Last fall - on a trip to NYC - I stayed at my favorite bargain place - The Larchmont in lovely Greenwich Village - (good continental breakfast, sinks in the room - European style with bathroom/showers in the hallway on each floor - but a bit small for 2 unless you get one of the larger/corner rooms - http://www.larchmonthotel.com/) - while a friend of mine stayed over in New Jersey.

His place was more or less across from the Southern end of Manhattan (will have to get the name of the nice area) - and there was good PATH service into the City - as well as other transportation service.

He has traveled all over the World (including living in Europe) - and had read about this place and wanted to try it out - and said he walked around the area in NJ at night - and it was very nice/safe, with good dining options. Will try to get the name from him.

First of all. Harlem is part of Manhattan - just a little farther uptown. The area is largely gentrified, although there are some blocks that are still not a place I would like to walk alone after dark. And, as far as I'm aware - everyplace there is a B&B - some with shared baths.

As for Brooklyn, there are some places that are convenient and some that are not. I'm not sure you will find anyhting for $150 in a good, convenient area there either.

I would suggest looking in Manhattan at the Jane hotel and also the Pod hotel - both of which have tiny rooms, some with shared bath, but in Manhattan;

You might also look at Long Island City, which has some decent places and is only about 10 minutes to midtown by subway. But you must make sure the lodging is very close to a subway station. I beleive that the Country Inn and Suites is OKK - and they may have something in your budget - which is very low for NYC in summer.

The Manhattan HI Hostel is at 891 Amsterdam @ 103rd St.
If all you need is a place to sleep, a breakfast, and a shower room and a bath room off the hall, you can stay there for less than $60/night per person.
They do have co-ed dorms. http://www.hihostels.com/dba/hostel060003.en.htm

FWIW, I think the effort/time involved in staying outside of Manhattan (where you've said you plan to do your sightseeing/strolling/shopping) is more off a nuisance rather than an advantage - especially when there are plenty of nice Manhattan hotel options within your budget. Here are a few. All worth a phone call (if the online price seems too high) at the very least.

http://www.thejanenyc.com/

http://www.hotel17ny.com/

http://www.thepodhotel.com/

http://www.cosmohotel.com/

http://www.hotel31.com/

A friend stayed at the Pod on 39th this past spring and really liked it. Great location in Murray Hill and prices are about as good as your are going to find.

My friend stayed over by Ferry St - in Newark - and this is his comment:

........Newark was on Ferry st, which runs into Newark Penn. And that street has wonderful restaurants. There is also a Hilton hotel attached to Newark Penn.


From Newark Penn one can easily take a short 20 some minute path ride to WTC,or a even quicker train ride to New York Penn .

fyi - here is a Utube on Ferry St: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PGP_94G3Vms

Trekking to Jersey is not advised. And Newark is not a place I would recommend that anyone stay.

Not sure of the status of the path station - I believe some are still closed.

Long Island City in the borough of Queens, across the East River is often recommended on this Forum.
However, I can't imagine staying outside of Manhattan. The subway system will get you where you want to go so look all over the island.

I posted this link last week. It has a lot of inexpensive hotel suggestions.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/tom-meyers/cheap-sleep-manhattan_b_2212286.html#slide=more266887

Harlem should be a good place to begin your search, although the properties there are mostly either B&Bs or apartments for let. There are express subway stops at 125th St. so you really would not add more than a few minutes to your trip from most tourist attractions to your lodgings. Harlem is a large area, so if you do decide to base there, we could give you ideas about which locations would be best. Just to give you an idea, I am female and would have no hesitation walking around in Harlem, even at night, although I would not be traipsing around anyplace much after midnight.

Here is one well-reviewed West Harlem hotel option, but there are others:


http://www.aloftharlem.com/



There are some new hotels in Brooklyn that would be great for location but the prices for these are almost surely too high foryour stated budget. Most important, along with general area, would be the subway connections....there are parts of Brooklyn that are very well connected to Manhattan, and parts that are quite far removed due to poor transit connections.

We stayed at Country Inn & Suites Long Island City for three days and it was fine. There are other hotels close by also. We were 5 minutes from the subway and only about two stops from central Manhattan. We stayed further out in Astoria for the other 11 days, and again not a problem getting into Manhattan. We loved the subway system.

nyt's advice about LI City is pretty on the mark, considering what you're looking for -- cheaper accommodations outside Mnhtn. Easy subway ride into the city, but stay near the subway station.

Country Inn and Suites may work - for random nights next June they have some rooms as low as #125 per night - so within your budget even with tax.

As for credit cards, any hotel with take them - but most B&Bs won't.

And for random rates the Jane has rooms with bunk beds and shared bath for about the same rate.

The hotel gets good ratings - and while the rooms are tiny - you do have the benefit of being in Manhattan.

Thank you everybody for your time and advice.

I've checked many of the hotels listed and, except for the Jane, with taxes they cost more than $ 150. However, I'd like to stay in Manhattan, but the accommodation available for my budget is a bit discouraging. I'm not a demanding or picky person, but man, those places look tiny, but hey, it's NYC, and it isn't a cheap destination.

What's the problem with my budget? In Venezuela, where I live, there is exchange control. We are allowed to spend no more than $ 2500 a year, and only with credit card. We are allowed to use no more than $ 400 in cash per year. It doesn't matter if I have the money, it's $ 2500 and $ 400 per year and that's it. Why do we have such a limitation? Where's democracy? Well, that's what happens when we have for president a former military, with socialist ideas, and Fidel Castro as a mentor.

With food and lodging, and my wish of staying a little bit more than a week, have proven to be a challenge because of the exchange control.

I went to Madrid last year, and I was able to find nice lodging for my budget. The same happened two years ago when I visited Lisbon. However, I didn't know (or remember) that lodging in NYC was so expensive.

Anyway, I don't think I'll be able to travel to NYC next year. I'm going to have to choose a different destination.

Thank you again for the links (at least I have inexpensive lodging information saved for the future), your time and input.

Orlando Fato

This website will help with cheap lodging anywhere in the world you want to go. http://www.hihostels.com/
You might be able to find cheap lodging near a rail station and take a day trip into New York Penn station.
Fly to Newark?

The LIC options are within your budget. but based on what you've said I don;t know if the whole trip would be.

Not sure what options you have to maneuver within those numbers. Wouldn't want to reco you break the law - but how would anyone ever know how much cash you have?

Sorry OrlandoFato, but NYC is about the most expensive city in the entire US for lodging, and there are few alternatives. I would strongly recommend Long Island City as a budget-friendly place to base yourself. It doesn't have the cache or attraction of Brooklyn, but it does have the cheapest hotels in NYC by far. Most important, Long Island City, Queens, is in NYC and on the NYC subway system, something you cannot say about New Jersey.

There are a few cheap options in Manhattan, but you really do have to cut some corners to get a place for under $150 per night (like share a bath). If that's an option for you, then by all means pursue it.

Another viable option in Manhattan is Priceline. You bid on a hotel and you get whatever is in your price range. You specify a neighborhood (which may be marginal in places and usually end up with a chain hotel). This is great for budget travelers who don't mind sharing a double bed (many hotels in Manhattan don't have two beds). And you can often get a hotel for under $150 including taxes. But the trick is you must wait until about 4 to 5 weeks out and you might not get something even then in your range.

My advice: Book a hotel in Long Island City, Queens, now and try to find something in your price range in Manhattan. You can always cancel the booking if you do.

One final caveat about NJ. Hotels there generally require you to take a commuter train or bus, and these costs can be substantial ($10 or more per person per day round-trip) and have inconvenient schedules for tourists as the buses and trains are geared to the needs of commuters. Those hotels on the PATH (the equivalent to the "subway" to NJ) also require an additional $5 per person round-trip for transportation. If you are on a tight budget, NJ is typically not that good a deal despite the generally lower hotel rates in places like Secaucus. The ferry, for example, is more than $10 per person per day.

I agree w/ nytraveler. All the suggestions for (relatively) inexpensive accommodations are good. But w/ what you've explained about the currency/monetary policies, unfortunately I honestly don't think a trip to New York is possible.

Have you talked to any of your countrymen who have managed such a trip - maybe they would have some other ideas.

The Aloft Harlem hotel that I linked above, part of Starwood, has rooms for less than $150 for random dates next month. For my taste, it would be a much better location than Long Island City.

The OP is coming next summer - when hotel rates are likely to be double what they are in January (when they are essentially given away due to lac k of tourists.)

I'm not all that concerned about the hotel costs - there are ways around that (Priceline/POD/Long Island City/New Jersey)

But from what the OP says about the limits on foreign exchange, and credit card use I just don't think a NYC trip is doable any time of year. That's why I suggested talking to other Venezuelan nationals to see how they manage (if they do)

You could try this hotel http://www.carltonarms.com/rates.htm , although one person reports having been bitten my bedbugs while others have reported no problems. The hotel is funky.

It's a little condescending to tell someone they can't afford to come to NYC just because they can't afford more than $150 a night for a hotel. I've traveled many times to Paris and never paid more than $150 for a hotel, and there were certainly times when I couldn't do it for more and needed to come in at much less. I'll assure the OP that there are options even if they don't include Manhattan, and they are viable, decent options. Just because you have to stay one subway stop from Manhattan doesn't mean you can't or shouldn't come to NYC.

Doug: "It's a little condescending to tell someone they can't afford to come to NYC just because they can't afford more than $150 a night for a hotel. "

I think you may have missed the OP's explanation. It is NOT that he cannot afford the hotels. It is because the Venezuelan government does not allow its citizens to spend more than a certain amount of foreign exchanged $$$. There are strict currency controls.

"In Venezuela, where I live, there is exchange control. We are allowed to spend no more than $ 2500 a year, and only with credit card. We are allowed to use no more than $ 400 in cash per year."

So it doesn't matter if he can afford $150 or $450 - he can only spend $2500 outside of Venezuela.

Doug, actually, many people offered suggestions for budget hotels. Why is it considered condescending to agree with the OP who admits that the hotels in that budget may be less than ideal for him?
Many hotels that are sometimes under $150 all in turned out not to work for the dates he's looking at.
"I've checked many of the hotels listed and, except for the Jane, with taxes they cost more than $ 150. However, I'd like to stay in Manhattan, but the accommodation available for my budget is a bit discouraging. I'm not a demanding or picky person, but man, those places look tiny, but hey, it's NYC, and it isn't a cheap destination"

People have suggested the Long Island City hotels so I'd assume that either he's not interested or the prices don't work out there either.

He has also pointed out some unique issues related to being Venezuelan and having legal limits on what he can spend. People have just agreed with his own assessment that in NYC like some other cities that don't have lots of acceptable low budget options, the whole trip might be a problem for him.

Does this $2500.00 + $400.00 include airfare? If the trip is shortened by a few days and the op stays in LIC, it could work. NYC, once your lodging is taken care of, can be experienced on a budget. I agree this budget would be impossible at certain times of the year. We stayed in Manhattan this past summer in a Wyndham for $112.00 through a quikbook.com deal. Bidding on priceline would also be a way to really control hotel costs. Air B&B isn't for me, but I wonder if the op would consider the risks worth the savings?

The problem with a B&B is that they may not take credit cards - and the OP is limited to paying that way - since he can't spend more than $400 cash total.

I agree that he should seek out others who have come to NYC to determine how they did it - if there is some way around these restrictions.

Hey - don't get discouraged - and keep on doing your homework/checking on rooms - and I think you can find something in NYC itself - rather than having to commute in.

Part of the reason I love the Larchmont (yes - it has shared shower/bath/wc - 2 of them per floor) is that it is in a great neighborhood/tree lined streets (Greenwich Village - where most of the buildings are only six stories - at least on the side streets) - and when you step outside - voila - you are in the Big Apple. BTW - they have sinks in the room at the Larchmont - so you can brush your teeth, shave, etc.

They also attract an international clientele - so you might enjoy that as well.

Even if you stay in a small room elsewhere in NYC - what the heck - as you are out and about most of the time. If it has a TV - I am happy to get updates on news, etc - and other than that - mainly just sleep in the room. If my wife is along - may upgrade elsewhere - but for moi - love the Larchmont.

Check out this list again from Fra_Diavalo - which I thought was pretty interesting:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/tom-meyers/cheap-sleep-manhattan_b_2212286.html#slide=more266887

Hi everybody,

I don't see as condescending the comment that NYC might not be the place for me due to the exchange control. I myself see it that way and stated it. However, I understand why it's been regarded as condescneding, but I know it was not meant that way.

I have stopped planning this trip because it just stopped being "fun" planning it due to all the budget limitation I am encountering. For me, planning a trip should be as fun as being there, and it's become more frustrating than anything else.

The thing is, a vacation, for me, means feeling free to do as I please, within my budget of course, or at least the limit imposed by our government. I'd like to be able to eat well, make a few purchases, and, in general, not feel that I have to keep an eye of every single thing I do because $ 2900 ($ 2500 + $ 400) might no be enough. Fortunately, this limit does not apply to plane tickets, which we are able to pay in Venezuelan currency locally.

The last time I visited NYC there was not exchange control in Venezuela, so I was able to enjoy myself. I used to stay in the Pennsylvania hotel back then, which I liked because of its location right in the middle of Manhattan, and from where I was able to walk pretty much everywhere. It was more functional than anything else, but back then I was even able to pay for it with Venezuelan currency through my travel agency.

B&B's are close to my budget, but they do not accept credit cards. Hotels accept credit cards, but they'd eat up a lot of my budget, and I'd like to stay, at least, for more than a week. This would be my Summer vacation, so this is the time I also use to purchase whatever I need (clothes, books, etc). If it were just strolling and sightseeing, I could make it. Considering the great shopping options in NYC, not to be able to make a few purchases would be like being on a diet and visiting a pastry shop. It'd be just frustrating.

I am keeping this thread, of course, because of the priceless recommendations that you have all done. I'd never thought of Long Island City, but, thanks to you, I know that it is also a feasible option. Brooklyn itself also seems to be an interesting option.

I thank you again for the time that you spent with your advice, opinions and input. Hopefully, I'll be able to enjoy planning a trip to NYC without currency limitations in the near future.

Orlando

Before you give up, I think you can do it. It would help if you have a travel partner so the hotel rate is cheaper per person -- one person or two in a hotel room costs the same. And a hotel with breakfast included would save money in the long run. Since you can buy stuff at home without hitting your spending limits, could you buy theater tickets ahead of time? Or gift cards to various stores like Macy's?

I don't know anything about this place, but my wife and I stayed in the Chelsea area last fall and loved it. Convenient to subway and lots of good restaurants. Here's the link to the Chelsea Inn. Looks like it has rates between $150 - $200.

http://www.chelseainn.com/