MARCH 30, 2015
LCSNA
Searching Tips:
Decide on your maximum budget per night + taxes.
If your budget is under $285/night with tax then you
will likely need to be flexible on location and be willing
to commute unless you find a special sale.
Take a glance at the column to the right and next page
for suggested hotels to look up when you search.
Search www.quikbook.com notice the handy map tab.
See something you like, book it! If not continue to
Search www.hotels.com and/or
Search www.trivago.com
Conference Venues:
Morningside Heights
Columbia University
116th Street & Broadway
Upper West Side
NY Public Library of
The Performing Arts
64th Street & Columbus Ave.
Last year, on Columbus Day Weekend, tourist class hotels were fetching
over $235 per night (not including taxes & fees). This is the start of high
season so book now.
Ideal locations would be in midtown Manhattan near a subway stop, but
hotels up to 86th street and down to the tip of Manhattan island will work
fine as the transit system is good and subways can get you just about
anywhere in Manhattan within 30 minutes or so.
All prices quoted are for 2014 Columbus Day, sampled March 9, 2014.
Plan on at least a 15% increase in 2015 as the economy improves.
SAMPLE rates are per night excluding taxes & fees and subject to change!!
www.quikbook.com
Some of the best discounts at up to 30% off. Check out the pay-in advance and Secret Sale discounts. Good map plotting hotels.
No fee to Quikbook on most bookings if you cancel in advance by a day
or two (www.hotels.com typically charges $25 even if you meet hotel’s
cancellation rules). Understand the cancellation policies before
booking.
Suggestions seen on Quikbook.com:
NYIT
60th Street & Broadway
Upper East Side
Cosmopolitan Club
122 E 66th St, Bet Park & Lex Aves.
Grolier Club
47 E 60th St, Bet Park & Mad. Aves.
Murray Hill
The Morgan Library
36th -37th Streets & Madison Ave.
Greenwich Village
New York University (NYU) Fales Library
 Jolly Hotel Madison Towers - Midtown East www.jollymadison.com
$238 | Boutique, quite at night, 3 blocks from local restaurants
 Pod 39 – Murray Hill www.thepodhotel.com
$258 | Boutique, hip, youthful, small rooms, local restaurants
 Pod 51- Midtown East www.thepodhotel.com
$168 | Shared Bathroom, boutique, hip, small rms, local restaurants
 The Jane Hotel –Meatpacking District www.thejanehotelnewyork.com
$135 | Shared Bathroom, rooms designed as small ship cabins, local
restaurants, hip nightlife nearby
 Secret Sale Deluxe, Times Square: $377
More accommodations options continued on next page…
70 Washington Square South (equivalent to 4th St.)
www.mta.info
One of the best transit systems in the country; cheap, fast subways, convenient & 24 hours. If you are in a hurry, do like a New Yorker and take a subway.
$2.75 is the current (new) one way base flat fare (based on round trip purchase, otherwise single fare is $3) on local buses and subways no matter how far
you travel, and you are allowed one free transfer between subway and bus or between buses (within 2 hours of first use). City bus drivers do not give
change, have cash or sell tickets! Bus fare collections boxes are by the driver & will accept MetroCards or coins only (no bills & no change returned).
Subway turnstiles only accept MetroCards, but subway stations have vending machines to purchase the MetroCards with cash, credit or debit cards. Some
subway stations have attended booths where you can purchase MetroCards with a credit card or debit card (no cash accepted); $5.50 min. purchase. A few
small stores (newsstands, delis) also sell MetroCards, but they can be hard to find.
MetroCards are thin plastic multi-use cards that can be used to pay your fare on city buses & subways. There are two types of cards. A regular card based
on a dollar value you add (Pay-Per Rides) or an Unlimited card. For $31 a 7 day Unlimited card is good for ONE person (or $116.50 for a 30 day
Unlimited). Unlimited cards can’t be reused in the same station or bus for 18 minutes (no sharing). A 7 day Unlimited card starts to save you money if
you use it 13 or more times within the 7 days (48 or more times for the 30 day card). To encourage refilling (recycling) cards, a $1 fee is charged for
each new card. Pay-Per Ride (not Unlimited) cards are also good on the PATH commuter train (to New Jersey) and the AirTrain (to JFK airport).
Discounts: An additional 5% is added to your Pay-Per Ride MetroCard with the purchase or addition of $5.50 or more. Effectively a discount is available
on all but single ride purchases. Up to three children 44 inches tall and under ride for free on subways and local buses when accompanied by a fare paying
adult. If you qualify for reduced fare (65 or older or have a qualified disability), you can travel for half fare, but must get a special ID and apply in advance.
Buses that say “Limited” stop about every 10 blocks, others regular buses (called “local”) stop about every 2 or 3 blocks. Specially painted blue “Select
Buses” replace “Limited” buses on a few popular routes; in an effort to save time require you to get a paper receipt from the on street vending machines at
the bus stop before boarding so you can enter from any door. You can’t pay on board these Select Buses; BIG fine if you can’t produce a receipt if asked.
More info at : www.mta.info and check out the “Helpful Website & Apps” tips section on page 2.
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LCSNA Alice150
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Helpful Websites & Apps:
Getting in from the Airports
www.nycgo.com/articles/nyc-transportation-getting-here
www.hotels.com
The Roosevelt Hotel
Madison Avenue at 45th Street
Good discounts, huge selection.
Hotels.com typically charges a $25
cancellation fee in addition to any
imposed by the hotel.
www.taxifarefinder.com/main.php?city=NY
HopStop www.newyork.hopstop.com
Get directions by subway, bus or car.
Embark NYC Subway letsembark.com/
Suggestions found on hotels.com:
 The Roosevelt Hotel, Grand Central www.theroosevelthotel.com
$238 | grand hotel, quiet@ night, restaurants close, small rooms
 DoubleTree by Hilton Metropolitan, Midtown East www.metropolitanhotelnyc.com
$259 | full service, big hotel, restaurants close
In New Jersey, across the Hudson River, requires a PATH commuter train;
5 to 10 minutes with frequent service throughout the day. Allow 45-60 minute
commute to get to conference venues (for more accurate commute times go to
www.newyork.hopstop.com). These are good option if you are happy to do a commute
to upgrade quality without doubling price. Note, not much around these hotels as
they are in a business area and unpopulated in the evenings:
 Hyatt Regency on the Hudson, Jersey City www.jerseycity.hyatt.com
$239 + Path Train $2.25 each way or ferry option too
 The Westin Jersey City Newport, Jersey City www.westinjerseycitynewport.com
$239 + Path Train $2.25 each way
Airbnb
Taxi Cost Estimator
www.airbnb.com
Caution: discussion is ongoing among local law makers possbily banning this type of service
which could affect some of these listings, if not all. As back up, book a hotel that will allow
cancellations without fees up to 24 or 72 hours in advance of check in.
Rent from people in over 34,000 cities and 192 countries.
Alternative to hotels are renting a room in someone’s residential apartment. In
some cases you can rent the whole apartment. Savings can be tremendous over a
standard (no shared bathroom) hotel room.
I hope you find these NYC tips helpful.
Liz Springwater, LCSNA member
New York, NY
[email protected]
Maps and real time train tracking.
BusBus NYC itunes.apple.com/us/app/busbusnyc/id568911309?mt=8
Real time city bus tracker
UBER www.uber.com
Can’t find a taxi? Use your smart phone to get a car
on demand using this industry changing app
OpenTable www.opentable.com
Helps find and book restaurants
TKTS www.tdf.org/nyc/7/TKTS-Overview
Deeply discounted Broadway and Off Broadway
shows for same day performance. The phone app
will display real time availability. Tip: avoid the
long lines at the Times Square booth and go to the
less busy South Street or Brooklyn locations where
you can also pick up matinée tickets the day prior.
New York Times Friday weekly listing of what’s
going on around town. Search in Google for
“NYT Spare Times for” + “{current month}”
Free Museums plus pay as you wish times for
many others: www.ny.com/museums/free.html
New York Magazine resources for where to eat,
shop & party. Check out "Best of NY" on menu bar.
nymag.com/bestofny/
Also has handy neighborhood guides:
nymag.com/visitorsguide/
Want more NYC Mobile Apps?
www.nycgo.com/articles/best-nyc-smartphone-apps
NYC.gov recommendations to help visitors and
locals with New York City navigation, attractions,
events and dining.
Yellow Taxis: The famous yellow cabs are found almost exclusively in Manhattan (south of 96th street - which is in the heart of NYC). Anytime,
however, it is raining or during morning & afternoon commuter rush periods it can take 20 or more minutes to find an available taxi. Normally allow 10
minutes to find a cab by walking to the corner curb and raising a hand high above your head (hailing a cab). If the taxi’s white roof light is on
(illuminating their license number) then it is available and they are supposed to stop and take you anywhere within the 5 boroughs at the metered fare
(based off $2.50 to start, plus time waiting, distance, tolls paid, and some minor surcharges up to $1, plus a tip is expected to be between 15-20% of the
fare). No surcharges apply for luggage or extra passengers. Taxis accept major credit cards for payment or cash (but not required to accept bills over $20).
Click “taxi cost estimator” website for estimated fares. Taxis can take a rider in the front passenger seat, but no more than 4 in a sedan and 5 in mini-vans.
Yellow taxi must also take you to Newark Airport (across the river to New Jersey), but there is a $17.50 surcharge plus you need to pay round trip tolls.
It’s a good idea to ask for and keep your receipt from all taxi rides as it may help if trying to track lost items.
Light Green Taxis: If you are above 96th street in Manhattan or in the outer boroughs, then you can also hail a light green colored taxi, but the green ones
can’t pick you up in Manhattan below 96th street.