WaterFalls Tour
 

Has anyone taken of the Waterfall Boat tours to see the current exhibit in NYC? If not, have you had any good experiences seeing the falls?

We got to see the falls last weekend while attending a birthday party on the Spirit of NY. I always like to see something that is innovative and especially if it is temporary, but I don't honestly know what all the fuss is about.

Took the Circle Line's Zephyr 1/2 hour free ($1 fuel surcharge) tour.
Boat was really nice; the waterfalls as an art form is IMO a tad industrial.
It was a beautiful morning, no crowds & price was right. They do have a 1 hr tour for $25 which may not be worth it.
A little further south is the Governors Island free ferry w/rangers offering tours if you are interested.

During the day, they're a disappointment. At night they're more dramatic.

You can see all of the waterfalls if you take the free ferry to Ikea, though you only get close to 2 of them. But mclaurie is absolutely correct that they are fairly disappointing by day, especially if there is any wind at all. They only come alive at night. You could just go to the South Street Seaport and have a pretty good view from there, but the Ikea ferry does run after dark on weekends if you really want to do it on the cheap.

If you don't want to take the boat tour, you can ride the Governors Island Ferry and get real close to that waterfall. The ferry takes about 5 minutes and is free. Governors Island is now part of National Park Service and offers guided tours by park rangers.

Doug and mclaurie - I saw them at night and still felt that they weren't anything particularly special. IMO, it's not worth a special venture unless you would like a boat ride around NY harbor anyway which is enjoyable in itself.

I was on a boat ride yesterday, the NY skyline and Statue of Liberty are the only real reasons to see NY by water, I too, was unimpressed by the waterfalls (Hi CPG!)

You can also get a view of all four falls by walking across the Brooklyn Bridge. We took a walking tour (sorry,I can't remember the name of the company) which we really enjoyed a few weeks ago across the bridge. Learning about the bridge and the falls with the wonderful New York skyline in the background was a real treat.

Agree with Centralparkgirl: It's OK to see them as part of a larger boat tour of the island (which can be a nice trip when the weather is good). But I don't think I'd go out of my way just to see the waterfalls.

Thanks, this has been helpful. I'm a geek for public art, but needed some perspective.

We saw the waterfalls last Saturday evening by taking the $10 boat cruise on Circleline at 8:30 PM. The cruise was to be 30 minutes, but was closer to 50 - very enjoyable. Beautiful views of the skyline, we got close to all 4 waterfalls, and the Statue of Liberty. I've cruised at night before but still thought this was worth the time. I think those that were disappointed may have had different expectations than what the falls actually are. This is NOT a criticism of anyone's opinion, it's just expectations versus reality. The falls are lit but there is no music, no laser show or other enhancements. Might no be a bad idea to read a little about the artist or the project before you see them - certainly not necessary, but it does give a bit of insight. Enjoy if you do decide to go.