First vacation in NYC
May 31st, 2009, 12:19 PM
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First vacation in NYC
Hubs and I will be in NYC for a week starting Sept. 26. I have been to NYC before, but only for quick business trips. I've never done any of the "touristy" stuff. We've booked our plane tickets and a cute studio apartment not too far from Times Square.
It'll just be the two of us (first post-baby solo vacation!), and, as I plan my itinerary, I'd love to hear everyone's top five NYC experiences.
Care to share?
It'll just be the two of us (first post-baby solo vacation!), and, as I plan my itinerary, I'd love to hear everyone's top five NYC experiences.
Care to share?
May 31st, 2009, 12:30 PM
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You didn't mention how you got your accomodations, so I would just add a bit of a caution, make sure you are getting what you expect. There are tourist scams in the city and I would hate to see that happen on your lovely vacation.
That said, you are planning a trip at what is the best time of year to be here. The temps should be very comfortable and alot of the tourists have gone home.
I'd suggest getting a book on the city so you can map out what you want to see and the best way of getting there.
I'd put the MET at the top of your list. IT's easy to spend the entire day there so you might go to the website and check special exhibits you want to see. Another idea would be the Cloisters, which is part of the Met and is a "castle" in the Highbridge area of Manhattan, easily accessible on the subway (A train). Get off at 191st St and walk up through Ft. Tryon Park, and you will feel a world away. Some of the priceless treasures of the Met's collection of the 1500's are there, like the Unicorn Tapestry and a whole room called "The Treasury"
If you like great Indian food, walk back down Ft. Washington to 187th St to Kismat, best Indian in the city.
Have a great time while you are here.
That said, you are planning a trip at what is the best time of year to be here. The temps should be very comfortable and alot of the tourists have gone home.
I'd suggest getting a book on the city so you can map out what you want to see and the best way of getting there.
I'd put the MET at the top of your list. IT's easy to spend the entire day there so you might go to the website and check special exhibits you want to see. Another idea would be the Cloisters, which is part of the Met and is a "castle" in the Highbridge area of Manhattan, easily accessible on the subway (A train). Get off at 191st St and walk up through Ft. Tryon Park, and you will feel a world away. Some of the priceless treasures of the Met's collection of the 1500's are there, like the Unicorn Tapestry and a whole room called "The Treasury"
If you like great Indian food, walk back down Ft. Washington to 187th St to Kismat, best Indian in the city.
Have a great time while you are here.
May 31st, 2009, 12:34 PM
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Agree with travelbuff.
Would also recommend a walk through Central Park. Get a map and circle the parts that you want to see. The Central Park Zoo is a quick stop but is worthwhile for the polar bears. Could also go to the Bronx Zoo but that takes more time. Get timed tickets to Top of the Rock. This gets you a great viewpoint of the city and great photos of the Empire State Building. I also really enjoyed the Naturl History Museum.
If baseball fans, go to either a Mets or Yankees game. Both have new stadiums.
Would also recommend a walk through Central Park. Get a map and circle the parts that you want to see. The Central Park Zoo is a quick stop but is worthwhile for the polar bears. Could also go to the Bronx Zoo but that takes more time. Get timed tickets to Top of the Rock. This gets you a great viewpoint of the city and great photos of the Empire State Building. I also really enjoyed the Naturl History Museum.
If baseball fans, go to either a Mets or Yankees game. Both have new stadiums.
May 31st, 2009, 02:01 PM
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As for TOP 5 - you can start by reading many NYC trip reports here:
http://www.fodors.com/community/unit...tripreport.cfm
http://www.fodors.com/community/unit...tripreport.cfm
May 31st, 2009, 05:07 PM
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Can't make top5 for NYC - top 25 is hard enough.
But - if I were forced to do 5:
The Met
Central Park
Top of the Rock
Broadway show
Ellis Island Immigration Museum (brilliant)
For all of these go to websites in advance to pick out waht you want to do /see and get opening days and hours.
For the evening get out of Times Square - it;s extremely unpleasant and visit some of the residential areas where you can much better restaurant choices in all price ranges - and many of them with outdoor seating so you can people watch as well as have dinner - and get a feel for what NYC is really like (NOT Times Square). Check out the upper west side, the Village, East Village, Chelsea etc for much better experiences. (ALso in some of these areas selected shops are open late - sometimes until midnight so you can window - ore really - shop.
But - if I were forced to do 5:
The Met
Central Park
Top of the Rock
Broadway show
Ellis Island Immigration Museum (brilliant)
For all of these go to websites in advance to pick out waht you want to do /see and get opening days and hours.
For the evening get out of Times Square - it;s extremely unpleasant and visit some of the residential areas where you can much better restaurant choices in all price ranges - and many of them with outdoor seating so you can people watch as well as have dinner - and get a feel for what NYC is really like (NOT Times Square). Check out the upper west side, the Village, East Village, Chelsea etc for much better experiences. (ALso in some of these areas selected shops are open late - sometimes until midnight so you can window - ore really - shop.
May 31st, 2009, 05:49 PM
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NYTraveler said it best -- would have trouble picking 25, let alone five. BUT, since that's the request, I'll say:
Ground Zero
Staten Island Ferry (as the boat travels past the Statue of Liberty, imagine yourself an immigrant seeing this as you come into New York Harbor)
Times Square (HORRIBLY touristy -- but that's the point!)
Metropolitan Museum of Art
Museum of Natural History
Ground Zero
Staten Island Ferry (as the boat travels past the Statue of Liberty, imagine yourself an immigrant seeing this as you come into New York Harbor)
Times Square (HORRIBLY touristy -- but that's the point!)
Metropolitan Museum of Art
Museum of Natural History
Jun 1st, 2009, 05:41 PM
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These are great suggestions, and most of them are going on my must list! I have a couple of guidebooks, and we are really looking forward to enjoying the city!
The apartment - we booked via homeaway.com. I've booked through them a few times before and have been really pleased with the results. I really like that they offer some insurance against a property not being available, not being as it was listed, etc. I expect that our apartment will be noisy (But who am I kidding? Hubs snores like a freight train, and I've worn earplugs to bed since we married.), and I know it will be in a touristy area, but I couldn't beat the price and central location.
The apartment - we booked via homeaway.com. I've booked through them a few times before and have been really pleased with the results. I really like that they offer some insurance against a property not being available, not being as it was listed, etc. I expect that our apartment will be noisy (But who am I kidding? Hubs snores like a freight train, and I've worn earplugs to bed since we married.), and I know it will be in a touristy area, but I couldn't beat the price and central location.
Jun 3rd, 2009, 05:12 AM
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Just a word about Times Square. I agree that it is utterly touristic and that block on 42 St. between 7th Ave. and 8th Ave. is about as sleezy as it can get - although this is the cleaned up version from what existed before it was "gentrified". BUT: the Times Square area at night is still a unique experience - an art form unto itself. The light displays are to be seen nowhere else in the world. Worth just a walk through.
Your hubby will probably want to opt out though.
Jun 3rd, 2009, 06:37 AM
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Just returned from NYC for the first time myself...and I loved it!!! We stayed in a little condo near 52nd & 10th at the northern boundary of the old "Hell's Kitchen" area and found it very convenient to just about everything midtown by foot.
1) Visit Times Square at night. Sure it's touristy, but it's also a kind of sensory overload that awes you. And it's something you won't find anywhere else. Even the police station is in neon.
2) I'd suggest taking a free guided tour of part(s) of Central Park with the volunteers of the Central Park Conservancy. These people live & breathe Central Park and love to point out it's hidden gems and idiosyncrasies. And it's FREE. Check out their website for the dates & times the various tours are being offered (http://www.centralparknyc.org/site/P...s_walkingtours). No reservations are needed. Just show up at the designated place & time.
3) Determine your walking limit. We found Manhattan easy to navigate on foot and never felt unsafe anywhere we went. We did have a limit though. If something was over a mile & a half away we took a cab or the subway. Unless you plan on walking and taking taxis everywhere you go, get familiar with the subway system before you go. And don't be afraid to use the subway...in the areas we traveled (Upper East & West Sides all the way down to Battery Park at the tip of the island we found it safe and as clean as anything you could expect for public transportation in a city that size.
4) Do go to the Metropolitan Museum of Art....but go with an idea of 2 or 3 areas that you want to see, and don't expect to see it all. It's HUGE!! Of the 2 places that we almost got lost in New York.... inside the Met was one of them.
5) I found the Statue of Liberty awesome, and Ellis Island humbling. Get tickets online before you go and get them early enough so that you can get the "Monument Pass" attached to your ticket. Monument Passes are free additions to your ticket given out on a limited basis that allow you inside the pedestal of the statue where the statue's "museum" is, and where there is an elevator you can take to the observation deck around the top of the pedestal. Without a monument pass all you'll be able to do on Liberty Island is walk around the outside grounds. Starting this July 4th, the park service is once again going to open up the spiral staircase inside the statue and allow people to climb up to the crown. I don't know how they're going to handle the logistical details, but I imagine that would be an experience. Try to get tickets for early in the day, as crowds tend to grow latter in the day. That being said, we had timed tickets for 1 p.m. and arrived at Battery Park about 11:15; found no lines what-so-ever; asked if we could get on the ferry that was docked there at the time; they said "Sure"....and let us on early. On Ellis Island be sure to check out the exhibits on the upper levels, for some kind of idea of what it must have been like for the masses of people that passed through here.
1) Visit Times Square at night. Sure it's touristy, but it's also a kind of sensory overload that awes you. And it's something you won't find anywhere else. Even the police station is in neon.
2) I'd suggest taking a free guided tour of part(s) of Central Park with the volunteers of the Central Park Conservancy. These people live & breathe Central Park and love to point out it's hidden gems and idiosyncrasies. And it's FREE. Check out their website for the dates & times the various tours are being offered (http://www.centralparknyc.org/site/P...s_walkingtours). No reservations are needed. Just show up at the designated place & time.
3) Determine your walking limit. We found Manhattan easy to navigate on foot and never felt unsafe anywhere we went. We did have a limit though. If something was over a mile & a half away we took a cab or the subway. Unless you plan on walking and taking taxis everywhere you go, get familiar with the subway system before you go. And don't be afraid to use the subway...in the areas we traveled (Upper East & West Sides all the way down to Battery Park at the tip of the island we found it safe and as clean as anything you could expect for public transportation in a city that size.
4) Do go to the Metropolitan Museum of Art....but go with an idea of 2 or 3 areas that you want to see, and don't expect to see it all. It's HUGE!! Of the 2 places that we almost got lost in New York.... inside the Met was one of them.
5) I found the Statue of Liberty awesome, and Ellis Island humbling. Get tickets online before you go and get them early enough so that you can get the "Monument Pass" attached to your ticket. Monument Passes are free additions to your ticket given out on a limited basis that allow you inside the pedestal of the statue where the statue's "museum" is, and where there is an elevator you can take to the observation deck around the top of the pedestal. Without a monument pass all you'll be able to do on Liberty Island is walk around the outside grounds. Starting this July 4th, the park service is once again going to open up the spiral staircase inside the statue and allow people to climb up to the crown. I don't know how they're going to handle the logistical details, but I imagine that would be an experience. Try to get tickets for early in the day, as crowds tend to grow latter in the day. That being said, we had timed tickets for 1 p.m. and arrived at Battery Park about 11:15; found no lines what-so-ever; asked if we could get on the ferry that was docked there at the time; they said "Sure"....and let us on early. On Ellis Island be sure to check out the exhibits on the upper levels, for some kind of idea of what it must have been like for the masses of people that passed through here.
Jun 3rd, 2009, 06:52 AM
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My top five would be:
1. The Staten Island Ferry at dusk.
Awesome views of the Statue of Liberty lit up as well as the Brooklyn Bridge and lower Manhattan/Financial District lighting up at night. Really a stunning view.
2. Metropolitian Museum of Art.
This museum is encyclopedic in that is spans over 5000 years and every continent. Take a tour for an overview and pick a couple of areas.
3. Walk.
Just start walking. If you are in good shape start at Central Park and walk as far south as you can. Stop at an outside restaurant and have lunch. Continue walking.
4. Central Park
This park is so huge and so diverse every time you turn a corner it is different. Take in Strawberry Fields. Take a tour. When you are finished, go to the rooftop terrace of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, have a glass of wine, and take in the view.
5. Get high.
See the city from way up high. Go to the top of the Empire State Building. It is an amazing art deco building. Personally to me the building itself is as cool as the view. Go to Top of the Rock at Rockefeller Center. From Top of the Rock you get ass kicking view of the Empire State Building. Want a cocktain? Go to the Rainbow Grille at Rock Center and have a glass of wine and check out the view. Want to see the park? Go to the lobby bar at the Mandarin Oriental (35th Floor) and gawk over the view of Central Park.
I'm not a Times Square or Broadway person but think everyone should see at least one Broadway play in their lifetime. Times Square is beautiful at night.
1. The Staten Island Ferry at dusk.
Awesome views of the Statue of Liberty lit up as well as the Brooklyn Bridge and lower Manhattan/Financial District lighting up at night. Really a stunning view.
2. Metropolitian Museum of Art.
This museum is encyclopedic in that is spans over 5000 years and every continent. Take a tour for an overview and pick a couple of areas.
3. Walk.
Just start walking. If you are in good shape start at Central Park and walk as far south as you can. Stop at an outside restaurant and have lunch. Continue walking.
4. Central Park
This park is so huge and so diverse every time you turn a corner it is different. Take in Strawberry Fields. Take a tour. When you are finished, go to the rooftop terrace of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, have a glass of wine, and take in the view.
5. Get high.
See the city from way up high. Go to the top of the Empire State Building. It is an amazing art deco building. Personally to me the building itself is as cool as the view. Go to Top of the Rock at Rockefeller Center. From Top of the Rock you get ass kicking view of the Empire State Building. Want a cocktain? Go to the Rainbow Grille at Rock Center and have a glass of wine and check out the view. Want to see the park? Go to the lobby bar at the Mandarin Oriental (35th Floor) and gawk over the view of Central Park.
I'm not a Times Square or Broadway person but think everyone should see at least one Broadway play in their lifetime. Times Square is beautiful at night.
Jun 3rd, 2009, 07:25 AM
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You should drop by Times Square just so you'll know what the board posters and native Nw Yorkers are so disdainful about. After dark for the full impact; even the Red Lobster restaurant is animated, with a rotating neon lobster.
Jun 5th, 2009, 05:14 PM
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These are great ideas! Furledleader - yes, I heard that the crown was re-opening. (In fact, that was one of the reasons we decided to go ahead and do NYC now. I hated the thought of going there and not being able to go up inside the statue.)
Thanks so much for your posts, guys!
Thanks so much for your posts, guys!
Jun 6th, 2009, 05:52 AM
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For the life of me I can't figure out what the attraction is to climb the Statue of Liberty. The artist who created this work had no intention that visitors would be climbing up the interior - that is not what this symbol of America is all about. It is intended as a welcome to newly arriving visitors and immigrants to these shores. As such it is an inspiring sight when viewed from shipboard. You get a great view from the ferry to Ellis Island - or the Staten Island Ferry.
Jun 6th, 2009, 12:53 PM
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Let me add my voice to the chorus of those who think walking up to the crown of the Statue of Liberty is the greatest waste of time and effort you could devise. You'll spend over an hour looking at a certain part of the anatomy of the person in front of you, then spend less than a minute in a crowded area looking at a very limited view of the harbor. TOTALLY not worth it.
Jun 7th, 2009, 05:40 PM
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Really? DON'T go up to the crown? Yeesh. I was really looking forward to it . . . Guess I'll have to re-think it.
Re: The Met and Central Park - with big attractions like this, I usually try to get some sort of map/guide ahead of time and plan what I'll tackle. I'm no fan of trying to cover everything at a huge attraction like that. Are such borchures/guides available in advance, for free? If so, where can I get them? If not, I'm happy buying a small guide online.
Re: The Met and Central Park - with big attractions like this, I usually try to get some sort of map/guide ahead of time and plan what I'll tackle. I'm no fan of trying to cover everything at a huge attraction like that. Are such borchures/guides available in advance, for free? If so, where can I get them? If not, I'm happy buying a small guide online.
Jun 7th, 2009, 06:10 PM
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Their websites are a good place to start. Lots of information here, and it's free.
www.metmuseum.org
www.centralparknyc.org
www.metmuseum.org
www.centralparknyc.org
