NYC Thanksgiving weekend trip report
 

Well, this is going to be a different kind of trip report 'cause it was a different kind of trip. I was with someone who had never been before - to be called NYCV (New York City Virgin).

As always, NYC was wonderful.
THIS particular trip? Less than wonderful.

But, here are some thoughts that may be helpful to others.

Traveling during the busiest travel days of the year -

During a recession? Not a problem.

Really.

On Wednesday afternoon, the day before Thanksgiving, flying out of the busiest airport = NO problem.

NO line for security.
None. Nada. Zilch.
Walked right up to show ID and boarding pass and put bags through security. Only 5 people in between me and scanner - and need all that time to take shoes off and get laptop ready, etc.

Because the parking lots were full during a random day in the summer we took a limo service to the airport.

Heaven. A splurge I will repeat as often as possible.

Hartsfield Hint - If you like Chili's and have time before your flight, go to Concourse A at Hartsfield, go UP another level as you exit from the train and Chili's is next to Delta's Crown Room. Away from the bustle of airport traffic - and Presidente margaritas await.

How to get to NYC from LGA, JFK or Newark?

Car service.

Really.

I've tried other options and a car service is the way to go.

I use Carmel. Make a reservation ahead of time.
http://www.carmellimo.com/

When you have your bags after arrival, call 212-666-6666 and the closest/ next car will be there to pick you up.

Easiest, best way to get into the city - IMO anyway.

Where to stay?

I've stayed in a lot of different neighborhoods. I understand the reasons not to stay in the Times Square area, BUT...

...there are a lot of reasons to stay in the Times Square area.

I had 3 reservations and cancelled two. I like the Hilton on 6th - but those 3 blocks are long blocks to walk (to Broadway) in the winter. I had reservations at the LaQuinta on W 32nd and like it for a reasonable alternative - and like the subway station on the corner. But, I opted for a Kimpton Hotel - the Muse on W 46th - a 1/2 block from Broadway.

www.themusehotel.com
LOVED it. Not surprised. Their Monaco is my favorite hotel in SF. Loved this Kimpton hotel in NYC.

So close to Times Square (1/2 block) but a world away from the hustle and bustle.

(I know nothing about this hotel specifically, but the Comfort Inn is across the street from the Muse - and their posted rates were much less expensive)

Where to eat?

Well, that's easy! Just follow in LowCountryIslander's steps and eat in the great restaurants she found by research. It worked well for me in June :-)

And/or use NeoPatrick's method and book places via OpenTable.com.

I did both. Made lots of plans. Cancelled a lot of reservations. Plans didn't unfold like I imagined. But, both methods are great and my best result using them =

Thanksgiving dinner at http://www.westbankcafe.com/

FABULOUS! The meal was wonderful in every way. The 3 course prix fixe menu was wonderful. The food was incredible. The wine tasting menu that was an option was just as good. Location, atmosphere, service, food = wonderful!

Found and booked via opentable.com.
Will return on future visits.
Booked and cancelled Thalia - as well as some others. Definitely want to try http://www.robertopasson.com/ next time.

Other meals?

Breakfast at The District - the restaurant at the Muse. Good food. Service was awful on Thanksgiving day. They were only open for breakfast and obviously were ready for their two tables that morning to leave.

Snacks - at the food court at the Natural History Museum - Crumbs cupcakes were great!
http://www.crumbsbakeshop.com/

Snacks - hot chocolate and eggnog coffee in the food court at Rock Center - watching the ice skaters
Just about everything else was closed in the shops/food court

Dinner - Take-out from Rosie O'Gradys - and eaten in the room. Still my favorite way to "do dinner" after a long day of sight-seeing and before a show.

Lunch - http://www.lepainquotidien.com/
was one of my favorite meals on the last trip
NYCV did not enjoy the tartines at all
Service at the Bryant Park location was horrible.
Not a good experience this trip - at all.

Breakfast at Champ's deli - near Battery Park before the ferry to Ellis Island. Just a deli that caters to the business folk and was open on the weekend. We really enjoyed our food here. Isn't it funny how it works sometimes?

Snacks - hot chocolate and desserts-to-go-for-later at http://www.zaytunamarket.com/
across from Battery Park (after the ferry ride to Ellis Island).
Wonderful! I love this place!

Last dinner in NYC - avoided the pre-theatre rush and opted for a fun meal (with "real" food) at one of my favorites in the village -
http://www.cowgirlnyc.com/menu_dinner.html
The Cowgirl Hall of Fame restaurant
(Foodies, please don't toss your rolls at me! :-) )


I wanted to try this place next to the hotel -http://lemarais.net/index2.htm
Next time...

How to get around?

I believe in taxis.
Really.
When I'm tired, I want to ride and I like to SEE something as I rest and ride. So, it's "worth it" to take taxis - for me anyway.

And, for some reason, even on this busy holiday weekend I was able to get a taxi very easily.

Maybe I had "magic arms" this trip :-?

I do use the subway. NYCV was a bit leery of the subway and recited scary and gory movie scenes based on the subway. I listened. Then, I shared that this is the way most folks move around their city. This is THEIR commute. Their way to go to work, go to school, go shopping, go visiting, go out for the evening. Their version of our 285/85/Peachtree Street(s). Without a car. :-) NYCV relaxed a bit.

www.hopstop.com - Thanks to the NYC locals who posted about this. I took my laptop and figured out the routes (to the best of my ability) the morning before we left.

The hardest thing for me is figuring out WHICH WAY to go when we pop up from underground. For a short time I forgot my little "Seventh = south = odd goes south and even goes north" to help me remember the directions. I use traffic flow to help me figure out where I am.

But, NEXT TIME, I'm going to take a little compass attached to my jacket zipper. My ski jacket has one. I need one in NYC! :-)

NYCV was willing to try the double decker buses. The upper decks of the Gray Line buses had windscreens on the sides and we were bundled up plenty warm anyway. But, we ran out of time to do even 1/2 of the "to do" list.

And Gray Line's double decker busses were highly promoted in this year's Radio City Music Hall Christmas Spectacular - so I bet they were extra busy this year.

What shows to see?

WICKED!!!

Well, that's the RIGHT answer but I've seen it so many times so...

The Radio City Music Hall Christmas Spectacular with the Rockettes -
Don't listen to the naysayers. Go see it. Wonderful! And, a great choice for Thanksgiving night.

This trip was going to be a "splurge" at times so I wanted really close seats for this show. I got a bit confused about where the DD seats really were. They were close! We were second row.
I was worried about being TOO close. Not a problem - at all.
The tickets were pricey, but I didn't care. It was a celebration. But, the LAST time I went and had "close" seats, the VIP tickets included a gift bag with souvenir program, tub of popcorn and choice of soft drink. Not so THIS TIME! :-( Double the price and no treats at all. Well, the show of course. NYCV went back for a bottle of Coke. $5. Pricey!
The show was wonderful!

The other show - NYCV wanted to see Phantom of the Opera. First row in the balcony. Great seats. Loved the show. Good choice.

The third show - I had planned to buy tix at TKTS. As we walked through Times Square around 6pm on Friday night hawkers were offering 1/2 price tickets for Hairspray (with Harvey Fierstein). I thought "maybe" and wished Liza's show had started.
As it turned out, there was no third show for us.

For those planning trips, I like buying show tickets before hand for one or two shows and try TKTS for other shows. If the TKTS lines are really long, I buy tickets online after I get there. I'd rather "spend" my time elsewhere than waiting in line.

New things for me -

American Museum of Natural History -
http://www.amnh.org/
Very much enjoyed it.
Didn't enjoy the crowds on the Friday after Thanksgiving.
Overheard a lady say that the place was empty "the other night". Not on this holiday weekend.
I dressed in my warmest sweater this day. NOT a good choice.
Liked that the subway station is adjacent to the museum.
Exit subway - through the doors = entrance and line to buy tickets
We had to decide which combo ticket to buy and I chose the planetarium show because Robert Redford was the narrator. Good choice.

Ellis Island - really enjoyed this
Read to prepare from the Fodors NYC guide. Tried to figure out whether to be flexible and buy the FlexPass or buy a timed ticket. Looked at options before the evening's show. Several ferry departures were already sold out. The next morning, checked again and more ferry times were sold out. Bought a ticket for noon.

This trip confirmed that different people travel at different speeds. Had planned to take the subway but we were so late leaving that I flagged a taxi. Enjoyed the ride down West Street and pointed out to NYCV the construction at the site of the World Trade Center. We got out at Battery Park...and the line stretched out f-o-r-e-v-e-r. Geez. Asked someone and it was the flex line. Walked along the line until we found where the ticket holder line was. Still long, but not near as long. The website said the wait for security could be 1.5 hours.

Headed into Castle Clinton to find answers to our questions. Found a very nice ranger who answered them. If you have a ticket, you can get in the line and get on the next ferry - no matter the time. We had not had breakfast so he shared an idea across the street. As wonderful as it looked, there was no place to sit so we walked on and found a deli (see above). NYCV saw Trinity Church and a glimpse of the WTC site from a different direction, and we planned to go back. Had a good breakfast and headed back to the line. Got in line at 5 til noon and was on the ferry 25 minutes later. The worst part is going through security in the tent. Imagine going through airport security but under an outdoor tent. Lots of people. Lots of people trying to redress and make it to the waiting ferry.

http://www.statuecruises.com/tickets...mp;itemid=2225

I LOVED Ellis Island. We didn't get off at the Statue of Liberty but got some good photos. I reserved the audio tour for Ellis Island but we didn't use them. Saw the movie "Island of Hope, Island of Tears" first and it was a great way to start. 3/4 of my ancestors came through Ellis Island and it meant a lot to be there (the other 1/4 was represented in the Museum of Natural History - Cherokee Indians) Wandered around the rest of time looking at exhibits. VERY well done.

Back to the ferry.
Back to Battery Park.
Back to Zaytuna's for hot chocolate and dessert for later.
Grab a taxi to go to the next stop - The Lower East Side Tenement Museum

GREAT combo to do both on the same day.

Hi Starrs! From reading your report I don't see why this trip was less than wonderful w/good
theater & mostly good food.
Do put Thalia & Roberto's back on your list for next trip.

BTW, you can't beat @ $13 lunch (Roberto's) for NYC..have taken clients there who did not know it.

I'm waiting for the bad part too! It sounds great so far.

Here's the link for the LESTM -
http://www.tenement.org/

STRONGLY recommend it. They have a lot more tours each day and have opened some new apartments for the tours. Very well done and an experience that will stay with you for a long time.

We got there over an hour early and browsed in the little gift shop, watched a couple of the movies - and rested.

Some gift shop items reminded me of another place I'd like to stop - Fishs Eddy (but it didn't happen this time)

My favorite parts of the trip - just walking and wandering in NYC during the holidays.

From hotel to Bryant Park area for lunch and then through Bryant Park during the holidays. The line stretching out for folks waiting to ice skate on The Pond. Families seated at the little tables of putting kids on the carousel with French music playing - for a second I could imagine I was in Paris. Wandering past the stalls with so many things for sale. It would be great place to find unique gifts.

Wandering over to and in the NYC Public Library. What an amazing building. And, yes, I looked for the wedding location from the SATC movie. NYCV enjoyed seeing the lions especially so soon after seeing Santa decorate the lions with wreaths during the RCMHCS 3D movie. :-)

Gathering around to see street dancers preparing for their show. Watching the tiny tots practice for their part of the show. Leaving early because of the awful cigar smoke wafting our way. Yes, cigar smokers we DO mind when you stink up the air around you.


From hotel to Rock Center. NYCV loved seeing the Today show location. The (unlit) Great Tree. We went down the elevator to the shops. Only Starbucks was open so we got some hot chocolate and settled in to watch skaters in warmth of sitting inside. Made our way back up and peeked over to see the skaters again. The rink was empty except for one couple. He dropped to one knee - and a public proposal. Cheers all around when she said "yes".

Walking up 5th to glance at the windows. Stopping in St Patricks to ooh and ahhh (silently) and sit in a pew to pray for a few minutes. On up 5th, headed toward Central Park. Shops were closed but the windows were fun. Didn't make it back to Tiffany's this trip (when they were open). Loved the simplicity of the Cartier gift box windows.

Time was running out and the cold was creeping in so caught a cab near the Plaza and headed off to the pretty much perfect Thanksgiving dinner at the West Bank Cafe.

It sounds like you had a fun (and busy) trip. We were there the week after you -- isn't it fun to watch all the crowds?

Hi starrs - your trip sounds great. Now I know another passion that you have (besides Wicked) - hot chocolate! - my kind of girl!!!

cpg, I even took some with me - "just in case" supply :-)

I'll buy you a cup of hot chocolate the next time I'm up there. I hope your DH is doing well. :-)

starrs - you're on. And in case it's warm outside during your next visit, the chocolate gelato is on me! dh is improving, thank you!

Good!
I was just checking hotels. I'm thinking it will be March - so I guess it will still be hot chocolate :-)

great trip report! lots of great info.

we'll be visiitng the LESTM later this month for the first time, and really looking forward to it.

btw, how does this work:
"Seventh = south = odd goes south and even goes north"

thanks for sharing!

So will we not hear about the less than wonderful bits? Enjoyed reading this part. Sounds like maybe NYCV was not an ideal travel partner? Sorry to hear about Le Pain. I think the extra business from the Xmas market may be more than they can handle.

Starrs, in terms of your odd/even north/south, 1st Avenue goes uptown (north) 2nd Avenue goes downtown (south) 3rd Avenue goes uptown and between 23rd and 8th Street goes both ways, 4th Avenue goes uptown/ Park Ave. goes both ways, . . you get my point . .

But I'm glad you had a good time here!

Thanks, dina. I tried to share the bits that may be helpful to others.

Re: the "seventh/south" - that's my attempt to figure out where I am when I pop out of the rabbit hole. It's always a mystery. On the last trip I really had no idea which way to go in the East Village. When I can I ask someone or I just start walking and wait to see if I called it right or not. The "seventh/south" has worked well for me in the midtown area - but I'm going to take a compass next time (per my comments)

mclaurie, no. The "less than wonderful bits" aren't going to be shared here. But, I'm looking forward to headed back - maybe in March :-)

Starrs, since you are so into hot chocolate, try to have one at Jacques Torres -- I forget where the Manhattan branch is, but it's fabulous.

As for this <i>On the last trip I really had no idea which way to go in the East Village, </i>, when I was a kid, we were allowed to go into the city ourselves on school holidays, etc. (obviously, this was a looooong time ago :-) ). Anyway, I remember being in the West Village where I believe 4th St. crosses 10th St (yes, I'm not crazy - I just checked it on googlemaps). So, where the streets are no longer laid out in a grid, it becomes very confusing. Also, I grew up in New York, and have returned many many times over the years, and I still find myself turning in circles when I emerge from the subway.

oh i get it. the streets are one -way driving streets. (right?)

I was born here and whenever I'm in the village, I get a bit confused. A cousin who lives down there always tells me to 'think in triangles.' Well, I guess I think in rectangles - I just can't get it. Give me a grid, anytime.

Y'all are just trying to make me feel better....


...and it worked! Thanks :-)

&quot;&quot;How to get to NYC from LGA, JFK or Newark?

Car service.

Really.

I've tried other options and a car service is the way to go. &quot;&quot;

Amen to that sistah!

Loved the trip report.

Like Le Pain Quotidien but hate that they are a chain also owned by Le Bon Pain. A friend just went to work in management for them. They bake everything in a big warehouse then ship it out.

<i>Like Le Pain Quotidien but hate that they are a chain also owned by Le Bon Pain. </i>

I like Le Pain Quotidien a lot (the fact that it is a chain notwithstanding), and am not much of a fan of Le Bon Pain. I did a little googling, and find no evidence that they are commonly owned. Just wondering where you got this information.

Au Bon Bland and Le Pain Quotidien are not related:


From their respective websites:

Au Bon Bland

In the Spring of 1978, businessman Louis Kane was strolling through Boston’s historic Faneuil Hall Marketplace when he came across a display showcasing a new line of French bakery ovens. The aroma and quality of the fresh breads was enchanting. So enchanting in fact, it gave Louis an idea. Why not make wonderful, fresh baked breads and croissants easily available to everyone in the city?

Le Pain Quotidien

&quot;People still wonder if it's a bakery where you can eat, or a restaurant where you can buy bread,&quot; said its founder, Alain Coumont, 47, who professes never to serve food that he wouldn't offer to his family.

Coumont opened the first Le Pain Quotidien in Brussels in 1990.

That's what I read, too.

Well, I love the place.
Our waitress was a jerk.
We were there early for lunch. Maybe 6 other tables seated and plenty of waitstaff ready for customers.
Our waitress was a jerk.
The experience was a disappointment. :-(

My friend just went to work for them in upper management and they are owned by the same parent company.

He is training in Manhattan to open multiple stores in Chicago of which there are none.

Sort of like the way Outback, Roys, Bonefish, etc are owned by the same people.

Different beginings, mission statement, etc but the same company.

It is good but it kind of skeeves me out that they cannot bake everything on site.

I thought Le Pain Quindwhatever baked on prmises and Au Bon Bland baked in a barn.

LOL!

Sorry to hijack your excellent thread starrs!

How crowded did you find the city?

Marathon weekend I found it a little less crowded than it normally is but we stayed downtown most of the trip.

No problem. The conversation was interesting.

The city didn't seem too crowded. Times Square was... well, Times Square. But, 1/2 block off and no problems at all. Well, until the shows were out. But, all of that was normal.

The Natural History Museum was PACKED on the day after Thanksgiving. The line for the ferry to Ellis Island seemed long - but we waited in the ticketed line for only 25 minutes (the guidebook and website said it could be 1.5 hours).

Made reservations for T'giving dinner but winged it the rest of the time.

Not bad at all :-)