I need to go to New York for 5 nights and would like lodging suggestions

I picked 5 nights (March 23-28) and booked under the "Book Early and Save" package that requires full pre-payment and got a grand total after taxes of $1236.99 ($181 a night average). We booked under a deal like this last year since prepaying in full a couple weeks out is not a bog deal. When you subtract drink/food prices you save on their daily reception you can really save some cash. Their hospitality reception is in a room with a nice floor to ceiling window view of Central Park.

I booked the $50 a day food credit plan.
I like your rate much better.

The YMCA

My travel agent used Starwood Points to get my hotel. I want to go back some day.

Is $100 a night realistic in NY? And I'm not talking about shared bathroom or Air BNB. Maybe something like a Howard Johnson or Motel 6? I've never stayed in NY but did a quick search and was blown away by the hotel rates, golly!

No. I've stayed for around $150 in nice places. The cheapest places that are decent are on the lower east side in China Town. Sometimes out by Battery Park. There are a lot of shared bathroom rooms in NYC at the lower price ranges so you have to double check this to sure you're not sharing.

$100 is possible, some nights in Queens or New Jersey. In Manhattan, almost unheard of.

I always rely on booking.com when booking rooms in cities I'm not familiar with. The website is easy to use and it gives prices for lots of hotels, locations on a map, and customer reviews. Try it, you'll like it.

The YWCA.