NYC › Best Places to Stay
Updated: June 26, 2023
By Santorini Dave
My Favorite Hotels in Manhattan
• Best New Hotel: Pendry
• 5-star: Mandarin Oriental
• 4-star: AKA Times Square
• 3-star: citizenM
• For Families: Lowell
• For Couples: Library
• Near Times Square: Chatwal
• Central Park: Pierre
• Penn Station: Renaissance
• Grand Central: Library
• Empire State Bldg: Langham
• Lower Manhattan: Crosby St.
• Financial District: Four Seasons Downtown
1. Mandarin Oriental • 2. Pierre • 3. Lowell • 4. citizenM • 5. AKA Times Square • 6. Chatwal • 7. Pendry • 8. Renaissance • 9. Langham • 10. Library • 11. Crosby Street • 12. Four Seasons Downtown
Times Square and the Theater District in New York City.
For most visitors (whether first-time or return) staying in New York City usually means staying in Manhattan. And the best area to stay in Manhattan for most tourists is somewhere close to Times Square. The larger neighborhood surrounding Times Square is called the Theater District. And the Theater District is located within Midtown Manhattan. Pretty much any hotel in Midtown will put you within walking distance of Times Square, all Broadway plays and performances, Rockefeller Center, the Empire State Building, 5th Avenue shopping, and the Museum of Modern Art.
Good hotels in Midtown, walking distance to Times Square:
AKA Times Square • citizenM • Hilton Garden Inn Times Square Central • Riu Plaza Times Square • Pod Times Square • LUMA Hotel – Times Square • Crowne Plaza Times Square • Edison Times Square • Westin at Times Square • Andaz 5th AvenueThe Best Places to Stay in NYC
The affordable Riu Plaza Times Square has a great location for first-time visitors to Manhattan.
- Best Luxury Hotels in NYC
Mandarin Oriental • The Pierre- Best Boutique/Honeymoon Hotels for Couples
Library • Crosby Street Hotel • The Bowery • Andaz 5th Avenue- Best Cheap/Midrange Hotels in NYC
citizenM • Riu Plaza Times Square- Best Hostels in NYC
HI NYC Hostel • Historical Blue Moon Hotel • Pod Times Square • Pod 39- Best NYC Hotels for Families
Lowell Hotel (luxury) • Thompson Central Park (luxury) •Hotel Beacon (midrange)- Top TripAdvisor Hotels (Best Value)
Motto by Hilton Chelsea • Margaritaville Resort Times Square • MOXY NYC Times Square • Riu Plaza Times Square • Homewood Suites Midtown Manhattan- Best New Hotel in NYC
Pendry Manhattan West
The trendy Andaz 5th Avenue is close to upscale shopping and a short walk from Times Square and Broadway theaters.
Best Areas to Stay in New York
New York has neighborhoods for almost any interest, whether theater, art, nightlife, or food. The best things to do, the best NYC hotels, and the best family hotels are spread around Manhattan, but wherever you stay, it’s easy to get around as long as lodgings are near a subway station (or even a bus stop). Learning the transit system is not difficult since much of central Manhattan is laid out on a grid with cross streets clearly numbered. If numbers go up, they are leading north or uptown, descending numbers head south or downtown. Most of the avenues are one-way, so buses travel in only one direction (route maps are posted at every stop). Subway stations are labeled either uptown or downtown to show the direction of the trains on that track.
“Crosstown” literally means going across the city from east to west. Fifth Avenue is the dividing line between what New Yorkers call “east side” and “west side.” Major two-way arteries like 14th, 34th, 42nd, and 57th streets have buses going in both directions and a subway shuttle train crosses the city on 42nd Street from Grand Central Terminal to Times Square.
To calculate distances, 20 blocks in Manhattan equals roughly one mile. For example, Midtown between 34th and 59th streets, where many famous sights are found, is less than 1.5 miles long and easily walkable. The winding lanes in the older parts of the city also are quite walkable, but in these areas, street maps or mobile phone maps are recommended to guide your way.
Hotels within steps of NYC subway station: Sheraton Times Square • citizenM Times Square • Smyth Tribeca • The New Yorker • Courtyard Times Square • The Knickerbocker • Mandarin Oriental • The Sherry Netherland • Hotel Indigo Financial District
Best Neighborhoods in NYC for …
- Best NYC Neighborhood for First-Time Visitors: Theater District
Yes, it gets crowded but there is no more convenient home base than the Theater District, roughly 42nd Street to 50th Street west of Sixth Avenue. This area has the greatest variety of affordable lodging choices, is an easy walk to Fifth Avenue and (of course) Times Square and the theaters. The great central location eliminates the need to fight crowds for transportation after a Broadway show. Another plus: The 42nd Street Broadway subway stop is served by many lines, making it easy to visit other parts of the city. The The Chatwal (luxury) and the citizenM (midrange) are great places to stay for New York first-timers.- Best NYC Neighborhood for Sightseeing: Midtown
While there’s much to see everywhere in the city, the most sights in one neighborhood by far are those clustered in Midtown, the heart of New York shopping and theater and home to some of its most iconic buildings.- Best NYC Neighborhood for Nightlife: Meatpacking District
The sidewalks are crowded with young fun-seekers until late at night in this happening area, home to many popular cafes and dance clubs. But New York nightlife isn’t confined to one neighborhood. More clubs, both straight and gay, are found in “Hell’s Kitchen,” a neighborhood in the 40s west of 9th Avenue, and a lot is happening across the East River in Brooklyn’s Williamsburg. For jazz bars and clubs, check out Greenwich Village.- Best NYC Neighborhoods for Foodies: Tribeca & SoHo
Check any dining guide and you’ll find a host of the highest rated dining places in these neighboring hoods, from classic cooking to top of the line ethnic choices. For expensive gourmet fare, the West 50s boasts several well-known culinary stars, including a trio in the Time Warner Center.
Breakfast with a view from our room at The Bowery Hotel.
- Best NYC Neighborhood for Families: Upper West Side
Bordered with parks and playgrounds and boasting both a children’s museum and the famed dinosaurs at the American Museum of Natural History, this is an excellent neighborhood for families. Several hotels offer family accommodations and the area is served by two subway lines and several buses, making it easy to get around.- Trendiest NYC Neighborhood: The Bowery
The fast-evolving Bowery, near the East Village between Houston Street and Cooper Square, is home to the avant-garde New Museum, new headquarters for the International Center of Photographry, sleek art galleries, and an expanding list of trendy new hotels and dining. There are still rough edges here but there’s no better place to experience the vibes of change in New York.- Safest Areas of NYC: Upper East Side, Upper West Side, Lincoln Center
Safety generally is not an issue in New York, one of the country’s safest big cities. But for those who are concerned, consider staying in the Lincoln Center area or the quiet residential Upper East and Upper West sides. Among these, the Upper West Side has more reasonable prices.The 9 Best Neighborhoods in NYC for Tourists
The Library – wonderful boutique hotel in the heart of Midtown Manhattan.
1. Midtown
Times Square, the Theater District, Fifth Avenue shopping, 57th Street and Madison Avenue boutiques, the landmark buildings of Rockefeller Center, the Empire State Building, St. Patrick’s Cathedral, the Museum of Modern Art, the bright lights of Broadway and dining choices from budget to haute cuisine are all found in this area, the heart of Manhattan. It is a must for visitors and has the city’s largest concentration of hotels.
- Best Hotels: The Chatwal • Library • The Langham • Andaz 5th Avenue • AKA Times Square
- Best Cheap/Midrange Hotels: citizenM Times Square • Hilton Garden Inn Times Square Central • Riu Plaza Times Square • Pod Times Square
2. Upper West Side
From twin-towered luxury buildings along Central Park West to side streets lined with classic New York brownstones, this is a prime residential area and also home to Lincoln Center, the city’s cultural hub, and the American Museum of Natural History. Like its East Side counterpart, this neighborhood is bordered with parks, Central Park to the east and beautiful Riverside Park along the Hudson River. Many hotel choices make it a good area for those who prefer a quieter neighborhood.
- Best Hotel: Mandarin Oriental
- Best Cheap/Midrange Hotels: Empire Hotel • La Quinta Inn & Suites Central Park • Hotel Beacon
3. Upper East Side
Some of the city’s wealthiest residences are found in this tranquil area roughly between 59th and 96th streets east of Fifth Avenue. It is home to “Museum Mile,” eight excellent institutions along Fifth Avenue, including the world famous Metropolitan Museum of Art. The area is bordered by two green oases, Central Park to the west and Carl Schurz Park, with a promenade along the East River. Restaurants abound, from neighborhood diners to fine dining, but hotels are on the expensive side.
- Best Hotels: The Pierre • The Mark Hotel
- Best Cheap/Midrange Hotel: Gardens Suites Hotel
4. Tribeca & SoHo
Named for their locations (triangle below Canal, South of Houston), these neighborhoods of former warehouses have been reborn. Thanks largely to resident Robert DeNiro, Tribeca is home to a noted film festival and its spacious, pricey loft apartments and fine dining attract the rich and famous. Soho’s loft spaces first drew artists and galleries, but rising rents have changed the area into a trendy shopping and dining district.
- Best Hotels: Crosby Street Hotel • ModernHaus SoHo
- Best Cheap/Midrange Hotels: Sonder I Duane Street • Soho Grand Hotel
The view of the financial district from the rooftop deck and pool at the ModernHaus SoHo Hotel.
5. East Village & Bowery
This gentrifying, one-time hippie haven from Houston to 14th Streets east of Third Avenue still offers many affordable restaurants, but new development near Houston and the neighboring formerly-derelict Bowery have brought avant garde museums, galleries, more upscale dining and hotels. Still in flux, it might appeal as a classic example of how fast neighborhoods can change in Manhattan, where people are in a constant search for the next big thing.
- Best Hotel: The Bowery
- Best Cheap/Midrange Hotels: The Standard •East Village Hotel
6. Greenwich Village
No grid plan here, just a crazy maze of leafy lanes lined with charming 19th century townhouses, many of which once housed famous artists, writers, and musicians. The cafes, clubs and coffeehouses of “the village” as the locals call it, have long been magnets for young people, including students at New York University, which occupies many of the blocks around Washington Square, one of the city’s liveliest park spaces. A great area to visit, but with few hotel options.
- Best Hotel: The Marlton
- Best Cheap/Midrange Hotel: Washington Square Hotel
7. Meatpacking District & Chelsea
Once home to wholesale meat packers and desolate at night, the cobbled streets west of 10th Avenue near 14th Street have become one of the city’s liveliest centers for dining and clubbing. Further north, from 22 to 28th streets, the old warehouses of Chelsea now house dozens of art galleries. Both areas have blossomed and new hotels and the Whitney Museum have arrived since the opening of the High Line, an elevated pedestrian park on a former rail line running from 13th to 34th streets.
- Best Hotel: Maritime Hotel
- Best Cheap/Midrange Hotel: The High Line
8. Lower Manhattan & Financial District
Narrow twisting streets are evidence that this is the oldest part of the city, though today Wall Street and its surroundings are home to a forest of skyscrapers dwarfing the few remaining historic sites. With the completion of the new 1 World Trade Center and the 9/11 Memorial and Museum, this area is booming with tourists and new shops, hotels and restaurants. Many financial district hotels have good rates on weekends when business travelers go home.
- Best Hotel: Four Seasons Downtown
- Best Cheap/Midrange Hotels: Courtyard by Marriott Downtown/WTC • Hampton Inn Downtown-Financial District
The Four Seasons Downtown is the best hotel in Lower Manhattan.
9. Lower East Side, Chinatown, & Little Italy
The old ethnic neighborhoods of the city are changing. Crowded and ever-fascinating, Chinatown has mushroomed, taken over all but one street of what was Little Italy and rapidly absorbing much of the Jewish Lower East Side. However, on Orchard Street and blocks closer to Houston border the East Village, the area has been rediscovered by a new generation, and cool shops, clubs and restaurants are blooming. The Tenement Museum is the best evidence of what used to be and some Jewish culinary landmarks remain on Houston Street.
- Best Hotel: Sixty LES
- Best Cheap/Midrange Hotels: Hotel 50 Bowery • Holiday Inn Lower East Side
