New York - NYC

Expensive as fuck but mouth wateringly beautiful bikes, was there about a month ago and the 2 guys workin there are sound aswell

http://www.chariandconyc.com/

I went last year about the same time, and I made a little map of a load of cool placed I went quite a few of them bike places. feel free to have a look here http://tinyurl.com/46yvn4 some of the things won't be of any relevance but quite a few will. BikeWorks is a really friendly shop, they have a ton of cool bits lying around in their shop and they will all be willing to point you in the right direction of other fun things happening.

Hi all

I'm thinking of taking a trip to New York with my bike for a few days (5?) in Mid-November & was wondering if anbody else from this forum was going to be doing the same? and maybe fancied hooking up to go for a few rides around Manhattan/Brooklyn?

I was toying with the idea especially as Virgin are doing flights for £279 but I'm too hectic at work, plus it'll be cold as fuck
Enjoy though ;-)
You been before?

Yeah, been before a couple of times but always with work and without a bike... was just planning on bumming in a hostel somewhere, Chelsea possibly? and getting out and riding/exploring.

Not fussed about the cold, it's the wet i don't want to experience... guess i'll just have to take a risk...

Pistanator: do you have any accomodation tips? any particularly Bike friendly places to stay...?

I normally stay in an apartment, just go on craigslist and look for your preferred location - I normally stay: Greenwich, Chelsea, Meatpacking areas. Can get a decent enough gaff for about $120/200 per night.....

http://newyork.craigslist.org/mnh/vac/

stay in brooklyn! more excuses to go across the bridges, will be cheaper, and just better all around.

Brooklyn's shit, full of hipsters, it'll be like staying in Shoreditch. Shudder!
Stay in Manhattan then you have the choice of going to Brooklyn

Williamsburg is indeed full of hipsters, but its far more sleepy and suburban than Shoreditch / Easts. I'm going for Christmas (a house swap in Brooklyn Heights) if things go to plan. However ill parents / in laws / mates / family stuff is getting in the way.

Thing is with Brooklyn/B'burg it's clichéd to fuck just like Shoreditch/Hoxton. If one goes to NYC I think it's best to actually stay in Manhattan cos atleast you actually feel like you're in NYC - it's like a torist coming to London but staying in Bermondey. Saying that, my mate lives on Bedford Ave(W'burg) and has a 3rd flr apt - awesome view of the Manhattan skyline

Pistanator, that's why i'm inclined to stay in Manhattan, Williamsburg seemed cool to visit, but not sure i want to hang out solely with Brooklyn hipsters...

And as i'm gonna be on my jack jones, i'm gonna doss in a hostel as they're always full of people doing the same which always gives you a bunch of like-minded people to catch a beer with....

The place i stayed last was a hostel in Chelsea that had a big central courtyard with benches where everyone chilled. I had a couple of my best (and most random) nights out in NY start there... plus the courtyard seemed pretty secure and had plenty of heavy duty railing to lock my bike to so it's off the street over night.

As far as locks go I'm figuring taking a Mini-U and normal Krypto and maybe a Krypto flexy cable to secure my bike, Does that sound secure enough to anyone? too much to carry around?

Guess the only thing i'm gonna have to take a chance with is the weather, don't care if it drops to zero, just as long as i manage to avoid rain and snow.... (fingers crosed then!!)

Plus the $ to the £ is now 1.63 - wank! Get your cash out now as I can see it dropping further....

I went in September and the exchange rate was about 1.65, but as pistanator said it will only go lower. If you're looking for a budget place to stay you should stay in the Central Park Hostel. I stayed there when I went and it was really good. Its in Harlem but don't let that fool you. It's actually a really nice place! The hostel is pretty cheap and it's really clean, got a pool table and internet and cable and stuff as well. I didnt take a bike with me but I saw they'd let someone chain their bike up in the hostel so its pretty safe. All the way up on W103rd street but thats just a good excuse to cycle through Central Park to get downtown...

Ok... So i've just booked my flights, i'll be in NYC from the 6th -11th November if anyone happens to be there at the same time and fancies taking a ride get in touch....

There for the election too huh?

I'm around, but no bike and a heavy schedule. Business trips are not what they're cracked up to be.

Williamsburg is indeed full of hipsters, but its far more sleepy and suburban than Shoreditch / Easts. I'm going for Christmas (a house swap in Brooklyn Heights) if things go to plan. However ill parents / in laws / mates / family stuff is getting in the way.

Me and the missus are going for Christmas too. No such luck with the house swap though! I'm looking for accomadation now too. All seems expensive, or a little too ghetto...for my girlfriend.

Go for Pistanator's craigslist & apartment approach, there were better deals than I managed last time. Fortunately an English friend married a yank, so it'll be easier this time round.

Accomodation is never cheap in Manhattan anyway. You might get a good deal out of Hotel 17 if you call up and be polite, they've opened a sister hotel too somewhere...

I'll give that a try. Thanks.

Yeah we almost stayed at Hotel 17, but they were fully booked. If your girlfriend is worried about the roughness seriously don't fret, New York has cleaned up pretty well recently with the no tolerance policies that Giuliani put in (think it was him). Most of the hostels do private rooms, with en suite in some as well. Check Travel Advisor as well.

i'll be back in brooklyn from nov 21-29 actually. gotta go home and see the family.
take it from someone that used to live there... stay in brooklyn. it isnt like staying in shoreditch, its more like, if you stay in manhattan you might as well be staying in picadilly.
brooklyn has a lot more going on, hotels and hostels are cheaper, food is cheaper and the people are nicer.

oh and if you are set on manhattan, try the st marks hotel. if i remember correctly, it is pretty cheap and not too much of a dive.

Manhattan is a big place and everytime I've stayed there I've stayed in the right areas. Sure if you stay in Times Sq it's like Piccadilly but that is a tiny, tiny area that is best avoided - more to Manhattan than Times Sq, like there's more to London than Picc Circ/Leicester Sq.
Brooklyn's probably quite a cool place to live, my mate lives on Bedford Ave and I've stayed there a couple of times but it's pretty boring to go out there
It's like going to London and spending all your time in Putney

Two words, Crown Hights.

when I went over last year, I moseyed onto the NYC equivalent of this forum and said hello. Ended up having an amazing week and meeting loads of great people.

I've heard that they are being tight with giving out new logins recently, but worth a go:

http://fixed.gr/nyc/

Two words, Crown Hights.
Only one of them is recognisable as English.