You can do the 9/11 museum in about 1.5 hrs. It is located directly next to the memorial(waterfalls). Very good, and also solemn.
1) stop in any "non Sbarro" pizza joint and get a plain slice to go and share as a snack just to know what real pizza is about.
2) Walk through Macy's 5th Avenue. BUY NOTHING.
3) Use the subway (good luck).
4)Staten Island Ferry quick round trip (can be combined with World Trade Center site)
5)American Museum of Natural History/Hayden Planetarium.
6)Times Square... just to see what it's really like.
7)A pastrami on rye from one of the many Jewish delis (and a slice of real New York cheesecake).
Be safe. Assume everyone in NYC hates you, because they hate everyone. Forbid the wife from carrying a purse. Wallet stripped of all credit cards but one kept in inside zipped up pocket. Cellphone locked and stowed in a zipped up inside jacket pocket as well. I would almost offer to ditch the phone as it may be a distraction, but nobody can do without a cellphone these days. Debit card and ID in front pants pocket. No loose change... give all loose change to panhandlers. Don't be rushed for any reason regardless of the fast pace of things there. Good Luck. Oh and if the wife wants to see a show, cross off 5 things from the list... and wait in line at the TKTS kiosk, wait in line for the show, wait for show to end, come outside and find it's now dark, and hope you don't get mugged on the train back to Queens. You will not want to take a car into Manhattan and expect to be able to park it somewhere convenient.
Why the Tonight Show? - can’t think of any shows with live audiences on Fox, but maybe a tour of their studios - or at least stand outside and wave through the window while The Five is on the air.......
If it’s the first time you’ve been there, definitely take the Circle Line around Manhattan, go to the Met (eat on the rooftop if the weather permits), go over and sit by the Hudson at Pier 1 (Riverside Drive, where I grew up).
Ask your son if there’s anything in particular that interests him. There are a lot of great walking tours through neighborhoods, for example, if he’s interested in a particular thing. You can find them and prearrange them on the internet.
For food, check Yelp...you can get really good recommendations and even narrow them down by type of food (from Kosher to BBQ, etc.). Don’t forget to eat in as many outdoor cafes as possible! That’s one of the nice things about NY.
You might like Chinatown, too. Great food, a very active place with a lot of street vendors.
Buy a 10-ride Metropass - good on subway and busses - for each if you plan to move around a lot, or be prepared to spend on taxis (which, depending on the size of your group, can be about the same). Bring comfy shoes, because you can’t know NY without walking. Fortunately, there are many places to stop for sustenance...
Take him to the Museum of Natural History, not MOMA, DADA, Yada Yada.
Make sure you take a picture of the Statute of Liberty because under commie DeBlasio and the Marxist-led City Council, it may not be there on your next trip.
A statue of Al Baghdadi, Din Laden, Stalin, Castro of Daniel Ortega might be there instead.
May I humbly suggest a visit to Museum of Modern Art or any other institution of culture instead of Tonight Show?
Take the Circle Line first. It gives you a great tour around Manhattan and the true sense that Manhattan is an island. Also, you see Lady Liberty and Ellis Island on the tour. Beware, it is a half hour too long, but worth it.
Take a walking tour of Greenwich Village. The tours are inexpensive and the history lesson is priceless.
Visit Ground Zero.
Make sure to walk across the Brooklyn Bridge. Don’t bike. It’s too crowded and too short to ride.
Ignore the panhandlers.
On that note, never buy tour tickets from anybody in the street. They are overpriced and you will still wait in the same long lines. As you approach the Empire State Building, you will see the ticket hucksters everywhere. Ignore them and buy your tickets inside.
Personally I think the Empire Street Building is overpriced but you should do it at least once in your life.
Get an all day unlimited pass for the subway. It will seem expensive but will save you tons of walking and the stations are everywhere. You can take the subway from Queens.
Load the CityMapper app on your smartphone and it will tell you where the nearest subway station is based on where you are. Type in a destination and it will tell you what train to get on and when to get off. The subway system is massive and can be confusing at first. But the app will guide you. By the way, the subway system is very safe and reliable.
Ignore the panhandlers.
Definitely check out Central Park. Don't bother with the hucksters that want to take you on a horse ride. Pretty lame. Stick to the southern part of the park.
Check out Grand Central station. The Lexington St exit will take you right in front of the Chrysler Building, the best skyscraper in all of Manhattan. Then walk down 42nd St to the New York Public Library and Bryant Park, always things to see there. You are now just a couple blocks from Times Square.
In Times Square, you will see the greatest amount of scam artists. Don't make eye contact with them. There may be an "aspiring" recording artist trying to hand you their CD. Don't take it. If you do, you will be surrounded and shamed into giving them money for it. You will see a lot of costumed cartoon and superhero characters in Times Square. If you have your picture taken with them, they are going to expect money. They can be very aggressive about it. Otherwise, lot's to see and do in Times Square.
Then head north up 6th Avenue (or Avenue of Americas but New Yorkers never call it that) to about 49th Street. You will be in Rockefeller Center and lots going on there too. The NBC studios. A skating rink. This is where SNL and the Tonight Show gets filmed. Order tickets way in advance.
Or take Broadway north out of Times Square and that's where all the shows are. Dave Letterman as well. Again, have your tickets way in advance.
Ignore the panhandlers.
Hundreds upon hundreds of the best restaurants in the world. Bring your appetite. Almost impossible to get a bad slice of pizza in New York. If it's a weekday, check out the food trucks at lunchtime. They serve the working crowd and you can get some real good deals on food from them.
All of this is just scratching the surface of what you can see and do in New York. It's an amazing place.
And don't forget, ignore the panhandlers.
Check out the South Street Seaport on the east side of Lower Manhattan. It’s where NYC began. Wall St. is a bit south of The Sea Port. You can check out Trinity Church at Broadway & Wall St. Alexander Hamilton is buried in it’s cemetery. Nice pedestrian walk way areas, cafes, shops etc. Times Square( 8th. & 42nd. St.that’s mid-town Manhattan) It’s been cleaned up, Broadway. There’s a lot to see.
Reuben’s Deli.
Take care, as someone warned, not to stand near the edge of the subway platform. Be careful if someone touches you or seems to grope you on the subway, they might be aiming to get your wallet. There are frequently, almost usually, panhandlers on the subway. Ignore them. Keep your wallet or purse (I don't carry a purse, keep valuables hidden on person) in a secure place. Don't fall asleep on the subway. You can go to the Metropolitan Transit Authority (MTA) website and use their plan-a-trip feature to route yourself. You can use StubHub (http://www.stubhub.com) to purchase tickets to sporting events, concerts, etc.
A young man might really enjoy seeing the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum. You might admire the St. Patrick's Cathedral, the South Street Seaport in lower Manhattan, a musical offering at Carnegie Hall. So much to do! Have a great time and stay safe!