i spent yesterday in nyc and went to the game, it was a beautiful day to explore the city, crisp but sunny. had a great time in manhattan- love the energy, architecture, food etc. each neighborhood is a little different and you could spend months there and not run out of new things to explore. and what the hell is this constant chatter about all rooms being 500 or more- obviously comes from those who rarely travel to nyc. i have stayed at many nice hotels in manhattan and never spent more than 300 and have found bargains at 150 on tripadvisor. also, why stay at times square when the rest of manhattan is so much nicer. i love lower manhattan, more historic and less frenetic. my major criticism regarding the bowl is that it should be played in the afternoon and not at night. if this game had been played yesterday afternoon it would have been much more enjoyable for the fans and probably less slipping and sliding by the players. a bowl game at night in december in the north is a little crazy. nonetheless, had a great time drinking with hawk fans at the dugout before the game.