TheDivineMrsM

My husband and I are planning to take the megabus from Pittsburgh to NYC perhaps early March. It'll be our first NYC trip. Naturally, we want to see as many of the main tourist events there as we can in a two or three day weekend: Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island, 30 Rock, Central Park, Ground Zero Memorial site (am I missing some?).

This would probably be for a two or three night weekend stay.

I'm not sure where to start. Is there a type of bus tour once we get to NYC that takes you around to these places? I honestly have no clue how big NYC is, I've heard some people say you do a lot of walking-is that the best way to see the sites?

Michael

A two night stay means one full day of touring. That will be taken up by the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island, unless you just intend to see them at a distance, at which point take the Staten Island ferry to pass by these sites.

Bowsprit

First, you might time your visit to coincide with the clocks changing; it'll give you extra daylight to tour. Second, get a good map. Third, get a good guidebook and start reading some of the threads on this forum for ideas. Trip Advisor is another great source for information about NYC; read their 'frequently asked questions' information on the side of the NYC forum page there.

If you arrive on a Friday afternoon, check into your hotel and then hit the ground running! Walking is the best way to experience NYC but using the subway (get a Metro Card in the subway station) is the most efficient way to get from point A to point B.

So, Friday afternoon: Head over to Top of the Rock, take a look around the rest of the plaza and then have an early dinner. Take in a show (get tickets from BroadwayBox before you leave home); check your tickets carefully for curtain time. After the show, take a walk through Times Square, stop somewhere to have a drink, have some dessert and a coffee, or maybe take the FREE Staten Island ferry to cruise past the Statue of Liberty and call it a night.(you can also save the ferry for Sunday and pair it with a visit to Greenwich Village or the September 11th Memorial)

Saturday: After breakfast, consider getting yourselves to one of the great museums here: Metropolitan Museum of Art, Natural History Museum, MOMA, The Frick. If you're uptown, head into Central Park and explore that great place. Leave the park and head down 5th Avenue and shop! Have lunch! Check menupages.com to find restaurants organized by cuisine, price, location and meal. You can read reviews there too.If you have time or energy, make a visit to the Highline. It's another great urban park in the city and the views are incredible.

Where do you want to eat this night? What kind of food do you like?

Sunday: Have breakfast, check out of your hotel but ask them to store your luggage for the day. Head out and consider visiting the Tenement Museum on the Lower East Side. Get tickets before you leave home. All the tours are excellent; the experience is unique. If you're over there, eat lunch at iconic Katz Deli and order the pastrami sandwich!Time to head home but plan to visit again soon.

SusieQQ

For that period of time I would skip Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty. As noted above that will take an entire day.

Get a guide book and make a list of what you'd like to see.

Best way of getting around is by subway. On a map locate the attractions you want to visit. Then take a subway to an area and see as many sites as possible near that subway station. Then do the same for another location.

Believe me, you will not have enough time to see most of the top sites.

Bowsprit

She'll have enough time to see enough.

nytraveler

First of all the Statue of Liberty will be closed until Oct or later for renovations - so you can take the ferry there if you want but not go inside. the ferry then goes on to the Ellis Island Immigration Museum - which is brilliant - before going back to Manhattan. If you just want a view of the statue you can get it from the free Staten island Ferry ( from a distance) or take a Circle Line harbor cruise which goes closer - but cannot land on the island (which is controlled by the National park Service).

There are a number of bus tours around the city but they are very expensive, you will spend a lot of time siting in traffic and you can see only from the top - which is open to the weather (in March this might be 50 or it might be 30 and snowing. (Also note that trees will not yet bein leaf or flowers blloming - so Central Park won't look like much.)

I highly reco finding out exactly what YOU really want to see - and then just go there (feet or subway) and see it (the inside - not just the outside with incorrect info from a recording).

My must sees would be:

Top of the Rock
Staten Island ferry
Met Museum
A Broadway show
Explore at least one of the unique neighborhoods if time and weather allow (Greenwich Village, Chelsea, SoHo, upper west side)

SusieQQ

Pardon me, Bowsprit!, I should have said that in my OPINION she will not have enough time to visit the places I consider to be the top sites in Manhattan. IMHO, a couple days will only scratch the surface.

Bowsprit

If she plans it right she'll be able to see quite a few things. NYTraveler and I have offered identical itineraries/suggestions that include seeing the SOL, Top of the Rock, a museum, Times Square, a Broadway show, a neighborhood outside of Midtown and the advice to use the subway and walk. This isn't a bad way to introduce oneself to the city. A longer stay would be better but satisfying and well-planned weekend trips to the city are often the way visitors get 'hooked' on New York!

nytraveler

My must sees are very limited - but can be done in two days if you keep moving and the weather cooperates. Frankly, I think that to really see much of NYC - like London or Paris - you need at least 5 days/6 nights. but 2 days is better than nothing,

Tomsd

My first time to NY -way back in the 70's - we did enjoy a couple/three? hour introductory bus tour which did give one the general layout of the city. However, if you get a good subway map and study it ahead of time to know the main routes/stops - and know that the basics - such as you enter one side of the street to head uptown - or the other side to head downtown, you can cover more ground faster.

Tomsd

And I think getting to the top of the Empire State Bldg gives you a good appreciation for the greater NYC area, and the top of the Rock gives you a good appreciation for being in the middle of the skyscrapers.

Bowsprit

yep.

TheDivineMrsM

Yes, the idea really is to "introduce myself" to NYC, that's a good way to put it, with the idea that we can always return at a later date to take in more of the sites.

Thanks so much for the info about the Statue of Liberty being closed till October. I'd rather know now than be disappointed when I get there that we can't go inside.

Ellis Island is on my list to visit as all my grandparents came to the USA through there in the early 1900s.

Bowsprit, wow, love all your tips and ideas of daily itinerary. As an inexperienced traveler, it helps immensely to have these kinds of details to learn from.

We definitely want to see Ground Zero while there. And take in a Broadway show, time permitting.

You see so much of NYC on TV. We took a tour of Washington DC several years ago, a great experience. Now it's so fun to see it on TV and know what it's really like in person. We live only about 7 1/2 hours from NYC. We really need to take advantage of being that close.

nytraveler

If you want to take the SoL/Ellis Island Ferry you need to get tickets in advance to avoid standing on a long ticket-buyers line. You will still have to stand on a long security line (Park sErvice says allow about 45 minutes) to get on the ferry. Security is airline type - and no large packages/ backpacks are allowed.

TheDivineMrsM

Thanks for the heads up on purchasing tickets, nytraveler!

Bowsprit, I am just now checking out the NYC forum on tripadvisor. Thanks for telling me about it!

bethke14

I wanted to make sure that you know you need a reservation to go to the 9/11 Memorial. Maybe things have changed, but last time I was down there you couldn't really see much without going in to the ticketed area. The tickets are free and reserved online: http://www.911memorial.org/visit

For a last minute Broadway show, you can either go to TKTS, pay full price at the box office, or use a discount code (either online or in person, usually 25-50% off.) I recommend printing off several discounts for shows you're interested in, available here: broadwaybox.com. If you take the print-out to the box office, you can purchase the discounted tickets without paying the fees (usually $9-12 per ticket purchased online.) Note: most box offices do not accept discount codes shown on your phone -- you must have a paper copy.

Bowsprit

I like the TKTS booth when I have time to wait in line. Otherwise I just look for discounted tickets on broadwaybox as bethke has suggested.

TheDivineMrsM

A couple more questions:

Where do you suggest I get a good map?
Where to get a good guide book? Is there one you recommend?
Would I get these on Amazon.com perhaps?

Michael

Where to get a good guide book? Is there one you recommend?

Fodor's, perhaps?

paulhelmick

alot of this discussion has been about how to hit the highlights of manhatten but as bowspirit mentioned a lot of the joy of nyc is just walking from place to place seeing the architecture,the people, and the unique vibe.