Gail, I don't think you are over reacting, the cold in NYC is very, very cold. I was there in Dec. yrs ago, and the wind blowing off the river seemed to penetrate every inch of my body. I was VERY uncomfortable, however if given the chance of ONLY visiting during Dec., I would still do it, but then I really want to visit NYC. I guess it depends on how badly you want to visit and if Dec is the only choice you have. My husband, on the other hand, has no real desire to visit NYC and he would say forget it, since as a native Californian, he finds Eastern winters incredibly unpleasant, actually more on the torture side, so I guess it all boils down to how enthusiastic Bon_Bon' wife is about spending time in NYC versus how important the weather issue is. I think in all likelihood, the weather will be uncomfortable for her. There is no getting around it. Will visiting NYC compensate for the weather? Only she can decide.

Annetti...Just how cold was it in Buenos Aires? I just cashed in my frequent flyer miles to go there at the end of August 2009. I asked around about the weather and from what I was told, I thought it would average out to the 60s. I'm from L.A. County and detest the cold,too.

I'm in Paris, nearly every spring, and this past spring it was so cold until I didn't come out of my rented apartment until the third day there. It was a little below 10C and my body was having a really hard time adjusting even with socks and knee boots, my huge, wool- lined Burberry coat (The British can make a coat), thick gloves, and cashmere muffler around my neck. I can't even imagine, in my wildest dreams, or nighmares, EVER being in Chicago type of cold. Smiles. Happy Travels!

I don;t blame anyone for not being able to take the cold. It's like me and heat. Anything above about 75 and I am just miserable. Start to sweat, can;t bear it - and just want to go indoors to the AC. I don;t know if it's genetic or learned behavior or what - but my entire family is this way.

We usually do vacations in May - so I'm still comfortable and want to tour around. And I can bear FL and New Orleans only in midwinter. And I've been to Arizona in March - and it was TOO HOT. I don;t care about dry heat - it was just way too hot to go outdoors - except to an AC car to an AC mall or restaurant or museum or whatever.

My dad is in his late 80's and takes a blood thinning medication - and only now is he comfortable when the temps go over 80.

As for colds/flu - IMHO the biggest risk of picking up either is on the plane - with all that recirculated air - not in NYC.

Oh- and I've been out in the cold when my eyes were watering (not crying, but watering). But it was late one night - the THI was about minus 10 and it was really windy as well - and really uncomfortable walking more than a few blocks.

Personally, I don't voluntarily go North of about 35 degree latitude past around mid October, and do not venture back to that latitude voluntarily until after mid April.

I used to live in the Northeast (for college) and the Midwest for a few years.

I found walking around a city in the winter to be miserable. Even if it's sunny, the skyscrapers cast shadows (due to the low sun angle), so you really can't get any sun. The wind tunnels that are created between skyscrapers make the temps extremely uncomfortable. Even if it was a bearable temperature, I don't like lots of wind, like the fly your umbrella away kind, and that seems to persist in big cities in the winter, due to the different wind tunnel effects.

They say dress so that you are warm, but for me to stay warm in those conditions, I need long johns, a few layers and a sweater, gloves, hat, scarf. However, then I feel really restricted and frankly fill like a big balloon walking around.

Then, if you dress for the outside, when you go inside, prepare for overly heated buildings (some around 75 or so), and you sweat. The other alternative is to underdress, but then you freeze outside and can't even warm up if you go inside.

My solution is to not go to Northerly climates until mid April, then I'm fine. I would rather a sticky humid day in NYC than a bitter cold windy day, but that's just me and I understand it.

I take trips in the winter to the Caribbean, Australia, and other warm climates. So I still have plenty of winter traveling opportunities. I don't like snow or skiing either.

Right now it is glorious in Central Texas (low humidity, cool nights in the 50's and mild days in the low to mid 80's). Why would I leave here to go to a place where it's not nice?

Now, if I have a business trip up North, I go because I have to, but I usually am yearning to go back the minute that arctic air hits my skin and dries it out.

That's another thing I never got used to. When I lived up North, I always seemed to have dry skin and ecsema/etc... Since I've lived back South again, I only rarely get dry skin, and that's usually during one of the nasty cold fronts that we get down in Texas. And even when they hit, I'm miserable during those days until the temps warm back to tolerable levels.

Different strokes for different folks. I'm about as opposite of nytraveler as you can get.

Guenmai: We were in Buenos Aires (about 5 wks) from July 21 until August 29th in 2007. We were told it was unseasonably cold, perhaps, it was. But in NO way was it in the 60s, more likely in the low 30s.

We only had two temperate days while there, where we could remove our gloves and unbutton our coats. Perhaps, if you arrive at the end of August, it may start to warm up as you work your way to September and spring.

By the way, NYtraveler,my husband caught his cold around the third week we were there, so we can't blame the plane, more likely it was the crowded enclosed buses and subtes. He often suspects that a meal at the Four Seasons where the waitress had a cold was the culprit. Who knows? He was miserable for about 3 weeks and it did put a damper on his trip, but he was pretty stoic and it did not slow him down. It is definitely a hard adjustment for a Southern Californian, especially when you are given the expectation like we were that the weather would be in the 60s. It definitely was notin the 60s in July/Aug 2007.

Best wishes to you. Weather aside it is a wonderful place to spend time.

Hi

I went to NYC in December last year and it was pretty cold. Here is my trip report with pictures and links http://gardkarlsen.com/NYC_travelogue_2007.htm

You can seaa weather stats on http://www.weatherbase.com

Regards
Gard
http://gardkarlsen.com - trip reports and pictures

December 25, 1984 - Just bought an eldorado convertible - 76 degrees!!! top down to midnight mass....

It will be COLD (whether it's 19 or 27 or 39 degrees hardly matters)... everyone will still need a hat, gloves, & scarf for sure. Along with some kind of decent coat and good walking shoes or boots.

Definitely have thick-soled shoes, as you will freeze your feet without a good bit of insulation from the frigid pavement-- leather soles won't do the job.

Lands End "all weather mocs" are a good choice for something comfy, warm and inexpensive (or similar from Merrill or LLBean). They are the shoes I always take for winter travel. In a dark color, with dark slacks, they can be appropriate for just about any destination (all but the dressiest).