Planning a GTA->NY and back Trip, HELP!

[patron]

I am planning a first trip to NY for a about 5 days 4 nights. I need the power that is RFD to get me the best deal, travel and stay. Its for a 2 person (adult) stay.

We are university students and for the travel we got a quote of $180 roundtrip VIARAIL. Opinions?

Hotels: I'd like to stay within manhattan and foudn 3 stars for about $800 USD for the 4 nights.

THe dates are August 20th->25th.

PS, if you guys have any pointers as to attractions or maybe how to get tickets for letterman or regis, i much much appreciate any help!

THnx!

[Shaner]

Two things I would recommend are taking the plane over the train. If you drive to Buffalo, you can get a very, very cheap flight into NYC. It'll be a bit more than the train, but well worth it. The train is awful!

For a hotel, I would recommend going with Priceline.com

Go with a 3 star south of central park. You'll get it a fair bit cheaper than $200 per night (although not likely in Times Sq.)

Where is the hotel that quoted you that $200 per night?

[T-DOT]

As stated, try Priceline.com or even hotwire.com for Hotels.

And if you're a clubber. You can throw your budget out the window. With $30 entry and at least 10 dolla drinks.

Getting Stand-by "Late Show with David Letterman" Tickets: Call (212) 247-6497 starting at 11:00 a.m. on the day of the show you would like to attend. You will be asked to answer a David Letterman trivia question, and if you answer it correctly, you'll be asked to arrive at the theater approximately an hour before taping. Stand-by tickets do not guarantee admission to the show.

From: http://gonyc.about.com/od/tvtapings/p/david_letterman.htm

Regis:

Phone? Call 212/456-2410 or 212/456-3055 for last-minute tickets.

Stand-by? Arrive at the studio no later than 7 a.m.
Request a standby number.
Get ticket!

Good Luck

[CoffeeAddict]

Don't stay in Times Square. It's an awful place to be for more than 30 mins. At least IMHO. I would suggest Midtown East, Midtown, or SoHo. The financial district has some cheap options but absoltuely nothing happens there after 5pm or on weekends.

[webworm]

Jetblue has $59.00 flights from Buffalo to NewYork but Delta has the best deal on the dates you want to travel (Aug 20 - 25). It is $157.30 including taxes.
Aug 20 7:50am
BUF 9:29am
JFK Nonstop 1 hr 39 min Delta 5464
CRJ 100
1:40pm
JFK 3:18pm
BUF Nonstop 1 hr 38 min Delta 6199
Embraer 145
operated by Freedom Airlines IncCoach (U)
View Seats
$138.00 round trip
+ $19.30 Taxes/Fees = $157.30

[patron]

thank you for the replies,

we are kind of very cost sensitive at the moment so we trying to get cheapest rate possible.

Is the delta flight from Buffalo or Toronto

[gregv]

I have been to Letterman ~ 10 times and I don't think anyone from the standby line has ever gotten in.

Go to the Letterman website on cbs.com and register for tickets. Put in your cel #. They have called me many times when I am already in NY.

Go to the Letterman theatre and they may have a registration desk for tickets for the next day or so. Sometimes the Letterman staff are in Times Square near the TKTS booth or in front of the Virgin store as well. Whether you register online or in person, expect to answer a trivia question to get the tix.

I have probably used Priceline over 100 times, send me pm if you want help. Just remember you find out the name of your hotel after your credit card has been charged, you can only request bed type once you check-in and there are no refunds. Many hotels in NY have max occupancy of 2 persons and only one bed.

[Shaner]

Don't stay in Times Square. It's an awful place to be for more than 30 mins. At least IMHO. I would suggest Midtown East, Midtown, or SoHo. The financial district has some cheap options but absoltuely nothing happens there after 5pm or on weekends.

I couldn't disagree more. Times Sq. is the perfect place to stay, IMO. It's literally right in the middle of everything and you can get pretty much anywhere in NYC by hopping on one of the Subways that come into the Times Sq. subway station.

I very highly recommend staying as close to times Sq. as possible. The financial district isn't a great place to stay. It's dead in the evenings and on weekends and it's a fair distance from everything else.

[rfd_DD]

My wife and I just got back.

We booked through Travelocity in March. My wife had a $200 coupon from a previous trip, so we got return flight from Buffalo and 5 nights at the Wellington Hotel (7th and 55th, right between Central Park and Times Square, great location) for $1000. Our room was small and a little dingy, but after I complained (nicely), they upgraded us to a huge suite on the top floor.

The day we got there we went on standby for Letterman but, didn't get called any of the 5 days.

[webworm]

thank you for the replies,

we are kind of very cost sensitive at the moment so we trying to get cheapest rate possible.

Is the delta flight from Buffalo or Toronto

As indicated above the flight is out of Buffalo. From Toronto you will pay a lot more $$$

[Drew_W]

If you're feeling notoriously cheap (or on a tight budget) and just need a place to stay the night, there is a YMCA right across from Lincoln Centre that is RIDICULOUSLY cheap. It blows for amenities, but it's a bed in the middle of the city.