New York Hotels - Choosing Your Hotel Location

Whether it's your first time to New York or your fiftieth, you'll never tire of what this city has to offer! There's always a new show to see or a new sight to explore. In fact, there is so much to see and do in this city, that it is literally impossible to see everything. You might just have to come back again - at least you will want to, as NYC is a city that will capture and mesmerise you from the moment you land until the moment you depart.

Now onto the important stuff - booking your hotel. If you're not lucky enough to have family or friends in NYC you can bunk in with, you'll have to find accommodation. New York hotels are the most popular accommodation in the city. As one of the most visited cities in the world, New York hotels are always in high demand and can be very expensive, especially if you choose to stay in the city centre.

New York hotels in Manhattan

Manhattan is the heart of NYC. It is actually an island on the Hudson River and this is where you'll find all the city's top sights, shopping, theatres, nightlife - pretty much everything that New York has to offer can be found in Manhattan.

Manhattan is huge and has several districts and the elongated island is divided into three main ones - Uptown, Downtown and Midtown.

As the name suggests Midtown occupies the middle stretch of the island and is divided up further into: the Theatre District (home of Broadway, Times Square, Hell's Kitchen, Madison Square Gardens), Midtown East (location of Empire State Building and Grand Central Station), and the Chelsea Garment District and Gramercy.

Uptown Manhattan is considered anything north of 59th Street. (To go "Uptown" in NY, is to go "north"). Upper Manhattan is made up of the Upper East Side, the Upper West Side, Harlem, Roosevelt Island and Central Park.

Downtown Manhattan is considered to be anything located south of 14th Street. (If you are going "Downtown" in NY, remember you are going south). Downtown Manhattan is probably one of the most popular hotel locations along with Midtown Manhattan. It is made up of the districts: Lower Manhattan - the very southern tip of Manhattan. This district is home to Wall Street, Ground Zero, South Street Seaport and Battery Park where you can catch a ferry to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island.

Just north of Lower Manhattan you'll find the trendy Tribeca District and the bustling Chinatown district. Soho can be found north of Canal Street and is a fantastic shopping destination. Greenwich Village, East Village and the Lower East Side are more residential but also popular for their bars, clubs and restaurants.

No matter where you stay in Manhattan, you won't be far from a subway station, so you'll have no hassle getting around. However staying in this central location comes at a price. Manhattan hotels tend to have the most expensive hotel rooms you're likely to come across. Hotel rooms are really small (especially around Times Square!) compared to other cities, buy hey, you are in NYC, how much time will you really spend in your hotel room!?

New York hotels outside Manhattan

If you do want to stretch your Dollar a bit further, then there are other options. Consider staying in a New York hotel outside of Manhattan. Four other boroughs namely; Brooklyn, the Bronx, Queens and Staten Island together with Manhattan make up New York City and have excellent transport connections to Manhattan.

Brooklyn is one of the most popular boroughs to stay in. It's very well connected to NYC by subway and has tonnes of hotels, which may be more affordable. Brooklyn could actually be a city in its own right and is one of the most populous boroughs in NYC.

The Queens borough is in fact the geographical heart of NYC and home to two major airports - JFK International Airport and La Guardia Airport. It is the most ethnic and diverse part of the city and has a genuine laid back and relaxed appeal about it.

The Bronx is located north of Manhattan and is the only NY borough located on mainland America! Like the other boroughs, it is very well connected to the city centre via the subway and the Metro North trains. The Bronx has a character and charm all of its own and has pockets of Dominican, Mexican, Puerto Rican and Irish neighbourhoods. Yankee Stadium, the Bronx Zoo, Woodlawn Cemetery and the New York Botanical Gardens are located here.

Staten Island is the most suburban of all the boroughs and is a pleasant passenger ferry ride from Manhattan. Staten Island may be a good choice for you if you're arriving or departing from nearby Newark Airport.

The best advice on booking hotels in New York is to book early. By doing so, you may get a nice Manhattan hotel at a good price. Also try to avoid busy times in the city, like the NYC Marathon, 4th July, Thanksgiving and New Years Eve when hotel rooms tend to skyrocket.

Hope you find the perfect New York hotel for your stay.

Mairead writes for top travel and accommodation website PlacesToStay.com

Visit http://www.placestostay.com to book a wide range of carefully selected hotels in Ireland, Europe and throughout the world at great value prices!

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