Sept 11, 2011 is the 10 year anniversary of 9/11. It’s about time the 9/11 Memorial and Museum opens, and they are indeed about to open their doors to visitors on Sept 12, 2001 – after its dedication on Sept 11, 2011.

9/11 Memorial Preview Site

NYC is expecting millions of visitors and tourists will be coming to Ground Zero. If you’re going to be there, it’s best to find a place to stay in Lower Manhattan, preferably in close proximity to the World Trade Center site.

The Downtown Alliance recommends 17 hotels which provide easy access to the 9/11 Memorial.

Out of these 17 hotels, eleven are taking part in the “Get More NYC: Lower Manhattan” promotion, wherein guests staying at these hotels get a complimentary Downtown Culture Pass and late checkout.

The complimentary pass offers 3 days of admissions and discounts to nine cultural attractions downtown, including the 9/11 Memorial Preview site and the Tribute WTC Visitor Center.

These 11 hotels are listed below:

01. Andaz Wall Street (Promo code: GETMOR)
02. Best Western Seaport Inn Downtown (Promo code: GETMORE)
03. Doubletree by Hilton NYC – Financial District (Promo code: PK7)
04. Gild Hall – A Thompson Hotel (Promo code: MORE)
05. Holiday Inn Express NYC Wall Street (no late checkout; Promo code: ISHD1)
06. Holiday Inn New York City – Wall Street (no late checkout; Promo code: ISHD1)
07. The Ritz-Carlton New York, Battery Park (Promo code: EB6)
08. Millenium Hilton (Promo code: 2755717)
09. New York Marriott Downtown (Promo code: ES7)
10. W New York – Downtown (Promo code: SETNYCCO)
11. World Center Hotel (Promo code: GETMORE2011)

Of these, the hotels nearest Ground Zero are the last four in the list above, of which two are new and two have been fully renovated post-9/11. They’re all likely to be full up for the 9/11 Memorial dedication and opening dates, but it’s something to keep in mind when visiting on a later date. In case you need it, here’s UpTake’s database of Manhattan hotels.

Don’t forget to reserve your free visitor pass online at 911memorial.org. Photo – kjarrett

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Marriott and Granite Broadway Development have announced a plan to build a super-tall 68 story hotel complex in Manhattan that will house two distinct hotels.

Courtyard & Residence Inn, Manhattan/Central Park

The Courtyard and Residence Inn Manhattan/Central Park complex at 1717 Broadway (54th Street) will include a 378-room Courtyard by Marriott and another 261-room Residence Inn.

The project is slated to open in 2013 and will be managed by Interstate Hotels and Resorts. The building will rise up 752 feet and nine inches high, which makes it the tallest stand-alone hotel in New York, not counting those with residencies and commercial space.

As per the building plan, both hotels will share the same entrance and lobby on 54th Street. The Courtyard’s guest rooms are located on floors 6 through 32, while Residence Inn guests will get rooms on floors 36 through 64.

Each hotel will have its own elevator banks to take guests to their guestrooms and to the public areas for each hotel – the Courtyard’s public area is on the 4th floor, while the Residence Inn has its own public area on the 3rd floor.

The hotels will be sharing some common facilities, including a a 5th floor lounge and terrace with outdoor seating overlooking Broadway, a restaurant on the 2nd floor and a fitness center on the 34th floor.

The innovative twin-hotel building concept has been designed by architect Nobutaka Ashihara.

Ronnie Gross, vice president of Granite Broadway Development, said that “The building will be absolutely stunning, and the hotels are the right lodging brands for this wonderful location.”

The Courtyard will offer its signature new lobby with a 55-inch LCD interactive touch screen offering maps, weather, news, business and sports headlines.

The Residence Inn will feature suites with kitchens, daily complimentary breakfasts, free high speed internet, grocery delivery, laundry facilities and weekly manager social hours.

Photo – Marriott International

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After a long wait, The Nolitan hotel in Manhattan officially opens its doors on August 1. The 55-room boutique invites you not just as a guest staying in a room, but to come and be a part of its neighborhood.

The Nolitan, NYC

When you stay at The Nolitan, you’re becoming a Nolitan, at least for the duration of your stay. That’s because the hotel is located in Nolita (North of Little Italy), and the people here are ‘Nolitans.’

The location, filled with landmarks like Lombardi’s Pizza and the old St. Patrick’s Cathedral, allows you to explore everything from Little Italy to the Bowery, SoHo, Chinatown, Greenwich Village and TriBeCa.

As for the hotel guest rooms and services, it’s a quaint little hotel which puts a premium on personalized care and attention for guests.

They’re willing to go the extra mile and arrange for everything from a bath for your dog to organic groceries delivered to your room.

“We’re a place where we welcome your friends, your pets and your quirky requests,” explains The Nolitan Hotel general manager Patrik Horstmann. “We’re your home when you’re here, and we treat you like family.”

The Nolitan has a thing for oak and glass. Lots of glass, actually, which keeps guests in touch with Nolita, from the wide open lobby to the two walls of glass at the Ellabess restaurant, and the floor-to-ceiling windows in some of the guest rooms.

Guest room at The Nolitan, NYC

Speaking of which, guests have a choice of eight different types of rooms. There are neighborhood rooms and Cityscape rooms, and some with a private balcony while others offer floor-to-ceiling windows. Read More »

Ok, so maybe it’s a bit of a stretch to call it a cheap hotel. The Boggsville Boatel is actually a bunch of boats moored to a floating platform at Marina 59 in Far Rockaway in the New York City borough of Queens. Marina 59 is a 5-acre waterfront marina and event space for photo and film shoots, parties, art shows, etc.

Boggsville Boatel

But the Boggsville Boatel is still a place to stay in New York and it costs $50 for the night.

Besides, it is an art show meant to explore “the boundaries of the hospitality experience.” More like scraping the barrel, but the experience part is true enough.

Before you book a night in the Boggs Boatel, you might want to hear something interesting about why it’s named so. The boatel part is simple enough as a combination of a boat and hotel.

But boatel sounds suspiciously similar to brothel, and that’s interesting because the Boggs here refers to Ms. Nancy Boggs. The woman had a floating brothel which she would move around to either side of the Willamette River of Portland to evade liquor taxes and the law.

You should also know that the Boggs Hotel is not a business venture. It is an art show put together by artist Constance Hockaday, and organized by Long Island City, Queens-based non-profit Flux Factory. The boatel will be in place until Sept 4, 2011.

The actual accommodations are on six reclaimed boats that were found abandoned in the marina. They’re mostly fishing boats from the 70′s and 80′s, and the nightly rate (donation) is set at $50.

One is a houseboat with two beds and decks for sunbathing and fishing, and this one will set you back $100 for the night. The platform around which they’re moored doubles as a theater with a large screen, and will offer a movie or lecture every night.

So in addition to a dirt cheap nightly stay at $50, you’ve got free entertainment too. The A Train is 1 block off, the beach is a couple of blocks away, and JFK isn’t that far off either. Not to mention that you’re taking part in an artsy experience.

Hopefully, the city is looking on it as art experiment and not an illegal hotel, so you won’t find yourself chugging out into Jamaica Bay in the middle of the night trying to evade the law.

Photo – Flux Factory

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