Hi New Yorkers!

I'll be visiting your city in September this year (2009) from South Africa. Due to the state of our currency, the trip is going to be quite expensive so I wanted to know where the best hostels are to book for a few days accommodation in or just outside Manhattan. I want to walk everywhere so I'd prefer to stay in Manhattan. I'm considering the Broadway Hotel and Hostel as it looks to be the most decent one for price and quality, but any suggestions are welcome! I'm looking at spending between 30 and 40 dollars per day for accommodation, everything included. Is this possible without having to sleep with rats chewing away at my feet?

The three I'd suggeest are Hostelling International on the upper west side, Chelsea International in Chelsea, and the Big Apple Hostel in midtown. Have a look at reviews on tripadvisor.com, and look through the Traveler Photo section to get a real idea of what the places look like. All three are safe and convenient.

Thanks Oracle, really appreciate it. My friends and I ended up booking at L hostels in Harlem. Not sure if you know anything about them, they're on adam clayton powell and 119th. It looks nice and got good reviews on most sites we looked at.

Was just wondering if you had any advice related to safety in Harlem? We decided to stay there to get a different experience than the typical midtown/upper east side experience and have heard that it really isn't as unsafe as people make it out to be. Any advice though would be greatly appreciated.

Many thanks

Andrea