We arrive after 9pm on Dec 22nd into Newark and our hotel is in Midtown- would it be safer to take a cab or would the train to Penn station and cab be okay at that time?

So assuming we're too tired to do anything else on 22nd how would we best fit our must sees below into the days we have which are Dec 23rd, Dec 24th and the morning of 25th :

1. Staten Island ferry to see Statue of Liberty
2. Empire State building
3. Central Park- Strawberry fields and hopefully skating at Wollman
4. Rockefeller Center
5. Holiday windows/Fifth ave window shopping
6. Soho or Greenwich Village
7. Little Italy
Also any suggestions on good places to eat lunch on Christmas Day?

Be forwarned that Midtown is grossly crowded during Christmas. Count on twice as long as you think things will take.

Penn Station is always mobbed. You will be fine taking the train. However, you could have trouble finding a taxi to get to your hotel. I would go ahead and take a taxi from the airport.

Opentable.com has a list of restaurants taking reservations for Christmas eve, Christmas Day and New Years eve and New Years day.

I agree with the previous poster, you?ll probably be hard pressed to find a cab out of Penn Station. It?s a great time of year to visit NYC, but also crowded!

So, you have 2 full days to see Manhattan.

From your list, you could group Rockefeller Center and 5th ave/window shopping and Central Park together in one day, as they are close to each other. I?d add the Empire State Building to this day as well.

I?d put the Staten Island Ferry, the Village and Little Italy in the second day.

A great resource for NYC restaurants is Chowhound.com Go to the Manhattan message board - there is a wealth of information there. Have fun!

With the chilly, stormy weather we've been having off and on, the Ferry to see the Statue of Liberty would not be #1 on my list. Don't you want to give more thought to warm indoor activities? How about the Rockettes at Radio City? I'd suggest a play, but these have got to be the worst days of the year to get tickets. Also, I hope you're not concerned about safety when taking a cab after 9 p.m. You'll see that the streets are so mobbed with partygoers and tourists that you need not be concerned for safety. The streets are also mobbed with police officers--NYC was again named the safest big city in the U.S. this year.

You should also check out menupages.com. It has menus you can view on line or print, and it has a lot of restaurants on it.