Waldorf Astoria

Hi I am staying in the Waldorf Astoria next April with my mum,I am 30 she is 60.We have started hearing mixed reports on this hotel and I am panicing a bit as it is a non refundable booking I can%26#39;t chane where we are staying,we have an executive 2 double bed room.We are going for my 30th birthday mainly for shopping and the normal tourist stops.We are only there for 3 nights and want to fit in as much as poss. We have been told to go to the Woodbury Common shopping outlet for bargins,is it worth it?I would like to go see a show like Hairspray or Grease and we will be looking for places to eat in the evening mid price range,but not straying to far from the hotel at night.Any tips or ideas where to go would be appreciated as I haven%26#39;t got a clue where to start.TA

Waldorf Astoria

Don%26#39;t panic yorkshirelass30 -its only 3 nights and you won%26#39;t be spending much awake time in your room. Firstly the hotel is in a great position. Don%26#39;t be worried about being out and about at nightime. The subway will be packed and its a pleasant walk to the Rockefeller Centre and even Times Square from where you are -there will be plenty of people around. I did Woodbury Common on my last 6 day visit but it takes a whole day (3 hrs travelling round trip)and after shopping around Union Square and at Century 21 as well as a few of the other discount stores(search the forum for details), in hindsight I probably wouldn%26#39;t have gone. Mind you I got the best Coach bag at a bargain price and lots of other goodies! If shopping is your main purpose go for it. It may be worth considering Jersey Gardens which is quite a bit closer-check out both the websites for the stores at each and all the information on this forum. Hopefully you have read the sticky at the start of the forum NYC FAQS as it will give you fantastic advise like the websites for cheaper Broadway tickets and restaurant advice. Good luck with the planning!

Waldorf Astoria

Hi thanks for the info.I have read the bit at the beginning of the forum,well bits of it, I have plenty of time before I go so hopefully will have read it all by then and maybe some other travellers like your self will give me some more tips!!HINT HINT

Agree with everything Jabbowocky said!

1) the hotel feels very grand. The public spaces (ie lobby, restaurants, bars) are gorgeous. Some of the rooms are looking more than a little bare/dated, but so what? I%26#39;m sure you%26#39;ll find it clean and comfortable. Just don%26#39;t set your sights too high and you%26#39;ll be fine. (I think it%26#39;s folks who know the reputation of the place and haven%26#39;t read the reviews who are most disappointed). I wouldn%26#39;t be shy about telling them (by email and then when you check in) it%26#39;s a special birthday trip (and if it%26#39;s Mum%26#39;s, it might even be better ;) You might get an upgraded room.

2) You should NOT worry about staying near the hotel in the evening. The city is extremely safe and if necessary, you can always take a taxi. It%26#39;s a somewhat pricey area for restaurants, so aside from not getting a real taste of NYC, it could be an expensive decision. That said, 1 place that is not far that offers a good value prix fixe early dinner (before 7) is La Mediterranee.

lamediterraneeny.com/french-food-pretheater-鈥?/a>

You can look at reviews on menupages.com You can also do some searching on your own for places there. The hotel is in the east 50%26#39;s but the east 40%26#39;s would also be fine. But I would suggest you use at least 1 night to have dinner in a more residential and/or interesting neighborhood. Maybe go to Greenwich Village or Soho.

3) If you are looking for high end designer shopping, Woodbury Commons might be a good place for you. Just keep in mind in addition to the fact that it will take an entire day, the bus is $35/person. For a short 3 day trip, I%26#39;d just shop the discount stores in Manhattan, but if you really want to go, just do it! ;) There%26#39;s lots of info here on discount shopping both in the FAQ and if you do text searches on the forum (and there are also previous threads on the pros and cons of Woodbury).

4) It%26#39;s generally easy to get discount tickets to Hairspray since it%26#39;s been playing for so long. You can buy them in advance by using a discount code on broadwaybox.com but the codes listed now will not be good for April, so you%26#39;ll have to wait. Grease, on the other hand, has been sooooo popular (I guess b/c of the TV show where they picked the leads) that if you want to see that one, I%26#39;d recommend buying now and paying full price. Here%26#39;s the link to the official ticket seller, ticketmaster

www.ticketmaster.com/artist/1096386鈥?/a>

5) Don%26#39;t worry about fitting in!

On Friday nights, there%26#39;s a show at the Waldorf called Chamber Magic. If it fits in with your plans, it might be something you%26#39;d like to consider seeing. Here%26#39;s a write up about it (that also describes the suite it%26#39;s in, which may shed some light on the condition of the rooms in the hotel ;)

newyorksocialdiary.com/socialdiary/2004/03_0鈥?/a>

I notice current ticket sales end on March 28th. Don%26#39;t know if they just haven%26#39;t released tickets for later or whether the show is ending or ?????

I loved the hotel and really disliked the location when I stayed there a couple of years ago. I disliked it because it had no personality and I generally prefer more residential areas. A friend of mine is the opposite and will only stay around the Waldorf when in NY.

I think you will enjoy the hotel and if you don%26#39;t like the location, transit options are really easy. It%26#39;s also an easy walk to many things.

We found the same issue that nywhiz mentions. The restaurants around the area weren%26#39;t good options. There%26#39;s a restaurant in the hotel (not the Bull and Bear) that was decent with reasonable for a hotel prices.

I work in the neighborhood, and while I wouldnt chose to hang out here in the evenings or weekends, there are enough good restaurants to choose from on the moderate toward high end level in the neighborhood... Lever House (higher end), Fresco, Cellini, Maloney %26amp; Porcelli for steaks, the Brasserie, Shun Lee for high end Chinese. For excellent quick lunch - but go early or you will see line out the door for the salad bar - Dishes on Park at 54th....

Hi, we stayed in the Waldorf Astoria in January 2005 on our first trip to NYC. Our room was shabby and the staff were not overly helpful.

Would I stay there again? No, once I found this forum when I was planning our second trip I chose a different hotel that suited our requirements better and we were delighted with it.

Am I glad that I stayed at The Waldorf? Absolutely! I loved the history, the fresh flowers, the reception/foyer, the piano, the atmosphere. It was somewhere that I had always wanted to stay as it was the only hotel in NYC that I had heard of and it sounded so glamorous! Glad that I got to experience it.

Agree that you should try emailing in advance re special birthday. We went with another couple and we had booked both rooms at the same time and theirs was much nicer.

Thanks everyone your info is really helping me to get an idea where to go etc I just wish I had gone to this forum before I booked but I seemed to be getting a good deal with flights etc.If I could change my Hotel where would you stay? I,ve paid 拢520 for room inc flights through expedia uk I wasn%26#39;t brave enough to book seperatley my self but I might try and change the hotel ,I think they would let me I can%26#39;t decide.A friend of mine stayed at The Roosevelt and loved it.Are the subways easy to use if you plan in advance where you are going? Where is the nearest one to Waldorf?How long would it take to walk to Macys? I%26#39;ve been told to use grey line tourist bus the hop on hop off but on this forum people have said don%26#39;t.I%26#39;m a planner so like to have all this stuff straight in my mind well before I go. I will definetly travel to different areas to eat I was worried about using subway in the evening but with a 60 year old in tow I wont be clubbing to all hours!!! Where is a good place to have breakfast? not to far from Waldorf.

P.S should I email them now about it being a birthday trip,It will be my 30th but we are travelling a week after the actual day?!?!?!?!xxx

Don%26#39;t worry about having a 60-year-old on the subway at night. My 70-year-old mom was with me last trip and we were fine. She was nervous, but she%26#39;s not used to being in large cities. Even though I could tell she was nervous, I could also tell the idea that she was traveling around NYC like a native was exhilarating for her.

Hi, My best friend and I stayed at The Waldorf a couple of years ago now and thought it was just great, so much so that we are considering staying there again for our next visit with our husbands. Why? Because the location is brilliant. Never mind it%26#39;s reputation and the grand public spaces.... But hey, our room was sound with great comfortable beds and not a cockroach in sight, which seems to be the criteria for judging whether a hotel is good or not!!!

I loved saying we were staying at The Waldorf and your Mum will love it too, it is a proper hotel, not minimalistic in any way!

Our room was fine, quite large , CLEAN and comfortable. You won%26#39;t spend much time in there anyway.

As I said, the location is fantastic plus we felt quite safe even walking about quite late at night.

Go on, enjoy it.

It is great to read reviews but they are totally subjective and people are always more keen to write a slightly more negative review than they are positive.

i can%26#39;t wait to go back!

HH