Hi Fodorites-
I've never come to the group for advice of such a last minute nature, but nature has pulled the rug out from under my feet for my "Fall Weekend in NYC." A friend and I will arrive tomorrow, staying at the Marriott East Side on Lexington Avenue (staying on points). We will have a day of overcast and possibly rainy weather before we have two days of major rain. There goes my afternoon in Central Park!
We have plans for Saturday night, but other than that, the schedule is open. How would you spend two rainy days in NYC? My friend and I have done the major tourist attractions, but we are open to seeing any special exhibits and haven't gotten to all of the "lesser known" gems. This is our "girls weekend away" from our husbands and kids, so if there are any cool spas we could get into at the last minute, please tell me. Thanks for your suggestions and advice!
Laura

there was a post last week titled "rainy weekend in nyc" you can go under US and then search the forum for that title and there were a lot of good suggestions.

Thanks- I'll look now.

Hopefully this is not to late for you to see and use. . .The good news is that the weather forecast could of course be wrong and you could end up with passable or even good weather, so let’s hope for the best. If not, some suggestions:

1. I would call Bliss Spa right now and try to book some treatments. They have 3 locations in New York, including one at Lex and 49th about 2 blocks from the Marriott and also on East 57th between 5th and Madison . Go to http://www.blissworld.com/spa/ or call 212 219 8970. Very good spas with a myriad of treatments. Elizabeth Arden has two Red Door Salon on 5th Ave as well, one is at Saks just across the street from Rockefeller Center, go to http://www.reddoorspas.com. Also take a look at spafinder.com for other suggestions.

2. The Tenement Museum which was mentioned on another post is a very interesting museum offering a guided tour of a tenement house "restored" to its early 19th century condition. You can reserve tickets for a tour. If weather is OK consider the walking tour they offer as well. Take a look at http://www.tenement.org/.

Lower East Side Tenement Museum.
108 Orchard Street (near Delancey Street)

The lower east side abuts China Town, Little Italy, Soho, etc and is good for exploring, shopping and restaurants., Bloomingdales Soho.

3. Also in lower Manhattan, the Forbes Museum on Fifth Ave at 12th Street is small and has some great collections, including Faberge eggs and a toy collection. They are open Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday from 10:00 a.m.- 4:00 p.m.. Admission is free. I could not find a website.

4. My very favourite museum is the Frick. It is in the former mansion of Mr. Frick which is beautiful in itself besides housing his extensive collection. He has one or two examples which are simply the best of each genre. I can imagine all of Edith Wharton's character's living in his house. . . .This museum is so much easier to take in IMO than that great huge hulking Met with its crowds and long walks to the exhibits:

The Frick
1 E. 70th St.
btw Madison & 5th Ave
New York, NY 10021-4967
Phone: (212) 288-0700
Fax: (212) 628-4417
Website www.frick.org

5. A UN tour might be fun. English tours begin every 15 - 30 minutes daily, between 9:15am - 4:45pm on Monday through Friday, Saturday and Sundays from 10:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Tours last about 45 minutes. Take a look at un.org./tours. The website says that the UN may be closed on certain days when the General Assembly is meeting. Please call 212-963-TOUR (8687) for up-to-date information. Opening hours are subject to change.
760 United Nations Plaza
New York, NY 10017
Location: 1st Ave. & 43rd St.
Subway: number 4,5,6 or 7 trains to Grand Central Station; walk on 42nd Street to First Avenue. Buses: M15, M27, M42, or M104. Entrance is at 46th St. and 1st Ave.
A recent poster on this site suggested lunch at the 4th fl Delegates Dining room when you're at the UN. Haven't tried it but sounds intriguing. Reservations MUST be made in Advance @ 212-963-7626. Show ID in lobby where you check in & you're given a pass for you & your group to proceed to the 4th fl. When you return to lobby your ID will be returned to you. "
6. Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum
2 East 91st Street
ndm.si.edu

This is uptown off Fifth Ave and not far from the Met. It is a small museum the has unusual rather advent garde exhibits. You can usually see the entire exhibit in about an hour.

7. Other museums to consider which are smaller than the Met and perhaps more "doable":

Whitney Museum
945 Madison Ave.
(at 75th Street)
New York, New York 10021
(212) 570-3676
Website www.whitney.org

The Whitney also has an offshoot in the Philip Morris building at 120 Park Ave. (@ 42nd St.)
where they have smaller special exhibits which you can see in an hour or less. They also have lunch time tours which might be a nice option.

Guggenheim
5th Ave at 89th
guggenheim.org/new_york


American Craft Museum
40 W 53rd St.
New York City, NY 10019
(212) 956-3535
americancraftmuseum.org

I also like the International Photography Museum
ICP Midtown
1133 Ave of the Americas
(at 43rd Street)
New York, NY 10036
(212) 768-4682
Website at www.icp.org

8. The main building of the New York Public Library is worth a visit and often ahs small special exhibits going on. There is a great restaurant behind it as well that is good for lunch or dinner:

Bryant Park Grill
behind the Public Library/Bryant Park
25 W. 40th St. (bet. 5th & 6th Aves.)
Tel: 212-840-6500
www.bryantpark.org/amenities/dining.php

There is an excellent exhibit of Van Gogh sketches at the Met.

Some friends from NY told me the Guggenheim has an exibit of Russian paintings including Chagall which they found very interesting.

There is another museum not far from the Frick on the same order (mansion) but is German art. The art is ok but the restaurant is excellent. Very highly recommended. At least go have coffee and strudel (strudel to DIE for the last time I was there). I'm sure you can locate it in a travel book easily. Not far from the Met.

We are here! Thanks, everyone, for your help. So far we've walked in the Union Square and Soho areas- we had dinner at I Coppi in the East Village. Shopped a little, went to a friend's lovely apartment- a nice day! Tomorrow it will pour, and I think we are going to take many of your museum suggestions and also call Bliss Spa. Thank you all so much!!

Hope you are having a great time! The name of the museum I referred to above is the Neue Galerie at about 86th and 5th.