Fodor's Travel Talk Forums - Walking Tours In Manhattan

Here's a tour of that type I suggested some years ago for a family that was staying near the World Financial Center. You could begin your day at the 9/11 Memorial and follow the route north.

From your hotel (North End Ave?) walk south to the World Financial Center marina. Walk east through the plaza and enter the Winter Garden (featuring palm trees). This space was heavily damaged when the WTC fell and the original palm trees died. Walk up the wide steps for a great overlook of the WTC site. This spot used to be the begining of a pedestrian bridge to the WTC complex. (Look to the far right (south) and you will see an existing pedestrian bridge for which you are heading.)

From the 9/11 Memorial, walk east to Broadway. Turn right (south) and a few blocks down visit Trinity Chapel (Aleaxander Hamilton is in the graveyard) and Wall St which is opposite.

Head back up Broadway (north) to Fulton St and St Paul's Chapel (George Washington's church and rest stop for many WTC rescue workers).

Continue north on Broadway. At Barclay St is the Woolworth Building (once the tallest in the world) and City Hall Park and City Hall opposite.

North of City Hall, go west on any side street to West Broadway. You are now in Tribeca. Walk north along West Broadway, taking in side streets as you like.

Continue north on West Broadway and cross Canal St. Now you are in Soho. Walk north along West Broadway, taking in side streets as you like.

Continue north on West Broadway and cross Houston (pronounced How-ston) St. Now you are in Greenwich Village. Walk north along Laguardia Place (the continuation of West Broadway) which ends at Washington Square Park.

You might walk along the south side of the park, or take a left (west) on Bleecker St before reaching the Park.

Two alternate routes:

1) Take Bleecker St left (west) through the center of the Village--shops, clubs, bars. You can follow it across Sixth Ave (Ave of the Americas) where it angles slightly north. This begins the West Village. You'll pass John's Pizzeria before you reach Seventh Ave. Across Seventh you can enjoy more quaint streets with cute little houses. If you go this way, I'd recommend turning west on Grove St, looking at the truly skinny houses on Bedford St near Grove and checking out the house in the mews (Grove Court?) on the left just before you hit Hudson St (Eighth Ave). Continue northish on Bleecker or Hudson to West 10th or West 11th St and turn right (east). Follow these back east, through the central village, past some of the prettiest and more expensive little houses in Greenwich Village (bet 5th and 6th). (If you take 11th St, you'll have to go south to 10th St since the street doesn't go through at Broadway.)

Keep going all the way to 2nd Ave, the main drag of the East Village. Second Ave and the side streets (10th, 9th, St Marks, 7th, 6th, 5th, and more) are full of fun little shops nad restaurants.

2) Washington Sq South is also West 4th St. This is NYU territory--their large library and main campus is just east of Laguardia along the park.

Walk into the park and walk north to the Washington Square Arch located at the foot of Fifth Ave. Note the nice townhouses along the north side of the park, many owned by NYU. Walk north a short block and turn right into the Washington mews, a street of carriage houses, many now owned by NYU. When you come out of the mews, you are facing an NYU dorm. Turn north on Univeristy Pl and walk a short block to 8th St. Turn right (east) and walk along a shopping street, cross Broadway, pass the big black cube at Lafayette St and give it a spin. 8th St does odd things here--over a span of three blocks it changes its name to Astor Place and then St Marks Place (at Third Ave). St Marks Place is a teenagers delight, with T-shirt shops and other stuff parents may not like them to buy--but they'll have ball. Second Ave and the side streets (10th, 9th, St Marks, 7th, 6th, 5th, and more) are full of fun little shops and restaurants.