Broadway at Times Square Hotel Rating: 2.5 Pearls

Times Square, Manhattan, New York City

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You can't expect to find complete and utter peace in or around Times Square, but this hotel, on a relatively quiet block, comes reasonably close to insulating guests from Broadway’s sounds, sights, and action. Several restaurants share the block, including John’s Shanghai, an excellent Chinese restaurant across the street. But because the Theater District is still bustling late at night, you should still feel safe strolling through the neighborhood at virtually any hour.

Though once seedy, Times Square was reborn in the mid-'90s as a commercialized tourist haven, lit by 24-hour flashing billboards and theme restaurants like ESPN Zone and Bubba Gump Shrimp. Today, visitors walking the streets are more likely to be accosted by a comedy-club promoter, a rickshaw bicycle operator, or a caricature artist than a mugger. It's crowded, but there's something unquestionably exhilarating -- and convenient -- about staying in the neon-lit heart of the city. Plus, the mayor recently decided to close off much of Broadway to traffic, making it more pedestrian-friendly.

• Three blocks from B, D, F, M subway lines; four blocks from N and R subway lines
• 15-minute walk to Central Park
• Half-block from the lights of Times Square (about five blocks from its center)
• 20-minute subway ride to the Empire State Building
• 35-minute subway ride or $15 taxi to the ferry terminal to visit the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island
• Five blocks to Rockefeller Center
• 20-minute subway ride to the American Museum of Natural History
• 30-minute subway ride or $8 taxi to the Metropolitan Museum of Art (the "Met") and 15-minute subway ride to the Museum of Modern Art (the "MoMA")

The 2 x Double Room

• Standard Queen and King Rooms are a bit small, but that's the norm in New York; rooms with two double beds are also available.
• Large, 32-inch flat-screen TVs
• In-room coffeemaker
• iHome, iPod-docking alarm clock
• Small desk with built-in electrical outlets
• Free Wi-Fi
• Electronic safe, large enough for a laptop

New York has three nearby airports: JFK, LaGuardia, and Newark (in New Jersey). Getting to town from JFK or LaGuardia is usually more convenient than getting there from Newark, but travel times are heavily dependent on the time of day and traffic conditions. From JFK, a taxi to anywhere in Manhattan costs a flat rate of $45 and takes around an hour in average conditions. From LaGuardia, a metered cab ride to midtown Manhattan costs about $40 and can take 30 minutes if traffic is light, three times that if it's bad. Rides from Newark cost at least $40 (plus tolls) and can take more than 90 minutes. It's customary to tip your driver 15 to 25 percent.

Those looking to save some cash can use the privately run shuttle buses that are available at all three airports for about $14 per person. For more information on the shuttles, go to Super Shuttle or New York Airport Service. Public transit is also available for as little as $7 per person, but travel can take up to two hours and involve a lot of lugging bags up and down stairways.

For mass-transit directions right to the hotel, check out HopStop.com.