<p>Hey, parents. My friend and I will be visiting universities (Drexel and UPenn) in the Philadelphia area and are looking for cheap hotels w/ parking in a safe area of the city. </p>
<p>We have seen some campus visit specials on onebigcampus.com for $100/night in Center City, which is a good price for location but a bit expensive for us. </p>
<p>Any other suggestions?</p>
<p>Why don’t you try priceline.com? As long as you don’t have a hotel preference you can probably get something cheaper that way. I got the Omni in Philadelphia that way, under $100.</p>
<p>$100 is a great price for Center City, especially if it includes parking (which, a la carte, can cost $25-30/day by itself there). To get cheaper than that, you’ll probably have to go to the suburbs (and not the close-in ones, at that), and you’ll wind up spending your savings on parking at Penn (whereas from Center City you can walk or take public transportation for a lot less).</p>
<p>You have to pay for parking at Penn? In the /summer/? Man, that kinda sucks! </p>
<p>Yeah, I kinda expected that answer. I was wondering if there was a less ritzy area of town with a motel to crash in, but from my forays onto Priceline and Orbitz, there’s nothing until you get into the suburbs.</p>
<p>I just found this link for International House, and it looks like they have nightly rooms for rent, and it might be in your price range - it’s right on the Penn campus and a short walk over to Drexel. <a href=“http://www.ihousephilly.org/living-housing-options-rates.htm[/url]”>http://www.ihousephilly.org/living-housing-options-rates.htm</a></p>
<p>Ah, thanks, that’s quite cool. Still about ~100 dollars/night, but it looks a lot nicer than anything else in that price range.</p>
<p>It’s in a good location, since you’ll be right in the hub of Penn and Drexel. I actually stayed there many years ago, and it was fine. Of course, now the area is all built up with lots of trendy stores, (Urban Outfitters, etc.) restaurants, etc. Are you planning on driving? I can check and see what’s available in terms of parking. I’m very familiar with the area, since I worked and went to school there.</p>
<p>I found some info with regard to parking, which I hope is helpful. <a href=“http://www.ihousephilly.org/about-directions.htm[/url]”>http://www.ihousephilly.org/about-directions.htm</a> If you can park cheaply in a lot of garage, I would say go for it, because it will be safer than parking on the street, especially if it’s overnight. I never let my D park on the street when she visits her friends at Penn. H has his car stolen at Drexel many years ago and never forgot it, and we’re just paranoid about it. I’m sure people do park on the street - we just choose not to.</p>
<p>Have you and your friend considered a hostel?</p>
<p><a href=“http://reservations.bookhostels.com/bootsnall.com/index.php[/url]”>http://reservations.bookhostels.com/bootsnall.com/index.php</a></p>
<p>The one location they show looks decent and at $23 a nite per person, is definitely budget friendly.</p>
<p>nyumom, thanks a TON. That actually looks like a really good option (and parking is super cheap during the planned stay). The only thing I’m concerned about is this:</p>
<p>OVERNIGHT ACCOMMODATIONS </p>
<p>International House of Philadelphia accepts overnight reservations when space is available. Overnight guests must be a:</p>
<p>Student (full- or part-time)
Conference attendee
Prospective student coming for an interview
Faculty member
Medical Trainee
Professional Trainee
Or, academically-affiliated individual </p>
<p>I’m a full-time university student (but not a Penn student), and she is not (although she could easily pass for a college kid). Also, neither of us will be having an on-campus interview. Looks like we might be out of luck. </p>
<p>We did look into Hostels, but my friend is totally not so hot with the idea of sharing a bedroom with strangers. I don’t have a huge problem with it, but I understand where she’s coming from.</p>
<p>I laughed when I saw the title of this thread. My next thought was “Good luck with THAT!” Hotels in Philadelphia are generally very high, unless you happen upon a deal. If you have a car, you should stay out of the city- maybe get a deal near the airport (be careful-there are some real dumps).</p>
<p>Oh, please. Don’t stay at the airport to save $10. That negates the whole point of looking at a school that’s in the middle of a fairly vibrant city. If you stay in Center City (or at International House, which is a great idea) leave your car parked at the facility and walk and use public transportation to get around the Center City / University City area. Your car will be fine. But if you are not familiar with the area (and U-City can be really confusing), driving and looking for cheap parking will be a pain.</p>
<p>do a hostel- cheap, safe and fun</p>
<p>my D, 18, stayed in one in NYC, I felt totally comfortable with that</p>
<p>Everything’s relative, by the way. Philly hotel prices may seem high to you, but you could stay at a hotel in Center City Philadelphia, park your car there, and take the train round trip to New York for far less than you would pay to stay in a dive and to park your car in Manhattan. Hotel prices here are high compared to lots of out-of-the-way college towns, especially in the summer, but they are not high compared to “the competition”: NYC, Boston, and Washington.</p>
<p>Of course they aren’t high compared to NYC, but for a student looking at schools, they are high. My kid GOES to Penn and I can’t afford to stay in center city!</p>
<p>I have two suggestions, both in Mt. Laurel NJ, a very safe area with an easy 15 minute drive into the city over the Betsey Ross Bridge. </p>
<p>We stay in the Doubletree in Mt. Laurel NJ every year for around $100/night AAA rate. Luxurious accomodations, amazing free chocolate chip cookies and a free drink when you get there, free hot buffet breakfast, great indoor/outdoor swimming pool etc. </p>
<p>I’ve also stayed at the Red Roof Inn in Mt. Laurel for around $50. Clean rooms, but bring your own shampoo. There are good diners nearby for breakfast. </p>
<p>There are probably even cheaper places in Mt. Laurel.</p>
<p>We had good luck with priceline a couple years ago for the Marriott in Center City.</p>
<p>Hostels often have rooms with varying numbers of beds. My daughter has stayed in some that were for only 4 people (she was traveling with three others), and has stayed in rooms with 12 people (did NOT like that). It’s important to check with the hostel as to what accomodations they can provide. </p>
<p>If, for some reason you change your mind and look outside of Center City, DO NOT, and I repeat, DO NOT stay at the Extended Stay near the airport. A few weeks ago we were a victim of the East coast air traffic control computer glitch when all East coast planes were delayed hours upon hours. Our flight was finally cancelled, and it was the only place (called well over a dozen) near the airport that had a room. At the time we knew nothing about it. Today, I could write a novel about it. Not safe, not clean, and definitely illegal activities going on there.</p>
<p>umcp11,
Since you’re coming to look at the school(s), you could say that it’s for an interview - it’s kind of the same idea - I don’t know that they would be complete sticklers about it. Maybe you can call ahead just to give them a heads up on it, and that way you will be able to introduce yourself - if they have room, then it shouldn’t be a problem. If you don’t want/can’t call for some reason, then maybe one of your parents/guardians would be willing to call. I actually did that for my D who’s overseas right now, and I didn’t even speak the language, but I tried, and I was very polite and nice, and I didn’t have a problem securing a room at the hostel that she’s currently staying at (her flight came in a day early, so she needed a room to stay in a day ahead of the program).</p>