Vacation to New York City

[BLINK]

Hey everyone,

I will be down in NYC in April and I will be staying about 10 minutes away from the Apple Soho store. I plan on stopping by the Apple store, seeing some broadway shows, visiting the new york stock exchange, statue of liberty, ground zero, central park and times square. What else should I go do? Anything in NYC that I simply CANNOT miss out on?

Thanks.

[dotdotdot]

Want food ideas?

I know plenty of them...

... Lombardis or however you spell it, for amazing Pizza.

[mac-er]

1. Definitely go to the observation deck of the Empire State Building. The view is like non-other.

2. If you are into muesums, the Guggenheim and the MoMA are good choices.

3. Get of the beaten path, and walk into the neighborhood streets.

4. Go to a taping of Lettermen.

5. Walk across the Brooklyn Bridge

[BLINK]

Food suggestions would be great. I was also planning on visiting the Guggenheim. Any other ideas? Thanks.

[MacNut]

Go to a Yankee game, You have to see Yankee Stadium. Plus they are playing the Red Sox in April.

[Steven1621]

greenwich villiage is a great place. washington square is nice. ground zero is very underwhelming, but i guess it is a good thing to see.

[mac-er]

ground zero [sic] is very underwhelming, but i guess it is a good thing to see.

Yep, I guess seeing a place where 3000 people lost their lives and most of them are buried is pretty underwhelming. I guess Arlington Cemetary is pretty underwhelming too.

Ground Zero is one of the most emotional places you will visit.

[killuminati]

Go to Soup Kitchen International

It's the real soup nazi :D

[dotdotdot]

Go To The Following:

-John's Pizza
-Blue Smoke HIGHLY RECCOMENDED
-PINCH - Pizza by the Inch

thats all I can think of for now

Blue Smoke is amazing BBQ.

Also, Serendipity has amazing desserts.

[jeffy.dee-lux]

I was just in new york two weekends ago. Personally, I just love walking all over the place and getting to know the city, all the amazing buildings. Its such a vertical city. I like imagining I'm spiderman and figuring out where to shoot my webs to swing around. Other than that, for good healthy and cheap food, there's a farmer's market 4 or 5 days a week (i don't remember which) at union square par (where broadway meets park avenue).

Spend some time looking at a map, you'll see its super straightforward to get around without getting lost. Don't take cabs! Get a 7 dollar, one day FUN PASS! or one of the longer ones. You can get 'em from machines in the subway, it gets you unlimited rides on the bus or subway.
http://www.mta.nyc.ny.us/nyct/bus/index.html
they've got a really good map on that site, with all the bus routes, subway maps too.
Have fun, ever since i went, i've had 6 dreams that i remember clearly in which i'm back in manhatten. I could imagine living there, probably in the greenwhich village area, the area that most reminded me of my city. But i'm happy here for now.

[Pittsax]

Go To The Following:

-John's Pizza

Definitely hit John's Pizza. There's one on W. 44th St between Times Square and 8th Ave - right near Sardi's. Best pizza in NY, although some people think Patsy's is better....

If you're going to the Guggenheim, you might as well hit the Met, which is just a few blocks south.

If you're around the museums and looking for food, come east to 1st and 2nd Ave (my neighborhood, actually). There are tons of food choices of all kinds. And most of them are reasonably priced. The only places to really avoid are the chains, especially in midtown. That's where they gouge the tourists who don't know any better.

[Pittsax]

Yep, I guess seeing a place where 3000 people lost their lives and most of them are buried is pretty underwhelming. I guess Arlington Cemetary is pretty underwhelming too.

Ground Zero is one of the most emotional places you will visit.
It used to be. I was there in October 2001, and it was incredibly moving. Now it looks more like a development site than a memorial. So I don't think there is much wrong with saying it's underwhelming.

[tripwire]

You should check out Scores (http://www.scoresnewyork.com/)

[virividox]

It used to be. I was there in October 2001, and it was incredibly moving. Now it looks more like a development site than a memorial. So I don't think there is much wrong with saying it's underwhelming.

yeah it does look like a giant construction site

[wordmunger]

Meskerem Ethiopian restaurant, 468 W. 47th street. Decor is nothing special, but the food is AMAZING.

[James L]

Hey,

I just honeymooned in NYC this summer... loved it, will be back soon.

A couple of things:

1) The cab ride from the airport (we flew into La quardia) should cost you about $45 US into the city (we stayed at 48th and Broadway). I recommend a New York City cab ride over any roller coaster out there (and I drive emergency service vehicles for a living)!


2) You definitely want to get a Metro card public transit pass unless you are cabbing and limo'ing all over. There is a tourism info center on Broadway, around 44th (?) where we got ours... though you can get them everywhere. Our passes were around $25 each for the week, and this gives you unlimited access to the public transit, subways, buses, etc. Made life much easier. You can pick up a subway map there at the same time. Here are some links:

http://www.mta.nyc.ny.us/metrocard/...g.htm#unlimited
http://www.mta.nyc.ny.us/metrocard/zipmaps.htm
http://www.mta.nyc.ny.us/metrocard/


3) If you are going to do some site seeing while there, I highly recommend the CityPass. I think they were about $50 each and gave you access to the Empire State Building, The Museum of Modern Art, the Guggenheim, a 2 hour long cruise around the harbour at night, the intrepid air and space museum (an aircraft carrier), and the Museum of Natural History. We used airmiles to get these so we didn't pay for them. Here is a link:

http://citypass.com/city/ny.html?id=Qx9sA6u5


4) Food in the tourist areas can be VERY expensive. A burger and fries on Broadway can be $16 or $17 US!


5) If you want to see the Statue of Liberty, but are fine just cruising by and not actually going to the island, it is free to take the Staten Island ferry, which goes past it. You then just get back on and come back, rather than take the actually ferry that goes over to the statue.


6) Once you have your maps and Subway schedules you can plan your days out very well. For example, one day we took the subway down to Ground Zero, walked from there down to the Staten Island ferry to go see the Statue of Liberty, then took the subway back up to SoHo. Did some shopping, subway'd back to the hotel, got cleaned up, went for dinner and a Broadway Show, etc. Here is an island, subway map:

www.mta.nyc.ny.us/nyct/maps/manbus.pdf


7) The Bronx Zoo is the longest subway ride from the broadway area that we took, but is well worth it. I think admission was $20 per person.


8) Security in many venues is very tight. Be prepared (at least 7 months ago) for bag checks, metal detectors, etc. This can sometimes create long lines. We were there in the heart of tourist season when we last went, so keep that in mind, but the lineup to go up the Empire State Building at night was about an hour long!


I hope this helps. Let me know if there is anything specific about travelling there and I will try to help you out. Staying in midtown really worked well for us because it was so central.

James

p.s. I can't say enough about New Yorkers... just a fabulous town and great people!

[liketom]

This thread is very usefull for me as i'm in NYC May 3rd -7th on the start of my honeymoon .

looks like NYC is gonna be a cool place to go - if anyone has any good website links on what to see PM me or drop me a e-mail.

EDIT :already got the ones in this thread

[sethwerkheiser]

Go To The Following:

-John's Pizza

If you go to Johns pizza don't ask for garlic. They'll bite your head off. Trust me, I know this. Hehe...

[evoluzione]

Subway schedules


subway schedule?? hahahaha, funniest thing i heard all day! :)





seriously though, there's tons to do and see, for cheap too.

if you're interested in eating out a lot, go buy a Zagat guide...thinking about it, get one anyway, it's a great read i think.

let me know what sort of thing you're into and i'll give you some ideas...what sort of food you like, if you wanna go hang out at some bars (again, what type). if you wanna do typical touristy things, or do some more interesting not-so-well-known type things. also, where are you staying? in what neighbourhood? edit: ok, just realised you're staying in SoHo...d'uh

:)

[dotdotdot]

If you go to Johns pizza don't ask for garlic. They'll bite your head off. Trust me, I know this. Hehe...

LOL!!!

You don't need garlic there!

But if you want garlic, you can order it for like 2 bucks, premade on the Pizza... defidantly great stuff!

[mrzeve]

Scores? The strip club? Ha.

Uhm, Johns Pizza sucks. Your gonna come all the way to New York and go eat at a crappy pizza place? No.

First of all, what kind of food do you like? Sushi, Steaks, Ribs, Chicken, let me know so I can make some recommendations.

Definitely check out the observation deck at the Empire State Building, but the line is HUGE. Especially during the spring. Youve been warned.

I would recommend going to a Knick game to, however I dont think these bums are making the playoffs...so you may have to catch a game at the end of the season. But take it from a partial season subscriber, there is nothing like a Knick game.

If you want to go to the Statue of Liberty (long lines again) then you have to go to the South street seaport, which I would recommend anyway cause its a really nice atmosphere, and it gives you a different feel of the city. You can either take a ferry that just rides by it, or if your feeling patriotic you can take something else to get to go inside lady liberty her self.

I havent been to the musems here in years, so I cant really make any suggestions.

Go to Central Park obviously, and just take a stroll around there.

Also there are plenty of clubs here if your into that.

Oh, Comedy Clubs are real fun to. Try staying away from the New York City Comedy Club, cause its like a basement. If your going to go anywhere go to Dangerfields. Its great, but you need a reservation. Its about 20 to get in, not sure if they have a drink minimum, and theres 4 dollar parking around there.

Go to Times Square but dont plan on spending your entire day there cause theres nothing to do...

As for transportation, the subway is fairly easy to understand, and the buses are simple as hell. All you have to do is ask the driver if your not certain (before you get on). And as for getting from Laguardia/JFK/Newark to the city, the cabs have a set price, something around $40-45 I believe. If your going to Jamaica you can take the air train. But honestly if you dont have that much luggage, hop on the subway. And no, the cabs arent that bad as how the poster above me described. As long as your inside of them and not on the outside. Ha.

And please, dont stand around at every street vendor you see, just walk and get the hell out of my way.

Any questions?

[Lyle]

I will be down in NYC in April and I will be staying about 10 minutes away from the Apple Soho store. I plan on stopping by the Apple store, seeing some broadway shows, visiting the new york stock exchange, statue of liberty, ground zero, central park and times square. What else should I go do? Anything in NYC that I simply CANNOT miss out on?Since no one else has mentioned it yet, I always enjoy going in the Times Square Toys 'R Us store to visit the T-Rex. ;)

And after all is said and done, with all of the great things for you to do there, it's hard to beat Central Park. Although we've visited New York a number of times now, it's still always striking to me how quiet and peaceful things are in the park as compared to the city streets.

[MacFan782040]

For museums, go to the American Museum of Natural History.... my fav. museum in the world, its not boring or anything at all. Very cool.

They have this planatarium in the Rose Center its awesome.

It's by Lincoln Center


And make sure you stop by some of the Chinese resturants in Manhatten... MMmmmmm

[Pittsax]

As for transportation, the subway is fairly easy to understand, and the buses are simple as hell. All you have to do is ask the driver if your not certain (before you get on). And as for getting from Laguardia/JFK/Newark to the city, the cabs have a set price, something around $40-45 I believe. If your going to Jamaica you can take the air train. But honestly if you dont have that much luggage, hop on the subway. And no, the cabs arent that bad as how the poster above me described. As long as your inside of them and not on the outside. Ha.

Just some clarification:

Going FROM JFK to Manhattan is $45 plus tip and tolls. Everywhere else is metered fare. If you're coming from LaGuardia, expect to pay around $20-30 depending on what part of Manhattan you're going to.

If you fly into JFK, I definitely recommend the AirTrain. There are directions from any of the terminals. You can take it to catch either the E train or the A train, depending on where you are going. It's $5, plus the $2 subway fare, so you're looking at about $40 savings by not taking a cab.

Also, check out http://www.mta.info It's the transit authority website, and has all of the bus and subway maps available as PDFs.

[allisonv7]

I was there last spring break and being college students we opted for the "quick and cheap" of NYC :)

1. NBC Studio tour is pretty neat, you'll get to see some of the studios, like Conan and SNL and probably see someone you recognize walking the halls.

2. Today Show was fun, but make sure you get there early :)

3. Carnegie Deli was AWESOME!! Great sandwiches

4. Definetly do the metrocard, the only time we took cabs was coming home at nite, the subways were pretty good in the areas we went, but I wouldn't go down there after midnite.

5. Battery Park was cool, especially if you're looking for knock-off stuff for cheap.

6. Near Ground Zero theres a church, I can't recall what it's called but it's a must-see, it's pretty much turned into a memorial, very moving.

7. China town and Greenwich were fun to walk around and check out all the little shops and whatnot.

8. Empire State building is definetly worth the wait, our wait was about an hour and that was on a Saturday afternoon, the line went very quickly


allison.

[killuminati]

One thing I would recommend doing is going to Tom's Restaurant, or you might know it as Monk's from Seinfeld. It's pretty neat seeing it, foods not that great though and unfriendly staff :p I believe its on 112th ave and broadway. It's right by my aunts place.

[maxterpiece]

Downtown:
1) Canal St. in tribeca/Chinatown is pretty cool. You can get all the bootleg watches/dvds/perfumes that you want for really cheap. There's good shopping on broadway in that area as well.
2) Also definitely go to Chinatown. It is really wild and there are plenty of great chinese restaurants.
3) You could also hit up the south street seaport - that is fun for a nice sunny afternoon. You can check out the boats, shop, inhale the scent of fresh fish.
4) City Hall iis worth seeing and it's right near ground zero. You can also hit up J&R - the best electronics/computer/music store in NYC. They have the most knowledgable staff and have an entire floor dedicated to macs. I suppose you may be computered out after the apple store, but J&R is definitely more New York than the apple store is.
4) Wall St. is alright. There are some nice quiet areas to walk around down there.
5) The battery park area is a nice. North of that is another newer park (forget what its called), but it's right on the water and there's usually a lot people out. it's a nice environment.
6) For a real experience go to Sammy's Romanian Steakhouse on the lower east side. They will give you the biggest steak ever and that is after like 8 other courses. It is so new york. I can't really describe it so here's a blurb i got from googling:

"Chaos reigns at this Jewish-style steakhouse, and that is just how its owner want it to be. The large space is cramped, loud and fun. It has become a tradition to start the meal with frozen vodka. Sammy's is also famous for the chicken schmaltz (rendered fat) available at every table, in defiance of those who want to try and make you be healthy. However, people really come here for the steak and the boisterous Yiddish music."

Midtown:
1) Central park is fantastic. If you go to central park then you can go to FAO schwartz - the biggest toy store in the world (I'm pretty sure).
2) The flatiron building is cool to see (the triangular building). It is on the 23rd st.
3) I second the person who suggested a knicks game. There is no other arena that comes close to providing the environment that madison square garden provides. It's a shame the knicks are pretty horrible, but it is still worth it.
4) the MET, MoMA, Museum of Natural History (personal fave), Guggenheim are all great.
5)The Red Cat is in Chelsea (10th Ave & 23rd). I love the food there.

[Jovian9]

If you're going to the Guggenheim, you might as well hit the Met, which is just a few blocks south.

I 2nd that...actually I recommend the Met over the Guggenheim. The Guggenheim is a nice building but the museum does not always have the greatest exhibits. The Met on the other hand is a whole day in itself the first time you visit......AWESOME! Give yourself plenty of time to go through it.

Walk around the financial district and grab a hot-dog from one of the street vendors...and some warm peanuts.......the only time I ever eat either.

If you are in to religion or spirituality be on the lookout for churches....lots of beautiful churches to see.

I find that walking around all day is the most satisfying when in NYC....and finding a good bar at night:)