Question about Midtown West......

Hi....my husband, our two twenty-something sons and I are coming to NY at the end of May and we%26#39;re thinking about booking an apartment in Midtown West on 48th Street between 8th and 9th Avenues. I would appreciate any opinions on this area. Is it safe? Is it convenient to transportation?

Also, will baseball be started at the end of May? If so, is it remotely possible to get tickets?

Thanks!

Question about Midtown West......

It is very safe with lots of restaurants. Times Square (a major subway hub) is at 42nd and 8th so you are pretty close. There is also a subway at 50th and 8th as well as 52nd and 7th.

Baseball will be in full swing. Here is the Yankees%26#39; schedule

http://tinyurl.com/dcxtn

and the Mets%26#39;

http://tinyurl.com/de5ap

Baseball tickets are relatively easy to get (versus basketball and football). You can buy them online through the two websites I listed above, or in the secondary market, such as stubhub.com or ebay.com.

Best of luck.

Question about Midtown West......

Hell%26#39;s Kitchen is hot, hot, hot!! You will have a great time!

frommers.com/destinations/…0021035133.html

';To the west of the Theater District, in the 40s and 50s between Eighth and Tenth avenues, is Hell%26#39;s Kitchen, an area that is much nicer than its ghoulish name and one of my favorites in the city. The neighborhood resisted gentrification until the mid-%26#39;90s, but has grown into a charming, less touristy adjunct to the neighboring Theater District. Ninth Avenue, in particular, has blossomed into one of the city%26#39;s finest dining avenues; just stroll along and you%26#39;ll have a world of great dining to choose from, ranging from American diner to sexy Mediterranean to traditional Thai. Stylish boutiques and bars have also popped up in this area in the last 3 or so years. Realtors have tried to rename the area Clinton, but locals have held fast to the Hell%26#39;s Kitchen moniker with delight.';

From New York Magazine

newyorkmetro.com/realestate/…hellskitchen.htm

';Known for: Young, monied professionals and a sizable gay community have joined the blue collars and largely Latino old-timers calling Hell%26#39;s Kitchen home. Now you%26#39;ll find chichi boutiques among the many reasonably priced ethnic restaurants that dot Ninth Avenue—trendy bars and restaurants are even popping up on the strip south of seedy Port Authority. Locally owned shops and cheap eats are supplanted by chain stores and gawking tourists once you head east of Eighth Avenue and into Midtown West.

';Boundaries: Roughly 59th to 40th Streets, and bounded by the Hudson River and Fifth Avenue; Eighth Avenue demarcates the Hell%26#39;s Kitchen neighborhood and the impersonal, tourist-heavy Midtown West.

';Borders: The Upper West Side and Chelsea sandwich Hell%26#39;s Kitchen; Central Park, Midtown East, and the Flatiron District surround Midtown West.

Subway stops: The A, C, E line services the eastern edge of Hell%26#39;s Kitchen, while the 1, 2, 3, 7, 9, N, Q, R, S, and W trains all stop at Times Square.

OUTLOOK

';The basics: The new generation of Hell%26#39;s Kitchen—sorry, Clinton—residents are folks who started looking on the Upper West Side, then realized they could enjoy much the same lifestyle south of Lincoln Center. For the past century, the typical apartment here was a walkup tenement; now it%26#39;s a luxury rental with fancy condo finishes: grandiose lobby, lots of granite, high-speed Internet access, health club.

';What%26#39;s new: The 42nd Street corridor used to be the armpit of the city,” says Andrew Heiberger, president and CEO of Citi-Habitats. “Now it%26#39;s become a flower.” A handful of luxury-rental buildings have gone up in that area in the past few years. “Midtown has become a much easier sell,” says Corcoran%26#39;s Barbara Matter. And don%26#39;t forget the $1.7 billion Time Warner Center on Columbus Circle, with 201 luxury condos priced from $2.4 million to upwards of $40 million.

';Bargain hunting: A preponderance of new luxury rentals means discounts: up to three months’ free rent and sometimes even moving expenses or a health-club membership. For purchases and rentals alike, prices fall as you head west, away from midtown offices and the train.

';Prediction: To everyone%26#39;s great amazement,” says Robert Clepper, a broker at William B. May, “sales have been stable.” Chalk it up to the newcomers. Prices may be held down some by the luxury-rental glut, but that won%26#39;t last, says Heiberger: “Then the area will be occupied, and it will be like any other Manhattan neighborhood.” In the long term, the Time Warner Center plus the proposed stadium complex on the far west side—if it%26#39;s built—should boost values across the board. ';

— Profile from the March 10, 2003 cover story of New York Magazine

The location is fine. The Belvedere Hotel, a very well reviewed budget hotel is on that same block. There%26#39;s also a hostel at 311 west 48 st. You should try to get plenty of photos of the apartment and preferably deal with a reputable agent/company since the area can still have some not very nice places. Do not to deal with a company called WooGo or Urbanstay or yourstay for an apartment. They do not have a good reputation.

You should also know there are many hotels with apartment style rooms so you can have both daily maid service etc. plus the convenience of an apartment. The Salisbury is one such place in a good location. The Radio City Apartments is another.

Thanks so much for the replys. We are dealing with New York Habitat and the apartment is at 341 West 48th. ....Does any of that info set off alarm bells??

lddev, thank you for the Yankees%26#39; and Mets%26#39; links. The guys would enjoy seeing a game --maybe it would them busy and I could get some shopping done.

queensboulevard, I enjoyed reading about the area. I can%26#39;t wait! I%26#39;ve only been to NYC one other time (last summer with hubby) and we stayed on the UWS. Loved it, but couldn%26#39;t find anything workable in that area for the coming trip.

nywhiz, we%26#39;re dealing with New York Habitat (do you know anything about them?) and I%26#39;ve seen quite a few photos of the apartment but I know I%26#39;ll still be taking a chance. We need four separate beds and that limited my choices. My two sons wouldn%26#39;t consider sleeping in the same bed :) and my daughter might fly up for a few days. Two separate rooms would have been more than we wanted to spend so came up with this option. I guess I%26#39;ll just hold my breath and keep my fingers and toes crossed until I see it. My family will kill me if it%26#39;s a bust....

Thanks again everyone. I%26#39;m sure I%26#39;ll be back with more questions.

NY Habitat is very reputable. I actually think there have been other people on this board who may have stayed at that apt. Is this the apt.?

nyhabitat.com/new-york-apartment/…10900

Here is one review from this board from a poster Hannah

';Had a fabulous NYC experience this week - including the rental apartment which we booked through New York Habitat (www.nyhabitat.com). The agent was terrific, as was the owner. Not only was the apt exactly as described and pictured on the web but it was spotless, well equipped and very comfortable. A big thumbs up from our group of 5.';

I think they may have stayed in the west 48th st. apt. Hope it works out for you.

That%26#39;s the apartment! I am so glad to read that review. Thank you so much! Now....I can stop worrying about where we%26#39;re staying and start having fun planning all we will %26#39;try%26#39; to do. :)

Have a good weekend!

I live around the corner, so I took a walk over to 341 West 48th. It%26#39;s a renovated brownstone, looks charming and very well-kept, and it will provide you with genuine New York ambience. (A bit of trivia -- when Barbra Streisand first moved to Manhattan hoping to make it on Broadway, she lived in the building next door.)

It%26#39;s a nice, quiet primarily residential block, which also has a school, the Hotel Belvedere and a half-dozen restaurants including the excellent Italian Luxia and te very sweet old-time Swiss place, Mont Blanc. (And in May the many trees on the block will be in bloom.) You%26#39;re a half-block from the plethora of 9th Avenue restaurants, and even though you%26#39;re only 2 blocks from Times Square, it feels like a world apart.

Welcome to the neighborhood!

ellesu, I THINK they stayed in that apartment (the review I posted) but am not absolutely sure. Sounds good though. If it%26#39;s a brownstone building, there might not be an elevator. If that matters to you, you should ask the question.

Oh, PontMarie....Thank you! Your comment, ';Welcome to the neighborhood!'; brought a big smile to my face. :)

Thank you, too, for taking a %26#39;look-see%26#39; and posting the neighborhood description. I cannot wait! ....And to think Barbra Streisand lived next door -- I love her work.

Hi nywhiz....No problem. When I read the review I realized that the poster wasn%26#39;t specific. I was glad to see that her experience with nyhabitat was positive tho, and I appreciate your looking it up.

And you are correct, there is no elevator and it%26#39;s a second floor apartment. I%26#39;ve heard about short and long flights of stairs (like the blocks??) and that with high ceilings there could be two short flights of stairs..a landing, and two more short flights of stairs.

Sheesh! I guess I better start working on the stair-stepper that%26#39;s sitting in the cornor collecting dust....

Just keep that in mind when you%26#39;re packing. The bags shouldn%26#39;t be too heavy to carry. ;)