Hi Tracie,
Our family stayed in a 1-bedroom unit at the Manhattan Club a couple of summers ago, and we also had to pinch pennies -- but we still had one of our BEST vacations ever!
One of the most money saving tips of all came from TUG, and that was to bring a small George Forman grill with us from home. Wow! It saved us hundreds of dollars, and we were able to cook breakfast lunch or dinner in our room with no problems.
For dinner we cooked pork chops, steaks, and boneless chicken breasts (flattened). You can cook just about any type of meat (although I always remove any bones first), and they turn out absolutely delicious. For our side dishes we usually did veggies, frozen dishes in the microwave, or a green salad. You can even make grilled cheese sandwiches or panninis for lunch.
But the big surprise was that we could also make lots of breakfast items in the George Forman grill. (Who knew?) We cooked bacon, ham, eggs and even made french toast. My daughter is big on the breakfast breads, and I was even able to make toast or bagels for her every day on the Forman grill. I can't remember how bad the ridges were or weren't, but she loved it and consumed volumes of assorted New York breads. (We were there for 2 weeks, and we only ate breakfast out once, so it worked REALLY well!) The grocery store that is a block away had an excellent selection, reasonable prices, and a nice produce section (grab their ad with coupons when you walk in the entrance), compared to Whole Foods on Columbus Circle which is REALLY PRICY! (We could only "look")
The little refrigerators at the Manhattan Club are similar in size to the ones you see in the Mexican timeshares, and we were able to keep a nice supply of meats, veggies, fruits, and beverages inside. Carnegie Deli is nice, but $24 for a sandwich can be a budget-buster even if you do split it. Instead, we enjoyed lots of great hot dogs and hot sandwiches (like Philly Cheesesteaks) from the guys with the carts, who are all over the city during the day. Had some great hot dogs for only a couple of bucks, and it allowed us to use our money for sightseeing instead of food.
Some of our my daughter's favorite New York memories were: renting bikes and riding through Central Park, dinosaur exhibits @ the Natural History Museum - you can just make a small donation, Toys 'R Us (and indoor carousel), seeing different parts of NYC (Chinatown, Wall Street, Ground Zero, the Village, etc.), seeing the Statue of Liberty, also the Metropolitan museum - again, just make a small donation. Even MOma (modern art museum- free on Fridays 4-8pm) is great for kids. They have a full wall of Monet's famous "waterlilies" (very cool) and lots of fun, kid-friendly art. Get there right at 4pm, because it gets very busy during the summer.
We purchased an inexpensive digital camera for our daughter, and she enjoyed taking lots of pictures in New York. We found a place with fantastic lemoncello gelato in the Village, and in SoHo she tooks lots of pictures of the street vendors, street art, and all kinds of things. Kids always have an interesting and different perspective, compared to the photos that adults take, and she had a great time taking her own photos!
Our biggest splurges were was getting "rush tickets" for a couple of Broadway shows. It took several attempts to score rush tickets for Wicked (your kids can put their names in the drawing, too), but we finally did, and the first and second row seats are AMAZING, and only $27/each. Keep in mind that many people are paying $120 per ticket to be in the back of the upper balcony, so it is well worth the effort to stop by in the afternoon, put your names in, and see if you get lucky. The theater district is walking distance from Manhattan Club, but it takes about 20 minutes. The playbill.com website has information on discounted and "rush tickets" for all the current shows. Here is the website:
http://www.playbill.com/celebritybuzz/article/82428-Broadway_Rush_and_Standing_Room_Only_Policies
We had a great time in New York and I am sure your family will, too. Central Park is only a short 10 minute walk from the Manhattan Club, so if you bring a frisbee, or buy a kite -- it's a quick and easy diversion anytime you need one.
--- Rene McDaniel
Our family stayed in a 1-bedroom unit at the Manhattan Club a couple of summers ago, and we also had to pinch pennies -- but we still had one of our BEST vacations ever!
One of the most money saving tips of all came from TUG, and that was to bring a small George Forman grill with us from home. Wow! It saved us hundreds of dollars, and we were able to cook breakfast lunch or dinner in our room with no problems.
For dinner we cooked pork chops, steaks, and boneless chicken breasts (flattened). You can cook just about any type of meat (although I always remove any bones first), and they turn out absolutely delicious. For our side dishes we usually did veggies, frozen dishes in the microwave, or a green salad. You can even make grilled cheese sandwiches or panninis for lunch.
But the big surprise was that we could also make lots of breakfast items in the George Forman grill. (Who knew?) We cooked bacon, ham, eggs and even made french toast. My daughter is big on the breakfast breads, and I was even able to make toast or bagels for her every day on the Forman grill. I can't remember how bad the ridges were or weren't, but she loved it and consumed volumes of assorted New York breads. (We were there for 2 weeks, and we only ate breakfast out once, so it worked REALLY well!) The grocery store that is a block away had an excellent selection, reasonable prices, and a nice produce section (grab their ad with coupons when you walk in the entrance), compared to Whole Foods on Columbus Circle which is REALLY PRICY! (We could only "look")
The little refrigerators at the Manhattan Club are similar in size to the ones you see in the Mexican timeshares, and we were able to keep a nice supply of meats, veggies, fruits, and beverages inside. Carnegie Deli is nice, but $24 for a sandwich can be a budget-buster even if you do split it. Instead, we enjoyed lots of great hot dogs and hot sandwiches (like Philly Cheesesteaks) from the guys with the carts, who are all over the city during the day. Had some great hot dogs for only a couple of bucks, and it allowed us to use our money for sightseeing instead of food.
Some of our my daughter's favorite New York memories were: renting bikes and riding through Central Park, dinosaur exhibits @ the Natural History Museum - you can just make a small donation, Toys 'R Us (and indoor carousel), seeing different parts of NYC (Chinatown, Wall Street, Ground Zero, the Village, etc.), seeing the Statue of Liberty, also the Metropolitan museum - again, just make a small donation. Even MOma (modern art museum- free on Fridays 4-8pm) is great for kids. They have a full wall of Monet's famous "waterlilies" (very cool) and lots of fun, kid-friendly art. Get there right at 4pm, because it gets very busy during the summer.
We purchased an inexpensive digital camera for our daughter, and she enjoyed taking lots of pictures in New York. We found a place with fantastic lemoncello gelato in the Village, and in SoHo she tooks lots of pictures of the street vendors, street art, and all kinds of things. Kids always have an interesting and different perspective, compared to the photos that adults take, and she had a great time taking her own photos!
Our biggest splurges were was getting "rush tickets" for a couple of Broadway shows. It took several attempts to score rush tickets for Wicked (your kids can put their names in the drawing, too), but we finally did, and the first and second row seats are AMAZING, and only $27/each. Keep in mind that many people are paying $120 per ticket to be in the back of the upper balcony, so it is well worth the effort to stop by in the afternoon, put your names in, and see if you get lucky. The theater district is walking distance from Manhattan Club, but it takes about 20 minutes. The playbill.com website has information on discounted and "rush tickets" for all the current shows. Here is the website:
http://www.playbill.com/celebritybuzz/article/82428-Broadway_Rush_and_Standing_Room_Only_Policies
We had a great time in New York and I am sure your family will, too. Central Park is only a short 10 minute walk from the Manhattan Club, so if you bring a frisbee, or buy a kite -- it's a quick and easy diversion anytime you need one.
--- Rene McDaniel
