New York is one of those cities that needs no introduction. The cultural capital of the world, New York offers enough things to see and do to keep you busy for a lifetime. If you’re only visiting for a short time, however, it’s important to manage your time (and money) to get the most out of an unforgettable experience.
New York City (Photo_: Jorg Schubert via Flickr)
Making it in New York is one thing, but making it to New York is another. There are many good travel companies that offer flight and hotel vacation package deals so choosing the best one can be a challenge. We analyzed them all according to factors such as rates, deals, customer feedback, flexibility and cancellation policies. Here are our top three picks:
1. EXPEDIA
Expedia is our favorite choice for booking hotel and flight vacation packages to New York. The leading name in travel booking companies, Expedia offers a wide selection of hotels and you can book almost any available flight to New York. You can sometimes find a cheaper hotel or flight options on other sites, but the savings on combined vacation packages will often beat any discount you’ll find booking separately. Expedia also our top choice for booking family vacation packages. We tested packages from Los Angeles, San Francisco and Miami for a 4-star hotel in New York and found a couple could save $200-$400 on a 3-night stay, and even sometimes even more for longer stays. Expedia allows you to cancel your package without a fee within 24 hours of booking, and if you purchase Vacation Waiver insurance during your booking you can cancel after 24 hours without penalty.
2. PRICELINE
Priceline offers a similar menu of flight and hotel choices as Expedia, but we found its interface more intuitive, which made it easier to search through and find the best options. We compared prices on many different vacation packages and discovered that Priceline is actually bit pricier than Expedia, most of the time. On the plus side, Priceline tends to offer better deals on 1-night stays. For regular, non-discounted packages, Priceline guarantees free cancellation of the flight segment within 24 hours of your booking, however, JetBlue, Spirit Airlines and Air India are not covered by this policy. Participating hotels may also charge cancellation fees, even if you cancel within 24 hours of making the booking.
3. JETBLUE VACATIONS
You’ve probably heard of JetBlue, a low-cost carrier based out of Long Island. But what you may not know is that JetBlue also books combined cheap vacation package deals under the brand JetBlue Vacations. They currently offer package deals to New York from destinations like Los Angeles, San Francisco, Denver, Chicago, Atlanta, and Fort Lauderdale. We always recommend checking Expedia and Priceline before booking with JetBlue Vacations as you’ll sometimes pay a lot more on certain trips. The only downside is that their selection of hotels is more limited and, of course, you can only fly with JetBlue. JetBlue’s change/cancellation policies are also pretty strict: if you cancel or change a booking 60 days or more before your departure date, you’ll pay a $70 fee per person. That goes up to $135 per person if you cancel or change a vacation package booking within 60 days of the departure date, and that doesn’t include any fees that the hotels may charge for a change or cancellation.