Day trip to NYC - What to do?
 

We have a quick business trip planned in the fall to Washington D.C., with a few days for sightseeing. I was just perusing my AAA book about things to see and do in D.C. when I noticed a paragraph stating that Amtrak has three hour train service to New York City!

I'm from the West Coast, now live in the Midwest and have never been to the Northeastern U.S. before. I was looking forward to touring D.C. sites a bit, but so MANY of them seem to be closed for renovations this year. Now I'm getting kind of excited about seeing New York City, although it would have to be a day trip from D.C., nothing more.

Any suggestions on what to see and do in NYC if we arrive at Penn Station in the morning? Statue of Liberty, Metropolitan Museum, all of those things come to mind, but are they doable in a day? Logistics?

Any ideas appreciated, thanks.

MOMA, 5th Ave, Time Square, Pier 17

I don't think you want to see the Museum of Modern Art (MOMA) on a day trip because the Manhattan location is closed for renovations. While the renovations continue, MOMA is located in Queens, and it is not showing the regular collection.

I believe the Statue of Liberty is also closed. You can take the boat to the island, but you can also get good views of it from the Staten Island Ferry (which is free) or from the Circle Line tour (which is not).

You can certainly spend a couple of hours at the Metropolitan Museum, stroll down Fifth Avenue. If it's a day with matinees (usually Wednesday, Saturday) you could catch a show on Broadway. You can squeeze a lot into one day, most things are fairly accessible, it doesn't take much time to get around by subway or taxi.

The interior of the Statue of Liberty is closed for security reasons, but the grounds are open. http://www.nps.gov/stli/

If you do the Circle Line tour you get a great view of the Statue, the swing the boat around to get views from both sides. If the weather is nice do the full tour and you get to see everything. Piers, Wall Strett, Brooklyn Bridge, Yankee Stadium, Gracie Mansion and a decent view of the Empire State Bldg. I'm a big fan of the full tour, you get to see a lot in a short amount of time and the boat ride makes it fun.

I tried the double decker bus tour but it takes a while to get around and you waste a lot of time sitting at bus stops waiting for people to unload and load.

Either before or after the tour (close to Penn Station) I would head for the Empire State Building and go to the top. You can order tickets in advance at their website to save time, http://www.esbnyc.com/index2.cfm.

Have a good trip.

I don't know how early those trains run, but I might come in the night before & spend 1 night in NY, otherwise you might not arrive until noon. NY is a big city, and it would be wise to take a bus tour, the hop on and off type; that way, you could stop & see what you want & get an overview of the rest. One day will barely whet your appetite.

As Alicia says, the Empire State building is very near Penn Station (step 1-get a good map to plan your whirlwind adventure)so I'd go there either first thing when you arrive OR as your last stop before leaving. Do try to get tickets ahead of time so you can avoid the lines.

Then I would plan 2 different itineraries-one for good weather, one for bad. For good weather I'd skip museums & concentrate on seeing as much as possible. The circle line boat tour is a good idea. You'd get to see the Statue of Liberty & the skyline. There are several different options & packages-a 1,2 or 3 hour tour, a 30 min tour on the Beast (motor boat) or combos. Check here for details
http://www.circleline.com/sightseeing-packages.htm
The boats leave from 42nd st & the Hudson River. From there head over to Times square then on to Rockefeller Center. Across from Rockefeller Center is St Patricks's Cathedral & Saks Ffith Ave. Then walk up Fifth Ave. to 59th St (Plaza Hotel & Central Park)with some window shopping along the way. Have a walk through Central Park with a stop at the Zoo.

For a rainy day I'd do a bus tour & maybe the UN & one or two museums.

I would also recommend staying one night in The City, as there is so much to do in the area. From Philadelphia NYC would be a daytrip, but from D.C. it is strtching it a bit. I would advise taking a Grayline double decker bus tour. The Lower Manhattan Loop is the best for a first time visitor. At the same time you buy the Gray Line tickets, you can also purchase tickets for the Statue of Liberty/Ellis Island tour and the Empire State Building. If you go to Ellis Island, I would not recommend getting off the boat at the Statue of Liberty since you can no longer go inside after 9/11. You get a great view of it from the boat. Ellis Island is definitely onle of the must sees. You can easily do the Lower Manhattan Loop, Ellis Island, and Times Square, and Rockefeller Center in one day. Buy a Metro card if you plan to take the subway or buses.

http://graylinenewyork.com/

http://www.mta.nyc.ny.us/metrocard/

http://www.nycvisit.com/home/index.cfm

Personally, I think if you can't spend at least one night, it isn't worth the trip. Don't get me wrong -- I LOVE NYC. I live here. But, it's too long a trek for a daytrip. The unreserved Amtrak is 3 1/2 hours each way, the Metroliner is about 3 hours and the Acela may be slightly shorter. In any event, you're spending 6+ hours in transit. That leaves very little time for exploring NYC. You'll be stressed trying to run around to see things, eat and make your return train.

I say stay in DC, see what's showing at the National Gallery, visit a tourist attraction you've never seen before and have a relaxing dinner at one of its great restaurants.

So as to not stress yourself out on one day in New York I would suggest focusing on one area. Take the E train from Penn station uptown to 51st street. Walk west to 5th ave and walk uptown. You can breeze in & out of all the great stores that line 5th Ave. Make your way up to 82nd & 5th and go to the Metropolitan Museum of Art. You can do as much or a slittle as you want. And, please remember, that the entrance "fee" is only a suggested amount and you can give a buck if you want. I would then go to Central Park, perhaps rent a row boat for a half hour. You could then go to the zoo in the park. Go have a nice dinner & catch your train back!

If you have the stamina, I think it is definitely possible and worth it. I just checked the high speed train (Acela.com) and you can leave Union Station in DC as early as 6AM (arriving 8:47AM) and return as late as 9pm (arrving 11:44pm). There are a range of schedule options in between and remember, you can sleep on the train. It's much more comfortable than coach on a plane.


Times Square is usually the best place to start because it's an amazing sensory overload. From there, try for some of the obvious landmarks like Rockefeller Center, the Empire State Building, the Village, Wall St (there is a tour of the NYSE).

This trip is tough but definitely do-able if you have a good plan. I did the reverse with going from NYC to DC a few years ago but I drove myself so I was pretty knackered when I got home. It was a great trip though.

I would hate for you to miss seeing the greatest city in the world! ;)

Wow, thanks for all the great tips and suggestions!

Our accomodations in D.C. are covered expenses, but accomodations in NYC would not be. We figured a day trip was better than never seeing NYC at all, because who knows when/if we'll have this kind of opportunity again?

I checked Amtrak's schedule as well and we could be in the city before 9am and depart by 9pm, as someone suggested.

I know that many people won't understand this, but we're just not "foodies" and we don't really enjoy eating at restaurants, so we just don't worry about eating time in our travel schedules. We can nibble snacks that we bring along and be perfectly happy. We're pretty energetic and like to be on the go, so twelve hours of nonstop walking and sightseeing suits us perfectly.

It looks as if the subway is accessible right from Penn Station, and from that point I'm assuming we can get anywhere in the city (?) Definitely more interested in historical places and museums than shopping as well.