Whether you're looking for a bite to eat or the nearest (and cleanest) public restroom, smartphone applications can help you explore New York City with ease. Here is a list of some of our favorite NYC-centric apps so that, wherever you are, you can have the City at your fingertips.
Navigation
Attractions
Dining
Museums and Art
Miscellaneous
Navigation
Making your way through the streets of New York has never been easier thanks to these navigational apps, which provide detailed street and subway maps, transit information, the best corners for hailing a taxi and more.
CabSense NYC
Use with: Android
CabSense NYC analyzes data from the New York City Taxi and Limousine Commission and other sources to help users find the best nearby street corners to hail a taxi based on the day of the week, the time and their location. The app even comes with a built-in "cab hailer"—simply shake your phone and it will whistle and display a flashing message.
iTrans NYC Subway
Use with: iPhone, iPad and iPod touch
In a rush? This app finds the fastest route between any two New York City subway stations, taking into account current schedules and service changes. iTrans NYC Subway provides users with detailed maps and walking directions, and even works off-line (or underground).
MyCityWay
Use with: iPhone, iPad, Android and Blackberry
Find yourself longing for the nearest wireless hotspot, craft beer bar or pharmacy with late-night delivery? MyCityWay combines urban reference apps and app platforms with important City info and its own user community to bring you a super-loaded City navigating tool.
New York City Compass
Use with: iPhone and iPad
This minimal app provides users with one simple but vital piece of information for efficient urban orienteering: whether they're going uptown, downtown or crosstown (east or west).
NYCMate
Use with: Android and iPhone, iPad and iPod touch
Suburban commuters can now breathe easier; not only does this app contain the official NYC subway map and every neighborhood map and bus maps for each borough, it also comes with maps of the Metro-North Railroad, Long Island Rail Road, New Jersey Transit and PATH trains.
UpNext 3D Cities
Use with: iPhone, iPad and iPod touch (Android coming soon)
This fun app gives users a real-time 3-D map of the City, as well as tappable buildings, detailed venue and site information, reviews and personalization options.
WayFinder NYC
Use with: Android
This award-winning augmented reality app helps users identify the subway or PATH train stations that are closest to their current location. Using GPS and your phone's camera, WayFinder locates your position on any street and offers step-by-step directions to the nearest transit stops.
Attractions
Whether you're a lifelong local or a first-time visitor, there's always plenty to discover in NYC. These apps provide key information on the City's top tourist attractions as well as on lesser-known destinations that might not have been on your radar.
Central Park
Use with: iPhone, iPad and iPod touch
The official mobile guide to one of New York's most popular green spaces, this app from the Central Park Conservancy provides users with a wealth of information about the many attractions and activities in Central Park. View a fully interactive map, read up on the park's history, get the latest news on concerts and other events and much more.
Citysearch
Use with: BlackBerry and iPhone, iPad and iPod touch
Find out where everything is in your current neighborhood or elsewhere in New York City with this app, which gives users information on restaurants, bars and shopping in NYC. Citysearch also includes local business listings, reviews and ratings and maps.
Explore 9/11
Use with: iPhone, iPad and iPod touch
The official mobile app of the 9/11 Memorial in Lower Manhattan offers information and insight regarding the tragedy. Users can view a timeline of the day’s events or take a walking tour of the area around the World Trade Center, accompanied by audiovisual narration and first-hand reports by first responders, rescue workers, volunteers and others. The app also includes an augmented reality mode, which overlays images taken by survivors and witnesses on your phone’s camera view.
myNav: Central Park
Use with: iPhone, iPad and iPod touch
Considering its size—over 800 acres—it can sometimes be difficult to navigate through the sprawling green spaces of Central Park. Worry not with this app, which provides users with an accurate and interactive map of the Park’s pathways, destinations, amenities and surrounding neighborhoods streets and subway locations, as well as realtime directions to destinations.
New York: Condé Nast Traveller City Guide
Use with: iPhone, iPad and iPod touch
This all-inclusive app has everything you need for a trip to NYC: GPS; hundreds of searchable restaurant, bar, hotel, shopping and attraction listings; off-line maps; and exclusive recommendations.
NYTimes The Scoop NYC
Use with: iPhone, iPad and iPod touch
This app from The New York Times provides users with the paper's staff picks on places to go and things to do in the City. Browse a variety of restaurant, café, event and shopping listings, as well as compilations of "New York experiences" and day trips around the five boroughs.
Time Out New York
Use with: iPhone, iPad and iPod touch
Time Out's app provides up-to-date event listings as well as reviews of art exhibitions, concerts, bars and restaurants. Listings can be further broken down into the Critic's Picks and Free & Cheap categories. Users can also save their favorite venues and locations and send listings to their friends.
VanDam NYC ShopSmart
Use with: iPhone, iPad and iPod touch
This app features a helpful shopping guide that provides information on hundreds of the City's best stores, in addition to an interactive map and top attractions.
VanDam NYC StreetSmart
Use with iPhone, iPad and iPod touch
With so many attractions to visit in New York City, planning a trip can sometimes feel daunting. This app provides users with a guide to the top 120 New York sights, complete with clear and detailed maps that let you zoom in quickly and search off-line.
Dining
With some 18,000 restaurants and countless bars located within the five boroughs, New York City has a dining destination suitable for every budget and taste. With these apps, you can browse some of the City's finest eateries, find reviews by critics and locals and more.
New York BlackBook
Use with: iPhone, iPad and iPod touch
Get the lowdown on New York's hottest shops, hotels, restaurants, bars and nightlife with this app, which gives users information on noteworthy venues nearest them at any given time. BlackBook also provides exclusive discounts, deals and VIP access at certain spots.
OpenTable
Use with: Android, BlackBerry, iPhone, iPad and iPod touch, Nokia, Palm webOS and Windows Phone
The perfect app for the foodie on the go, OpenTable allows users to search for restaurants, see menus and reviews and make reservations. Users can also earn Dining Rewards Points redeemable for "Dining Cheques" good at any restaurant on OpenTable.
Real Pizza of New York
Use with: iPhone, iPad and iPod touch
New York City is truly a great pizza town, so you don't want to waste time filling up on mediocre slices. This app provides recommendations for New York pizzerias that would get the stamp of approval from discerning local pie aficionados. Real Pizza of New York also includes the history of select pizzerias as well as all the information you need to go on self-guided pizza tours.
Tweat.it
Use with: iPhone, iPod touch and iPad
Hunt down your favorite gourmet food truck with this easy app that offers a real-time food-truck map. It follows vendors’ tweets to mark their locations and share the day's specials, secret discounts and more.
Urbanspoon
Use with: Android, BlackBerry and iPhone, iPad and iPod touch
With this app, you can search for and browse nearby restaurants and read ratings and reviews from newspapers, bloggers and other diners. Still can't decide where to eat? Depending on the type of mobile device you own, just shake your phone or press the app's "spin" button and the Urbanspoon slot machine will choose for you.
Yelp
Use with: Android, BlackBerry, iPhone, iPad and iPod touch, Palm Pre and Windows Phone
This app allows users to search for nearby restaurants, bars, businesses and stores and also provides photos and—as you'd expect—plenty of opinionated user reviews of venues.
Museums and Art
The importance of New York's role as a center for art and culture cannot be overstated; with hundreds of world-class museums, galleries, concert halls and theaters to choose from, there's something for everyone. These apps can help you navigate and explore some of the best cultural attractions New York City has to offer.
Carnegie Hall
Use with: iPhone, iPad; an Android version is forthcoming
Celebrate the 120th anniversary of the legendary music hall with exclusive content from the Mariinsky Orchestra and Valery Gergiev, a Tchaikovsky walking tour and more, with new content added throughout the season.
CultureNOW: Guidebook for the Museum Without Walls
Use with: Android, iPhone, iPad and iPod touch
Some of New York’s best art isn’t found in the Met or MoMA—or within the walls of any museum, for that matter. This app showcases the vast number of public works of art to be found throughout the City streets. Users can find information on artists and individual pieces, browse photos, take neighborhood tours and listen to podcasts featuring artists, architects, historians and curators.
Explorer: The American Museum of Natural History
Use with: iPhone, iPad and iPod touch
This app serves as a personal tour guide through the halls of this world-renowned museum, providing users with customized information and step-by-step directions to exhibitions. Users can also share their discoveries with family and friends via email, Facebook and Twitter. The American Museum of Natural History also offers some exhibition- and collection-specific apps, which you can find at amnh.org.
ILoveNYTheater
Use with: iPhone, iPad and iPod touch
With this app, you can browse current and future Broadway productions, as well as see show info, curtain times and ticket prices. Users can also find hotels and restaurants in the Theatre District.
MoMA
Use with: iPhone, iPad, iPod touch and Android
The next time you're planning a visit to The Museum of Modern Art, use this app to plan the best way to navigate the museum's permanent collection and current exhibitions. You can thumb through thousands of works, take multimedia tours or learn about featured artists. This app also allows users to take a photo via MoMA Snaps to send to family and friends.
Museum of Jewish Heritage
Use with: iPhone, iPad and Android
The museum's first app offers a free mobile app walking tour that expands on its latest exhibition, Emma Lazarus: Poet of Exiles. Explore 19 historic New York sites, from Lower Manhattan to Chelsea, through the eyes of the 19th-century poet who penned the famous lines memorialized at the base of the Statue of Liberty, “Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free . . . .”
New York Philharmonic
Use with: Android and iPhone, iPad and iPod touch
With this app, you can listen to the New York Philharmonic's weekly radio broadcast, hosted by Alec Baldwin, and also access podcasts, videos and event information.
Miscellaneous
Best Parking
Use with: iPhone, iPod touch and iPad
The bestparking.com app hunts down the cheapest and most convenient parking lots and garages near you.
Bookzee
Use with: iPhone, iPad and iPod touch
This helpful app allows book lovers to search for titles and see the branches of the New York Public Library closest to them that stock the works.
iParks NY
Use with: iPhone, iPad and iPod touch
This app provides users with a searchable off-line database of the thousands of City, state and private parks throughout New York. Users can filter searches by category (large parks, parks with playgrounds, etc.), browse park events and read about and see photos of NYC's best parks.
Leafsnap
Use with: iPhone, iPad and iPod touch
Leafsnap is perfect for the amateur botanist. The first in a series of electronic field guides from Columbia University, the University of Maryland and the Smithsonian, this app uses recognition software to identify tree species based on photos of their leaves.
Night Light NYC
Use with: iPhone, iPad and iPod touch
Have you ever wondered why the lights atop the Empire State Building change color? This app provides the meaning of each color change, as well as the events they represent.
NYC City Hall
Use with: iPhone, iPad and iPod touch
This app is your key to the City. Get the latest New York City news—mayoral announcements, photos and videos—and connect to the NYC 311 app.
NYC Tip
Use with: iPhone, iPad and iPod touch
This simple app allows users to calculate the tip for meals or services and includes standard tipping percentages.
Rama
Use with: iPhone, iPod touch and iPad
This digital guide allows you to take fascinating history tours of the City on your own schedule. Relive the construction of the Statue of Liberty, explore the Jewish heritage of the Lower East Side and more. Or try one of the free tours—of Union Square, Chinatown and the Brooklyn Bridge.
SitOrSquat
Use with: BlackBerry and iPhone, iPad and iPod touch
When nature calls, you'll be glad you have this app. SitOrSquat will pinpoint your exact location at the press of a button—or you can enter an address, intersection or zip code—and the app will find the nearest public restrooms. Users can even see which bathrooms are currently open and which have changing tables, as well as browse ratings to find the cleanest facilities.
Sportaneous
Use with: iPhone, iPod touch and iPad
Find and join a nearby pickup game of all sorts of sports, or propose and start your own. Sportaneous has been featured in publications like The New York Times, WIRED and ESPN The Magazine.
Friday, November 18, 2011
Tuesday, October 4, 2011
The New York City Marathon and what it means to us and New York City
The New York City marathon is one of our favorite events and certainly among the busiest weekends of the year, attracting over 35, 000 athletes, 12, 000 volunteers and 2 million spectators. The 2011 New York City Marathon will take place on November 6, 2011, as per tradition (the first Sunday in November).
It was first run in 1970 in Central Park and featured just 126 runners, 55 of whom completed the race. The first winner Gary Muhrcke, was incidentally a former boss of the innkeeper's (a former runner himself), back in the 1990s when he worked at one of Gary's much touted Super Runners Shops to get himself through college.
The event now begins in Staten Island, and runners travel throughout all five boroughs of New York City before reaching the finish line in Central Park. The first wheelchair division in the New York City Marathon was in 2000. It is now one of the most competitive wheelchair marathons in the world. The event will be aired live on NBC from 9 a.m. until 2 p.m. We wish all participants the very best of luck.
In the meantime we still have two suites available for this great event. Book them while you can or suffer the consequences of inflated hotel prices.
http://www.nycmarathon.org/
It was first run in 1970 in Central Park and featured just 126 runners, 55 of whom completed the race. The first winner Gary Muhrcke, was incidentally a former boss of the innkeeper's (a former runner himself), back in the 1990s when he worked at one of Gary's much touted Super Runners Shops to get himself through college.
The event now begins in Staten Island, and runners travel throughout all five boroughs of New York City before reaching the finish line in Central Park. The first wheelchair division in the New York City Marathon was in 2000. It is now one of the most competitive wheelchair marathons in the world. The event will be aired live on NBC from 9 a.m. until 2 p.m. We wish all participants the very best of luck.
In the meantime we still have two suites available for this great event. Book them while you can or suffer the consequences of inflated hotel prices.
http://www.nycmarathon.org/
Tuesday, September 20, 2011
Beware the scammer for they come in all shapes and sizes...
During our 20+ years in this business we have come up against a fair number of scams and scammers, some more obvious than others, and mostly aided by the power of the internet through forums such as Craig's List or even email.
For the most part we have managed to avoid or recognize them except for the instance in which an operator on Craig's List duplicated our copy and created the same business (even using our name as if we were a chain) in another neighborhood, specifically Tribeca. It turns out that the place didn't even exist. Happily another innkeeper alerted us to the ad in the nick of time and we had it pulled. On the one hand we were flattered but on the other we recognized that our tenure at Craig's list was over; rather than risk our reputation any further we ceased to advertise there, and had only been doing so in the wake of the crash when times had gotten very tough for the industry.
No scam has been more injurious to our morale or self worth, however, than the one that comes courtesy of the travel industry itself. During our infancy Country Inn the City was fortunate enough to have been included in many guide books, but since the advent of the internet, the travel guides we all used to depend on as travelers have become less and less a player in the market place. And I say that with regret, because now it would appear that the consumer is in charge and not the professional, especially when it comes to something so important as reviews. In light of the fact that professional reviews are harder to come by we are more prone to attack from the 'professionals' themselves. Many 'writers' have approached us for free stays and we have turned them down as we think it's an unfair bargaining tool, that a writer should feel he or she has a right not to pay if we get something in return. In the end it feels like payola and that is not what we are about. All our professional reviews have been based on merit.
However, in a moment of weakness I said yes to a Mr. James Saville who claimed to be a writer (news editor) for the popular Sunday British newspaper, The Sunday Mirror. As a Brit myself I was intrigued and have always hoped that we might some day attract more British travelers. He claimed that he was doing a piece on the New York Marathon (November 2010) and was very keen to check out our property as a viable alternative to hotels. I was of course a little skeptical but courtesy of the fact that he provided me with a fellow 'legitimate' contact in Marjorie Yue, at the said newspaper, that attracts 5 million readers, I thought I would give him 3 nights during the week.
When we met he was full of praise for our property and seemed perfectly legitimate and pleasant. However, more than 10 months has passed since his visit and I have yet to have a follow-up of any substance, or any indication of when the piece might run. All subsequent contact has been initiated by me. At times he has claimed that he had a PDF to send me but I have still yet to see it. He at one point told me not to panic and that he would check with Marjorie who I have yet to hear from, in spite of my having cc'd her on a number of occasions. In my last email (our first contact since May) I suggested that if the article didn't run then perhaps he would consider paying me for his stay.
I have not yet heard back and it's been about a week. I am hopeful that the situation will resolve itself and that I will at some point get some sort of a conclusive answer either way, but with nothing to show for himself at this point I have to hold James Saville and his team accountable, or rather as further evidence that the innkeeper in a climate of scammers should be very careful when it comes to making arrangements such as this. In spite of the above I remain hopeful that they can prove me wrong and that I will one day be able to post something positive about them, but for now I must remain skeptical.
For the most part we have managed to avoid or recognize them except for the instance in which an operator on Craig's List duplicated our copy and created the same business (even using our name as if we were a chain) in another neighborhood, specifically Tribeca. It turns out that the place didn't even exist. Happily another innkeeper alerted us to the ad in the nick of time and we had it pulled. On the one hand we were flattered but on the other we recognized that our tenure at Craig's list was over; rather than risk our reputation any further we ceased to advertise there, and had only been doing so in the wake of the crash when times had gotten very tough for the industry.
No scam has been more injurious to our morale or self worth, however, than the one that comes courtesy of the travel industry itself. During our infancy Country Inn the City was fortunate enough to have been included in many guide books, but since the advent of the internet, the travel guides we all used to depend on as travelers have become less and less a player in the market place. And I say that with regret, because now it would appear that the consumer is in charge and not the professional, especially when it comes to something so important as reviews. In light of the fact that professional reviews are harder to come by we are more prone to attack from the 'professionals' themselves. Many 'writers' have approached us for free stays and we have turned them down as we think it's an unfair bargaining tool, that a writer should feel he or she has a right not to pay if we get something in return. In the end it feels like payola and that is not what we are about. All our professional reviews have been based on merit.
However, in a moment of weakness I said yes to a Mr. James Saville who claimed to be a writer (news editor) for the popular Sunday British newspaper, The Sunday Mirror. As a Brit myself I was intrigued and have always hoped that we might some day attract more British travelers. He claimed that he was doing a piece on the New York Marathon (November 2010) and was very keen to check out our property as a viable alternative to hotels. I was of course a little skeptical but courtesy of the fact that he provided me with a fellow 'legitimate' contact in Marjorie Yue, at the said newspaper, that attracts 5 million readers, I thought I would give him 3 nights during the week.
When we met he was full of praise for our property and seemed perfectly legitimate and pleasant. However, more than 10 months has passed since his visit and I have yet to have a follow-up of any substance, or any indication of when the piece might run. All subsequent contact has been initiated by me. At times he has claimed that he had a PDF to send me but I have still yet to see it. He at one point told me not to panic and that he would check with Marjorie who I have yet to hear from, in spite of my having cc'd her on a number of occasions. In my last email (our first contact since May) I suggested that if the article didn't run then perhaps he would consider paying me for his stay.
I have not yet heard back and it's been about a week. I am hopeful that the situation will resolve itself and that I will at some point get some sort of a conclusive answer either way, but with nothing to show for himself at this point I have to hold James Saville and his team accountable, or rather as further evidence that the innkeeper in a climate of scammers should be very careful when it comes to making arrangements such as this. In spite of the above I remain hopeful that they can prove me wrong and that I will one day be able to post something positive about them, but for now I must remain skeptical.
Tuesday, September 13, 2011
Hotels versus Bed and Breakfasts: The upcoming fall season in New York
As many of you may know 'fall' is a very busy time of year for the accommodation industry. In New York City we receive twice as many visitors as we do in the winter or summer, when the weather is typically too harsh to attract large numbers. In light of the economic times we thought it might be interesting to update you as to our current situation as one of the leaders within the bed and breakfast industry.
So far we have noticed a slight increase in demand this fall over last fall but we are still experiencing a schizoid-like inconsistency in as much as there are days when we get slammed and days when we get nothing. I have talked to others and this pattern seems to be consistent through the industry including those who work in real estate. We do not know what causes these market fluctuations but like the current stock market we have our up days and our down days. Fortunately, however, where the stock market remains depresssed and rather stagnant we have enough good days to overcome the bad and have much to be thankful for.
It should be noted that our environment lies in stark relief to the myriad hotel options within the city. Hotels of course provide a different level of service and have to cover themselves, due to their larger size, for higher overhead. In spite of what hotels or hotel lobbyists may believe we are not in competition with them, rather we provide an entirely different kind of service, specifically one that is much smaller in scale and offers a reduced level of service. Our emphasis is on quality and affordability at the expense of not having many of the services we associate with hotels, a 24 hour desk, a concierge, maid service, public areas, elevators, and so on.
In the end we only wish we could compete with them but we are simply too small and too handcuffed by our limited budget to even consider it. This is why the likes of even the basic to moderate hotels here, such as the Comfort Inn, can charge $450 per night for a basic room during high season, a full $100 below our rates, that is in spite of our larger sized rooms. They have greater reach and more recognition. Many do not even know that bed and breakfasts exist in New York City and that is because we are so few in number and far less visible. Ultimately there should be room for all of us. The irony is that we are charging much less per night for our rooms than a similar hotel room not because we want but because we have to. Our prices are a direct manifestation of our scale. From a marketing perspective, we simply cannot reach the large numbers of business travelers and tourists alike that a big name hotel can, and therefore we should not be seen as competition but rather as an inherent choice, one that befits a city as rich and diverse as New York.
Your Innkeeper,
Fergus O'Brien
So far we have noticed a slight increase in demand this fall over last fall but we are still experiencing a schizoid-like inconsistency in as much as there are days when we get slammed and days when we get nothing. I have talked to others and this pattern seems to be consistent through the industry including those who work in real estate. We do not know what causes these market fluctuations but like the current stock market we have our up days and our down days. Fortunately, however, where the stock market remains depresssed and rather stagnant we have enough good days to overcome the bad and have much to be thankful for.
It should be noted that our environment lies in stark relief to the myriad hotel options within the city. Hotels of course provide a different level of service and have to cover themselves, due to their larger size, for higher overhead. In spite of what hotels or hotel lobbyists may believe we are not in competition with them, rather we provide an entirely different kind of service, specifically one that is much smaller in scale and offers a reduced level of service. Our emphasis is on quality and affordability at the expense of not having many of the services we associate with hotels, a 24 hour desk, a concierge, maid service, public areas, elevators, and so on.
In the end we only wish we could compete with them but we are simply too small and too handcuffed by our limited budget to even consider it. This is why the likes of even the basic to moderate hotels here, such as the Comfort Inn, can charge $450 per night for a basic room during high season, a full $100 below our rates, that is in spite of our larger sized rooms. They have greater reach and more recognition. Many do not even know that bed and breakfasts exist in New York City and that is because we are so few in number and far less visible. Ultimately there should be room for all of us. The irony is that we are charging much less per night for our rooms than a similar hotel room not because we want but because we have to. Our prices are a direct manifestation of our scale. From a marketing perspective, we simply cannot reach the large numbers of business travelers and tourists alike that a big name hotel can, and therefore we should not be seen as competition but rather as an inherent choice, one that befits a city as rich and diverse as New York.
Your Innkeeper,
Fergus O'Brien
Wednesday, August 10, 2011
Trip Advisor? A blessing or a curse?
It is of course no secret that the review-based Trip Advisor has become a hugely important resource to travelers but how useful is it to the travel businesses like ourselves that get reviewed? And what impact has it had on the professionals, the guidebooks that were once the only source of exposure we had, that is to say honest to good merit-based reviews that we had been so happy to profit from before the internet put the consumer front and center.
Do companies like Trip Advisor hurt business by exposing it to fraud or does it give small businesses such as ours much needed exposure. Well, of course that all depends on the nature of the review or reviewer. A good review is worth it's weight in gold and a bad review can outweigh three good reviews. For instance it took us many reviews (almost a year) to climb from the 10th best ranked bed and breakfast in NYC to the 5th. One recent bad review pulled us immediately back to the 10th spot. Meanwhile, in spite of my protestations that some higher ranked properties have less to offer as far as quality and amount of space, Trip Advisor assures me that ranking is not necessarily an indicator that Trip Advisor is working on a scale of greatness. The number 1 ranked place could just as easily be a Motel 6 as it could be a Four Seasons. It's all review based which puts the onus on the consumer to figure out the differences from one property to another. That aside, there isn't a business out there who wouldn't be preferred to be ranked as number 1.
Speaking from the perspective of both business owner and consumer, I would argue that one is more likely to post a review if they had a bad experience than a good experience. Anger is perhaps human nature's greatest motivator. No one likes to be hard done to, particularly when one has coughed up their hard-earned money. It should be noted here that it takes a certain amount of effort on the part of the individual to set up an account with Trip Advisor and just as much effort to post a review. With this in mind it is more likely that a victim of a bad experience will invest the time. However, on the bright side bad experiences occur less than good ones which is likely why most businesses have more good reviews than bad ones. I am thankful for that of course but the problem here is that the bad experiences are the ones that tend to stick out, particularly of course for the party on the receiving end.
Ultimately we have been lucky enough to garner a very high percentage of positive reviews on Trip Advisor but there have been occasions when we have received a bad review, such as the review I alluded to above. Happily, I was able to appeal to the customers better judgment to pull the review, rather than my having to go through Trip Advisor, a decidedly more arduous task.
I do of course understand that no business is without fault and I'm perfectly willing to accept criticism when its due. The problem I have is with the process. What is to stop an individual from posting anything they want about you and how can we as both consumer and business owners alike quantify whether a review is legitimate or not? Indeed it should be noted that Trip Advisor has improved the process some over the years by adding such features as owner/manager response as well as the ability to respond to a reviewer personally, but as indicated here it can still be an extraordinarily difficult task to get a review pulled, no matter how worthy the cause. It is then up to the consumer to figure out who to listen to -- the customer or the business itself? I would argue that most consumers are likely to side with themselves and that is the essential flaw in Trip Advisor's system, by putting the consumer front and center it has whether intentionally or not created a built-in bias towards the consumer.
Do companies like Trip Advisor hurt business by exposing it to fraud or does it give small businesses such as ours much needed exposure. Well, of course that all depends on the nature of the review or reviewer. A good review is worth it's weight in gold and a bad review can outweigh three good reviews. For instance it took us many reviews (almost a year) to climb from the 10th best ranked bed and breakfast in NYC to the 5th. One recent bad review pulled us immediately back to the 10th spot. Meanwhile, in spite of my protestations that some higher ranked properties have less to offer as far as quality and amount of space, Trip Advisor assures me that ranking is not necessarily an indicator that Trip Advisor is working on a scale of greatness. The number 1 ranked place could just as easily be a Motel 6 as it could be a Four Seasons. It's all review based which puts the onus on the consumer to figure out the differences from one property to another. That aside, there isn't a business out there who wouldn't be preferred to be ranked as number 1.
Speaking from the perspective of both business owner and consumer, I would argue that one is more likely to post a review if they had a bad experience than a good experience. Anger is perhaps human nature's greatest motivator. No one likes to be hard done to, particularly when one has coughed up their hard-earned money. It should be noted here that it takes a certain amount of effort on the part of the individual to set up an account with Trip Advisor and just as much effort to post a review. With this in mind it is more likely that a victim of a bad experience will invest the time. However, on the bright side bad experiences occur less than good ones which is likely why most businesses have more good reviews than bad ones. I am thankful for that of course but the problem here is that the bad experiences are the ones that tend to stick out, particularly of course for the party on the receiving end.
Ultimately we have been lucky enough to garner a very high percentage of positive reviews on Trip Advisor but there have been occasions when we have received a bad review, such as the review I alluded to above. Happily, I was able to appeal to the customers better judgment to pull the review, rather than my having to go through Trip Advisor, a decidedly more arduous task.
I do of course understand that no business is without fault and I'm perfectly willing to accept criticism when its due. The problem I have is with the process. What is to stop an individual from posting anything they want about you and how can we as both consumer and business owners alike quantify whether a review is legitimate or not? Indeed it should be noted that Trip Advisor has improved the process some over the years by adding such features as owner/manager response as well as the ability to respond to a reviewer personally, but as indicated here it can still be an extraordinarily difficult task to get a review pulled, no matter how worthy the cause. It is then up to the consumer to figure out who to listen to -- the customer or the business itself? I would argue that most consumers are likely to side with themselves and that is the essential flaw in Trip Advisor's system, by putting the consumer front and center it has whether intentionally or not created a built-in bias towards the consumer.
Thursday, July 28, 2011
There's 'room' for all of us. An investigation into accommodation choices in NYC
Country Inn the City was founded in 1991 by live-in owners Fergus O'Brien and Larry Turk. We have since been featured in most major travel publications around the world, including The New York Times, Frommers, National Geographic Traveler, USA Today, Virgin Travel Guides, 50 to 100 best Wonderful Little Hotels in New York, Lonely Planet, Time Out NY, and Louis Vuitton to name a few. We are also proud to have been featured on 'Jane's New York' on NBC, a hotel special on New York City, 2005.
Our goal is to provide the best of both worlds: that is to say reasonably priced high quality accommodations in a neighborhood that feels more native than tourist, and yet not so far away as to render your stay inconvenient for all that New York City has to offer. Your privacy and peace of mind is assured.
Each of our four spacious bed and breakfast suites is individually decorated with an inviting combination of antiques and contemporary details: all featuring a queen bed with a generously-sized living area, a private galley kitchenette, and bathroom.
Some might say because of our relatively low price point and spacious accommodations that we are competing with hotels when in fact we would rather consider ourselves another option for travelers coming to New York City. As travelers ourselves we believe in options. Sometimes one wants to enjoy the full service of a typical similar level hotel, including concierge, front desk, housekeeping etc. They may want an on site gym or a restaurant, or a fancy big lobby where they might meet other guests. These high service options can be particularly useful to first time visitors who might otherwise be overwhelmed by the unfamiliarity of a major city like New York. And other times, one might want to spend less at the cost of a reduction in services which is where bed and breakfast-like establishments such as ourselves come in.
Each establishment has its own stake in the marketplace. In our case we are located in a neighborhood (specifically in the heart of the Upper West Side) that is not your typical tourist haven such as Times Square. We aim to provide our travelers with a sense of what it might be like to exist in a part of the city in an environment that feels more like home.
Of course one of the problems we face is marketing. How does a small sized establishment like ours attract travelers who are more likely to go with a hotel? One of the ways we do this is to capitalize on our existing clientele, believing that like tends to attract like. As a result we have a huge word of mouth business and we are very grateful for it. As far as attracting large numbers of new visitors we cannot hope to compete with the huge marketing campaigns of a hotel. If an unsuspecting potential guest/s should happen to stumble upon us, following an internet search or an article, and expect us to behave as a full service hotel we would rather direct them to a hotel than have them stay with us, or if we should be full we would rather support our small segment of the industry by directing them to other like properties throughout the city.
However if a potential guest should contact us after having thoroughly investigated the myriad options out there and we deem one another to be a good match we will do everything we can to sell them on our wonderful property and from here on in assure their comfort and good graces.
In summary we are not a hotel and a hotel is not Country Inn the City, rather we are the kind of establishment that seeks to focus on the quality of the accommodation itself at relatively low cost while making what we consider, as fellow travelers, minor sacrifices to make this possible, principally by way of a reduction in services. We strongly believe that Country Inn the City is the perfect choice for those who want a little bit of everything, that is to say a high quality private accommodation that offers basic services at an attractive price. Ultimately, the traveler has three categories to choose from, a hotel, an apartment rental, or a bed and breakfast, and what we did is take a little from each.
Our goal is to provide the best of both worlds: that is to say reasonably priced high quality accommodations in a neighborhood that feels more native than tourist, and yet not so far away as to render your stay inconvenient for all that New York City has to offer. Your privacy and peace of mind is assured.
Each of our four spacious bed and breakfast suites is individually decorated with an inviting combination of antiques and contemporary details: all featuring a queen bed with a generously-sized living area, a private galley kitchenette, and bathroom.
Some might say because of our relatively low price point and spacious accommodations that we are competing with hotels when in fact we would rather consider ourselves another option for travelers coming to New York City. As travelers ourselves we believe in options. Sometimes one wants to enjoy the full service of a typical similar level hotel, including concierge, front desk, housekeeping etc. They may want an on site gym or a restaurant, or a fancy big lobby where they might meet other guests. These high service options can be particularly useful to first time visitors who might otherwise be overwhelmed by the unfamiliarity of a major city like New York. And other times, one might want to spend less at the cost of a reduction in services which is where bed and breakfast-like establishments such as ourselves come in.
Each establishment has its own stake in the marketplace. In our case we are located in a neighborhood (specifically in the heart of the Upper West Side) that is not your typical tourist haven such as Times Square. We aim to provide our travelers with a sense of what it might be like to exist in a part of the city in an environment that feels more like home.
Of course one of the problems we face is marketing. How does a small sized establishment like ours attract travelers who are more likely to go with a hotel? One of the ways we do this is to capitalize on our existing clientele, believing that like tends to attract like. As a result we have a huge word of mouth business and we are very grateful for it. As far as attracting large numbers of new visitors we cannot hope to compete with the huge marketing campaigns of a hotel. If an unsuspecting potential guest/s should happen to stumble upon us, following an internet search or an article, and expect us to behave as a full service hotel we would rather direct them to a hotel than have them stay with us, or if we should be full we would rather support our small segment of the industry by directing them to other like properties throughout the city.
However if a potential guest should contact us after having thoroughly investigated the myriad options out there and we deem one another to be a good match we will do everything we can to sell them on our wonderful property and from here on in assure their comfort and good graces.
In summary we are not a hotel and a hotel is not Country Inn the City, rather we are the kind of establishment that seeks to focus on the quality of the accommodation itself at relatively low cost while making what we consider, as fellow travelers, minor sacrifices to make this possible, principally by way of a reduction in services. We strongly believe that Country Inn the City is the perfect choice for those who want a little bit of everything, that is to say a high quality private accommodation that offers basic services at an attractive price. Ultimately, the traveler has three categories to choose from, a hotel, an apartment rental, or a bed and breakfast, and what we did is take a little from each.
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
Upper West Side history walk
New York City is filled with history but the Upper West Side where we are located is particularly saturated. Start at 490 Riverside Drive btw 120th and 122nd Streets and end at 72nd Street at Central Park West. Time = 2.5 hours. Distance 3.2 miles.
1) Riverside Church at 490 Riverside Dr -- modeled after a 13th Century Gothic Cathedral in Chartres, France. Martin Luther King delivered his "Beyond Vietnam" speech here, exactly one yr before his assassination. Expand your knowledge with a free tour on Sundays at 12.30 p.m.
2) Riverside Park (Riverside Drive btw 72nd and 158th Sts.) which opened in 1875 and was designed by Frederik Law Olmstead of Central Park and Prospect Park fame. Don't miss the General Grant National Memorial at 122nd St, right across from Riverside Church.
3) Barney Greengrass (541 Amsterdam Avenue between 86th and 87th Sts. The 100+ yr old deli has made cameos in 'Sex and the City" and "30 Rock," and counts Jerry Seinfeld and Alec Baldwin as regulars. Try the fabled smoked sturgeon with eggs and onions.
4) The Dakota (1 W. 72nd Street at Central Park West). Erected in 1884 and so named because it was then considered to be as remote as the Dakota Territory. This present day exclusive co-op was the setting for Rosemary's Baby, but is best known as the site of John Lennon's 1980 assassination. Fans can pay tribute to everything Beatles/Lennon across the street at Strawberry Fields (Central Park at West 72nd Street).
1) Riverside Church at 490 Riverside Dr -- modeled after a 13th Century Gothic Cathedral in Chartres, France. Martin Luther King delivered his "Beyond Vietnam" speech here, exactly one yr before his assassination. Expand your knowledge with a free tour on Sundays at 12.30 p.m.
2) Riverside Park (Riverside Drive btw 72nd and 158th Sts.) which opened in 1875 and was designed by Frederik Law Olmstead of Central Park and Prospect Park fame. Don't miss the General Grant National Memorial at 122nd St, right across from Riverside Church.
3) Barney Greengrass (541 Amsterdam Avenue between 86th and 87th Sts. The 100+ yr old deli has made cameos in 'Sex and the City" and "30 Rock," and counts Jerry Seinfeld and Alec Baldwin as regulars. Try the fabled smoked sturgeon with eggs and onions.
4) The Dakota (1 W. 72nd Street at Central Park West). Erected in 1884 and so named because it was then considered to be as remote as the Dakota Territory. This present day exclusive co-op was the setting for Rosemary's Baby, but is best known as the site of John Lennon's 1980 assassination. Fans can pay tribute to everything Beatles/Lennon across the street at Strawberry Fields (Central Park at West 72nd Street).
Wednesday, June 22, 2011
The magic of the Upper West Side
The Upper West Side is a hotbed of high culture and at Country Inn the City we are right in the thick of it. Groundbreaking opera, dance and orchestral productions at Lincoln Center, along with institutions like the American Museum of Natural History and the New-York Historical Society, and the notable Beacon Theater (home to the recent Tony Awards), and Central Park are just a few of the neighborhood’s marquee destinations. Architectural jewels beckon from the palazzo Beaux Arts extravaganzas in the Apthorp and the Ansonia to the former neo-Gothic residence of John Lennon in the Dakota.
Dining and shopping options abound from the big chain stores to the Mom and Pop locations covering all manner of shopping options that define Upper West Side eclecticism and choice. From freshly baked delicacies at H&H Bagels and silky sturgeon at Barney Greengrass to the nearby gourmet food stalwarts in nearby Zabars, Citarella and Fairway, to Latin-Chinese (yes, Latin-Chinese) cuisine at Flor de Mayo, the neighborhood's ethnic eateries, brunch spots and date-night diners run the gastronomic gamut. And with everything from vintage racks to spare high-fashion boutiques, the retail possibilities are similarly diverse. The Upper West Side's nightlife holds its own, too. Where else can you enjoy an aria, a dive-bar beer and some rooftop jazz, all in the space of a few hours?
Dining and shopping options abound from the big chain stores to the Mom and Pop locations covering all manner of shopping options that define Upper West Side eclecticism and choice. From freshly baked delicacies at H&H Bagels and silky sturgeon at Barney Greengrass to the nearby gourmet food stalwarts in nearby Zabars, Citarella and Fairway, to Latin-Chinese (yes, Latin-Chinese) cuisine at Flor de Mayo, the neighborhood's ethnic eateries, brunch spots and date-night diners run the gastronomic gamut. And with everything from vintage racks to spare high-fashion boutiques, the retail possibilities are similarly diverse. The Upper West Side's nightlife holds its own, too. Where else can you enjoy an aria, a dive-bar beer and some rooftop jazz, all in the space of a few hours?
Thursday, June 16, 2011
Copy of a letter to the TAG APPROVED ACCOMMODATIONS directory...
To whom it may concern,
We receive a copy of your tag approved accommodations directory every yr but curiously we have never been it. Our accommodation is gay-owned and gay-friendly. The award winning centrally located Country Inn the City is part hotel, part bed and breakfast and part vacation rental and we have been in operation since 1991. Our target market is the discerning adult traveler (gay or straight) who prefers a superior accommodation at a reasonable price -- at the expense of fewer services. We have been featured in many travel publications such as Frommers, Fodors, Knopf, Eyewitness Guides, National Geographic Traveler, Virgin Travel Guides, 50 through 100 Best Wonderful Little Hotels, Out and About, New York Times, Time Out Magazine, Louis Vuitton Travel Guide, USA Today, Financial Times of LONDON, Guide De Charme, Swissair Magazine, Qantas Magazine, and more.
We think it really is a shame that in an age of big business that small but significant players like us often fail to get recognized by gay publications except in the case of OUT AND ABOUT magazine and the fact that we list on PURPLE ROOFS. When guests stay at unique gay-owned or independent businesses like ours (i.e. not a big hotel chain) they feel like they are contributing to something noble, that is to say to an enterprise that is, by virtue of its independence, more unique, more hands-on, and more identifiable -- and consequently more worthy of attention. When they come here they get to meet the owner and they get the added satisfaction that they are contributing to a real individual's success rather than a corporation while at the same time not sacrificing on quality and reputation. We truly are that rare breed of accommodation that offers a best of both worlds experience, one that is equal parts charm and reputation.
In essence, we believe we would be a great addition to your listings and that we truly represent what your readers are looking for, a small guest-specific intimate residence where gays and non-gays alike can experience a great city like New York while feeling like a native rather than just another tourist. Our central Upper West Side neighborhood/location of course has a big hand in this and I urge you to take a look at our website. A new stunning website with professional images will be launched in JULY.
Regards,
Fergus O'Brien
We receive a copy of your tag approved accommodations directory every yr but curiously we have never been it. Our accommodation is gay-owned and gay-friendly. The award winning centrally located Country Inn the City is part hotel, part bed and breakfast and part vacation rental and we have been in operation since 1991. Our target market is the discerning adult traveler (gay or straight) who prefers a superior accommodation at a reasonable price -- at the expense of fewer services. We have been featured in many travel publications such as Frommers, Fodors, Knopf, Eyewitness Guides, National Geographic Traveler, Virgin Travel Guides, 50 through 100 Best Wonderful Little Hotels, Out and About, New York Times, Time Out Magazine, Louis Vuitton Travel Guide, USA Today, Financial Times of LONDON, Guide De Charme, Swissair Magazine, Qantas Magazine, and more.
We think it really is a shame that in an age of big business that small but significant players like us often fail to get recognized by gay publications except in the case of OUT AND ABOUT magazine and the fact that we list on PURPLE ROOFS. When guests stay at unique gay-owned or independent businesses like ours (i.e. not a big hotel chain) they feel like they are contributing to something noble, that is to say to an enterprise that is, by virtue of its independence, more unique, more hands-on, and more identifiable -- and consequently more worthy of attention. When they come here they get to meet the owner and they get the added satisfaction that they are contributing to a real individual's success rather than a corporation while at the same time not sacrificing on quality and reputation. We truly are that rare breed of accommodation that offers a best of both worlds experience, one that is equal parts charm and reputation.
In essence, we believe we would be a great addition to your listings and that we truly represent what your readers are looking for, a small guest-specific intimate residence where gays and non-gays alike can experience a great city like New York while feeling like a native rather than just another tourist. Our central Upper West Side neighborhood/location of course has a big hand in this and I urge you to take a look at our website. A new stunning website with professional images will be launched in JULY.
Regards,
Fergus O'Brien
Wednesday, June 1, 2011
Bed and breakfast photography
One of the most important things an innkeeper can do is to hire a professional photographer. As the saying goes ''A picture is worth a thousand words." As the innkeeper for the award winning Country Inn the City (since inception in 1991) here in Manhattan, I have tried numerous ways to score top quality photographs at an affordable price with varying degrees of success. However, during this difficult economy I have come to realize that good is not good enough and that in order to survive in these trying times one must spend more to stay ahead. In the last year the inn has spent more on improvements than in the last six. We have upgraded our furnishings, amenities, and we have done a fair amount of re-modeling and maintenance. Nothing irritates me more as an innkeeper than a poorly maintained bathroom. A good caulk and grout job can make all the difference to our guest's comfort.
In order to take advantage of all these improvements we hired an up and coming bed and breakfast specialist in Christian Gianelli who we found through PAII.ORG. He shot the inn today with his wife Melissa. They were a pleasure to work with and we cannot wait for the results. The new photos will launch on our new website which is currently under works. We feel that this one two punch will bring us a great deal of new business. We might be small with a total of just four suites but we know one thing and that is that our establishment is a boon to anyone who seeks more from their stay. More space, more quality, more value, and more privacy -- in an unbeatable central location, one far enough from the typical tourist traps but no so far as to render one's stay inconvenient.
In order to take advantage of all these improvements we hired an up and coming bed and breakfast specialist in Christian Gianelli who we found through PAII.ORG. He shot the inn today with his wife Melissa. They were a pleasure to work with and we cannot wait for the results. The new photos will launch on our new website which is currently under works. We feel that this one two punch will bring us a great deal of new business. We might be small with a total of just four suites but we know one thing and that is that our establishment is a boon to anyone who seeks more from their stay. More space, more quality, more value, and more privacy -- in an unbeatable central location, one far enough from the typical tourist traps but no so far as to render one's stay inconvenient.
Wednesday, May 18, 2011
For art's sake: nyc gallery guide
While New York City is home to internationally renowned museums like The Museum of Modern Art and The Metropolitan Museum of Art, it is also the haven of countless incubators of aesthetic expression—art galleries. Clustered predominantly in and around neighborhoods like Chelsea, the Lower East Side, the Upper East Side and Brooklyn's Williamsburg, these exhibition spaces are celebrated both for the pieces they house and for their accessibility.
Galleries are open to the public generally from Tuesdays through Saturdays, free of charge—which includes glamorous opening-night receptions where sightings of celebrities and art-world titans are as prevalent as the wine served (also free). And although they're sprinkled throughout NYC, dense concentrations in the aforementioned areas make it easy to hop from one show to the next. We've assembled the following guide to help you navigate some of the City's most gallery-rich locales.
http://www.nycgo.com/articles/for-arts-sake-nyc-gallery-guide
Galleries are open to the public generally from Tuesdays through Saturdays, free of charge—which includes glamorous opening-night receptions where sightings of celebrities and art-world titans are as prevalent as the wine served (also free). And although they're sprinkled throughout NYC, dense concentrations in the aforementioned areas make it easy to hop from one show to the next. We've assembled the following guide to help you navigate some of the City's most gallery-rich locales.
http://www.nycgo.com/articles/for-arts-sake-nyc-gallery-guide
Thursday, May 5, 2011
The 2011 Trip Advisor Readers Choice Awards
New York City was voted the number 1 choice destination by Trip Advisor Reviewers. Country Inn the City is ranked #5 and climbing...
http://www.tripadvisor.com/TCDestinations-g191-United_States.html
http://www.tripadvisor.com/TCDestinations-g191-United_States.html
Thursday, April 28, 2011
Trip Advisor Ranking
Happy to see that we (Country Inn the City) are now number 5 (up from 8 just a couple of months ago) on the NYC list for trip advisor, the number one customer/guest driven review site on the planet. One of the problems we face with trip advisor is that the site is contingent upon whether or not guests of the inn find the time to review us. We very much appreciate all those who have and hope that one day our trip advisor ranking will catch up to our ranking by the travel press.
For better or worse the internet has helped create a world in which personal review sites carry more weight than the pros, that is those who specialize in seeking out the best properties by way of comparison testing. First you have to be found and then you have to be compared and tested. In the end our goal as a business is to represent ourselves as well as we possibly can while staying within our budget, for both guests and travel professionals alike. Smaller bed and breakfast-style properties such as ourselves of course have a harder time getting noticed but what that means for the guest is that we work harder on our product, meaning more quality, more space, more service, better rates.
Thank you to all for supporting small business...
http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Review-g60763-d112023-Reviews-Country_Inn_the_City-New_York_City_New_York.html
For better or worse the internet has helped create a world in which personal review sites carry more weight than the pros, that is those who specialize in seeking out the best properties by way of comparison testing. First you have to be found and then you have to be compared and tested. In the end our goal as a business is to represent ourselves as well as we possibly can while staying within our budget, for both guests and travel professionals alike. Smaller bed and breakfast-style properties such as ourselves of course have a harder time getting noticed but what that means for the guest is that we work harder on our product, meaning more quality, more space, more service, better rates.
Thank you to all for supporting small business...
http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Review-g60763-d112023-Reviews-Country_Inn_the_City-New_York_City_New_York.html
Wednesday, April 27, 2011
Royal Wedding
Astonished to discover that the bank holiday in Great Britain to commemorate the royal wedding of the decade will cost the country an estimated $9 billion in lost revenue. Meanwhile, the event is estimated to bring in $1.6 billion in tourist revenue -- a princely sum but at what cost? On the plus side the wedding will lift the spirits of GB during a time when the economy sorely needs it. Sometimes it's about personal wealth not material wealth and an event like this can do much to change the spirit of a country...Let's hope it's a turning point for this mighty but beleaguered nation.
Delighted to hear that business travel is on the long awaited rebound..
Business travel spending rebounds
A 6.9 percent increase is forecast for 2011.
By D.R. STEWART World Staff Writer
Published: 4/23/2011 2:26 AM
Last Modified: 4/23/2011 6:45 AM
Business travel and spending grew at stronger-than-expected rates in 2010's fourth quarter, and business travel spending in 2011 is now expected to be even stronger than the 5 percent growth forecast in the first quarter, said the Global Business Travel Association.
The GBTA estimates business travel spending in 2011 will be $245 billion, a 6.9 percent increase compared with 2010.
Business travel spending was up by $4.2 billion in 2010's fourth quarter - the strongest seasonally adjusted quarter-over-quarter business travel growth since the recession began - due to improving economic conditions and increasing corporate confidence, the association said.
"These are very heartening signs," said Michael W. McCormick, GBTA executive director and chief operating officer. "Business travel spending is coming back at robust levels, indicating the shape of things to come - namely more travelers on the road, an improving economy and a positive environment for continued job growth. Thanks to increasing corporate confidence, companies are investing more in business travel, which will further stimulate business activity and economic growth."
With economic improvement and more business travelers hitting the road, travel prices are also recovering, GBTA said. Rate analysis based on an aggregate of air fare, lodging, meals, ground transportation and car rentals shows travel prices in 2010 increased by 2.5 percent, and they are projected to increase between 2 percent and 4 percent in 2011, the association said.
Read more from this Tulsa World article at
http://www.tulsaworld.com/business/article.aspx?subjectid=45&articleid=20110423_45_E2_Busine593862
A 6.9 percent increase is forecast for 2011.
By D.R. STEWART World Staff Writer
Published: 4/23/2011 2:26 AM
Last Modified: 4/23/2011 6:45 AM
Business travel and spending grew at stronger-than-expected rates in 2010's fourth quarter, and business travel spending in 2011 is now expected to be even stronger than the 5 percent growth forecast in the first quarter, said the Global Business Travel Association.
The GBTA estimates business travel spending in 2011 will be $245 billion, a 6.9 percent increase compared with 2010.
Business travel spending was up by $4.2 billion in 2010's fourth quarter - the strongest seasonally adjusted quarter-over-quarter business travel growth since the recession began - due to improving economic conditions and increasing corporate confidence, the association said.
"These are very heartening signs," said Michael W. McCormick, GBTA executive director and chief operating officer. "Business travel spending is coming back at robust levels, indicating the shape of things to come - namely more travelers on the road, an improving economy and a positive environment for continued job growth. Thanks to increasing corporate confidence, companies are investing more in business travel, which will further stimulate business activity and economic growth."
With economic improvement and more business travelers hitting the road, travel prices are also recovering, GBTA said. Rate analysis based on an aggregate of air fare, lodging, meals, ground transportation and car rentals shows travel prices in 2010 increased by 2.5 percent, and they are projected to increase between 2 percent and 4 percent in 2011, the association said.
Read more from this Tulsa World article at
http://www.tulsaworld.com/business/article.aspx?subjectid=45&articleid=20110423_45_E2_Busine593862
Tuesday, April 26, 2011
YOU TUBE
We are in the process of adding a YOU TUBE channel. We hope to have a video up soon.
http://www.youtube.com/user/citc270
http://www.youtube.com/user/citc270
Friday, April 22, 2011
Happy Earth Day..
Hope you will all find the time to take a moment in celebration of the earth....
www.earthdayny.org/
www.earthdayny.org/
Thursday, April 21, 2011
Paint day at the Inn
Finally we have the right weather to touch up the paint work in the gazebo apartment -- just in time for the busy spring/summer season.
Wednesday, April 20, 2011
May super specials at the Inn
Enjoy unprecedented discounts throughout May at the Inn. It is one of our favorite months in NYC. Don't miss out on this rare opportunity..
http://www.countryinnthecity.com/10.html
http://www.countryinnthecity.com/10.html
Photography shoot at the Inn
We are interviewing local photographers today to re-shoot the Inn in May when the light and foliage is at its best
Tuesday, April 19, 2011
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