Peter Greenberg: $100 New York Hotels

By: Peter Greenberg | Source: AARP.org | 2009-10-07

Q: Dear Peter, I’m going to New York for five days. How can I get a hotel with breakfast for less than $100 per day?
–Cherie, Simi Valley, Calif.

A: New York may be one of the most expensive cities in the world to visit, but with the economy the way it is, you can get a hotel for under $100 a night for the first time in YEARS. But you have to be willing to forego space and certain amenities, including breakfast and a private bathroom.

The Jane Hotel in the West Village offers 50-square-foot mini-rooms for only $99 per night (the hotel calls them “cabins”). They are clean, stylish, and have tons of high-tech amenities, but have only a single bed and no bathroom (you share a communal bathroom down the hall). Breakfast is not included.

The Pod Hotel on East 51st Street is another low-cost alternative. Though its lowest-price rooms are currently going for $129 per night, the hotel has been known to offer $99 specials at certain times. The cheapest rooms actually have bunk beds, although queen-, double-, and single-bed rooms are available for a higher price. Though bunks may sound very college-dorm-like, bear in mind that the hotel is very high-tech, offering 10" LCD TVs, a docking station for an mp3 player, and free WiFi in every room. Lagniappe is an in- room display that tells you when the tricked-out, shared bathrooms are available.

A helpful resource is a Web site called Deal Base, which compiles thousands of actual hotel deals and lets you sort by price. The site lists all the freebies that are included and calculates whether you’re actually getting a good deal. At the moment, there are no New York City hotels that include breakfast listed for under $100, but you never know what might pop up.

And remember that in this economy, everything is negotiable. Even if a hotel doesn’t include breakfast in its package, it doesn’t mean they can’t. Before you book, call up the director of sales or the general manager and start negotiating. And don’t just ask for breakfast. Find out about free parking, Wi-Fi services, and any other amenity that would make it more likely for the hotel to lock in your business.