My 1st Trip To NYC
 

My wife & I are going to NYC for 5 nights in Dec. '99. We're staying at the Dumont Plaza Suites. Can anyone tell me anything about the hotel & any suggestions for an itenery on a low budget.

No matter what the price, see a show or two that will make your visit special. I highly recommend the Radio City Hall Rockettes Christmas Special. I also enjoyed a visit to Ellis Island. You can enjoy the holiday decorations for free and explore the Little Italy and Chinatown free, as well. Window shopping is cheap! If you like to cook, for example, you might shop for unusual ingredients in ethnic groceries. Spend a couple of hours in a huge bookstore. Attend church. Have fun! <BR>

For "cheap" theater tickets, you can either try the TKTS booth in Times Square or at the World Trade Center (shorter lines)for same day tickets. Or if you want to reserve in advance, try www.playbill.com. It's free to join so don't be put off by the registration. We ordered tickets through them in October and the seats were excellent and at a 35% discount. <BR> <BR>Food is fairly expensive in NYC but we found a couple of bargains-John's Pizzeria had good New York style pizza and the Carnegie Deli has excellent sandwiches that if you get for take out can split between two people as they are huge! You can also get pizza by the slice from a variety of places. <BR> <BR>The ferry over to Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty was $7.50 or so and included admission to both sites. If you just want to get a closer look, I believe you can take the Staten Island ferry for free but you can't get off at either site. <BR> <BR>The Metropolitan Museum of Art has a suggested donation of $10; I didn't actually see anyone giving much more than $1 a person. <BR> <BR>Visit Grand Central Station, Central Park, St. Patrick's, the Chrysler Building-all free. Go to the top of the Empire State Building, I think it was around $7. <BR> <BR>Have a good trip!

If you two enjoy shopping you simply must go to Macy's. It's the best. There should be some good holiday sales by the time you arrive.

The city is full of colorful and moderately priced ethnic restaurants and as others have probably mentioned... people watching is free and always entertaining in the big Apple. Also consider taking the looong subway ride up to the Cloisters - it's an interesting Medieval museum at the northern tip of the city in Fort Tryon Park. I had a book a few years back called "Mr. Cheap's NY" and it was chock full of great ideas on cheap/free things to see/do/buy in NYC. It may still be available and I think there is now a website by the author but I don't know the URL.

Get yourself a can of mace and a bullet proof vest. Why anyone would vacation in this miserable city is beyond me. <BR> <BR>Go to Europe or Hawaii ... don't come here unless you enjoy race wars on the subway, harrassment from "in your face" beggars, and the stink of urine. <BR> <BR>Regards, <BR>Scott <BR>(A Native of NYC)

Poor Scott. Hope someone tucks a cup of Christmas cheer in your stocking. <BR> <BR>Jud: Pay no heed. NY is a lively interesting city - the natives are friendly (forget that cold New Yorker stuff); they seem to take it as their mission to "be characters." I've never been there that at least one encounter with a local doesn't leave me smiling. <BR>And yes, do stretch the budget enough to include a show - there's nothing like it. Almost all NYC restaurants post their menus, so you can browse and decide before committing. 2nd Ave in the 50s (just as a for instance) is lined with interesting choices that don't have to break the piggy bank. Enjoy!

Arjay, <BR> <BR>Unfortunately you are not from NYC so I highly doubt the accuracy of your review. Please leave it to the experts. <BR> <BR>Trust me when I tell you that you were very lucky on your trip to the city. <BR> <BR>Regards, <BR>Scott

Scott, I imagine you are going to lose this one as fast as Annapolis lost to Charleston. <BR> <BR>While I'm not a native, I've been to the city numerous times on business and pleasure and found it to be safe and friendly. And I can't imagine why New Yorkers would be willing to pay the exhorbitant rents they do if they didn't find it a wonderful place to live.

Wow, Scott, you sound a little bitter. I can't imagine why you live there if you hate it so much. But as far as being an expert, it seems that we are all more qualified to be experts on a "tourist's" experience in NYC than you are. Obviously, living there is a very different experience than visiting! <BR> <BR>I try to make it up to NYC at least once a year. Yes, it is dirty, smelly and I get begged from, but I have had those experiences everywhere else I have travelled to (especially big cities) but no where can compete with NYC in vibrancy and excitement. Something about just walking down the street there gets my adrenaline pumping and makes me feel more alive than anywhere else. <BR> <BR>So, back to jud's questions. I have always liked exploring neighborhoods in Manhattan, to try to see what it must be like to live there. Windowshop and eat in neighborhood restaurants (much cheaper than restaurants around the big tourist attractions). Take the subway. Go to the street markets. Walk through Central Park. Go ice skating. People watch anywhere and everywhere. Go to Zabars or Dean and Deluca. Enjoy!

I've lived there, I travel there often, and I love New York. My top thing to do, if the weather is clear, is to go to the top of the World Trade Center. It does cost ($10 or 12???)but the view you get is of the whole island of Manhattan. You will be ABOVE the traffic copters (experienced when there around rush hour). If it isn't closed, you can go OUTSIDE on a rooftop terrace.

Note to all non-NYer's. <BR>Scott must have been having a bad day or, he spends his time looking for trouble or, he's just plain dumb. <BR> <BR>I've communted to NYC for 30 years and have encountered more "trouble" in the town I live in on Long Island. <BR> <BR>Don't bother w/the mace or the vest, it's a waste of money and the mace is illegal here. <BR>Mike Murphy

Scott, have you ever been to SF? there is a city that has a reputation for being safe, clean, tourist friendly, etc, and there were beggars everywhere, including union square. at least NYC acknowledges it's gritty side, we don't pretend we're some disney-fied wonderland. <BR>here are some other tips: not only does the TKTS booth in world trade have shorter lines, but it opens an hour earlier than the times square one, and they work from the same inventory of tickets, so you have a better chance to get the show you want. do not pass up the chance to see your first broadway show half price. you can plan a day around this, take the 1 or 9 subway to the world trade stop, get your tickets, go to the observation deck, and if you have time while downtown go see the NY stock exchange. i seem to think it's free to go to their observation area, they have a cool gift shop. i may just be thinking it's free b.c i work for a member firm, and i know if i show my employee id or a business card, i get to skip the line, but i don't remember paying to get in.while you are uptown, go see the windows of macy's and bloomingdales, the decorations at the plaza hotel and go across the street to FAO schwartz, which is so fun, especially in december. go have hot chocolate or ice cream at rumpelmayers <BR>in the st.moritz hotel. if you want italian food in the village, go to Asti's, the waiters all sing opera music. if you don't mind the cold, combine seeing the tree in rockefeller plaza with hanging out outside the NBC studios for the TOday show. that's free. get a map of the city that has areas of interest noted on it and plan days accordingly, b/c while it's nice to walk around each area of the city, it's really big, and will be cold and you'll want to be organized to make sure you see/do everything you want to while in a particular neighborhood. <BR>one note about little italy....it has basically been taken over by chinatown, so don't expect much. and no matter what don't bother with ferraras for pastries, they are awful. for a real little italy atmosphere in NY you need to go to the bronx to arthur avenue, which i am sure you won't do. or you can go to boston's north end, which has only been infiltrated by yuppies, who have just raised the rents and costs of meals, not totally obliterated the neighborhoods identity.

Hi <BR>My husband & I are from a small town in the Midwest. We made our first visit to NYC this summer and we loved it, so please do not let Scott's comments keep you away. <BR>It seems like it would be like most big cities...just use common sense. We did not see anything that made us uneasy, we stayed near 48 & 8th Ave. We rode the subway and that was fine too. <BR>However, our visit was in the summer, so <BR>we did a lot of walking, and took the Circle Boat Ride, not sure how that would be in the winter. There was just something awesome about seeing the Statue of Liberty. <BR>Five night sounds good, we were there for three and the time went by too fast. <BR>Have fun!!