HELP! Is my NYC itinerary do-able?
Sep 24th, 2008, 03:10 PM
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HELP! Is my NYC itinerary do-able?
We're going to NYC for 5 days. This is our first time and we want to hit all the biggies. Please let me know if the schedule is OK. I'm flexible in moving things around to have it logistically fit better. Any other activites/sites I left out? Any help would be greatly appreciated. Restaurant recommendations in those areas would be great too.
Day 1: THURSDAY
Get subway pass
Hop-On / Hop-Off Tour
Grand Central Station
China Town
Canal Street
Federal Reserve Bank: 3:30 tour
Brooklyn Bridge
New York Library
Empire State Building after dinner
(Lunch in Chinatown..dinner at the pizza place by the Brooklyn bridge?)
Day 2: FRIDAY
NY Stock Exchange
Wall Street
World Trade Center Memorial
Century 21 for shopping
Statue of Liberty (Staten Island Ferry)
Tribeca
Walk around Time Square
Wicked at 8:00
Day 3: SATURDAY
Rockefeller
Shopping and Upper East Side
Shopping on Madison Ave and 5th Ave
Met
Day 4: SUNDAY
Brunch at Sarabeths?
American Museum of Natural History
Central Park
Check out Tavern on the Green
Shopping
In the Heights at 7:00
(We need a place for dinner by this theater)
Day 5: MONDAY
Soho
Nolita
Greenwich Village
(Where are some good places to eat in these neighborhoods?)
Day 1: THURSDAY
Get subway pass
Hop-On / Hop-Off Tour
Grand Central Station
China Town
Canal Street
Federal Reserve Bank: 3:30 tour
Brooklyn Bridge
New York Library
Empire State Building after dinner
(Lunch in Chinatown..dinner at the pizza place by the Brooklyn bridge?)
Day 2: FRIDAY
NY Stock Exchange
Wall Street
World Trade Center Memorial
Century 21 for shopping
Statue of Liberty (Staten Island Ferry)
Tribeca
Walk around Time Square
Wicked at 8:00
Day 3: SATURDAY
Rockefeller
Shopping and Upper East Side
Shopping on Madison Ave and 5th Ave
Met
Day 4: SUNDAY
Brunch at Sarabeths?
American Museum of Natural History
Central Park
Check out Tavern on the Green
Shopping
In the Heights at 7:00
(We need a place for dinner by this theater)
Day 5: MONDAY
Soho
Nolita
Greenwich Village
(Where are some good places to eat in these neighborhoods?)
Sep 24th, 2008, 04:03 PM
#2
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Sorry - not even close to doable.
Just a couple of comments.
Are you using the hop on/off as transportation - or are you doing the whole tour. It doesn;t work as transit (subway is much faster) and the tour will take hours. Also - you walk the Brooklyn Bridge from Brooklyn TO Manhattan to see the skyline - not TO Brooklyn. So - you're having dinner at the wrong edge of the bridge - unless you plan on walking back in the dark - not recommended.
Friday -The Staten Island Ferry gives you a fairly distant view of the Statue - it doens;t goo to - or even very near it - since it's for commuters going back and forth to the city. If you want a close up view you have to take the special SOL ferry and allow about 5 hours for the trip. And the Stock Exchange isn;t open to the public.
Saturday - not sure what you mean by Rockefeller. Center? Top of the Rock? NBC tour? Shopping on Mad Ave is VERY upscale designers. And there are really only smaller stores on the upper esat side. Department stores are mostly on Fifth Ave - and don;t go farther north tan Bloomies. And I can;t imagine doing the Met after having been on your feet all day shopping. And you'll need to pick 2 or 3 departments of the dozens.
Either Nat'l Hist or Central Park can easily take a whole day. Again, you'll have to go to websites in advance to pick out a couple of things to see. Don;t see how you would have time for shopping and dinner before a show. (You might just do a drink and a snack and ear after.)
Monday - I don;t even know where to begin. What do you want to do in these areas - shopping, galleries, dining, walking tours?
Just a couple of comments.
Are you using the hop on/off as transportation - or are you doing the whole tour. It doesn;t work as transit (subway is much faster) and the tour will take hours. Also - you walk the Brooklyn Bridge from Brooklyn TO Manhattan to see the skyline - not TO Brooklyn. So - you're having dinner at the wrong edge of the bridge - unless you plan on walking back in the dark - not recommended.
Friday -The Staten Island Ferry gives you a fairly distant view of the Statue - it doens;t goo to - or even very near it - since it's for commuters going back and forth to the city. If you want a close up view you have to take the special SOL ferry and allow about 5 hours for the trip. And the Stock Exchange isn;t open to the public.
Saturday - not sure what you mean by Rockefeller. Center? Top of the Rock? NBC tour? Shopping on Mad Ave is VERY upscale designers. And there are really only smaller stores on the upper esat side. Department stores are mostly on Fifth Ave - and don;t go farther north tan Bloomies. And I can;t imagine doing the Met after having been on your feet all day shopping. And you'll need to pick 2 or 3 departments of the dozens.
Either Nat'l Hist or Central Park can easily take a whole day. Again, you'll have to go to websites in advance to pick out a couple of things to see. Don;t see how you would have time for shopping and dinner before a show. (You might just do a drink and a snack and ear after.)
Monday - I don;t even know where to begin. What do you want to do in these areas - shopping, galleries, dining, walking tours?
Sep 24th, 2008, 04:04 PM
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I'm currently planning a trip for 14 to NYC, and I've been many times. Looking over day 1, you may have a little too much planned. I'd save Brooklyn Bridge for day 2. It's not too far a walk from Ground Zero. I didn't think you could tour NYSE since 9/11. Good to see the bull, though.
I might avoid the hop-on/off tour. It takes a long time to get to one place & the next. Some guides are hard to understand. Use the subway & get to your places of interest faster. IMHO. PS- Don't be afraid to ask locals on trains for help! They always know when my group looks lost and offer assistance!
When you say Met, you mean museum? I like it better than Natural History. There are free walking tours on certain days in Central Park. Google it. I've never liked Tavern on the Green. However, I really liked The Hourglass Tavern on restaurant row (near Times Sq.). It was rec. by a local and did not disappoint.
Two last tips - One, if you go into the NY Library, I heard that there is a display of the toys that inspired Winnie the Pooh in a room off the entrance. Two, if you can't do the Empire St. Bldg., TOP OF THE ROCK offers great views and a neat experience on the way. I've done it 3X.
OK, tip 3...I loved Ellis Island. I have no relatives that came though there, but it was moving none the less. Statue has limited tickets for an indoor tour - see their web site.
In Time Sq. I'd say Sardi's is good for a drink, the Edison is good for lunch and avoid anything you can get at home. There are so many unique places to eat in NYC both for quality and value.
What are you shopping for? Where are you staying? Perhaps others can help you knowing more details. I'm from SC, but I LOVE NY! I have the t-shirt to prove it. Have fun!
I might avoid the hop-on/off tour. It takes a long time to get to one place & the next. Some guides are hard to understand. Use the subway & get to your places of interest faster. IMHO. PS- Don't be afraid to ask locals on trains for help! They always know when my group looks lost and offer assistance!
When you say Met, you mean museum? I like it better than Natural History. There are free walking tours on certain days in Central Park. Google it. I've never liked Tavern on the Green. However, I really liked The Hourglass Tavern on restaurant row (near Times Sq.). It was rec. by a local and did not disappoint.
Two last tips - One, if you go into the NY Library, I heard that there is a display of the toys that inspired Winnie the Pooh in a room off the entrance. Two, if you can't do the Empire St. Bldg., TOP OF THE ROCK offers great views and a neat experience on the way. I've done it 3X.
OK, tip 3...I loved Ellis Island. I have no relatives that came though there, but it was moving none the less. Statue has limited tickets for an indoor tour - see their web site.
In Time Sq. I'd say Sardi's is good for a drink, the Edison is good for lunch and avoid anything you can get at home. There are so many unique places to eat in NYC both for quality and value.
What are you shopping for? Where are you staying? Perhaps others can help you knowing more details. I'm from SC, but I LOVE NY! I have the t-shirt to prove it. Have fun!
Sep 26th, 2008, 11:21 AM
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I'm with nytraveler, this itinerary exhausted me! However, with 5 days you will definitely be able to see a lot, so not to worry.
Let's tackle Day 1. Why don't you start your morning on Canal, then take the subway over to Brooklyn, have pizza for lunch by the bridge then walk back over the bridge for the afternoon. Then you'll be downtown and you can do the Federal Reserve tour at 3:30. After the tour you could wander around chinatown and have dinner there. Since you don't have evening plans, and if you have the stamina of the energizer bunny you could do an evening tour of the city.
Day 2 is doable, if you don't plan on going to the statue of liberty. You need a half a day (at least) for that. If you just want to "see" it, the ferry will do.
Day 3 - is also doable - I would start at the met and work my way down to Rockefeller via 5th/Madison
Day 4 - okay
Day 5 - also okay. Your best bet is to check zagats for restaurants. There are so many to choose from.
Have fun in NY - you're going to love it.
Let's tackle Day 1. Why don't you start your morning on Canal, then take the subway over to Brooklyn, have pizza for lunch by the bridge then walk back over the bridge for the afternoon. Then you'll be downtown and you can do the Federal Reserve tour at 3:30. After the tour you could wander around chinatown and have dinner there. Since you don't have evening plans, and if you have the stamina of the energizer bunny you could do an evening tour of the city.
Day 2 is doable, if you don't plan on going to the statue of liberty. You need a half a day (at least) for that. If you just want to "see" it, the ferry will do.
Day 3 - is also doable - I would start at the met and work my way down to Rockefeller via 5th/Madison
Day 4 - okay
Day 5 - also okay. Your best bet is to check zagats for restaurants. There are so many to choose from.
Have fun in NY - you're going to love it.
Sep 26th, 2008, 11:30 AM
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