Leta

I will be in NYC for the first time on Sat. Not sure about taking the subway but I am familiar with buses. Is there a place that I can go to get a map and bus schedule, and also a subway map and the Metro Card? I am staying at Sheraton at 811 7th Ave on 53rd. Thanks! Also, other than walking, can you tell me the best way to get from there to the MET? Thank you!

sf7307

I can't advise how to get there by transportation other than your feet, but I can say that if the weather's half-way decent, it's a great walk --- about 1-1/2 miles each way.

K_brklyn

Google maps and Hopstop can help you map out your routes.

If you have a smartphone you should download the google maps for mobile-it gives you real time walking and public transit directions.

Subway maps can be found at a subway station, just ask the booth clerk for one. Metrocards can be purchased from the machines in each subway.

Bus maps, you can ask the bus driver for one. Maybe your hotel has some on hand.

yk

No need for bus schedules - they run frequently yet often stuck in traffic, so any "schedule" within Manhattan is utterly useless.

You can take the 8th ave bus up to 86th street; then switch for the 86th st crosstown bus, get off at the first stop after it emerges from the park.

At each bus stop, there are almost always a route map for all the buses stopping there, so you can always double check the route before you board a bus.

yk

P.S. the above directions is for the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

If you meant the Metropolitan Opera, then just take 8th ave bus up to Lincoln Center.

nytraveler

Bus schedules are merly random suggestions - they have nothing to do with reality. All they will tell youis that there should be a bus every 5 minutes during rush hour and every 15 minutes at 10 pm. When a bus will actually come is anyone's guess. You just go and stand in the stop and wait. what you should check for is route (the pole in the bus stop should have route maps) since usually several differnt buses stop in each place.

As for getting to the Met, walk over to Madison avenue and get on a local bus. Get off at 79th St and walk back over to Fifth. (If this doesn;t make sense you need to get a street map.)

mclaurie

There are several different websites that will give you directions for getting from point a to point b by bus, subway, walking or estimate cost of a taxi. hopstop.com is one. Here's a link to the MTA website (metropolitan transit authority) which also has a trip planner as well as subway and bus maps. http://mta.info/

nyer

As noted, you have to go into a subway station to get a MetroCard anyway. Most stations in Manhattan that I've checked seem to have Manhattan bus maps as well as the subway maps. I also use the maps as an idea of the routes available, not really as a timetable. During daytime and early evening hours, most Manhattan buses come along avery 5-15 minutes--unless they are all clumped together 3 at a time...

If I'm in the area of the Sheraton and want to get to the Met Museum, here's what I do: Walk over to Madison Avenue (about 3 avenues east) and take one of the buses up to 82nd street. Then walk one avenue west to the main entrance of the museum.

There are certainly other options, but I do this occasionally.

SueNYC

Also - walk across the street (from your hotel) to what is now supposed the tourist information center. On the right side (physically and metaphorically) you'll find paper pamphlets - you should find subway and manhattan bus maps -- On the left side is an internet iphone bingo game that'll give you lots of stuff to load on to your phone if you are that way inclined.

The people who work there know little about NYC but they know a lot about the technology.

The visitor center is on the 1st floor.
This info is hidden on the website -- www.nycgo.com

NYC & Company
810 Seventh Ave., 3 fl
New York, NY 10019
212-484-1200 tel

bmw732002

Dress warm! Bitter cold this weekend!

Sue54

hopstop.com is great. In NYC, the subway stops close down for many different reasons, but hopstop always "knows" what stops are available. I think the subway and walking is the best way to get around. Walking is fun in NYC and you get to see all kinds of local culture.

djkbooks

You can also go to the NYC Transit website and download a bus map. I always crop, enlarge, print, Midtown, etc., for folding up and tucking into a pocket. Much easier than the huge foldup map you get at the subway stations.

Leta

Thank you to everyone, especially nyer for the exact steps to take from hotel to museum. I need a map because our printer is broken and I can't print the info off the websites. Also I have an old phone that is just a phone - no helpful internet access on it. I did not know about this hop stop website. I will check it out. Thank you again everyone. I leave in the morning! I know it's cold there but I'm leaving an ice storm and 20 degree temps here in the midwest so hopefully it can't be much worse!