New York City Visitor's Gude: Where to Stay on a Budget?

Loud honks of yellow cabs. The hustle & bustle of the people. The call outs from local vendors selling everything from handbags to hot dogs. This is New York. The cliché "the city that never sleeps" is an understatement. The real life Gotham is a must see for any bohemian wanna-be, urban socialite, or global trekker. You haven't been anywhere till you've been to New York. So where does one go in New York? Everywhere. Whatever your taste and whatever your budget, you can find an adventure in New York. When staying in New York, your personal style and budget can find their home away from home in any one of the hundreds of accommodations available in the city.

For the budget minded, there is a great deal to choose from each with various styles to fit your very own needs. If you are low on cash and aren't to concerned about private baths, you can be sure to find a warm bed at a hostel. While hostels are not for everyone, they are perfect for the adventurous backpacking co-ed. Hostels are very similar to dorm rooms and a few in the New York offer a trendy and affordable stay for the frugal. Hostels are also great for those who enjoy meeting new people. Many hostels offer a more open form for its guest to meet each other, housing gaming rooms and home-style lobbies. These additions make hostels more of a meet and mingle locale for the young and outgoing. One can expect to pay as low as $30 or $40 a night. While many of the hostels of NYC are more unseemly than sheek, a few standouts offer a new approach to the idea to the hostel image. A definite diamond in the hostel arena, is the Swiss 1291 Hostel located in Midtown West. Now it's not the Four Seasons, but as far as "hostelling" goes 1291 is at the top. The hostel offers a variety of accommodations, from the traditional dorm style to actual apartments. The rooms truly have character, each one with its own personality. General the terms "character" and "personality" are merely euphemisms, but the rooms of 1291 are an exception. The rooms have a urban bohemian design on a budget with hardwood floors and sponge work or paint splatters reminiscent of Jackson Pollack adorning the walls. The Broadway Hotel & Hostel is another chic option among the hostels. Other great options for backpacker are Hostelling International New York (www.hinewyork.org) and International Student Center (www.nystudentcenter.org). These well known hostels are run by major organizations whose goal is to promote international understanding and travel, which makes it the ideal place for those who are in to meeting new people from around the globe. Local YMCA's also offer hostel living. If you're still hunting for a good bargain and great hostel finds visit the following sites: www.hostels.com, www.hiusa.org, www.hosteltraveler.com, and www.hostelworldwide.com. While hostelling may fit your pocket financial, don't forget the age old saying "You get what you pay for."

For the rest of us, dorm style living is not our idea of the most comfortable experience. But money and personal style are still major issues. We all would love to stay at the Waldorf Astoria or the St. Regis, but affording those luxury hotels is another story. You will have an even harder time not paying less than $300 a night when looking at traditional hotels in Manhattan. The chain brands you have come fond of tend have higher prices in a city like New York. Using sites like budgethotels.com and even priceline.com will help you find those cheaper hotels just around the corner. While the more familiar chains tend to offer the higher prices normally, don't discount them all together. Companies like Hilton and Starwood offer prepaid online only rates that are deeply discounted from the norm. But beware these rates are usually non-refundable, only book if you know for sure you will not cancel. Either way you choose to go, visiting New York is certainly worth any amount of money you spend on hotel accommodations. Remember your there to see the city, you only sleep at the most 8 hours any way.