Getting from NJ to NYC

The easiest(and cheapest) way to see the Statue of Liberty and have some great photo ops of the landmark is ride the Staten Island Ferry. It's free and offers great views of the statue.

Do you mean Comfort Suites North Bergen (1200 Tonnelle Ave)?

If so, you are a 15-minute walk from the NJ Transit bus #320 stop that goes to Port Authority Bus Terminal. Googlemaps estimates 30 minutes total for this trip (15 min walk plus 15 min bus), but but be forewarned that there can be huge traffic jams along this stretch of road leading into the Lincoln Tunnel to Manhattan.

The Staten Island Ferry (for the SOL view) and WTC site are close to one another and are one obvious grouping. From the Bus Terminal, take the E train to World Trade Center. Visit the WTC site, then St Paul's Chapel, and walk down Broadway past Wall St, all the way to Battery Park. Take a ride on the Staten Island Ferry (free-30 mins each way).

From the ferry terminal, take the R subway train from Whitehall St/South Ferry to Fifth Ave and 60th St. You'll be right by FAO Schwarz. Then walk south on Fifth Ave to Rockefeller Center (50th St). Pay to go to the Top of the Rock for the best view of the Empire State Building and NYC in general. Then walk a few blocks to Times Square.

You'll accomplish all you interests in one day. Of course there are ways to linger over any part of this, but the itinerary I've described is a reasonable way to fill your day.

ellenem, that schedule was perfect, the only thing I would add would be a stop for food at Carnegie Deli or Ellen's Stardust, both close to TOTR.

Yes ellenem, North Bergen - sorry I was typing in a hurry. Thank you SOOO much for the info! How much is it to go to the Top of the Rock? Long lines? Is that itenerary easily done in one day? PLEASE tell me yes!!! Travelbuff...what's the price rance at those two restaurants....crowded??? I've heard to ask where local people eat lunch and not to go to the "touristy" spots. But I definately need something EASY to find....VERY nervous about getting us lost.

Found Ellen's Stardust online...do you need reservations?

Please don't be nervous about NYC; many, many tourists make their way about every day. Consider going online to find an information center; I use one at 7th Ave and 47 St....they have free maps.

Also consider buying an all day pass for the bus and subway system (use machines in the stations)....credit card or cash. That way you are not always fishing for change. In any case, take a roll of quarters. You want to do a lot in one day and using public transportation helps to pack more in.

Enjoy the city!! It is great!

You don't need reservations for Ellen's Stardust Diner for lunch (I'm actually not sure they even take reservations at all, but I don't know that for sure); if you come in on a Wednesday, you will have to wait for a table, though, because of the Broadway matinees. It's typical, overpriced, mediocre diner food, but they have singing waiters, and it's a major tourist stop. Expect to pay at least $20 each for lunch. To me, that's not worth it, but many tourists like the experience.

If you want a really good hamburger, you could go to Five Napkin Burger, which is over on 9th Avenue/45th Street near Times Square (it's about a 15- or 20-minute walk from Rock Center). For that, you absolutely do need reservations, even for lunch. But there are myriad reasonably priced restaurants over there that serve good food for decent prices (though you'll still pay almost $20 for lunch). There are some popular Chinese places near Rock Center that draw the Midtown office workers.

New Yorkers usually pick up sandwiches and pay about $10 per person. I love Pret a Manger, which has an outlet in the underground shopping concourse underneath Rock Center. You can get a sandwich and a drink for $10, and they have a few tables to eat in air-conditioned comfort. There are, of course, several other places to eat in Rock Center itself, many overpriced like Ellen's. So that's really your choice.

TOTR generally does not have huge lines. You buy a timed ticket and then enter and go. You can normally get a timed ticket for a period within the hour (or immediately in some cases). It costs $21, which is a rip-off, but you do get great views of all the famous buildings in Midtown, including the Empire State Building. (It's not as much of a rip-off as the Empire State Building itself, which actually costs less but requires you to wait in an hours-long line.)

Thanks for a different perspective Doug. I found Top of the Rock online - is there usually a problem on a Saturday to get a ticket for soon after you get there? I would buy them now ahead of time, but have NO CLUE what time I would actually be there. EVERYONE KEEP THE LUNCH SUGGESTIONS COMING!

I wouldn't rule out the hotel shuttle for $12 round trip.

Tonnelle Avenue is a very heavily traveled road for both cars and trucks as it is part of route 1/9 which is a major north south roadway in NJ.

I wouldn't so readily assume there are sidewalks or that you can reach the bus stop without having to cross in an area not normally used by pedestrians. That would be especially true at night. I would scope out what walking entails once there.

I agree that the hotel shuttle Times Square sounds like a reasonable deal if it meets your schedule. There are a number of subway connections from Times Square that would get you to the WTC area.

I think you can do the schedule I describe in one day with time to spare. The downtown section could be done in about 3 hours without rushing. The uptown section would also take about 3 hours without rushing--longer if you linger at FAO Schwarz or TOTR or duck into St Patrick's or Central Park. I assumed you would do the downtown section in the morning and then the uptown section in the afternoon. I put Times Square toward the end of the day, thinking you would have fading daylight to experience Times Square's lights and then be close to your bus/shuttle location to return to your hotel.

I was at Top of the Rock last Monday afternoon and we got immediate tickets to go in. We waited less than 10 minutes to ride the elevator. My friends thought it was well worth the price, considering the ease of access and the magnificent view.

You can't really see much of the ESB if you go there - it's way too tall - and from the street you just see the side of a big building. You need to go up TOTR in order to get a real overview of the city - the Park, the tops of the buildings and the overall skyline. These cannot be appreciated from the ground.

Ellen's Stardust is basic diner fare but the performing staff is fun - IMHO worth it to spend a few $ more fo ryour burger or omelet.

Ellenem...you should be a tour guide - ha! Busy in August??? LOL!

YOu guys will have a great time, and don't worry about getting lost, I do it all the time. I come up from the subway and have to figure out where I am, and sometimes head out in the wrong direction, so expect it will happen and just ask someone for directions.

If you want to see the SOL, the Staten Island ferry is the best way to do it, and take the ferry in the evening just at dusk going over to Staten Island and coming back the lights coming up over the city is spectacular.

What you might do is spend some time downtown, seeing the sites, WTC, City Hall, St. Paul's Chapel (I was there last weekend, and the exhibit is inspiring), Trinity Church, BAttery Park, WAll St, all within a few blocks.

For lunch in that area, you could walk over to the South St. Seaport to the many restaurants there, or for a history lesson/lunch go to Fraunces Tavern. The food is good and not very expensive. This is where Washington said goodbye to his tropps, walked up Broad St, and took the oath of office at the Federal Building (on the corner of Wall St), and became our first President. Fraunces Tavern also has a museum upstairs that's pretty good.

Across the street from the WTC is Century 21, a good place for a bit of shopping, your daughter will like.

From there you might head just a bit uptown to Chinatown for dinner and the best imho is Peking Duck House on Mott St, if you like duck, this place is heaven. From there walk to Little Italy for some desert and then head on back uptown to catch the bus back to NJ.

In this heat the Staten Island Ferry will really be a welcome relief........

Thanks travelbuff...I guess I am nervous because I have NEVER rode a subway, NEVER rode a public bus and the largest city I have been in as an adult is Charlotte NC and Orlando FL. I know, I know, everyone is probably thinking WHAT????? I am sure I will be fine, but if you see some woman on the news on the weekend of the 12-15th of August that can't find her way back to New Jersey - IT IS ME!!!!

As a backup plan Mommy321 Hoboken is a very easy place to get a taxi from should you find yourself uncertain about how to get to the hotel.

When you come out of the PATH station there is a line of cabs. Just get in line and tell the driver where you're going. (He may pick up another fare or two as well from the PATH station.) Not sure what the price is.

Bu

Don't worry. Contrary to popular belief, New Yorkers are helpful and friendly to visitors. NYC kids use the bus and subway every day to get to school. You can do it, too.

Meanwhile, August is not so busy for me . . . hmmmm . . .

I am sure everyone is wonderful (as everyone here has been already)! Ellenem...do you live in NY now?

since 1974

MOMMY321,

I just realized that you are the same poster who, on another thread, mentioned that you are a party of 4. If that is the case, then I encourage you again to reconsider your NJ hotel. 4 people will spend $12 each roundtrip just to reach Manhattan. Add that $48 to your budget and see if you can find an NYC hotel that might work for you.

Is your hesitation about a hotel in Manhattan more to do with fear of driving in Manhattan than cost? (I'm thinking it might be based on your comments about the subway.) If so, I'll say that I had a similar reluctant driver visit me two weeks ago. She set her GPS, drove into Manhattan, and said it was actually pretty easy and straightforward. It's true that she was traveling midday on a Sunday, so traffic was lighter.

Please do consider the cost of the commute—cost-wise AND time-wise—as you weigh the options.

I'm still looking tonight at hotels and options...yes majority of it is driving in Manhattan AND the main reason we are coming is to go to Carlo's Bakery. YES...I would rather spend my time in NYC, but this is for my daughter's birthday and she asked if we could drive up just to go to the bakery SO...NYC is a side trip I am insisting on. We are a party of 5 now and that is the total that is coming. We can stay in the same room IF we find somewhere that will allow 5. We will be arriving VERY late on Thursday night. Leaving NC around 1:00 pm. My mind is spinning with options, doubts, quetions, etc. I want her to have such a good time and unfortunately I have to do it as tightly (budgetwise) as I can. I know that isn't easy in NYC.

5 will be much harder for one room. Aside from "as cheap as possible," can you share what you current budget for a room for 5 people (ages, please) might be so we can offer better suggestions?

Good luck.

3 women and 2 girls 13. I really would like to stay under 200 per night especially if I have to pay to park. The hotel in North Bergen was 129.99 per night and free parking....

It's really not $129 a night when you figure in your transport to and from the city, it's more like a little over $200nt.

That will be hard to beat in the city, but we can sure help you to try.

You might try the Hotel Grand Union and you'd need 2 rooms there and the price will be just a bit higher than your budget, but it will give you more room and 2 BATHROOMS.

I'd also suggest the Travel Inn, which I think we all mentioned to you, FREE parking there, and it's just outside of the Lincoln Tunnel so easy to find, and plus upon plus ther is a POOL on the roof, which in this heat would be a welcome relief after running around the city all day.

I'm wondering if we can do a little GTG while you are here, I'd be happy to play tour guide if that might help, show you parts of the city. I live uptown and the subway here is a part of life, hard to imagine I'm sure but most of us living here don't own cars, we take the underground limos, ok it's the subway, but it sure is great to get around.

One hint is to get a good map of the city so you can figure out where you are, and pick up a good book for the girls so they can have some input on what sites they would like to see.

We have over 10,000 restaurants in Manhattan alone, so it's probably not going to be hard to find a place you will like.

So relax, we'll all make sure you are all set for the trip.

I just checked the Travel Inn and they do have rooms available for the weekend you are here for $300nt for 4 people a double double. That's a pretty good rate.

Another suggestion would be the Doubletree downtown, and it have a beautiful view of the SOL and would be big enough since it is a suite, so you might check there as well.

Have to say i'd go with The Travel Inn free parking and POOL and it's close to lots of restaurants and a couple of blocks from Broadway.

By staying in the city, you will be saving at least $20pp per day transportation costs to and from NJ and time, you won't be here all that long, spending most of your time in traffic won't give you as much time to see the city.

I just wanted to stop back in and say thank you to everyone who gave me info that was SO useful for our weekend in NYC! We did stay in New Jersey at the Courtyard by Marriott (beside the PATH) and it was not hard at ALL gettting between Jersey City and NYC. Thank you especially for MCLARUIE, ELLENEM AND TRAVELBUFF....your info was outstanding on both my forums! I hand an awesome weekend and we were able to do EVERYTHING that I had hoped to. Friday we went to Carlo's Bakery (my daughter's main reason for going), WTC sight, St. Pauls, Deli, shopping and Staten Island Ferry to see Statue of Liberty! Then Saturday we did the Early Show, Fifth Avenue, Top of the Rock, shopping, Times Square, more shopping, etc. SO...if you have "scared southerners" like me - Staying at the Courtyard wasn't bad at all, especially when you have a vehicle to take. I am sure staying in NYC would've been nice to just walk out and go - but we were TRILLED with our location - so feel free to suggest to "newbies" like me! Everyone was VERY helpful in NY when we had questions, etc.! Thanks again for all your help!

Try travelzoo, they have great deals on NYC hotels. The ACE in Chelsea gets great reviews and they had cheap rooms. Small, but nice. If you want to eat at someplace that is really good though touristy, go to Katz on Houston St. The best pastrami sandwich you will ever eat. Don't forget to get a picture with the Naked Cowboy in Times Square.

Glad your trip worked well. I'm sure changing your hotel to one near the PATH train was a key to your success. Yes, NYers are in general a helpful bunch.