4 nights, 2 hotels?

Hi, this will be our first time in New York and I have a strange question for you experts. We have narrowed down our hotel search to 4 and they are so expensive that we are wondering if it is wise to pick 2 of them, so as not to ';put all our eggs in one basket';, just in case we made the wrong choice.

Here are our 4 choices: Waldorf Astoria, New York Palace, The Plaza and Four Seasons. If we stay 2 nights at the Waldorf(it is cheaper than the others)which hotel is the closest to it, so we could check out and walk to another one, if possible...

We usually like the older, character type of hotels like the Waldorf, but it isn%26#39;t rated very high on trip advisor.

Thanks so much!

4 nights, 2 hotels?

Are you saying you%26#39;d make a backup reservation and if you%26#39;re happy at your first choice, cancel #2 and stay? Or are you intending on staying in 2 places regardless?

I hate packing and unpacking so I%26#39;d think it would be crazy to move. What I don%26#39;t get is WHY don%26#39;t you believe the reviews on this website? The Waldorf is a lovely old hotel with grand public space (lobby, restaurants etc.) but the rooms are very dated and nothing special. That%26#39;s why it%26#39;s so much less expensive. It%26#39;s also not a terribly convenient location imo for much of anything.

It%26#39;s pretty easy to plot the 4 hotels on a map. The Palce is nearest the Waldorf. The Plaza and the Four Seasons are not far from each other but all 4 are basically in midtown east.

The Plaza rooms will START at $1000/night. Are you prepared to pay that?

4 nights, 2 hotels?

Thanks for the information! I did not say, however, that I did not believe the reviews, I simply ackowleged that the reviews were not that great and so we were prepared to stay at another hotel for the other 2 nights.

I do know the price of the Plaza and the other hotels on our list and are prepared to pay that if we decide against the Waldorf.

You are right though, the thought of packing and unpacking might make our decision for us!

By the way, we have stayed in some hotels that were not that highly rated on trip advisor, like Fairmont San Fransisco and just loved it, so I do tend to read the reviews with a grain of salt, and if the majority of people have a complaint about the same thing, I usually know it to be true!

Thanks again!

I know the press, here in NYC said that the Plaza starts at $1000. Last night I went to their website.

http://www.fairmont.com/theplaza/Index.htm

I feed in random dates. --In April, May and July. Except for the few days right before Memorial Day, I was able to get rooms for less than that.

I suggest your try.

I also agree that to change hotels in the middle is time-consuming and to double book is wrong.

You might check on luxurylink.com and skyauction.com Sometimes they have good 3 or 4 night packages at some of the top hotels. You just have to make sure the hotel will accept the pkg. on the dates you want BEFORE you buy or bid for it.

Since you seem to like older classic hotels, I%26#39;m surprised you haven%26#39;t mentioned the St. Regis, the Peninsula, the Pierre, the Carlyle or the St. Moritz. These are all much more classic than say the 4 Seasons (which is a wonderful hotel, but very very modern). The Palace has magificent historic public rooms but the bedrooms are actually in a modern tower built above this landmarked property.

I was considering St. Regis but seemed even more expensive than The Plaza and The Pierre will be closed due to renovations the time of our visit. Basically I was so overwhelmed by all the choices that I wanted a shorter list to work with! We have stayed at the same chains before like Four Seasons and Plaza(Fairmont property)so I guess I was going with something familiar.

We will be going September 2-6 so I suppose that is still high season.

With all the great places to visit in the world, this will probably be our only time to New York and didn%26#39;t want to make any bad decisions with hotels so I am starting my research early!

I think I have decided though, only to stay at one hotel!

Thanks for the help!

Matlock

I never have enough time in Manhattan, although I visit for 2 weeks every year. That said, I would pick a hotel and stay there for a visit. Time wasted packing and unpacking is precious time. As for which hotel, I%26#39;ve stayed at none that you mention. But all seem nice if the price is right for you.

Stay at 1 hotel. You listed some of the most expensive hotels in the city, there are others that may be cheaper and really just as nice. NY Whiz and some other experts can give you better advice on hotels than I could.

Sept 2-6 is not ';high season'; but not low season either. We all like different things in a hotel. In NYC, I would consider having a Central Park view a wonderful luxury. The Ritz Carlton Central Park, Trump, Four Seasons, Mandarin Oriental, the London, St. Moritz, Sherry Netherland and some others would have that. The Waldorf is really nothing much imo unless you stay in a suite in the Waldorf Towers.

If you really don%26#39;t think you%26#39;ll ever be in NYC again, perhaps the Plaza is a good idea. What would concern me is where the hotel rooms are located in the building. I%26#39;d assume the best views will be in the private apts. not the hotel rooms.

Then there%26#39;s the question of staying in the nicest room of a lesser hotel vs. the lesser room at a nicer hotel....

thanks NYwhiz for the suggestions. The view is important to me, but not as much to my husband...

This might seem odd, but we are more concerned with the overall ';feeling'; of the hotel when we walk in. A beautiful lobby area, lounges, other public areas, are probably more important to us than the room itself! Although we do not want to be stuck in the basement with NO views outside! A really grand entrance area really wows us!

I will look at the Ritz like you suggested and might put that on our short list. I might take off Four Seasons because, like you said, it is so modern and you can stay at those anywhere...

Although you do not care for the Waldorf, I guess we were thinking it was very ';New Yorkish'; and would have so much history, etc...

Think it is down to Plaza, Waldorf, New York Palace and perhaps Ritz Carlton Central Park.

Thanks again everyone for your help!