We had an interesting time in the city enjoying the restaurants i posted on another thread, (nyc food report). we also went down to the s.st. seaport to get TKTS tickets friday p.m. for sat. matinee of "movin out". there was absolutely NO LINE to wait in at 4 pm friday for half price tkts. and there was a LOT to choose from for that evening also, including top plays like the producers, phantom, spamolot, etc. the lines at times square are horrednous most of the day. this took 5 minutes. remember "CASH only", or traveller's checks.

We enjoyed the dancing and the billy joel music. I had not seen a twyla tharp ballet for years.

we also went in to the smithsonian native american museum near the staten island ferry terminal.
it has an excellent exhibit until september 5th of george catlin's beautiful portraits and paintings of the indians he travelled with and documented.

We then hopped onto the free ferry to staten island for the typical photo ops. and just transferred onto same ferry returning. this takes 1 hour total.

we also took advantage of the free friday afternoon at the MOMA. we went around 5 and had no line at all to get in, although it was very full. Thank you "target" for sponsoring this free afternoon. We will never get tired of visiting this exceptional museum.
we enjoyed a drink on their small 5th floor outdoor terrace.

the whitney and guggenheim also offer free friday afternoons.

we strolled through very little of central park. we were so tired, and it is deceivingly HUGE.. be sure to do this when you are NOT already tired!!!

Another day we stopped to see the renovation of grand central. there is a small tourist office there that had NO LINE and we were able to get some more info for activities at lincoln center, etc.

remember to either buy a metro card for bus/metro use, or have a small supply of change for the $2 fee per ride, as the bus drivers do not make change nor take bills.

once you learn a couple busses that go up and down ( the M6 and the M1) you can pretty well enjoy the sights instead of going underground all day. we found some parts of the train stations had a horrendous odor. like.. fermenting fruit, and rotten food.
don't know why,.. but although the buses were slower, they are air conditioned, and luckily, we always got a seat.

A most interesting thing happened after check out at hilton new york. we were approached and offered by them two nights there, for $180. It had to be bought then, but could be used (only by US) anytime in next 9 months, and included parking for two nights also. if we didn't use the parking we would be given $80 in voucher to be used at restaurants on site during our stay.

so... this comes out to $50 a night???

unfortunately, we were unable to make this decision, but do ask about these return deals at hotels, in case they don't catch you on your way out.

thanks to everyone for any ideas you gave me during my planning.

Thanks so much - adding to my "NY secrets" file!

So as not to get anyone's hopes up, I seriously doubt that you saw Spamalot available for half price at TKTS!

Glad you had a nice trip.

The "deal" at the Hilton does have a catch -- I think you must sit through their *timeshare* presentation.

Was wondering about those Spamalot tkts....

If anyone is interested, I did see that Wicked tickets are available for April through Ticketmaster.

HI--glad you had a nice trip..for future reference, what is "the s.st. seaport"? I am not familiar w/that TKTS location. Thanks.

it is the ticket booth at south street seaport area.

it was so much more convenient for us as we planned to be down there, and they have the matinee tickets on sale the day BEFORE, which helps you get a little organized, imo.

it is on the backside of 199 water street, but is well marked in the area. shops and eateries are nearby.

google "tkts" to get opening hours.

Thanks!! That is very useful info!

Thanks for that - very useful for our trip.

yes, this new tkts office "replaces" the WTC office.

since almost everyone goes to the staten island ferry at some point, it is very convenient for most tourists, and has shorter lines than times square.

especially interesting that you can get matinee tickets a day EARLY!!

the water taxi also looked like a fun thing to do, but i don't know the details.