Elishaga

Happy New Year!

I am coming to NYC and have had the funniest thing happen. Arriving March 16th for 3 nights with another mom and 2 girls (celebrating 13th birthdays!). I booked Le Parker Meridian and Flatotel for $275 and $309 respectively. I called back to the Meridian to add a night as we now will arrive a day early. They "unbooked" my rese. and rebooked it at a higher rate! The rese. agent was appaled...put me on hold for about 10 minutes and came back saying "politely" that the hotel manager would not budge in honoring my "old" rate (made 2 days ago) and that it was my problem. She actaully recommended that I find another hotel!

My dilema...I need the best rate for the nicest hotel I can find. I want this to be a truly memorable experience for my girls...without totatly breaking the bank. The Michangelo is $395. When you think about it...that is $105 a night more...a nice dinner a night! Really need help with which one to choose.

I now have 3 (yes, 3) hotels reserved. The Meridian, The Flatotel and the Essex house. All 3 with 2 double beds so ... apples to apples there...but the Meridian at $290, the Flatotel at $309 and the Essex at $339.

Any opinions? McLaurie! I have been watching your posts and can't wait to hear your response!

I have tickets to Mary Poppins and plan on taking them to high tea one day, museums another day, SoHo (yes, purse shopping)and "neighborhood markets" one day...and, just realized...silly me...that St. Patrick's Day is THAT weekend! That may help me decide which hotel! All are "close" to the path but not righ on it. Would love to see part of the parade then head down to SoHo...hoping that we can get out of some of the crowds!

Any suggestions in hotels or fun things to do with "teenagers" that are "cool" with this age range. They have heard about Mars 2112??? or something and Alice's Tea Room Chapter II and also about Juses Bistro and Ellen's Stardust. They both love to cook (above their age range!) and appreciate great food.

Sorry so long...a little too much celebrating? Again, Happy New Year and I appreciate any help!

e

wantsomesun

I'd suggest checking www.hotels.com for suggestions and see what rates are being offered that weekend. The Parker is a nice hotel, and with what happened to your reses, will have to rethink recommending it again.

YOu might look at the Giraffe Hotel on Park Ave, and the W at Union Square. Also that weekend I'm guessing because it is a "holiday" weekend, book quick, because the rates are probably not going to come down.

Ellen's Stardus the kids will love, all the servers are budding broadway performers, so you get music with your lunch.

Mars 2112 is fun for kids, but not great food. The might enjoy Bubba Gumps a bit better. Also Cafe 1,2,3 on W 43rd, is frenchish and good food, and the kids get crayons to draw on the paper tablecloth.

Several nice places for High Tea, The Pierre, The Palace are my favs.

The kids will also have fun around Canal St, and you might enjoy a dinner at the Peking Duck House for Peking Duck of course. Also stop next door to Silk Road for Bubble Tea.

Have a great trip.

mclaurie

Happy New Year E! What an awful story about the PM. I assume when you say the Meridian (current rezzies) you mean the Parker Meridien?? There's no Meridian that I know of. I wouldn't give them the business out of principal.

The Flatotel is a good budget hotel in the Times Square area. It's tall so you could get some views from some rooms, but it's not "special" although the girls might like the location.

The Essex House is in a wonderful, glamorous location across from Central Park. It's been a very luxurious hotel. The management has changed over the last year and the hotel's been under renovation. By March they may have gotten their act together and this could be a wonderful treat. But I guess it's also possible that renovations are not finished and you could wind up with an unrenovated room. I suppose it depends on the rate you got but out of the 3 you mention, this would be my pick. Make sure to double check the rate on quikbook as it might be better than the hotel's. I think it's $339 for your dates.

A lot depends on what you want in a hotel. Space? View? Fancy lobby? Modern skyscraper? Swimming pool? I personally would go for space with 4 people but you might not agree.

If you want space, it might be nice to have a 1 bedroom suite ( a separate bedroom and sitting room and a small kitchen). Affinia.com is a very nice group of hotels, all suites. On their website, any of the hotels (except the Affinia Gardens) is less or about the same price as I think you'd be paying at the ones you picked. The Beekman Tower is the least expensive at just over $200/night. It's a very nice art deco hotel in midtown, near the UN. It's only flaw is it's a bit further from a subway than some other hotels, but it's a nice area and you can easily get buses there too.

One thing you might consider wherever you stay is lunch at the delegates dining room of the UN if you're here for a weekday at lunch time. You need to book in advance. Here's info
http://www.newyorkology.com/archives...d_nations.html

The Eastgate Tower is looking a bit tired inside I think. But the Shelburne Murray Hill is a lovely hotel near Grand Central, the Affinia Dumont gets great reviews on tripadvisor and many of their rooms have nice views of the Empire State building. The Benjamin is considered their nicest.

Another great suite hotel is the Blakely which is closer to Times Square. On their website blakelyhotelny.com you can get a regular room (but they all have small kitchens) with 2 double beds for $275 or a one bedroom suite with 2 doubles and a twin daybed in the living room for $325. This hotel is in a great location and feels a bit like a nice apt. building but with a front desk (and a restaurant off the lobby).

If you want an old world glamorous NY hotel, the New York Palace is (in the public spaces) and for 2 double beds the price is $365 on quikbook. I think this is really good value if you want to spend that kind of money. While the public areas are opulent, the rooms are built in a modern skyscraper overlooking St. Pat's Cathedral and Saks.

Make sure you read reviews of anything you're considering on tripadvisor. Also, people post their own photos under "candid travelers photos" and they often give you a much more accurate view of the rooms than the hotels' own pix.

If you decide you want the Parker Meridien, double check the price on quikbook. The Parker does have a rooftop pool (not typical), some really nice views and 2 popular restaurants off the lobby (Norma's for big breakfast and the Burger Joint).

On shopping, Pearl River Mart (Soho) is usually popular with teens. H & M, Forever 21, Abercrombie & Fitch- all if you don't have one near you. The Longchamps store (handbags but pricey) in Soho has a very cool staircase to check out.

Here are some previous threads that might interest you

Highlights with a 13 yr old
http://fodors.com/forums/threadselec...1&tid=34708182

trip with 2 teen girls (lots of dining & museum info)
http://fodors.com/forums/threadselec...1&tid=34892479

2 teens trip
http://fodors.com/forums/threadselec...1&tid=34847096

Have fun planning the trip!

NeoPatrick

Don't you hate it when hotels get greedy? I too once had a confirmed reservation at a super rate. When I called to extend by a day, they refused to let me keep the two days at the super rate. They told me I'd have to cancel that reservation and book a new one at a much higher rate for the full three days. I kept the old one and made a new one for a single night under my partner's name -- and when we checked in, a nice reservation clerk noted it so we could stay in the same room.
Wouldn't you think they could have just added an extra single night at a higher rate? Sounds like you ran into the same problem.

aztarian

www.broadwayguides.com

Abby43

Don't take them to Mars 2112-it's really cheesy and better for younger aged children. If you want something "cool" what about Pastis, Balthazar-the trendier bistros in the Meatpacking District (Pastis) and SoHo (Balthazar).

sobster

You might want to consider the Salisbury Hotel on 57th St. It's a little older but they have suites at prices I suspect are less than those other rip-offs.

TxTravelPro

Affinia for sure... I always stay in Affinia properties when family accompanies me to NYC. They are great!

Elishaga

I appreciate the advice so far! Do you guys know of any "cooking schools" that would offer a one day class?

NeoPatrick

Here's a comment that just appeared here a couple days ago. There have been a couple similar ones:
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Author: anamaria
Date: 12/26/2006, 09:23 pm

We just arrived last night from NYC.We had reservations at the Salisbury and after arriving we switched hotels within one hour. The Salisbury was dirty and grimy.

mclaurie

http://gonyc.about.com/od/cookingcla...e_Seminars.htm

Abby43

GREAT link! Thanks!

joesorce

If you can do with 2 double beds for 3 persons, book the Barclay Intercontinental. It's a great hotel and the advance purchase rate on intercontinental.com looks like $270 a night which INCLUDES the $50 per night charge for the 3rd person (print up your confirmation to confirm that $270 is the rate for THREE).

Of course, it's always a risk to book a 21 day advance purchase rate without the possibility of cancellation. There also are some $309 packages available, not sure what they include.

Elishaga

Thanks for all of the advice. I just booked a 1 bedroom suite (2 double beds and a twin daybed in the living room)at The Blakely! After reading reviews from this site and from tripadvisor...I can't find any BAD ones about it. Got a rate of $325 a night. I remembered to cancel Le Parker Meridian and the Flatotel too! Neither one sounded too disappointed! Will ask for more planning help as I get closer. Thank you all again!
-E

sistahlou

Good for you! I wasn't familiar with the Blakely, but loved their website. Looks perfect! Le Meridian's behavior was pathetic, and I'm sure your sharing your story has cost them at least the possability of me as a guest.

KathrynT

I'm so glad you cancelled the Parker Meridien on principle alone. I've heard good things about your new hotel. Have a great trip!

johngerard

Work colleague had booked 2 rooms at the Comfort Inn Times Square in Feb 2006 for Nov 2006 but was only able to get double bed rooms at the time. October & double rooms became available & tried to change to them - hotel cancelled original booking & booked the doubles at the new rates & then refused to revert back to original booking. Comfort Inn UK or USA would not take responsibility & left it for the hotel manager to sort out.
It seems they are all doing it.
Stayed at the Salisbury myself August 2006 & found it noisy, dirty & unappealing.

ttraveler

I have had luck with Priceline before. Maybe you could give them a try.

SB_Travlr

One fun thing to do might be a "food walk". http://www.foodsofny.com/

My daughter and I did the Greenwich Village walk, had a great time. Went on a Sunday morning: the tour meets at an Italian bakery, and goes all over the village, to shops and restaurants you might not find on your own. Lots of samples along the way, too -- you probably won't need lunch! You can reserve online (they sometimes sell out of most popular times).

BudgetQueen

As only a comment. Always- if you change a reservation by cancelation- you are going to ONLY get the current rates. Do not expect to get anything else or your old rates back. Better is to just add a day if needed, separately and keep the current lower rates reserved. Always, check the current pricing before you cancel. This isn't unique to New York City.

I many times, book my rooms separate days in New York since price changes are frequent. I have never yet had to change rooms due to the separate reservation, but even if I do in the future, the savings are my priority.