One key to success on your tour is to understand what you getting for what you are willing or able to pay. With the lodging, the main thing is that you are staying in Manhattan. You won't be in the rooms much anyway.
Finding a suitable hotel is a combination of pricing, location, timing of when you make the reservations, size of rooms, season, amenities and-finally-your own personal tastes, tolerance levels and desired experience. You may not even know your personal tastes, likes and dislikes until you have stayed in NYC at least once. So if you first foray isn't perfect, your next will be. Either way, you'll find so much else to love in the city and on our tours and events. Price by itself is not always a good indicator of a good hotel in Manhattan-unless you are at a "money-is-no-object-give-me-the-Ritz-Carlton level-because comparisons can only be made within a limited geographical area. $150 per night in Midtown Manhattan in December-if you can get a room-- is not the same as $150 in Des Moines. Don't expect a great place then unless you get very lucky.
If you won't complain about location, room size, old plumbing, lack of views and such, you can stay almost anywhere in the area of Manhattan below 96th Street. If you get a less-than-desirable place at a great rate, it helps to use the saved money for a better seat at the theatre or a dinner at a higher class restaurant-alleviates the pain somewhat. Skip the airport areas and other four boroughs if you are doing more than just passing through. Of course, if it's critical that you visit Manhattan and can't get a room otherwise, airport area hotels are usually okay; don't go for the most expensive because you won't be in it much, but skip those that rent rooms by the hour.
You probably can't miss in this area: North - 72nd Street; South - Lower tip of Manhattan; East - 3rd Avenue; West - 9th Avenue. That's a big area, chockfull of hotels of every size and comfort. "Perfect" is generally considered to be North - 60th Street; South - 42nd; East - Park Avenue; West - 8th Avenue. You can easily walk to most theatre, restaurants, shopping, top sights, Central Park from these places and catch taxis or subways (they are fine here!).
Additional taxi and transportation fees may cancel out savings on rooms in a hotel in a poorly located place.
SteadyJoy does not make hotel (or travel) reservations for you. We don't even recommend or have any special relationship with any particular hotel or hotel chain.
There are many other Web sites which will provide you excellent information for you to make your selections.
