I'm going to NYC with daughter and 16 year old granddaughter this week. I see that there are several hop on, hop off tours in the City, several with multi day passes. Does anyone have advice on good ones, especially for 2 - 3 days? Also there is one that says it is NY garment district special shopping tour. Is this ligit? I used to work in the NY garment industry and there was nothing like it in my market which was, granted, childrenswear. I just don't want to waste money or time on some kind of rip-off. Thanks!

I suppose you might want to take a night-time special-interest tour. But this week and next---in particular---the traffic is going to be so heavy that the HOHO buses are much more of a detriment than a benefit to you. It's really murder trying to get around the city with holiday traffic (even on weekends and even at night). You'll spend two or three times longer in traffic on one of these buses than you will just traveling to the places you want to see and spending a few minutes (even 15) walking around after seeing the sight. As I've said in other threads, yes, you may not see as much of the city, though a short trip stuck in heavy traffic seems to be a huge waste of time in a place as big and interesting as NYC. Please do yourself a favor and don't do this over the holiday season. Your granddaughter is going to feel like a caged animal being trapped in a bus for hours at a time when the real life of the city is taking place outside.

realnewyorktours.com uses subway and walking to get around and that might be a good idea at this time of year. Otherwise, I'd suggest onboardtours.com where the guide stays with you so you don't have to wait for the next bus to come along and the buses are heated. The passes don't really work for a short visit imo. If you intend going to the Empire State, buy those tickets in advance online but Top of the Rock is much better.

I think the garment center tours are more about going to sample sales but you can try looking for reviews of the particular one you're seeing online (do a google search). You can find out about sample sales yourself on websites like nymag.com and dailycandy.com

Best advice for this time of year...book restaurant reservations NOW. Opentable.com books most restaurants. Allow plenty of time to get around and have plans should you get separated. The city is really a madhouse, especially on Fifth ave. with people just stopping dead in the middle of the sidewalks taking photos.

Do not even consider Hop on/off buses - esp this time of year. You will spend the bulk of your time sitting in traffic - see practically nothing -have to wait forever if you do get off - and be very chilly on top of the bus (you can't see much from inside).

You feet or subway and go directly to what you want to see to avoid a bunch of wasted time.

These answers are SO helpful! I'm going to try every link. My granddaughter has no concept of NY and thinks it's no different from a shopping trip to Orlando and Tampa, both of which are close to home. She's very bright but doesn't have a clue about museums, restaurants, parks, etc. At 16, I guess most kids see only the world they live in which for her is private school, cheerleading, studying and, of course, boys. Her mother is taking her to Lion King while I go out with my NY buddies. We're going to Radio City but otherwise have booked no other activities. Does anyone have suggestions for what museums or sites would pique her interest and what restaurants are either "must go" restaurants or fabulous, interesting places. Her friends are all very wealthy and have only told her about $500 sushi which she says is unavailable while we're there. I'm trying to be "cool", but I'd spend every minute at the REAL sites if I had my way! Thanks again for the rapid responses.

About the only Garment District tour I would go on is one run by Mike Kaback. He worked in the industry for 30 years but I don't know if he is doing one while you are here.
http://mikesnyctours.com/index.php/tours/

As long as you are in the neighborhood, she might like the museum at FIT and it is free:
http://www.fitnyc.edu/3662.asp

For some nice contrasts, I would take her to the Frick Museum and the Tenement Museum

http://frick.org/
http://tenement.org/

Eat at Katz's or my favorite The Meatball Shop near the tenement museum and the boat house cafe near the Frick. If she discovers she likes museums then the Met or MOMA should be conquered next.

I agree about the HOHO comments above especially and I work as a tour guide on these buses. The company is currently trying to replace live guides with tapes. I had a post up about it but it was removed. Do make sure you do plenty of subway and bus riding. Save your taxi money for food and experiences. If you like Jazz go to Dizzy's Jazz Club.....www.jalc.org

Have a great time exploring!

thestarryeye.typepad.com/explorenyc

I would go for the Nutcracker rather than Radio City - at 16 it's time for her to be exposed to ballet - even ballet light.

Also I would head for the Met (check out the web site to see what departments will be a hit). Would also do Museum of Nat'l History - (both have GREAT christmas trees and their shops are great for Xmas gifts).

After that - have her look at a Let's Go guide book and the Thorn Tree section of the Lonely PLanet web site. Aimed at students and will help her pick out what SHE wants to see much (time for her to do some research and make some decisions).

She would probably like to go to one trendy restaurant for a chance to see "someone" famous - if you tell us cuisines you lie/dislike and budgets we can reco a few to choose from. Also- if you get any decent weather visit the Village and East Village for window shopping and another chance to see some of the VERY famous locals.

The Guggenheim is an amazing structure. Even if she isn't into art it would be difficult not to be impressed by the building itself.

Just got home from two full days with my daughter who is 16 and a half. I listened to a lot of the advice I got here, but also had to take her wants into consideration. In the process of posting my trip report but for now, I would ask, what types of things does she like, what is she interested in. I was surprised at what dd gravitated toward.

We didn't do the HopOnHopOff tours, but if we'd had even one more day, I think we would have enjoyed it but it would definitely depend on the weather.

We seemed to spend most of our time along 5th Ave. near Rockefeller Center. We did go to the Metropolitan Museum but dd just wasn't into it, and it was so big, and we had limited time so in hindsight, not sure it was worth it. I had thought she'd really like to see FIT but she passed. We actually spent more time at the Sephora and the Forever 21 stores on 5th. She loved them, and said they were a lot different than the same stores that we have at home. If Forever 21 isn't your style, and you can afford it, there might be another store she'd love. And I will say, the Sephora store is in a beautiful Beaux Arts Building.
We had tickets to Book of Mormon and Godspell, and while we really liked Book of Mormon, we were both totally captivated by Godspell. It's a very contemporary production, and probably easy to get tickets.

The other thing not to be missed was the 9/11 memorial. I had checked online to get tickets and it said none were available, but a lady we asked for directions near Ground Zero told us that they always haeld some tickets available for each day. We got in line at 2 and were able to get tickets for 3:30, just enough time for a ride on the Staten Island Ferry. The Memorial is truly beautiful and we were both so glad we saw it. She remembers 9/11, even though she was very young, and I think going through the temporary exhibits (available with or without tickets) helped her understand the depth of it all.

If I had been on that trip with my SO, it would have looked a lot different, but I let DD call most of the shots and I was glad.

Great to hear it went well cat.

Again, I am SO grateful for all these suggestions. Now I'm definitely planning to take my laptop so I can stay in touch. Our hotel (Doubletree Metropolitan) charges $15/day for WIFI. That is outrageous, but I guess I'll pay it. What the hey! Cat, Lexi is also a shopping diva, as yours also seems to be. I really think she'll be blown away by everything from Bloomie's to Sephora. She likes the "in" stuff (I'm sure that isn't her term). I just hope she'll get infected by the rest of NY, the museums, the shows, the parks, etc. Her mom will probably spring for one knock-out outfit, I would guess. I absolutely LOVE Godspell, so I'll try to get them to go one day or night. They are going to Lion King (which I've seen) while I go to dinner with my friends. I'm surprised about your enthusiasm for the 9/11 Memorial. We weren't going to that, just because we wanted to stay upbeat the whole time. Her mom is under incredible pressure right now and needs a break.
Thanks again to all. Anyone else with suggestions (or more from you, Cat), I will be so happy again!

I don't know that I'd pay that steep fee for WiFi access at your hotel. There's probably a Starbucks or other business within a couple of blocks that would offer free Wi-Fi. There might also be free WiFi in the lobby as opposed to your room (I'd certainly check on that).

If not, there's free WiFi in the Barnes & Noble in the Citicorp Center, which is about 2 blocks from your hotel. There might even be free Wi-Fi in the lobby of the Waldorf-Astoria across the street from you hotel (that's a nice lobby to sit in).

Finally, there's a NY Public Library branch nearby at 50th/Lexington Ave. (we call this the subway library because it's actually halfway down to the subway). All NY Public Library branches have free Wi-Fi, but the hours are fairly restricted.

kck, before agreeing to pay for the wi-fi, see if there is a Starbucks or McDonalds nearby. That wifi is always free. You may even get it in your room. Otherwise, just go into 1 of them.

There's are quite a few Starbucks near your hotel. Unless you can't live w/o the computer in the room, I wouldn't pay. http://g.co/maps/scdf2

Using the 'search nearby' feature on maps.google.com is really useful. You can look for restaurants, diners, pizza, museums etc. I would let dd pick the museum(s) based on her interests. I agree the Frick is a small gem, but may not be her cup of tea. frick.org Speaking of tea, a fancy afternoon tea is a nice thing to do and a way to see some of the fancier hotels. Also, don't be shy about using ladies' rooms in the hotels. There's usually one of the main lobby and a good place to regroup (as well as dept. stores).

kck, I was really surprised by how much we both like the 9/11 Memorial. And it wasn't really sad, just sort of perfect, although there were people there posing for pictures like it was Disneyland, which I thought a little odd. The temporary exhibits were sad, and made us both cry, but then, The Statue of Liberty had me in tears also, so I may not be a good gauge.

I have never seen Godspell before, and didn't know what to expect, but we were both blown away by it! It is very small and intimate, in fact, we were in the first row, but it was just such a great experience!

mclaurie, that is a great idea, about using the ladies' rooms at nice hotels. Wish I'd thought of that!