This is my draft itinerary - my husband and I are coming for our first trip. We are 22 and 24. Please let me know if I am way off base on fitting things in on the same day, or if I have sights together on the wrong days. Also, at the bottom I have restaurants that people have suggested. Please tell me which day they fit into for lunch and dinner, (location). I need some more dinner options also. What is Top of the Rock? Need suggestions for night life. And if I left anything off that is a must-see. Is the Columbus Day parade a big deal? Thanks!

October 10-15, 2006
Tues, Oct. 10
• Arrive at airport 11:02 am.
• Lunch: somewhere near hotel on W 51st St.
• NBC Studio Tour
Wed, Oct. 11
• Century 21 (discount department store) Broadway & Church,
• Chinatown
• SoHo district
• Ground Zero
• Greenwich Village
• Little Italy
Thurs, Oct. 12
• Today show
• Columbus Day Parade on 5th Ave.
• Rockefeller Center – ice skating
• Grand Central Station
• 5th Avenue & Madison Ave. .
• Bryant Park
• Dinner – Theater district “pre-theater dinner”
• The Lion King, 8:00 pm. (already have tickets)
•
Fri, Oct. 13
• Statue of Liberty*
• Ellis Island*
• Battery Park (shopping too)
• Brooklyn Bridge
Sat, Oct. 14
• Central Park
• Zoo
• Carriage Ride through CP @ night
• Tavern on the Green (already paid for)
Sun, Oct. 15
• Flight leaves @ 8:35 am.
• Return to Huntsville @ 12:20pm.
*Tickets/reservations
Tickets to Letterman if I can
Top of the Rock???
Lunch:
Carnegie Deli
Lombardi’s
Grand Central Station food court
Joe’s Pizza
Junior’s Cheesecake
Katz’ Deli (Houston Street)
Serendipity
Dinner:
Dos Caminos, Rosa Mexicano, Mexico Lindo
Café Mon Cheri
Il Fornaio

I suggest you repost with "NYC" in the title of your post. Good luck

http://www.topoftherocknyc.com/ODTStatic/site.htm

It is basically a place at the top of the building at Rockefeller Center where you get a 360 degree view of the city. If you type Top of the Rock in the search engine here you will get many opinions on this and the Empire State Building (which I didn't see in your itinerary). If you go about a half hour before dusk, you will get a view of the city during daylight and with the lights on. You can stay up there as long as you want.

Do you have a big desire to see Letterman or do you just want to see celebrities. If so, I would try to get on a show where you can get tickets ahead of time (if there is such a thing). Letterman's show is so popular he says that there are people lined up outside before the tapings. Although we tried to get tickets, we wouldn't have been able to do some of the things we did during that time if we had gone to the show.

Do Century 21, World Trade Center site, Battery Park, Brooklyn Bridge, Ellis Island, and Statue of Liberty on the same day.

Suggest on theater day you do a late lunch or a late dinner after the show. Nothing worse than sitting through the theater on a full stomache. I fall asleep.

Dos Caminos is a good choice if you'd like a NY restaurant "scene". All of Steve Hanson's restaurants have a good turnout. You're going to want to make reservations though because they're always packed.