Quick Trip to NYC
 

My husband and I will be visiting family in Philadelphia in November, and would like to make an overnight trip from Philadelphia to New York City. We've never been to NYC so I'm a bit lost about distances, etc.

Here's what I know so far. We'll be arriving at Penn Station. My husband REALLY wants to have dinner at Peter Luger's in Brooklyn (this is like a bucket list kind of thing). Should we try to stay in Manhattan so we can drop off our overnight bag and later in the day just travel to Brooklyn just for dinner?

Would it make more sense to stay in Brooklyn?

Hopefully I've given enough information to start a conversation. Thanks so much!

Peter Luger is just over the Williamsburg Bridge by cab and a short walk from the subway which is the first stop in Brooklyn on the J, M, Z lines and remember:

Accepted forms of payment are the Peter Luger Card, US checks with ID, cash, and US debit cards.

It makes little sense to stay in Brooklyn unless you want to do others things there. And remember to order a dessert that comes with whipped cream because they will bring a small bucket of it. And they make sensational bread.

Definitely stay in Manhattan - where there is the most you want to see/do.

You can easily get to Peter Luger very quickly - make sure you have reservations and cash - and back to Manhattan with no problem (I reco cab on the way back).

But your first task is to find a hotel. This is high season in NYC and prices will be high. If you give a $ amount people can make recos. And telling us the main things you want to see will help find one convenient (although next to the subway is the key point).

For all the details on options for getting from one place to another (time and cost) look at hopstop.com.

I have made a reservation at The Roosevelt Hotel- I always like to start out with a hotel reservation made somewhere that is cancellable so that I don't have to panic about not having a room. Staying there is by no means set in stone.

As far as price for a room, well I'd like to stay under $300 if possible. We're just there to sleep- though free wifi would be great. I actually picked The Roosevelt for it's location, it appears to be pretty close to Penn Station.

Our to do list is rather short so far- though I'm sure it will get longer as I spend more time reading and plotting. Definitely the 9/11 Museum and the Staten Island ferry. Probably a walk across Brooklyn Bridge. I'm also guessing my husband will want a pastrami sandwich at Katz's Deli at some point. I'd like to make some sort of visit to Central Park, but I haven't yet read about that area enough to see how much time that would entail, etc.

Thanks so much, I've already learned a bunch from just 2 replies!

Roosevelt is a traditional hotel much closer to Grand Central than Penn Station. But it has a convenient central location - access to subways on both east and west side - and if you got it for under $300 that is a great price for November.

For more info on Central Park have a look at the web site of the Central Park Conservancy. Trees will be leafless unless you come the first few day of Nov - but there is still a lot to see there - and it;s close to a ton of museums on both the east and west sides of the park.