althom1122

My boyfriend and I had a fabulous one-day trip to New York. We took "Megabus" from the Baltimore area and arrived in New York around 10:30 a.m. yesterday (Saturday). It was a gorgeous day, sunny and reasonably warm for February (nearly 50 by afternoon).

We walked from just south of Penn Station to Madison Square Garden, then over to Macy's where we did a little shopping before strolling over to the Empire State Building. The wait for the elevator was about an hour so we decided to do Top of the Rock instead. From Empire, we walked up Fifth Avenue past the big stores (stopping in Fossil to buy a watch for me - he's so sweet!).

We checked out the public library with its gorgeous main reading room, then headed for St. Patrick's Cathedral (worth a stop - really gorgeous), then the Rockefeller Center. It was so cool to see the ice skating rink surrounded by all the flags. We bought combo Top of the Rock/MOMA tickets and headed for the elevator. It takes as long to get to the 8th floor in the building where I work as it took to go 67 floors there - pretty unbelievable.

The view is incredible. We spent probably an hour on top. I took tons of pictures, and of course, we had to get one of us kissing (we saw another couple doing so and figured we didn't want to be outdone).

By this time we were starving, so we headed for lunch. His sister had recommended Gabrielle's near Central Park, so we had a fair walk to get there. Loved it. Casual and romantic at the same time. Food was excellent, wine was excellent, service was excellent.

We wrapped up the afternoon at MOMA. He's not an art fan, so we kept the visit short but did see some of the highlights that interested me (esp Van Gogh).

At this point we were flagging a bit, but as we headed toward Times Square, it was getting dark, the lights were coming on, and the adrenalin kicked in. We really enjoyed just gazing at the lights and the people. The vibe is unbelievable.

We ended the day with a stop in McDonald's (because it was close to the bus station and we just needed to SIT and relax). By midnight we were back in Maryland. A whirlwind day, totally fun, and very romantic! We think we'll go back and maybe spend the night so we can take in a play, ride the Staten Island Ferry, and spend some time in Central Park. But 10 hours is enough time to get an extremely satisfying bite of the Big Apple. Thanks for the tips we got here on Fodor's!
Karen

sf7307

Thanks so much for reporting back! It sounds like a great great day!

SueNYC

Wonderful! Thanks for reporting back

meath1

What a wonderful day, thanks for sharing it.

starrs

It sounds like it was absolutely fabulous day! Thanks for letting us know how you decided to spend the 10 hours. I bet you'll be back soon!

emd3

LOVE those bus comapnies that go from DC , BAltimore, hilly to NYC. There is now one, DCNY, that goes from the metro stop by our house in Northern VA direct to NYC so we don't even have to go into downtown DC to get the bus.

We are also in NYC this weekend. Hotel rates are low in Feb. and the weather is like early spring. TICS has half price tix to so many good shows in Feb. Great time to visit.

If u are looking for a hotel bargain, Milford Plaza, recently reopened after big renovation,has newley renovated rooms for $81 rate (queen or 2 twins) for rest of Feb. (AAA rate). Some people on here scoff at this hotel, but the renovation did wonders for it and it is a huge bargain at that price.

And check travelzoo specials also.

emd3

sorry, that bus is DC2NY

traveler2005

I loved reading about your day in NYC. You packed a lot into a day.

emd3 - do you know if the low rates will extend into late March. We are toying with ideas for spring break. I usually like to go new places, but our last trip to NYC was so much fun that I have been dying to go back and see more.

musicfan

I've been checking Travelzoo pretty regularly and it seems most of their reduced hotel rates run through the end of March.

volcanogirl

Sounds wonderful!

emd3

Travelzo has a very good "top 20" deal out today at Ameritania Hotel in midtown, and it includes March dates. You have to subscribe (free) to get their qweekly Top 20 deals.

althom1122

Thanks, everyone. Yes, we had a great time - and it was very romantic. He told me later that he had never liked New York before but he really enjoyed it... and that maybe it's who you're with. That made me happy!

starrs

That's the best compliment of all

emd3

I agree w/Starrs!

Every time we go to NYC, my husband is amazed that after probably 25 trips there in our 25 yrs of marriage, I always surprise him w/something new that he loves in NYC.

Next time definitely book an overnight. Check places like Travelzoo.com (and also always check Hotel Edison and Cosmopolitan Hotel and Milford Plaza, also, from my personal experience) and Jane Hotel (from another poster here), for lowest rates for clean decent hotels at almost all times in NYC.

There is nothing like a full day in NYC and then a full night together w/a loved one.

God I love New York, and being there when one is young and in love, or even older and in a loving relationship of any kind w/one's traveling companion, is just the best life has to offer, IMO.

If you are ever looking for cheap good eats from Midtown south, I started a thread on that a few yrs ago when I was under-employed and going to NYC to try to get work and looking for cheap good eats. I got plethora of responses, and have tried about half of them since then. Would be happy to share that thread.