Advice on staying in DC/NYC

[ecbrevik]

We are going to take a family trip to Washington DC and New York City in July. We are interested in finding a place to stay in each town that is 1) safe, 2) affordable (I know, 1 and 2 don't go together in DC and NYC ), and 3) offers easy access to the public transit systems.

Any suggestions from locals or folks who have traveled there?

 

[Patman]

Re: Advice on staying in DC/NYC

For DC I would stay outside of the city... when I was looking for apartments I stayed one night at a Holiday Inn in the Ballston neighborhood of Arlington. You'll already be on the subway system at that point.

Nevertheless, you should be able to look around and find things. Getting into town might take a little longer from a touch further out but you're there for the attractions not the amenities. Staying further out to be cheaper, imo, is worth the additional travel time. I think you should also be able to stay on the subway lines.

edit: looks like my suggestion will be pricey... are you planning on renting a car or are you trying to go without renting a car? I think easy subway access should be reasonable... just look around.

 

[BoomGoestheDynamite]

Re: Advice on staying in DC/NYC

We are going to take a family trip to Washington DC and New York City in July. We are interested in finding a place to stay in each town that is 1) safe, 2) affordable (I know, 1 and 2 don't go together in DC and NYC ), and 3) offers easy access to the public transit systems.

Any suggestions from locals or folks who have traveled there?

Crystal City/Pentagon City in Arlington has a dozen or more chain hotels in the area, is right on top of a metro, and a straight shot across the Potomac to DC. Its not the most exciting neighborhood, but it is safe.

 

[Ralph Baer]

Re: Advice on staying in DC/NYC

ecb,
Look for the thread about the 2009 frozen four. There was a lot of discussion about DC hotels.

I agree with the recommendation about the Crystal City area, especially if you are over a weekend, since hotels there cater mainly to business people. There are reasonable places in downtown DC also. I suspect that a lot of people can comment upon where they stayed for the FF.

As to NYC, it's even more expensive than DC.

 

[hockeyplayer1015]

Re: Advice on staying in DC/NYC

We are going to take a family trip to Washington DC and New York City in July. We are interested in finding a place to stay in each town that is 1) safe, 2) affordable (I know, 1 and 2 don't go together in DC and NYC ), and 3) offers easy access to the public transit systems.

Any suggestions from locals or folks who have traveled there?

For NYC: My mom and sister just stayed in NYC, 2 blocks off times square at a comfort inn on W 44th for something like $140 a night maybe? Not sure. It might help to join a hotel chain points program (Choice hotels covers comfort inn, econo lodge, etc).

 

[hockeybando]

Re: Advice on staying in DC/NYC

When we went to NYC on our honeymoon we stayed at the Hampton Inn Times Square North. Good location, nice hotel, good (free) breakfast, all-day (free) coffee bar. We stayed for four nights and it cost somewhere around $650, but that was for a king. Here's the site so you can check out rates if you want to.

It's very close to 9th Ave. which is home to many, many, many restaurants. It's also a couple blocks away from Broadway and Times Square, and the Gershwin Theatre is right across the street from the front door. The hotel staff was fantastic. Cabs are all over the place, and there are subway stations nearby as well. Depending on how long you're going to be in NYC and what you want to do, I'd also recommend getting the New York Pass with the hop-on/hop-off double-decker bus tours. We were able to get to a lot of places just from the tour busses, since they have stops all over the place (Central Park, the Guggenheim, Metropolitan Museum of Art, MOMA, Museum of Natural History, etc.), but as I said, it's all in what you want to do.

 

[French Rage]

Re: Advice on staying in DC/NYC

A couple of summers back I stayed in the SoHotel in (of course) SoHo. It was a decent price (as far as NYC goes) and in an area convenient to a lot of the fun parts of downtown, and the area never seemed unsafe. My mom actually lost part of an earring down that overflow hole they have in sinks and they took it apart and got it out for her so that was a nice bonus. And it's close to a bunch of subway lines (took them to Coney Island and Yankee Stadium), so I have nothing but good things to say about it.

 

[ScottM]

Re: Advice on staying in DC/NYC

If you're staying in NYC and watching your pennies, I'd recommend the Affinia hotels. There's one on 7th Avenue and 34th(?) and another closer to mid-town on Madison?. I also think the Warwick off 5th, on 57th(?), had pretty decent rates, and it's close to everything. The Millenium at UN Plaza is also nice, and relatively inexpensive. If money's no object, or you get a great deal, try the Carlyle or Ritz.

For DC, I'd recommend JW Marriott. There are also some nice boutique hotels, whose names escape me, but are very close to the Mall, White House, etc.

Since you're planning for summer, you may be able to get some good rates now.

 

[jmh]

Re: Advice on staying in DC/NYC

If you're staying in NYC and watching your pennies, I'd recommend the Affinia hotels. There's one on 7th Avenue and 34th(?) and another closer to mid-town on Madison?. I also think the Warwick off 5th, on 57th(?), had pretty decent rates, and it's close to everything. The Millenium at UN Plaza is also nice, and relatively inexpensive. If money's no object, or you get a great deal, try the Carlyle or Ritz.

I know at least one USCHO poster who's coming into town for the Cornell-BU game next weekend and found the Affinia by MSG to be a good mix of value and location.

The dirty little secret that hotels probably don't want you to know is that if you're not out in the wee hours of the morning, drunk and/or not paying attention to what's around you (and given that it's a family trip I'm guessing you'll be in bed before too late at night), Manhattan below 110th Street and inner areas of Brooklyn and Queens are all pretty safe. Also, most of the city is convenient to public transportation, but it's a question of being near trains that go where you want to go, so I might look into attractions that you're planning to hit and see what's convenient specifically to the majority of them.

 

[ecbrevik]

Re: Advice on staying in DC/NYC

Thanks for the suggestions folks, that gives us some ideas to start pursuing.

are you planning on renting a car or are you trying to go without renting a car? I think easy subway access should be reasonable... just look around.

Actually, we will be driving out so we'll have our own vehicle. However, once we get into the cities we plan on parking and using public transit as much as possible.

 

[jmh]

Re: Advice on staying in DC/NYC

Actually, we will be driving out so we'll have our own vehicle. However, once we get into the cities we plan on parking and using public transit as much as possible.

Definitely a good plan in both of these cities. In NYC at least, you might want to look into whether your hotel provides parking and whether it's free; not all do, and I've heard of people coming into town expecting (reasonably so, in most cities) to find free parking at their hotel and winding up paying expensive garage rates because they haven't considered any alternatives.

 

[blockski]

Re: Advice on staying in DC/NYC

Actually, we will be driving out so we'll have our own vehicle. However, once we get into the cities we plan on parking and using public transit as much as possible.

Excellent choice.

For DC, I'd recommend trying to find a hotel where you can ditch the car there and hop on Metro. There's lots of hotels in DC that would enable this, as well as some in VA (around Crystal City or along the Orange Line corridor in Arlington). Any way you slice it, proximity to Metro is what you want. Though, the advantage with being in the city is that you're within walking distance of a lot of stuff and might not have to deal with the Metro at all.

Quite frankly, just about any place in DC that has a trusted, name brand hotel is going to be in a safe area of the city. Just as jmh notes with New York, so long as you're paying attention to your surroundings and not making yourself a target, DC is exceedingly safe.

There are also some great neighborhoods worth staying in as well, a little removed from the core of downtown. There are some hotels nestled in and around places like Dupont Circle that might be worth checking out.

 

[pardonme]

Re: Advice on staying in DC/NYC

Manhattan is pretty awful to drive in, so keep that in mind.

 

[BoomGoestheDynamite]

Re: Advice on staying in DC/NYC

Excellent choice.

For DC, I'd recommend trying to find a hotel where you can ditch the car there and hop on Metro. There's lots of hotels in DC that would enable this, as well as some in VA (around Crystal City or along the Orange Line corridor in Arlington). Any way you slice it, proximity to Metro is what you want. Though, the advantage with being in the city is that you're within walking distance of a lot of stuff and might not have to deal with the Metro at all.

Quite frankly, just about any place in DC that has a trusted, name brand hotel is going to be in a safe area of the city. Just as jmh notes with New York, so long as you're paying attention to your surroundings and not making yourself a target, DC is exceedingly safe.

There are also some great neighborhoods worth staying in as well, a little removed from the core of downtown. There are some hotels nestled in and around places like Dupont Circle that might be worth checking out.

Somebody on here a few days ago said DC is the safest city in the world for white people. Its an un-PC way of pointing out most of the crime in the District happens in areas no one visiting would ever have reason to go and a large protion of it involves the drug trade. DC, NoVa, and Montgomery County are all about as safe as yo can get. Accidentally getting a hotel in a "bad" neighberhood" simply isn't going to happen. The only place people stay where I might recommend not walking outside (do more to getting hassled by bums than any real danger) after midnight is north capital hill around Union Station.

 

[Beer Pong Horn]

Re: Advice on staying in DC/NYC

Manhattan is pretty awful to drive in, so keep that in mind.

Would someplace further out be a better choice? (on Long Island, north along the Hudson or near the CT border, Newark, etc) There's enough transit options to get swiftly into the city, especially from New Jersey, but I don't know if it'd be worth the additional time, nor if some of those places are safe.

 

[pardonme]

Re: Advice on staying in DC/NYC

Would someplace further out be a better choice? (on Long Island, north along the Hudson or near the CT border, Newark, etc) There's enough transit options to get swiftly into the city, especially from New Jersey, but I don't know if it'd be worth the additional time, nor if some of those places are safe.

Depends on the day of the week, but on weekends parking at most NJ transit stations and taking the train in should be really easy. Would also help with getting down to DC. I guess if you are just driving in to the city and parking the car and driving out again its not that bad, but I try to avoid driving here as much as possible. I doubt very many hotels give you free parking with the money they could be making selling the spots to people though.

 

[Greyeagle]

Re: Advice on staying in DC/NYC

I have nothing to offer other than good luck trolling for the Cash Cab.

Ok, one thing. When we went as a family and drove into DC I found the easiest place to park was Union Station. We then hopped a cab back there when we needed to get to the car and I didn't think the cost wasn't much more than four of us taking the Metro round trip, plus we needed the car in the evening. Not a knock against the metro (loved it when I have used it), for various reasons it was easier for us to drive into town.

 

[French Rage]

Re: Advice on staying in DC/NYC

Definitely a good plan in both of these cities. In NYC at least, you might want to look into whether your hotel provides parking and whether it's free; not all do, and I've heard of people coming into town expecting (reasonably so, in most cities) to find free parking at their hotel and winding up paying expensive garage rates because they haven't considered any alternatives.

And if there's nothing free, check if your hotel has a deal with a nearby garage as that will help you save a bit.

 

[ScottM]

Re: Advice on staying in DC/NYC

Accidentally getting a hotel in a "bad" neighberhood" simply isn't going to happen.

But it might explain those great rates on Priceline.

 

[moe24]

Re: Advice on staying in DC/NYC

Ok, one thing. When we went as a family and drove into DC I found the easiest place to park was Union Station. We then hopped a cab back there when we needed to get to the car and I didn't think the cost wasn't much more than four of us taking the Metro round trip, plus we needed the car in the evening. Not a knock against the metro (loved it when I have used it), for various reasons it was easier for us to drive into town.

One thing to remember about DC is the morons who designed the Metro system forgot to put a station at Washington Dulles Airport (but there is one at Reagan National). Just something to keep in mind if you're flying into DC.