Reviews of New York Homestay

07 December 2011 Alice would recommend this property

Liked: The property is not boasting enough about itself. It is essentially a really spacious and quirky house with (I think) 2 rooms for rent. It is fully furnished with a great kitchen, so you can self cater easily! The bathroom is clean and ther'es plenty of hot water. Linen and towels are provided which saves loads of suitcase space! It is a quiet street in a safe neighbourhood and has fantastic character! really awesome place to stay! Free wifi was amazingingly helpful, and was fast enough for a good Skype call! Plus there are dvds and a radio available. The location was also perfect. It is about 50 metres from Newark Broad Street, which has a direct train to NY Penn, Newark Penn, and Hoboken amongst other, which at $5 per trip makes it an easy place to stay and cheaper than staying in the city!

Disliked: nothing!

16 November 2011 Philipp would recommend this property

Liked: - Pedro was very friendly - the idea behind the guesthouse: its more private than in hostels - good facilities (kitchen, bath)

Disliked: - the location was the only improvable thing, if you would like to discover the NYC nightlife you must be aware of the train connections (or the cab-prices lol)

10 November 2011 Customer would recommend this property

Liked: cosy, traditional, home-feel

Disliked: -

17 October 2011 Customer would recommend this property

Liked: it was like being in your own home with a kitchen and lounge room...and it was much quieter than being in the heart of new York...loved it

Disliked: its a bummer the transport is a bit of a hassle

28 September 2011

Liked: It was clean.

Disliked: In my opinion, the Homestay was in an unsafe area on the outskirts of Newark. This made it difficult to go out in the evening for dinner so it was important to make self-catering plans. There is also only one NJ Transit service into New York every hour at the weekend (though you could walk 20 mins to subway), though this would not be safe in the dark.

23 September 2011 stephen would recommend this property

Liked: it is like having your own house near New York city. It is very easy to get into the city as it is only a block from Newark broad street station. Also getting to Newark airport is so easy, fast ,and cheap on bus GO28. Take an hour and wander around the neighborhood in the day to get a feel of New Jersey. When in New York I would definetly return to HOMESTAY.

Disliked: Getting into New York takes 20 minutes and 5 dollars each way but the HOMESTAY experience more than makes up for this.

18 September 2011

Liked: Very little

Disliked: The property was dirty. The floors, the worktops, kitchen utensils, etc were not at all clean, infact we had to purchase cleaning materials ourselves and clean the apartment to make it liveable. The bed linen and towels were changed only once in the 14 days we stayed there. We were a group of 4 but there were only 2 chairs in the lounge area. We asked George if he could provide us with 2 more, but this request was ignored. The property was supposed to have 24 hour internet access available, but there was no internet access what so ever. There was no plug for the main sink in the kitchen, again our request for one was ignored. Simple kitchen utensils such a tin-opener were not provided and the oven wasn't working. Prior to our arrival the fridge had been turned off and when we plugged it in, there the was a stale odor coming from it. There was no TV in the whole house. There was no laundry facilities at the property and no laundrette in the area. During our stay the weather was extremely warm and humid so we left the air conditioning on to keep the apartment cool. Even if we left the apartment for only a couple of hours George would enter the property to turn off the air con, leaving apartment uncomforably warm. George had also unplugged our ipods which had been charging. The area the property was situated, we felt was unsafe at night. There was also no supermarket or grocery store within a 3 mile radius making it difficult to purchase food. George himself was pleasent when we first arrived however his hosting abilities left a lot to be desired. We only seen him twice in our 2 week stay. It seemed like once he had received our payment, he wasn't interested in making our stay more comfortable and relaxing or answering any of our requests. I would not recommend this property to anyone, the information on hostelbookers was far from what the property actually delivered. I actually have family living about 30minutes train journey away from the property and we seriously considered just packing up and going to stay with them for the duration of our stay, the property left us feeling disgusted.

16 September 2011 Maja would recommend this property

Liked: The house has everything you need for yor perfect holiday in New York. George is wonderful and does everything to make you feel like you're in your house!

Disliked: Nothing, everything was perfect!

03 September 2011 Stuart would recommend this property

Liked: It was by chance that I ended up staying but it turned out to be a real blessing. George is extremely friendly and helpful and really seeks to do everything he can. Whether it's local advice or looking after you he goes the extra mile. I don't have a bad word to say about my time spent at Home Stay. I'll certainly be recommending it to friends. I've stayed at a lot of hostels in the area over the last few years and feel that the guest house atmosphere here is far nicer. Thanks for everything!

Disliked: It's not in Manhattan, but it is so close that this was hardly a factor.

02 September 2011 Customer would recommend this property

Liked: Little house with 2 rooms which you share with another guest. House was charming, clean and quiet. Perfect for visiting NYC. NJ transit ($5 to NYC) 3 mins walk away, PATH ($1.50 to NYC) about 20mins walk away. Good value for money.

Disliked: .

27 August 2011 Jon would recommend this property

Liked: I appreciated its convenience to rail transit and the homey charm of the interior. I also felt grateful by our host's friendliness and willingness to go out of his way to meet our needs (waiting up for our late arrival, checking into my flight for me on a computer).

Disliked: Compared to a similar room set-up and level of comfort in another market, I found this place quite expensive, but I realize that the NY area has its own economic inflation. Pricing by the bed rather than room also made for less than ideal cost/ value ratio for me: for example, if I were to do my stay over, I would probably request one of his rooms with only a single bed and pay half as much, but sleep two-to-a-bed.

25 August 2011

Liked: Really, almost nothing.

Disliked: This could be a very long list. First of all, I think the overall rating this property has got so far is exceptionally overstated. If that rating really relatively reflects the situation in NY and its surroundings then I must say, without a shadow of a doubt that NY is about the filthiest place I have ever seen in my life. This was not a hostel, it was a homestay. But as I rated earlier: the room was small, not at all clean, had bugs and many many moths, the facilities were all very old, bedding was dirty, even stinky, no internet access (although advertised). But let's say this was all somehow acceptable. The thing which was absolutely NOT ACCEPTABLE was the owner's behaviour. Despite earlier emails and talks, the owner was not present when we have arrived at the house. For several hours way into that night nobody was answering the phone, nobody was opening the door. We already went back to Manhattan in search for a new place to stay when he called back from somewhere in Idaho. With difficulties and additional costs (phone & cab) his brother has let us in. We haven't seen any of them owners in the 5 days and nights we were there. But we noted with suprise that almost every day somebody went into our room and even searched our luggage. Second suprise: at the last day of our stay, without any further information, our credit card was charged with the rest of the amount due. (Although for the 1st night's unpleasantries we would have wanted to discuss with the owner for a discount, we figured it's still acceptable. After all, that was our initial agreement.) Third suprise: after 2-3 days of leaving NY for Washington, we have observed that the owner charged our credit card again for an additional $15, without any explanation. After several emails he had explained us that he was charging this amount for a missing pillow and towel. It took us some convincing and a payment challenge at our bank to stop this kind of abuse. (Of course, no towel or pillow was missing. We used our towels as the ones there were stinky and apparently not clean. We used the pillows used on and took from the airplane.) Anyhow, looking back after an almost 4 week trip through the USA, while also staying in Washington, Colorado, Las Vegas, San Francisco and even LA, in comparison to those, it strikes me as a decision bordering on stupidity to have been paid for such a stay and fiasco $90/night (2 persons).

25 August 2011 KEVIN would recommend this property

Liked: The property was very close to transport links.George was a very nice host and gave us local information.The home stay was nice with various ornaments adorning the property.

Disliked: About 15 minute walk to convenience store, although there was a Burger King and pizza place only 3 minutes walk from property.

17 August 2011 Customer would recommend this property

Liked: Te location is convenient, the rooms are clean and the overall atmosphere is very homely. Also, the owner is a very nice and helpful person.

Disliked: It would be even lovelier if there was a microwave in the kitchen, but since all other kitchen appliances were present, it did not make much difference.

20 July 2011 Customer would recommend this property

Liked: The house and room were cosy, clean and well-furnished. It was a nice place to come home to after the hustle and bustle in New York. George was extremely welcoming and trusting!

Disliked: Sometimes the train from New York to Newark doesn't really run through the night, though they say it's 24 hours. NJ Transit's fault.

16 June 2011 Brettney would recommend this property

Liked: This house was wonderful! As a smaller hostel, it was nice knowing there was only one other set of people staying in the house with you. It was so cozy, it felt like I was in a Bed and Breakfast. The price was amazingly cheap and it was so close to the train to get into New York. I would definitely stay there again. The owner picked us up from the airport and was extremely kind, I would recommend this place to anyone!

Disliked: We didn't have any towels left for us, which wasn't a big deal but could have been useful.

12 June 2011

Liked: Clean place¨with good connection to NY.

Disliked: It is quite old house just with two double rooms, so you might think you gonna have privacy. But it is not true. First day one of our stay our new shower gel from bathroom was stolen. We locked our room but the owner just went in without any notice and switched off our air condition. Kitchen is also very bad equipped.

03 June 2011 Customer would recommend this property

Liked: Close to New York with the train. Good accomodation and beds

Disliked: Water coming from the shower is poor. No internet

02 June 2011 Customer would recommend this property

Liked: The house is clean and nice. Distance is 15min by train, and ticket need to add more 5dollar each

Disliked: The house didn't have a/c so a little bit hot. The staff maybe will add a/c next time.

29 May 2011 Customer would recommend this property

Liked: The decor and cleanliness.

Disliked: There was no air-conditioning.

09 May 2011 Customer would recommend this property

Liked: The house has just two rooms for rent so it feels like home. There is also a comfortable living room and a kitchen. My friend and I didn't spend much time in the house as we went to New York every morning and came back late in the evening. It takes only 20 minutes by NJ Transit train to get to the Penn Station in Manhattan, so it is a short ride to the center of NY. The house is located near the station - it is a five-minute walk. The owner is very nice. We just saw him on the first day of our stay in his house but when we needed some help, we left him notes and he was very eager to help.

Disliked: Actually, there's nothing we didn't like - the place is value for money, it's a bit dark inside, but we spent there mornings and nights only, so it was not a problem. The house then is a good sleeping place for someone who spends time visiting NY.

04 November 2010 Customer would recommend this property

Liked: it was clean and tidy and very handy to the rail station

Disliked: Customer left no negative feedback.

05 October 2010 Customer would recommend this property

Liked: It was a very nice place to stay. You have your own bathroom and kitchen, and it's very comfortable and feels like home. The owner is also very helpful, and it's so cheap. We would defineatly recommend it anytime!

Disliked: It is located in the middle of nowhere, and it is really impossible to find a grocerystore/supermarket! But it is close to the station, so you can get to New York in about 15 minutes for 5 dollars each way.

15 September 2010 Customer would recommend this property

Liked: The hostel was a persons home which he rented out, it had two bedrooms with a big kitchen to share and bathroom to share. It was lovely and clean and the train into new york only cost $5 for a single.

Disliked: Customer left no negative feedback.

07 September 2010 Assel would recommend this property

Liked: Great apartment! Very hospitable landlord and wonderful price!

Disliked: Assel left no negative feedback.