you shall henceforth be known).

I'm excited about this again now (after a period of some despondancy about the prices). The Mrs will also be made up to get an extra night there too.. that tip about staying on a Saturday is INVALUABLE...

I can tell you're a regular traveller to NYC - if you're there at New Year I'll certainly buy you a pint.
:beer: