Cowboy1968

Hi everybody,

I'll be departing on a 2-night business trip to NYC on Tuesday.
I'll fly in from Europe, and usually have a bit of a problem with jetlag the first one or two night(s), i.e. I wake up around 4 or 5.
Since I'll be in the *city that never sleeps*, I was wondering if I could do something sensible with those early hours until my conference will start at around 9am.
I assume that most *real* sights won't open that early, so I have thought about taking the Staten Island ferry for some sunrise views of the Manhattan. Or is that a bad idea because of too many commuters or other issues I do not foresee?
My hotel is in LIC, near 33rd St/Rawson subway station, if that matters.

Thanks for any ideas in advance.

Aduchamp1

The best thing you can do is walk the city at that time. I too used to get up early on business trips and see what I could see. There is the residential architecture and small stores.

There are a number of 24 hour restaurants. One with some persoanlity is Veselka on First Ave and 9th Street. What was once a neighborhood hangout for artists and musicians is now known as city wide. They specialize in Eastern European food but also have a wode range of American dishes.

Or for something completely different Wo Hop at 17 Mott Street.

Or do what NY'ers do when they can, have a hot bagel directly from the oven at Ess-A-Bagel where you can sit or Tal's, or Murray's.

SueNYC

The Apple Computer store at 59th and 5th is open 24 by 7 and is quite pleasant in the early hours. Where is your business meeting and how much stuff do you have to lug to it?

Cowboy1968

Wow... both the restaurants / eateries and the Apple store are great ideas. New stuff for my iPod before the day even started
My meeting/conference will be in a hotel near Times Square, and I won't have to carry more than a few documents in a small daypack.

Myer

The Apple store is right near the corner of Central Park. Always worth a nice walk in the Park.

Margo_Chester

What about getting some breakfast food "to go" and eating it in Byrant Park? The park is at West 40th St. bewteen 5th & 6th Aves. Maybe get something from the nearby Le Pain Quotidien and sit at one of the tables in the park, enjoy your breakfast and do some people watching? Easy walk from here to your meeting.

www.bryantpark.org
www.lepainquotidien.com

yk

Go for a stroll at the High Line, followed by breakfast at Chelsea Market (both opens at 7am)

http://www.thehighline.org/about/park-information
http://chelseamarket.com/

travelbuff

Please rethink your hotel choice. That area at 4 am is not a great ideaa. IT's a bit of a hike to the subway from the hotel and not a great area of LIC. You can get good deals in Manhattan if you look around. (I know that area of LIC, I have a client a couple of blocks away and am there on a regular basis).

Cowboy1968

wow.. many thanks to everybody.. I did not expect that I have to make a choice now what to do and where to go.. only in NYC, I guess

travelbuff.. Thanks for the advice. Maybe I was a bit vague with in my OP. The hotel is on Queens Blvd @ Van Dam St. On Google / streetview it looked as if the subway was just 2 blocks, or 200-300 yards away.

travelbuff

I know EXACTLY where the hotel is and it's sort of right UNDER the subway, again, I'd suggest rethinking that hotel, not a great area, and not as convenient as you might think. YOu can find a hotel (try priceline) in Mahahttan, maybe even within walking distance of your conference.

Early am like 4am the area will be deserted and I would NOT suggest walking around and taking the subway from there, the platfrom will also be deserted.

Find a hotel choice in Manhattan.

Aduchamp1

The bus for Riker's Island, an infamous NYC prison lets off that day's paroled inmates at about 6 or 7 AM just under the Queensboro Plaza subway station.

travelbuff

Aduchamp, that I didn't know, but am not surprised, it's not a great area, very industrial area and Queens College buildings so late at night and early am would be deserted.

Cowboy1968

Hum... quite "non-touristy" that area. Maybe I'll just play around on the web until 6 or so, before I'll leave the hotel. From Streetview I already got the impression that it was a somewhat semi-industrial location, but the elevated subway has not been a dealbreaker since I've been living in Berlin in a similar location. I asked the hotel for a room facing the other street nevertheless.

I do appreciate your clear comments on the location. The reason why I picked that hotel had been bit random because unlike my usual business trips, the costs for the hotel are covered by a charitable organization and not my company. And I did not want them to pay too much from their budget. It now costs $90 per night vs. $200+ where the conference is (Times Sq). Plus on Thursday, I will have to leave from LGA in the morning, so I thought the location in Queens could be strategically better than Manhattan.

I won't be posting a whining "trip report" complaining about location, questionable crowds in the area, noise, or anything you warned about afterwards, promised.

Aduchamp1

It is an area that is changing slowly. Met Life moved much of its operation to LIC but has moved most of it back into Manhattan becasue they could not attract enough professionals to come to LIC.

Citibank moved some of its staff there about 25 years ago in hopes of being the pioneer but it took a long time for others to follow.

travelbuff

If you use priceline you can come close to the price you are paying for that hotel in Manhattan. Again, NOT a great area to stay in, no restauratants in the immediate area, and it's mostly industrial and the bridge goes just about over your head, so it will be noisy all day and all night.

doug_stallings

While the area around your hotel is indeed semi-industrial and kind of desolate (and possibly noisy), it's not quite as bad as people are making out. In a pinch, you can get there in a taxi from Times Square for about $25. The real problem is that there is virtually nothing in the immediate vicinity for food, etc. And the subway doesn't run very often late at night or early in the morning. Plus, you will not be able to get a taxi easily into Manhattan from there in all likelihood, so it's inconvenient if you are running late. I I prefer the location around Queens Plaza (the Comfort Inn Long Island City) because although equally desolate at night, it's a bit more convenient and has more subway options.

If you were to do a bid on Priceline, I definitely agree with the other posters that you could probably get a hotel in Manhattan for around $100 right now, so it might be worth your while to do that, especially if you can cancel your other reservation without a penalty. Just bid on a 3-star hotel in any part of Midtown.

Cowboy1968

Thanks for the update, Doug.

Under different circumstances, especially when I wanted a *nice* city trip just for myself, I would have definetely chosen another location. But since I cannot cancel the hotel anymore (fully pre-paid by the organization at a non-refundable rate), I gotta play with what I got.

I do not expect much from the location. There is a 7-11 on the hotel premises, which is all I need for coffee, beer, or some *food* (okay, I am low-maintenance.. not very European, I'm afraid). But the company will treat us with a dinner at Eleven Madison tomorrow night, so I think I will get my share of nice dining.

The subway connections look pretty good. #7 eastbound is running every 5-8 minutes even past midnight until 1am. I am used to subways that run only every 10 minutes, even in peak hours!
You guys are definetely spoiled

I'll let you know how things turned out in real life when I get back.

ktspiv4

Highline & Chelsea Market is wonderful. Or you can subway it to Brooklyn catch some breakfast & walk back over bridge....I know not glamorous, but very fun & beautiful scenery.

travelbuff

7-8 minutes, no,.....I....don't .......think ......so.... at night, so just be prepared for more like 30 minutes. The MTA times are more like "suggestions", meaning yes the train is still running. but not so fast. The trains run here 24/7 but at night the times between trains can be 30 minutes to an hour, and the buses are much worse.

There is a bus you might take into the city that uses the bridge and then runs down 5th Ave, that might help with travel as well.

Well you can't say we didn't let you know, lol.

Cowboy1968

Just a (late) feedback. Late because I spent a few days in NC after my very short trip to NYC.

Eventually, everything turned out fine and I survived!

The hotel was as I expected, and since I got a room NOT facing the elevated train line, noise was not really an issue.

Subway connections were fine and speedy, even around 11pm/midnight. And I never felt that safety was an issue.
Only time I used a cab was from JFK, and later to LGA.

Even though my spare time was limited, I tried to follow as many suggestions as possible. Sitting on Times Square with a bagel and coffee, and watching the CBS morning show and the crowds outside was fun, too.

Actually, everything was great, and I even had time for a stroll thru a bit of Central Park, down 5th Ave, and a quick trip back and forth on the Staten Island Ferry.

But: That hotel location is definetely not for everyone, though the option of free parking that close to Manhattan might be tempting for auto travellers.

Thanks again for all the effort you guys made. I really appreciated it. (Next time in NYC, I will get a decent hotel in Manhattan, promised!)