Planning Surprise 10 Yr Anniversary Trip to NYC, Need Advice (VANITY)

Me | 1/02/04 | Freeper TwoBear

[TwoBear]

Fellow Freepers,

I'm attempting to plan a surprise 10 year anniversary trip to NYC for my wife. I've never been there, thus I'd like to seek your advice on the best area to stay, eat, shows to see, etc., etc. We'll mainly just be sight seeing, shopping and would like to take in a show. Now, we're from Tennessee so keep that in mind. I guess we'll have to put our shoes on when we get there.

Any advice on location (Manhattan, East side, West Side, Central Park area, Times Square, etc.) and hotels would especially be helpful!

We're going from 4/23-25.

I appreciate any help!

S

[firebrand]

TwoBear, I am so glad you are coming to our city. You are picking a good time, too. It is too crowded now and during the tennis matches, and will be too crowded during the convention this summer as well.

Let me know your interests and price ranges if you want to, by freepmail if you like, and I will give you some suggestions.

[ClintonBeGone]

Why would you guys even say such things about NYC? 1. I work here, and it's a Marxist sh!t-hole.

You work in NY but live in New Jersey? I have a hard time not laughing when I hear a guy from JERSEY call anyplace else a dysfuctional toilet.

[firebrand]

One thing you should NOT do, for sure, is stay outside the city. Stay as close to the center of things as you can afford, because that's what it's all about (New York): being in the middle of everything.

[heighduke]

I might provide some more extensive recommendations later (I'm a native), but I do recommend that at one point in your visit, you stray from the more tourist-travelled parts of the city - Midtown/Times Square, the Village, etc. - and check out a more residential neighborhood. The Upper East Side or Upper West Side, for instance. Or even Park Slope in Brooklyn or Astoria in Queens.

[firebrand]

We find it hilarious when the tour buses come to the Upper West Side and stop at a typical diner to observe the natives. I've heard Harlem residents say the same thing, although they welcome the tourists to their churches in the hope that some of them might be saved in the process.

[Alberta's Child]

You work in NY but live in New Jersey? I have a hard time not laughing when I hear a guy from JERSEY call anyplace else a dysfuctional toilet.

If the poster in question had indicated that he was planning to take a vacation trip to New Jersey, my reply would have been nearly identical.

As bad as New Jersey is, you can tell that New York City must be truly abysmal -- for the following reasons: 1) The shopping mall parking lots here are filled with cars with New York license plates; 2) Everyone I know who has moved into this state in the last ten years is either froom Pakistan, Central America, or New York City; and 3) The only companies that even think or relocating to New Jersey are those that are now in New York City.

[firebrand]

1) The shopping mall parking lots here are filled with cars with New York license plates; 2) Everyone I know who has moved into this state in the last ten years is either froom Pakistan, Central America, or New York City; and 3) The only companies that even think or relocating to New Jersey are those that are now in New York City.

Unfathomable as it may be to someone buried alive in New Jersey, not everyone is totally enamored of shopping malls, two-car garages, and counter space. True, some do come here to make their bundle and then retrogress to what they were in the first place: hopelessly bourgeois.

As for companies, they stay here as long as they possibly can before being forced by high taxes to go elsewhere. They know they can attract the most intelligent, ambitious employees here, where there is a semblance of culture and nightlife and a chance to meet other people with IQs over 110.

[ClintonBeGone]

It's a lot easier to change jobs than to move your house. Why do you still work in NYC if you hate foreigners so much?

[Alberta's Child]

Who said I don't like foregners? I simply pointed out that every person I know who has moved into New Jersey is from some place that is worse off than New Jersey is.

It's a lot easier to change jobs than to move your house.

That comes next. We've just opened a New Jersey location in the last year, and by the end of 2005 I expect the New Jersey location to be larger than the New York one.

[paulklenk]

TwoBear, when I host a friend or family member for their first trip to NYC, this is how I plan it:

I cram into the trip at least one major event in each of the following categories:

Historical: Do the Statue of Liberty, or a tour South Street Seaport.
Food: Pick one unique fine restaurant and several cheaper places with great good. Stay away from Tavern on the Green (it is a tourist trap with crappy food) and don't eat at any chains. Before you eat at any restaurant, check out the reviews at NewYork.CitySearch.com. You will be warned of dumps like Tavern before you get there. For your fine dining experience, concentrate on places where the chefs have distinguished themselves in the city.
Ethnic: See Little Italy or Harlem or China Town.
Shopping: Figure out what your wife may enjoy shopping for, and plan part of an afternoon in two or three stores dedicated to that kind of shopping. I recommend Bergdorf Goodman, both the men's and women's stores, purely for a unique high-end, upscale experience.
Entertainment: Do see a Broadway show or an opera at the Met (get the best seats you can find), and hit a jazz club like the Village Vanguard or visit Carnegie Hall.
Cultural: See at least one museum, like the Metropolitan Museum of Art, MoMA Qns, or a smaller museum.
Central Park: Spend time there just walking and taking it in. It's beautiful.
Walking tour: Nothing beats just spending time walking around a neighborhood. Try the old quarter downtown near Fraunces Tavern, or combine this with your ethnic neighborhood. Also, you can participate in planned walking tours for very little money.

TwoBear, when you truly plan your trip, instead of showing up and winging it, you really can stuff a lot of varied experiences into a short time, even a weekend. You can hit a lot of great highlights without doing purely "touristy" stuff (though there's nothing wrong with being a tourist). That's why it can be fun to take my advice and plan events by category -- that way your trip is varied, always changing, and hits the very best of what New York City has to offer.

[nutmeg]

Have any suggestions for TwoBear? :-)

[hellinahandcart]

Del Frisco's for steak. This is a power dinner but expect a large tab.

If you go early, there's a prix-fixe menu for $34.95, which includes whopping big deserts. Not a bad price, and you can watch the FOX news ticker while you eat.

[cyborg]

Check out TimeOut Magazine, Village Voice, and New York Magazine. They are the best resources.

[Tabi Katz]

Nothing personal, but I never understood how someone could hate New York and be enamoured with Bean Town. It's basically New York Lite. I live in NY, I love it, but I can certainly agree that it's not for everybody. However, those who are put off by the city's warts are going to find the same unpleasantries in Boston. The crime rate is higher, and the politics are even more horrendous, if that's imagineable.

Give me city or give me country - but nothing in-between please!

[Tabi Katz]

I am so sick of NY bashing. Its a great place to visit.

I agree with you. Especially since much of the city got a face lift and the free ride for criminals ended.

[Tabi Katz]

One thing you should NOT do, for sure, is stay outside the city. Stay as close to the center of things as you can afford, because that's what it's all about (New York): being in the middle of everything.

LOL! I agree 100%. The whole point of being in NY is being in NEW YORK :) Love it or hate it, there's no place like it!

[hellinahandcart]

It's good that you're planning this early. You can also drop in on the New York message board if you want to ask questions or locate city Freepers.

[stanz]

There is no place like New York. You want advice for a trip in April? I'd be happy to help. Some of the other suggestions were good ones- - -try to get to Yankee Stadium for a game. Stay at a hotel in midtown.... you'll be close to Broadway plays, museums, great restaurants. You can't miss the view form the top of the Empire State building, a trip to Macy's, a visit to the World Trade Center site and while you're downtowm see the South Street Seaport which has a museum ad well as great shopping and restaurants. Also try to make Wall Street and the Stock Exchange. As for Museums, there's the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the American Museum of Natural History- - -both uptown. The Met is on 5th Ave and 85th St, AMNH is on Central Park West and 79th St.

Here is a link for both:

http://www.amnh.org/museum/welcome/index.html?src=i_plan

http://www.metmuseum.org/

Also, you need to see a ballet at Lincoln Center. Here's a link for the New York City Ballet which resides at the New York State Theater:

http://www.nycballet.com/nycballet/homepage.asp

You can purchase tickets at their website. Also, a better ballet company which also performs at Lincoln Center at the Metropolitan Opera House is American Ballet Theater. Here's their link:

http://www.abt.org/

While traveling around the city, you should really explore the subway system it's fast and not difficult to figure out. It will save you a lot of money during the day and you can just rely on cabs in the evening.
If you have time, you could also save on Broadway tickets by standing on line at the Kiosk which is located on 45th St and Broadway. They offer reduced tickets for the same evening and post the shows outside.

These are just a few highlights. How much time are you planning to spend?

[Doctor Raoul]

Leave her at home, take the secretary from work. If that doesn't surprise your wife, nothing will.....

[Doctor Raoul]

Seriously, there's a Chinese restaurant called Ollie's (Ollie's Noodle Grill?). They have a number of locations. Great food. Try the "Roast Pork Bun". It's basically a potato bun with BBQ pork inside. BBQ's answer to the jelly donut.