New York Cheap!!!!

marlene, Hartford, CT

not for folks looking for elevators or wake up calls(no phones in room)

economic hostel experience! Old world walk up, Old New York apartment building refitted for shared room & bath experience; several block walk to subway and bus, ok for overnight leave early for plane out of NYC!

Great for busy Tourists

Shadee, San Francisco, CA, 2007-03-11

This was a great place to stay especailly if you don't plan on spending mush time in your hotel. The location was fantastic, just steps from central park and The museum of natural history. The hostel staff was extremely helpful. The rooms had the bare necessities, but it was clean. I would definately stay here again.

Value for money

Jie, 2007-02-25

If the kids are tired of hamburgers and highway fast food, try the buffet-style restaurant across the street. It's cheap and family-friendly.

Value for money, Room comfort

Decent if you're on a tight budget

Anonymous, Washington, DC, 2007-02-17

There's plenty to do in the neighborhood on Amsterdam and Columbus Avenues!

The furnishings were spartan but adequate (bunk beds, a full-sized mirror, and a sink). I stayed in a 4th floor walkup, and the stairwells smelled a little. My room, however, did not. The shared bathroom could have been cleaner. The location was excellent for a young twenty-something. I was alone in the city for the night, and there were plenty of bars, restaurants, and shops to keep me occupied. I enjoyed going out and meeting some locals, rather than being caught up in the typical times square tourist crowd. I felt very safe, even relatively late at night... I think I got in around 1AM. The location was also convenient to the sumbway and buses heading both crosstown and downtown, the natural history museum, and central park. I would recommend this property to you if you are only staying for a night or two. I spent one night here and then got to check into a 4 star hotel in another section of town. If you are squeamish about cleanliness, this is not for you. But if you are looking to stretch your dollar and have some extra money for sightseeing, shopping, etc, and only plan to be in the room to sleep, this is a great deal! By the way, there are no garbage bags in the rooms, so you might want to bring one. I also brought a pair of flip flops and my own bed linens, even though sheets were provided.

It couldn't be worse!!

Alison, 2006-08-20

Lenny's Cafe and Bagels is at the end of the block. Great for a takeout type breakfast - but they also have tables in the back where you can sit.

The neighborhood is fantastic - close to the subway, great restaurants, bars, Natural History Museum and much more. The hotel was not actually a hotel, nor a hostel, but rather a home to some very interesting and diverse people. In fact, we thought some of the people hanging around outside the hotel were homeless until we saw them unlock the front door of our "hotel" and go home for the night. It appears that the actual hostel was next door to the building we were sent to. Perhaps that building was better - but from what I could see through my window and into theirs (a lot) it appears to be about the same. The room had see through curtains, no mini-blinds and being NYC, the next building is of course about 6 inches away. There was also about a 3 inch crack at the side of the door where you could see in. The room contained a sink, bunk beds and nothing more. The hallway was filled with things the residents could not fit inside their rooms - old toasters, trash baskets, broken down bicycles etc. On a positive note, it was extremely quiet. Despite the fact that the fire station was across the street we never heard any street noise from our third floor. The shared bathroom situation was okay, the bathroom was big and fairly clean in comparison to the rest of the hotel. I would recommend this place to another person if their only other option was to sleep on the street.