New York - 1st time
 

Hi there - I'll be visiting New York from Sunday Sept 9th to Wednesday Sept 12th for a business trip. I've never been to new york and am excited to see at least a small part of the city.

I booked my flight so I could have a good part of the day on the sunday (my flight arrives in new york around 11am). I am working during the days Monday to Wed, but have Sunday all day, Monday and Tuesday nights to myself.

I'm looking for any info on the following - some questions are admittedly broad and tough to answer, but some are more specific:

1) I'm thinking it would be a good idea to do a hop on hop off bus of the downtown loop on the Sunday I arrive to get a good overview of the city. Is this a good idea? Beside the 2 nights I have, I really only have Sunday, so I figure it might be the best to get a quick overview of the city. The gray line I keep reading about seems to only have a 48 hr ticket - is there a shorter ticket (ie. just one day)? Is there a better bus company?

2) I'm almost tempted to forget the hop on/hop off, admit that it's a huge city and I'll be back, and do 2 areas I'm interested in: The Times Square/Empire State Building/Rockerfeller area, and the Village/Little Italy, etc area. I'm thinking I could subway down to greenwhich after checking in/dropping off my bags, and walk SoHo, Little Italy, Chinatown, maybe canal st, possibly even walk over to the brookly bridge. Then maybe subway back up and go up one of the rock or empire state building, or both (probably just doing the rock makes sense). Thoughts on these 2 areas? I'm a real city guy and like happening neighbourhoods that have culture and charm - anything other spots that would be good?

b) When I'm downtown on Sunday: I'm 29 years old and like busy bars / beer gardens / patios, not so fancy - casual places - can someone suggest a good area of bars/patios in the downtown area? Greenwich village?

b) For Mon/Tues night, I'm staying at the Dylan Hotel near Grand Central (41st and Madison). Any good streets/areas with bars/patios around there? Good restaurants that are moderately priced?

c) I would like to go up the Empire State Building on Sunday, but the website cautions that the lines are long. Is there a particularly good time to go (ie. what about Sunday night?) and how long would the line be at that time?

b) How do I get to the 70th (outdoor) floor of the Rockerfeller center - I read there is a separate entrance at West 50th Street leads to the elevators? Is this normally lined up too?

Thanks for your help,

Jeff
Toronto, Canada

Oh man, forgot to fix the letters/numbers. I apologize for the mess.

Look at Time Out NY and Village Voice on line before you get here. They have a long list of bars.

I might skip the Empire State Building since the line might be long and you have limited time.

Jeff...bars...

d.b.a. (1st avenue btwn 2nd and 3rd)

Blind Tiger Ale House

Don't bother with the Empire State Buidlings - lines are horrendous. Instead do Top of the Rock - you can buy ties tickets in advance so there's no wait. For choice I would go up about sunset - so you can see the city both in the day time and with lights on at night.

It might be best to Top of the rock one evening after your meeting - it's open until midnight I believe. You can do Rock Cener and Times Square at the same time. The latter is much better at night - and there's no way you'll see everything you want on Sunday.

I would make that a downtown day - seeing the various areas, shopping, perhaps do an off-broadway show at night. (Check playbill.com to see what shows might be open Sunday night.) Then you can have dinner in the village - which is packed with casual restaurants and bars withoutdoor cafes.

Also on Sunday, if you get the chance ride the (free) Staten Island ferry - the views coming back towards Manhattan are great, you can view (from a distance) Statue of Liberty. Ferries run every 20 minutes or so - again 24/7.

Check out New York Magazine and Time Out New York web sites for casuale restaurants, bars, etc. Also, menupages.com lets you search hundreds of choices by neighborhood and cuisine - and has diner reviews and actual menus.

I would NOT do any ride around bus - to really see New York you have to walk (otherwise you might as well be watching a movie).

There's a busy terrace bar behind the NY Public Library, almost across the street from your hotel. It's got a lively happy hour scene if the weather is nice. The best cheap bars are in the East Village. You might like Chumley's (Bedford St. at Barrow in the West Village) or McSorley's (15 E. 7th St in the East Village). These are two of the older bars in NYC. McSorley's brews their own ale (dark or light) and still has sawdust on the floor. The Hell's Kitchen area (50s, west of 8th ave) has a lot of good bars, as does the East Village.

I'll agree with the people who counsel you to skip the Empire State Bldg. The view from Top of the Rock is actually better in my opinion.

Definitely McSorleys. Light. Dark. What else could you want

TorontoJeff, if you make it out to Brooklyn, try Spuyten Duyvil. Best beer bar in the city, IMO.

d.b.a. is right there in the East Village, tho, and they have a quality beer selection and and outdoor patio/garden.

Chumley's was a great bar but it is closed and has been for some time. I hear that it will be re-opening in October but that might just be rumor.

Also near your hotel is Rare View, a rooftop bar at the Shelburne Hotel on Lexington. For restaurants, my favorite in the area is Koi. Check www.nymetro.com for restaurant reviews and menus. There are lots of good things in the area.

You are right about Top of the Rock. You can actually buy tickets at a booth out front saving a little time in line. If you on the building side of the lowered square with the statue, then the booth is on the left. Go around the right side of the building (your right), and enter the building there. The line wasn't bad at all when we went a couple of weeks ago. You can also buy a ticket to the Empire State Building ahead of time, if you decide to do that one, but I agree with others who like the Rockefeller view better. The only thing I like better from the Empire State Building is the view of the Crysler Building.

I love walking the Brooklyn Bridge but haven't done it at night. Have done it twice during the day. It will take about 25 minutes to walk across and is well worth it, especially if you walk from the Brooklyn side facing Manhattan.

I thought Chumley's had already reopened. I'll try to double-check on that ... sorry for the confusion.

Thanks all - awesome info.

I think I will skip ESB, based on the reviews here. I took a poke on Flickr and saw the views - they do look better from the Rock.

Blind Tiger Ale House, McSorley's and Rare View look awesome. McSorley's looks like a place I could spend a lot of time. although I couldn't find any reference of D.B.A. on the web?

Also thanks for all the links to the local listings sites - those will be valuable.

I think I'll also toss the idea of the bus, and just walk/subway/taxi around.

Cheers all,
Jeff

TorontoJeff...d.b.a.'s Web site is www.drinkgoodstuff.com

Not sure why they chose that URL. Regardless, it's a good bar.

d.b.a. is great, if you get that far east in the Village. As others have mentioned, the Village is full of casual restaurants and bars, many (like d.b.a.) with outdoor patios in the back.

You might want to check out sheckys.com for bar listings and reviews...

Your hotel is, of course, smack in midtown and thus surrounded by restaurants and shops geared towards office workers. The block of 41st between Madison and 5th Ave, however, is a little slice of Japan: a good-sized bookstore and a number of cafes. One of these has a Beard Papa inside: I know it's a bit of a random suggestion - but I was never a fan of cream puffs until I tried these! (There's additional locations downtown, especially around NYU.) :D

Speaking of downtown, if the weather's nice and you're not feeling too rushed, spend some time sitting and people watching in Washington Square Park. On a Sunday there will be locals, families, and certainly students procrastinating over their books. I'm pretty sure the annual Washington Square crafts fair will be going on that weekend, too.

You could catch the downtown 6 train from Grand Central to Astor Place, or for a bit longer walk, to Union Square. At Astor, head west across 8th Street, then two blocks south to WS Park. From Union Square/14th Street, walk down Broadway into the Village; turn right at 8th Street for the park. From either stop, heading east will put you in the heart of the East Village. Or follow Broadway down through the Village, across Houston into SoHo, and eventually to Canal Street.

It's a little known fact, but pedestrians can cross the Manhattan Bridge too. The bridge itself is not as scenic as the Brooklyn Bridge (and loud when the subway crosses!), but has good views of the Brooklyn Br and downtown Manhattan, and is closer to get to from the Village than the Brooklyn Bridge. To get to the Manhattan Bridge, walk all the way east on Canal Street. The pedestrian walkway is on the south side of the bridge, by the tall Confucious Towers building.

Both bridges will put you at the edge of DUMBO, and artsy neighborhood with an influx of luxury residences and the shops that cater to them. There's a great local restaurant called SuperFine (check out the bar and the orange-felted pool table!), plus other good places to eat and drink. Many claim that the city's best pizza is there at Grimaldi's. You could then walk through the neighborhood and return to Manhattan over the Brooklyn Bridge before catching the 6 train back uptown at City Hall, or catch the F train at York Street to 42nd Street, leaving you just 2 blocks from your hotel on the far side of Bryant Park behind the public library.

:) ggreen

TorontoJeff...recalling my first ever trip to NYC many moons ago... I hope you have a window seat on the plane, and that the flight path is over the city. It doesn't matter how much you've read/browsed internet/seen pictures...the reality of the sheer size of this city will blow your mind. :)

It's a great city and I've no doubt you will find it very difficult to concentrate in your business meetings, knowing what all lies waiting for you to discover. :)

Drink it in and have a blast! And I'll guarantee you'll be planning your next visit soon. After all, you are NOT that far away!!! :)

Paula

Hi

I'm not sure that I can answer you questions specifically...but I did go to NYC for the first time a couple of years back and here is my trip report with pictures, links and maps: http://gardkarlsen.com/new_york_city_trip_report.htm . Maybe you can find some useful information there :d

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

Thanks again guys - had an awesome time in NYC and saw quite a lot of lower manhattan and central park. Will be going back again soon!

McSorley's was fantastic.

Glad you enjoyed your trip to NYC. Next time you're in town, check out Gingerman for a beer. Gingerman has 60+ taps and a large selection of bottled beers as well. Very nice vibe, great bartenders.

http://www.gingerman-ny.com/GingerMa...GingerMan.html

Ginger Man is great, but man it gets crowded.

TorontoJeff -- did you go to any other bars besides McSorley's?

True about crowding at Gingerman... I usually go on a Saturday afternoon and have the place nearly to myself. Evenings are a different story!

:)