Caroline was a very welcoming host and pretty prompt at responding to messages considering she was in Australia at the time of our visit. Her "welcome" book was helpful for getting the wifi password, finding a place or two to eat, knowing checkout procedures, and so on.

The apartment itself was very nice for the price, and was clean, comfortable, and very spacious for a studio apartment. Keep in mind that there is no kitchen table so be prepared to eat your breakfasts at the counter standing up or on the couch, etc. The kitchen had the basic necessities of dishes, silverware, very basic cooking utensils, skillet, pots/pans, cutting board, knives, dish soap, sponges, and kitchen towels. The bed was very soft and comfortable and can be slid around a bit if desired.

The apartment's location in the Bronx was a little less "up and coming" than we had anticipated and was largely industrial with many auto repair shops just across and down the street. It's also right by an on-ramp to a busy road and traffic did add a good bit of noise. The walk to the nearest subway station (the 6 local train at 138th st. and 3rd ave) takes about 8 minutes from the front door of the building but you can transfer to the 4 or 5 express trains at the next station downtown (125th st.) Not many people are walking around on the surrounding streets after 9pm or so.

Lucky for us, there was ample back-angled parking right in front of the building and while there is a sign stating that street cleaning occurs Monday and Thursday at lunchtime we did not have to move our car during our weeklong stay. Perhaps with the holidays and snow the street cleaning was behind schedule. We also enjoyed eating at Charlie's Bar and Restaurant in the bottom of the building. We recommend the burger and fries (ask for them crispy). Best fries I've had in a long time!

Overall, we found Caroline's place a good and affordable option for visiting the city. We spent the majority of our time in Manhattan but did explore as far south as the Statue of Liberty and as far north as Washington Heights and Fort Tryon Parks. Caroline's is a nice apartment to come back to at the end of a long day of walking and just relax, read a book, and recharge for the next day of adventures.