Accommodation is what makes a trip to New York so expensive. A regular room in Manhattan can cost more than your flight, especially in fall and over Christmas. The good news is that it is possible to find cheap places to stay in New York if you pick the right neighborhood, understand what's charged on top and know how the transportation works. Here's how we'd do it in 2026.
The hotels, cafés and restaurants we mention are in our New York travel guide PDF, with 7- and 10-day itineraries. If you want to see on a map where each hotel is relative to the subway, there's our New York map for Google Maps.
1. Stay outside Manhattan (but close to the subway)
It's the trick that saves the most money. The subway runs 24 hours, so staying in Brooklyn or Queens, one or two stops from Manhattan, can be much cheaper and barely costs you any time. The neighborhoods we recommend:
Williamsburg (Brooklyn)
It's where we stayed and where we started the 7-day route in the guide. It's one stop from Manhattan on the L train, it has tons of atmosphere, vintage shops, cafés like Devoción, Sey Coffee or Bakeri, and well-priced dinner spots like Joe's Pizza, Xi'an Famous Foods or Forma Pasta. Heads up: it's not always cheaper than Midtown, because it's gotten trendy, but the vibe makes up for it.
Long Island City and Astoria (Queens)
Long Island City is just across the East River from Midtown and has lots of new hotels at lower prices than Manhattan, with several subway lines. Astoria is more residential, with food from all over the world and the Astoria Flea & Food market. Queens is perfect if you want a more local trip.
Downtown Brooklyn, Park Slope and nearby
Well connected to Lower Manhattan, close to Dumbo and the Brooklyn Bridge. In the guide we include, for example, Hotel Le Bleu.
What about Jersey City?
It's outside New York State, but connected to Manhattan by the PATH train. Prices are usually lower. If you go this route, make sure the hotel is a few minutes' walk from a PATH station.
2. If you'd rather be in Manhattan, look at Midtown and the Times Square area
It sounds counterintuitive, but Times Square and Midtown have so many hotels that they're sometimes where you'll find Manhattan's cheapest rooms, especially at chain hotels or ones with small rooms. From our list, options for a tight or mid-range budget: Pod Times Square, Candlewood Times Square, Hampton Inn, DoubleTree, Citadines Connect, Hilton Garden Inn or Best Western Soho. Micro-hotels like Pod trade square footage for price and location.
3. Be careful with Airbnb: the rules are very strict
In New York, renting an entire apartment for less than 30 days is heavily restricted: legal short-term rentals are generally rooms in homes where the host lives and is present, with a maximum of two guests. That's why you'll see far fewer listings than in other cities, and some listings you're better off avoiding. If you're staying a month or more, one option is long-stay furnished apartments like Blueground (use our code MIRbg597 for a discount).
4. Work out the final price, not the headline rate
In New York, room rates come with lodging taxes of around 15% plus a flat charge per night, and many hotels add a daily "destination fee" or "facility fee." Always compare the all-in total price before you decide: a hotel that looks cheap can end up costing more than another one.
5. Choose your dates wisely
The highest prices usually fall between September and December (especially Thanksgiving and Christmas) and during big events. January and February, after the holidays, tend to be the cheapest months, in exchange for serious cold: average temperatures between 2 °C and -6 °C. Traveling Sunday to Thursday also helps, because many hotels raise prices on weekends.
6. Book with free cancellation and keep checking
Book an option with free cancellation early and check prices every so often. If the price drops, cancel and rebook. Also compare the price on the hotel's own website: sometimes they have member rates or breakfast included.
7. Save on everything else: food and transportation
- Subway: the MetroCard is gone. You pay with OMNY by tapping your card or phone at the turnstile, $3 per ride, and with the same card there's a $35 weekly cap: after that, the rest of your rides that week are free.
- From the airport: from JFK, take the AirTrain to Jamaica and then the subway (E or J/Z). From LaGuardia, the Q70 bus (LaGuardia Link) is free to Jackson Heights, where you catch the subway.
- Taxis and Uber: below 60th Street, the congestion charge is added.
- Eating cheap: Joe's Pizza, Los Tacos No. 1, Xi'an Famous Foods, Apollo Bagels, Ess-a-Bagel or Prince Street Pizza. A bagel breakfast or a slice of pizza will save your day.
- Free things to do: the Staten Island Ferry (with views of the Statue of Liberty), the High Line, Central Park, Bryant Park, walking across the Brooklyn Bridge and, in winter, the Bryant Park ice rink (free entry with a reservation, you only pay for skate rental).
Before you book
To enter the United States with a Spanish passport you need an ESTA; apply well ahead of time on the official CBP website and be wary of third-party sites. And don't travel without insurance, because healthcare in the US is extremely expensive: we always use IATI Seguros.
Plan your trip to New York
In our New York guide with a Google Maps map you'll find hotels sorted by price, the exact 7-day route we followed from Williamsburg, a 10-day itinerary, a shopping route, a TV-and-movie locations route, markets and cafés by neighborhood. If your trip is already planned and you just want the places on your phone, take a look at the New York map.
Found your place to stay? Plan your days with our 5-day New York itinerary, which starts right in Williamsburg.
Planning a long trip for the first time? Our article on how to pack so everything fits might come in handy.
