FYI.
I lived in NYC for a few years, so here's a few suggestions:
Museum of Natural History & the Hayden Planetarium (upper West Side); Metropolitan Museum of Art (5th Avenue by Central Park) - worth it alone for the Egyptian exhibit and the Impressionist collection. If it's not too chilly, Central Park has the Zoo and many nice paths to walk (grab a hot dog or two from one of the street vendors - they're delicious). Fifth Avenue is just fun to walk down - some great store windows to look in and the people watching can be fun. Take the subway to get around (don't be afraid - it's much cleaner and safer than it used to be). Downtown, there's the Empire State Building (34th & Fifth), Macy's department store (same area),
Broadway (West Side from 59th St. - Columbus Circle down to Times Square and the Theatre District at 42nd St.) And much more...depends on how much time you have.
Good, fun touristy stuff..all close to the hotel in midtown
1. Top of Empire State Building
2. Statue of Liberty
3. Intrepid Museum
4. Circle Line ride around Manhattan
I would avoid the nighttime dinner cruises around the island...you can get much better food in a stationary restaurant. Go walk through Chinatown and adjacent Little Italy.. re restaurants...we have hundreds of great ones.. depends on what kind of food you like.. and I know that Texas is noted for it's beef..but I would recommend you try a NYC steak house...it's really unique..MY fave is Peter Lugar's..it's in Brooklyn..just over the bridge..a short cab ride away...reservations needed..ask the hotel concierge to help you..
If you like Italian..there are many great places..from the tradional tot the nouveau.. NYC is wonderful for just walking around..make sure you all bring really comfortable walking shoes
Funny,but from upstream on the Hudson,NYC would be very low on my visit lists.
However Texas sounds very appealing even with the somewhat warm winter were having.
i went for the first time this summer for a girls weekend
with designer pals. we stayed on staten island and took
the ferry from there. the ride and views are wonderful!
we had a great time walking around chinatown and little
italy. we ate delicious pasta in little italy.
i hope you have a really great trip!
How about waving to us through the window at Fox and Friends?
I grew up in upstate NY, but was 18 before I ever went to NYC.
You will get hit up by all kinds of folks wanting charity, whatever.
They see your eyeballs as big as half dollars and spot ya a mile away!
Don't argue with nobody. Just walk away.
In most parts of the world, it's unusual to see somebody sleeping in a phone booth.
Most parts...
4 things you cannot miss:
1. Temple of Dendur at the Metropolitan Museum of Art
2. Family-Style Dinner at Carmine's
3. Circle Line Cruise
4. Statue of Liberty (the ride out from Battery Park can be wicked if it's too windy but it is sooo worth it.)
HAVE FUN!!!
Go to St. Patrick's Cathedral. Awesome.
IMO,the Empire State Building is also a must see as is the Museum of Modern History on Central Park West.
Visit: Ellis Island, Statue of Liberty, Grant's Tomb, the Cloisters, Empire State Buildng, South Sgtreet Seaport, Chinatown, Little Italy, Madison Square Garden, Yankee Stadium [they both have tours],a gangland tour of New York that includes the Five Points, the graveyard near Wall Street where Alexander Hamilton is buried, the New York Public Libray. The Museum of Natural History, the Guggenheim, the Metroplitan Museum of Art..
Eat: Katz's Deli, Papaya King , Any restaurant on Arthur Ave. in the Bronx, Umberto's Clam House in Little Italy. [If they haven't moved, it's where Joey Gallo got whacked].Great calamari fra diavalo!
By the bye: Douglas MacArthur lived at the Waldorf after he retired. Lucky Luciano lived there before he retired.
Bring LOTS of money with you. Or a charge card or cards with big limits. Things are very expensive in the big city. Probably triple what you are used to paying.
NYC is a walking City,and its the Best Way to see the City!
You will be staying at the most fantastic hotel and in the middle of everything and do check out the Trump Tower!
But a visit and prayer at Ground Zero will change your lives, it's a must do.
If you go to the WTC you are a short walk from Wall Street. There is also Rockefeller Center with Saks, Radio City Music Hall and St. Pat's nearby. You might also consider a Grey Line tour of Manhattan [I never did this but I have in other cities and it's a good overview quickly]. At the Waldorf, Grand Central Station is nearby. At the Theatre, Times Square is there [just do say you were there but the Broadway view at night is terrific]. If you can't get away from horses, there is a great ride through Central Park. Have a good one.
Travelogue Ping
< |:)~
Best Italian Restaurant Outside of Italy: Il Mulino, West 3rd near MacDougal Street.
Best Coal Over Pizza: Arturo's on Houston near MacDougal.
Any other questions?
My recommendation is to take a walk through Central Park. First you should have a cab take you to the boathouse cafe. It is a PERFECT place for lunch, right on the lake, and you can take your family for a rowboat ride afterwards.
Make sure to walk Madison Avenue from 60th to 80th. This is the HIGH END shopping district of the city.
Also on the East Side are the Metropolitan Museaum (you LOVE the armor and weaponry section, and the Egyptian tomb), and the Whitney Museaum (home to the largest collection of my favorite painter, Edward Hopper). DON'T go the the Guggenheim, as the exhibits usually s-ck.
On the west side, make sure to hit the Museaum of Natural History. Afterwards, head to Zabars near 82nd and Broadway, and cross 82nd for H&H bagels, the best bagels in the world.
For nighttime entertainment, make sure to have a reservation at the Village Vanguard, the most famous Jazz Club in the city. Every seat is near the stage, so you've got great sightlines everywhere. It is located at 7th, between Perry and Greenwich.
If you have time, even though its a little out of the way, you can take a shuttle bus from the Met to the Cloisters in upper Manhattan. This is Rockefeller's importation of an entire French medieval cloister, stuffed with the largest collection of medieval art in the world. It is located in a beautiful park looking over to New Jersey's palisades.
Those are my recommendations for a full weekend in the city. Feel free to freepmail me so I can give you my number in case you need assistance.
vinnines on the bowery