Back in September I stayed at two hotels in Manhattan, The Benjamin and Doubletree Suites. Both were notably expensive.

The Doubletree flat out sucked, and the Internet access I paid $10.00 a day for was beyond useless. I lost several posts I’d put a lot of time into. I did the angry guest routine, which isn’t me at all unless I become really peeved, and they credited me the money I’d spent on web access. Whooptie Doo! That’s enough, I needn’t go into the prices of items, even snack foods that cost a buck or two, in the minibar.

The suite I had at the Benjamin was beautiful, but again, the web access was iffy and a room service breakfast of sausages, eggs, potatoes, toast, orange juice, milk and a pot of coffee cost me $52.00 or thereabouts, a steak dinner with dessert and milk and a glass of brandy some $20.00 over a C-note.

Room service waiters in Manhattan must be required to take a course on how to look someone straight in the eye when presenting the check, exchange pleasantries and depart without gleefully shouting, “Sucker!”

But it is New York, after all, and according to AP writer David B. Caruso, A Night In New York Costs More Than Ever.

Hotel prices set wallet-busting records in New York City in 2005 after a long, slow recovery from the 2001 terrorist attacks.

The average daily price of a room in the city hit $292 in November, according to the hospitality industry analysis firm PKF Consulting. Figures for December weren’t yet available, but the city is a lock to break its previous record yearlong average of $237 per night, set in 2000.

Prices were high in every corner of town, from the noisy motels jammed into industrial neighborhoods near Kennedy Airport to the palaces near Central Park.

They’ll leave the light on for you…