aztimm

We stayed at the Conrad NYC for several days a few years ago in July. I think it was about $220/night, which was a great price for that property at the time.
It was walking distance to Wall Street, downtown, and the Liberty Island Ferry (I was doing a swim around Liberty Island, so this was very handy).
To get to Times Square, Macy's, etc., we just took the subway.
Coming back from the MET with some purchases, we hopped in a cab for about $15.
We did have some views of the Hudson River, and NJ across.

If you want to save $$ or points, on one trip when I was solo and on the cheap I stayed at a Hampton Inn in Linden, NJ. It is a healthy walk/quick ride (plus parking) to the NJ Transit station, take that to Penn Station, then connect to subway.
The hotel cost was about $110/night, and my room there was probably twice the size of that we had in the Conrad.
However, the time to get to/from hotel wasn't small. There were only 2 NJ Transit trains an hour, and they both left about 10-15 min apart. So if you just missed one, it could be quite a wait.
From the looks of things at this property, I wasn't the only one saving money and commuting into the city.

Non-NonRev

I am in general a fan of staying based on location, where the more attractions that are walkable (or a short subway ride away), the better.

Besides the Times Square DT (so what if it is in a busy tourist area, you're not staying on the street), the Midtown Hilton has a killer location, equidistant from Central Park and Times Square itself. Some Diamonds hate it because elite benefits have been disminished over the years, but that is hardly unique to that single hotel. As Diamond you should get a renovated room.

Whatever you pick, enjoy your return visit to NYC.

dzongrila

Thanks a lot everyone for your responses. Much appreciated. Based on the dates I am looking for, most of the hotels at Times Sq. Central are 80k points (except Hilton Garden Inn which is 70k points). The others that are not really at Times Sq., but showing up as Times Sq. South, North or Midtown, Chelsea are showing up as 70K points.

For me too, I'll prefer location based meaning hotels that are close to at least one or more major attractions. For 3-4 nights stay, I can save 30-40K points if I choose the 70K hotels. But I won't worry too much about it since I've got enough points. However, I don't want to pay more and then stay in a noisy lower floor rooms at Times Sq or stay somewhere that doesn't come with the standard benefits like full breakfast because it's NYC.

I've to admit I am a bit partial towards Conrad brand. I've stayed at Conrad Miami on and off for close to two years and even got the penthouse a couple of times and it remains one of my favorite Hilton hotels anywhere. Conrad NYC is 77.5K per night during my stay. The other ones I am considering are Hilton Millenium, Doubletree Chelsea and Fashion District, Doubletree Times Sq. South, Hilton Manhattan East & Fashion District.

How are the two Hilton Garden Inns at Times Sq? They are at 70k points. Also, distance wise, is it walkable distance between Times Sq. Central to South or North or to Manhattan East? I'll probably take one of the Tour buses one day for a city tour and I am assuming they pick up from these major hotels. Did the same last month in Wash DC.

_fly_

We really enjoyed our stay at Hilton Millenium, so another vote for it. That time the mentioned "last minute weekend price drop" happened so we ended up cancelling a mid-manhattan booking and went for the Millenium, didn't have to regret. I think it was around 100 USD w tax. I was Hhonors Gold back then, we got upgraded to great room with one of the best views ever. Breakfast was also good and subway access easy. For a longer than a two-nite stay I would prefer to switch area and hotel in NY, but that's a personal preference.

dzongrila

Thanks for your response. Can you elaborate on why you'll like to switch area for a longer stay and which area you'll prefer? I am looking exactly for that type of feedbacks. I've already mentioned I am planning to stay for 3-4 nights since I'll be coming from west coast, so pretty much I'll lose a day flying into NYC. I need to give myself at least three nights. Plus, I'll have a 10 year old with me. So can't push her too much like how I can explore a city.

Miesque

As I have mentioned in many other threads, I am a big fan of Conrad New York which is my goto in Manhattan (its right off the Hudson and the subway is just 2 blocks away from the Subway) and if I have to stay Midtown, I prefer Hilton Times Square. I have stayed at the HGI Times Square Central once and the extra 10K for Hilton Times Square is worth it in my opinion as you will have a better night's sleep in a room that is pretty sizable for Midtown standards. Also the rooms start at much higher floors at the Hilton Times Square than the HGI and they are a Hilton that has full breakfast for Diamonds. I would not spend 70K for any of the HGIs in Manhattan. I do also have to second an earlier poster in that you really should check if there are days of your stay which have reasonable rates since the Manhattan redemption rates are so high and pricing in Manhattan is very fluid, so much so I constantly keep an eye on rate fluctuations up to my stay as sometime as you approach the date, you can find some really great deals since there are so many HHonors properties in Manhattan. The Financial District/WTC tend to be much less expensive on the weekends and the subway is nice and easy up to Midtown and its nice to be able to walk out of your hotel and not meet a wall of people as in Times Square area.

dzongrila

I had formed a similar opinion about HGI after checking out the reviews online. Thanks for confirming my doubts. So Hilton Times Sq is the one on the west 42nd Street and close to Port Authority? How will you compare it against Doubletree? The Doubletree Times Sq and Hilton Times Sq. are both 80K a night, but Doubletree is a suite and category 10 while Hilton is category 9. One of my colleagues likes the Doubletree and has stayed there several times. Does Conrad too offer free breakfast for Diamond members?

BrlDsguise

October may be the most expensive month in NYC. We also like the Millennium Hilton, some rooms have spectacular views especially the corner kings and Jr. Suites and we have a good success rate with upgrades. They usually offer NOR-1's for a reasonable cost. Both the Millenium Hilton and Conrad have a limited choice of restaurants in the immediate area. The Chelsea Hilton would be a good choice, good location with restaurant options nearby and within walking distance to the ESB and even Times Square. Another choice we like the DT Financial District which has small rooms but is a short walk to a cluster of bars and restaurants on Stone Street and also walkable to the South Street Seaport area. We've also stayed at the Hampton Inn Seaport, simple accomodations but nice area with a choice of restaurants.

Miesque

In my opinion, unless you really needs the suite layout the Doubletree is definitely not worth those extra points. The Hilton Times Square is much more recently renovated compared to the Doubletree. In addition, the Doubletree is really in the middle of the Times Square action so much so you are wading through the maximum amount of tourists et al of any location in New York. The Hilton Times Square is on a side street midway between Seventh and Eighth Avenue with one entrance on 41st St and one on 42nd St and 41st St is definitely a lot less chaotic than being up actually in Times Square proper like the Doubletree.

The Conrad offers free breakfast for Gold/Diamond in their restaurant Atrio which consists of five items to choose from and come with coffee (french
press) and freshly squeezed OJ. If you click on the link below you will find the breakfast menu and on the right lower hand side underneath HHonor is what you can choose from. The Bruchetta scrambled eggs is actually pretty good and a lot to eat.

http://conradhotels3.hilton.com/reso...u_Jul_2015.pdf

I also have to add that the Conrad is all suites starting at 430 sq ft and have a great big rainfall shower. There are Nespresso makers in each room along with stemware/glassware and comfy obes/slippers. Oodles of places to eat nearby especially with the opening of Brookfield Place next door.

Miesque

I found the opening of Brookfield Place with so many dining options to materially change that dynamic for the Conrad side its right across the street (Le District is awesome and if you happen to like grilled cheese I recommend Little Muenster in the food court area). When the weather is nice PJ Clarkes has great outdoor dining on the Hudson.

Agree about October (the first 10 days of December is also very bad ratewise), I have trips the first two weekends of October to Manhattan and the first weekend I was able to snag Conrad NY for $280 (which is great for October) and the second weekend for half of my trip am using one of my Hyatt DSUs with Cash & Points to stay over at the Hyatt Jersey City since the view is so awesome and being right next to the PATH makes getting into Manhattan really simple. That Monday night I have tickets for Carnegie Hall so am going to try out one night at HGI Central Park South (unless rates changes so that another becomes more attractive). It seems that HGI is a bit better than the HGI Times Square Central based on colleagues of mine who have stayed there.

missamo80

"I would not spend 70K for any of the HGIs in Manhattan."

I agree. The HGIs in Manhattan are not worth the points (or money, for that matter).

Neil

dzongrila

Thanks a lot for this information. The explanation regarding the difference in location between DT and Hilton Times Sq is really helpful. Will certainly keep that in mind. I don't really need a suite. It would have been a bonus.

Kacee

For a first time visitor to NYC, the Hilton TS is IMO probably best overall choice (among Hiltons) in terms of location combined with amenities.

I really like the Conrad but it is not particularly subway convenient and you are likely to spend lots of time traveling to other parts of the city.

dzongrila

Thanks. Not really a first time visitor, but haven't been there in almost 15 years. Prior to that when I was living in east coast,used to be a frequent visitor. The only difference this time is I'll have a 10 year old with me. So need to consider the location, travel time, walking distance, safety etc. Will probably avoid subways.

Kacee

If you're likely to spend most of your time uptown or midtown, I'd go with TS. If you'll mostly be downtown, Conrad makes sense. If you do stay at the Conrad, an Uber or taxi to midtown will cost in the $20-25 range and take 20-30 minutes depending on traffic. Adds up really fast.

Safety is no longer in an issue in any part of Manhattan that you're likely to visit.