Fawlty Towers or Four Star

Greetings Cruisers

Yep it’s me again, wow it feels so much longer than the 2 weeks since my last blog, anyways I hope you are all well and booking those cruises. So I thought I would touch on hotel standards this time, this can be a total mine field, and I seriously recommend you do your home work before deciding on one. Let me give you an example of how difficult it can be.

New York is probably the toughest city to find exactly what you are looking for without breaking the bank, obviously most of us will be looking at staying in Manhattan as close to Time Square as possible, great location, very close to all the attractions. Now there are hundreds of hotels to choose from, this where the mine field begins, firstly remember the old saying “you normally get what you pay for” there are many hotels that claim to be near Time Square, this maybe true BUT the quality of the hotel maybe quite low, Manhattan is sat on an Island and space is very much at a premium, and this will normally show in the average size of a room in a standard hotel. You will need to decide what your preference is in regards to location, normally you will pay much more for a central hotel in most city’s, however New York seems to be an exception to this rule, and anything goes. You might normally stay in a branded hotel say for example, Hilton, Sheraton or Holiday Inn and no one would blame you, they are all great products, however in New York some of these brands have multiple locations in and around New York, offering very different standards of service and quality, strange because you would expect them to be standardised across the board, ha ha not when it comes to New York.

So when it comes to choosing your hotel always always check the reviews on each hotel, this is a great tool to use to help you make a informed decision, do not assume that because you have booked a Hilton, Sheraton or Holiday Inn elsewhere and found them great that this will be the case in New York, and if you do find one of these products in a great location, don’t be surprised at the nightly cost, they will be much more expensive than normal, going back to my point that space is at a premium.

However I have just had a family member come back from New York, they booked a 4 star hotel, good location at a very reasonable price, great find then, ummm not so, they thought it was one step up from a Youth Hostel !!!! And again they did not bother to chat with me first, they jumped straight in and were left very disappointed. So be very aware when deciding on hotels in New York.

Even better just call me and I can navigate you around this mine field.

Well until next time, keep booking those cruises and have a great week:)