ACT TWO – TRAVEL
PLAN YOUR
THEATRE WEEKEND
Let’s continue!
ACT TWO
Now that I’ve found some shows I want to see, which should I do next: book the show tickets, or book my hotel and airfare?
We’ll get back to your show choices in a moment, but first let’s talk a little about how you’ll get to New York and where you’ll stay once there.
We’ll take this step-by-step, but the fact is you will need to do a bit of sleuthing as to show availability, hotel availability/rates, and airfares simultaneously… like within the same 24-48 hour period.
If you’ve ever booked a flight, you know that airfare costs and availability fluctuate wildly from day-to-day — even hour-to-hour. I’ve spotted one-way flights from LA to NY online which were $175 one-way, hesitated and didn’t book it, and found the same flight had doubled in cost by the next day. (I’m sure you’ve seen this too!)
Theatre tickets are no different: awesome, affordable seats for a show appear in online searches which are — literally — here-today, gone-tomorrow. The rates don’t really fluctuate wildly like the airlines, but seat availability comes and goes quickly!
So it becomes a bit of a shell game where you’ll need have to have a decent amount of info on all three things for your target dates — airfares, hotel prices, and show ticket availability — and then book them all at once before the prices and options change!
Where exactly is the Theatre District in New York?
As a guideline, the Theatre District is between 54th Street to the north, and 41st Street to the south, and between 6th Avenue (also called Avenue of the Americas) to the east and 9th Avenue to the west. Within this grid you’ll find most of the Broadway theatres (with a few outlier exceptions), and a lot of Off-Broadway, and Off-Off Broadway houses as well.
If your goal is to do a true Theatre Weekend and see as many shows as possible, this area — situated around Times Square — is where you want to stay. Nearly all the Broadway theatres are located within 10 blocks of Times Square, and being able to walk to-and-from your shows is key.
Times Square itself is a really busy, crowded and touristy area of the city, but you will find all the big chain hotels catering to both tourists and business people. Hilton, Marriott, Sheraton, Hyatt, Westin, W, Intercontinental — they’re all represented in this area.
There are certainly unique, boutique hotels in more charming neighborhoods throughout New York, but avoiding the added transportation hassle of getting to-and-from your performances makes staying near the Theatre District (Times Square) the better and more efficient choice for a Theatre Weekend. You’ll also love having a room nearby to freshen up or rest between matinee and evening performances — especially if your trip is during the winter, or there’s inclement weather which can make it tough to hail a taxi, and Uber/Lyft implement elevated Surge Pricing.
So where exactly should I stay?
I’ve listed* some of the hotels I’ve stayed in during my theatre weekends at our Hotels link in the Top Menu. My personal go-to hotel, though, is the Intercontinental Times Square. (*note: Hotel pages here are still under construction, but you can click the image below for options.) It’s one of the newer hotels in the area — it usually has great rates, is a sponsor of a couple of theatre companies, has a great rewards/points program which also includes Kimpton Hotels, Holiday Inn, Staybridge Suites, and many other brands — and the staff is incredibly friendly and efficient!
The Intercontinental is located on 44th Street at the corner of 8th Avenue, and is within walking distance to just about every show on Broadway. There’s also an entrance to the 42nd Street subway stop on the corner where you can find 8 subway lines for anything further afield, including a direct line to JFK Airport (“E” Train).
Research some hotel options for your trip (use our booking link below, or read online reviews at TripAdvisor.com, Yelp.com and elsewhere) and have a look at a few hotel options to see how the hotel is pricing out on your 2-3 potential theatre weekend dates.
Aside from hotels, you can check out apartment rental sites like Airbnb* (*get a $40 bonus off your first rental at this link) and VRBO — but recent rental regulations in New York City are making it tougher and tought for apartment owners to do short term rentals, so these are no longer easy finds.
What’s the best way to get to New York for My Theatre Weekend?
I won’t spend too much time on booking airfare as it involves the same leg-work you’d do for any kind of vacation air travel. As I mentioned above, it’s good to have a couple of date options for your trip — not only to increase your options for good theatre tickets, but also to find better airline rates (or to have a better chance at using your Frequent Flier miles, if that’s your plan).
Start by comparing the individual airline booking sites (American, JetBlue, United, Delta, etc.) — you’ll know what’s available from your hometown — and the ticket aggregators like Booking.com which may offer discounted rates if you book hotel and airfare together. You might also check out Google Flights for an overall snapshot of all the flight options and airfares available on your travel dates.
As with your Broadway Brainstorming List from Act One of our planning, don’t book anything right away — just take note of potential flight times and airfares and keep them handy as you look at theatre tickets. Later on, you’ll want to compare the dates with best air fares against the dates with the best theatre tickets… but more on that to come!
Some additional thoughts on flying into New York:
- The three main New York area airports (JFK, La Guardia, and Newark) all offer tons of options from major cities around the country, and indeed the whole world. It’s worth noting that since the Theatre District in New York is situated around Times Square on the west side of the city (which is where you should book a hotel room, as discussed above), it makes Newark Airport slightly closer. However, I should also point out that direct public transportation options into New York City from Newark Airport are nearly non-existent — and its that same for LaGuardia Airport. Both of those options will require alternate transportation options into the city (shared shuttle, cab, Uber/Lyft, etc.) if you don’t want to switch bus and/or train lines multiple times. If that’s not a concern, Newark is very convenient. You can also take the private Newark Airport Express Bus ($17 one-way or $30 round-trip) directly to either the Port Authority Bus Terminal (41st Street/8th Avenue) or Bryant Park (42nd Street/6th Avenue) which are mere steps from Times Square.
- If you want to save money and take public transportation into the city, JFK Airport is the best choice as you can take the airport’s AirTrain from any of the terminals and connect directly to a subway line that stops in the Theatre District (the “E” Subway line to either 50th Street or 42nd Street). It takes between 45 minutes to an hour to travel from the airport to Times Square, depending on how quickly you catch a train. The AirTrain is free to connect from terminal-to-terminal at the airport, but costs $8.25 if you transfer to the subway (pay at exit); you then need to pay a subway fare into the city ($2.90), but the whole one-way trip costs under $12 per person — a real steal!! See full info on the Air Train here.
- Taxis are an ideal option from any of the three airports and are abundant. There is currently a flat/fixed rate from JFK to the city of about $70 plus tolls, tip, and tax (slightly higher during peak hours). Ride share options like Lyft and Uber* are also popular choices and now have dedicated Ride Share Pick-Up spots at each of the airports. You can also pre-order shared vans, like Super Shuttle — which take several passengers from the airport to the city making several stops along the way — but they’re convenient, less expensive, and very reliable. (There is no flat/fixed rate taxi fare from LaGuardia or Newark – it’s just a typical metered ride plus tips/tolls/applicable surcharges.)
- For something a little more private and personalized, there are tons of professional car services on offer, like EmpireCLS and MusicExpress, where the driver will meet you at the baggage claim area of your airline holding a sign with your name on it. The rate can easily be double-or-more that of a taxi, but the driver will help with you fetch your luggage at baggage claim, roll or carry it to the car for you, and drive you into the city directly to the hotel. Each company offers various sized cars from smaller Hybrids to large SUVs and vans, depending on your party size (and the amount of luggage you travel with!) (You know who you are!! 😉).
Note: we highly recommend that you do not rent a car for your Theatre Weekend. Aside from the highly congested New York City traffic — which can be tricky if not downright dangerous if you’re not used to it — the parking in the Theatre District can be as much as $60-$100 per day with no in-and-out of the lot priviledges. Instead, use one of the options above and just walk everywhere in the city, or take public transportation — nearly all the Broadway theatres are within walking distance of Times Square.
You did it — you finished Act 2! Take a brief intermission to congratulate yourself, and then click to move on to Planning Your Trip: Act Three !!
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