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New York is undeniably one of the best cities in the world, however, it is also one of the most expensive cities as well. Because of this, it makes it very hard for two university students to find a hotel to stay in New York for 5 nights without shelling out hundreds and hundreds of dollars. There are hotel rooms that exist for under $200, but those ones have communal bathrooms and missing ceilings, plus they’re in the sketchiest parts of the city. In addition to that, many hotels don’t rent out rooms to people under 21. With us only being 20, that greatly narrowed the list of hotels to choose from.
By this point, I was getting very frustrated and nervous. I didn’t think I would be able to find a place that would both be safe and cheap. It seemed like two clashing traits that I would never find in the same room. But then, when it seemed like there was no hope left and my trip to New York would never happen, I remembered a website called Airbnb. Airbnb isan online marketplace where people can list rooms for rent. Upon this website, we stumbled upon an apartment in Brooklyn. It was exactly what we were looking for. It had a bed, it had a ceiling and it was only $100 a night. What more could we ask for? Sure, the concept seemed a little bit sketchy at first. We would be staying in a guy’s apartment that had graffiti covering in it’s walls in an area of Brooklyn that we didn’t know anything about. My parents were definitely less than keen on the idea. But after looking through pictures of the apartment and reading reviews online, I knew that this place would guarantee me the whole experience of New York that I was so desperately searching for. I would finally be a real New Yorker.
When we reached New York, we cabbed to the apartment and met the owner’s friend. She showed us the place and we were pleasantly surprised. The room where we would be staying was a loft style, meaning there was a lower floor with a dresser and a clothing to rack to hang out clothes and then a tiny staircase leading up to a second floor where a bed sat. When I describe this room as a loft, you might think that means that this room was huge and airy. That is the opposite. Our room was tiny. It was basically the size of a closet, but that’s okay, it was exactly what we needed. After all, we just needed this room to sleep in at night. We left early in the morning and came back at night. We were in New York, what do you expect?
The whole atmosphere of the apartment was amazing. It just screamed New York. There was graffiti plastering the entranceway and there was art everywhere. An artist also lived in the apartment we were staying in, as well as a music producer so the place was very artsy. There was never an absence of music or art. There was even a party one of the nights in our apartment which we had been planning on attending. However, we never expected how exhausted New York would make us so we snuck up to our room instead to watch Gilmore Girls and eat peanut butter pretzels while the music and fun blasted from outside our room. Yes, I did choose to skip out on a New York party. Yes, I am lame.
The location of the apartment was amazing as well. Before we travelled to New York. I knew nothing about the boroughs. Therefore, I had no idea what it meant that we were staying in Brooklyn instead of Manhattan, which might seem like the more suitable choice for tourists. We stayed in the infamous McKibbin Lofts (they have their own Wikipedia page, no biggie) which was actually in a not so sketchy area of town. I definitely don’t want to be caught outside there at night alone but we didn’t find ourselves in any bad situations so I say that’s a plus! McKibbin Lofts is about a 5 minute walk to the subway station, Montrose Ave. It was so handy! We could find ourselves in Manhattan in 20 minutes! I was so surprised at how easy it is to get around in New York. There was also the cutest cafe near our apartment which we frequented every morning. It was called Boulevard Books and Cafe and has the best freshly squeezed juices and breakfast items. I recommend the Mozzarella and Avocado Croissant. It was A+.
So that’s where we stayed in New York! I couldn’t have been happier. For only $50 each a night, I don’t think we could have found a better place to stay. Sure, we had to share a bathroom and maybe our room was tiny and unbearably hot, but I can confidently say that I’m a real New Yorker now. Just kidding, I wish. I am still just a lame Edmontonian at heart.