Description: Finding a hotel room in NYC in the month of December was quite the drama. First, we were going to beat the prices and stay in Jersey City but decided we didn’t want the hassle of crossing the river every time we wanted to go back to our room – plus, we’d be wasting precious NYC time. But every hotel in the city was asking a ridiculous rate for what would really be just a place to sleep and store our stuff. The two-star hotels (with shared bathrooms – I think not) were asking $350 a night. I didn’t pay that to stay in the Bellagio in Las Vegas for pete’s sake!
My friend’s Marriott rewards member status came to the rescue. She was able to secure a room at the Courtyard Marriott on W. 40th Street for $274 a night (it was listing between $400 and $600 on the site for us lowly non-Marriott-special people.) For that, we got two full beds, a flat-panel TV, a view of the building across the alley, and free coffee and apples in the morning. Hey, I was just happy that I didn’t break the bank on a room so I could spend some of that extra money on my “clandestine” purse purchase from the lovely street vendors.
The room was simple but clean. The staff was very accommodating and also quite welcoming, happy to help us with any detail of our stay. It wasn’t the Hilton, nor did I expect it to be. It actually lived up to my expectations, and while I would prefer a boutique hotel the next time, I can’t think of any bad thing to say about the stay.
For what we had planned on our itinerary, the hotel was also in a very good location. It was a 9-block walk to Rockefeller Center, a 2-block walk to Times Square, a 7-block walk to Macy’s, and a 4-block walk to Sardi’s, and it would’ve been an 11-block walk to the theater had we not been dressed up in our theater finest with heels and taken a car. Of course, a cab or the subway makes most anything in NYC close by, but this allowed us to walk around in 20-degree weather and really soak up the Christmas atmosphere.
The Courtyard Marriott served us well, and I would not hesitate to recommend a stay there if what you want is just a nice place to lay your head. No frills, no muss, but a good hotel.
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