<p>Hi everyone, I am leaving (tomorrow) for a put-together-at-the-last-minute trip to pick up son from his summer “job” (LOL–baseball) and he would like to see NYC for the first time. We will be there only Friday, Saturday, and about half of Sunday. </p>
<p>For a first-timer, does anyone have any suggestions for the best way to scratch the surface of New York City? We will be staying in midtown Manhattan. I have been there before several times, but have never really done the touristy stuff-have been with friends and they have been the ones to take me to the places they like the best. Now I find myself a bit nervous about trying to be sure my son gets a nice introduction to the city. In a word, help! And thanks in advance!</p>
<p>When my French niece visited in 2002, we took her on a ferry ride past Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty. From the boat, we were able to point to Ground Zero. We took her to Greenwich Village and Chinatown and walked a bit in Central Park.
Would your S enjoy going to museums? The Met, MOMA and the American Museum of Natural History would be good. If you can secure tickets, what about seeing Spamalot or the Putnam County Spelling Bee?</p>
<p>theres a lot of stuff to do…i would recommend skipping the empire state building though its always really crowded and no worth all the waiting (and stairs). central park is fun, you can always stop by trl when they have a show, the met is amazing, and theres always yankee stadium if hes a baseball fan</p>
<p>I just love this question!!! An ideal weekend in NYC for me: Go to Tkts and get tickets for a show or two, is that baseball show still on broadway? Eat at Carmines when you go to the show. Go to Chelsea Market for lunch. Eat a lobster roll at the fish place and then get Fat Witch brownies. Go to MOMA for the rest of the afternoon. Next day just walk down fifth avenue and check out all the great street buys. Go to SerendipityII for a cold hot chocolate and lunch. Walk through the village. Go to Shea if there’s a game. Go to Carnegie Deli and eat a huge piece of cheesecake. You can tell I’m a foodie, but that’s what NY does to you!!!</p>
<p>or a cruise around the island…but the Staten Island Ferry is traditional and such nice views. As for the food…Joe’s Shanghai on Mott for soup dumplings…cheap and the best. There are soooo many fine places to eat. Ride the subway. Rockefeller Center and of course strolling. You will not have enough time and you will be wanting to return soon. Hey…the open topped double decker buses are always fun too. Have a wonderful time.</p>
<p>The tour busses are actually both a good introduction to the city as well as a good means to get from one tourist spot to the next. They allow you to get off at any of their stops and then get back on any of the following buses. I have been on the Gray Line tours and their guides can be both informative and entertaining (if you get a dud quide, just hop off the bus and wait for the next bus to come by). They usually have several loops that they run. As I recall, you buy the ticket for a specific loop. To go on another loop may require another ticket (or possibly they offer a combo-ticket). They have an office at the Port Authotity bus termimal from which each loop starts, but you probably can buy tickets in your hotel as well.</p>
<p>If he likes the Mets, they are in town this weekend vs. Chicago.</p>
<p>It’s late to get reserved theater seats for premium shows, but if you want try your luck with some shows that may be winding down you can get some cheap tickets at the TKTS booth near Times Square. You can spend a fair amount of time waiting in line, however.</p>
<p>We found that the tkts booth at South St. Market (is that the right name? anyway, not the Times Square one) had much shorter lines. And then it’s close to get lunch in Chinatown. We wanted dim sum so just went in the first restaurant we saw with a sign for it in the window. We were the only non-asians there and the staff seemed to be staring at us as we ordered and ordered. A year later we went back and again they were watching us eat. Finally one of them came over and asked if we’d been there before. A year later and they remembered this white family of 5 pigging out!</p>
<p>If you’re only here for the weekend and relatively new to the city, there’s no shame in doing the traditional tourist route. This includes:</p>
<p>1) A big Broadway musical,
2) A walk through Central Park (check out Belvedere Castle and the resevoir)
3) The Met, MoMA, the Guggenheim, Museum of Natural History
4) The 5th Avenue Stroll (starting at the Met, walking along the Park, passing the gorgeous, EXPENSIVE apartments, ending up by all the huge dept stores–Bergdorf Goodman, Saks etc.)
5) Times Square
6) Grand Central
7) Chinatown/ Little Italy
8) Wall St, Ground Zero
9) Brooklyn Bridge
10) Rockefeller Center/ St. Patrick’s
11) Soho</p>
<p>The Circle Line and the bus tours are ever-popular ways to view the city. Good introductions to the island.</p>
<p>All well and good, but let me give you just a few tips to enhance your stay and to beat the fanny-packed hordes…</p>
<p>See a cutting-edge show, not one of the bloated musicals (I hear the Pillowman is great). Grab a burger at Burger Joint. Often said to be the best in the city. You’ll find the place in the lobby of Le Parker Meridien (fancy hotel). Behind the curtain near the desk is a “hidden” dive of an old-school diner with GREAT food. Check this out Friday, I think its closed weekends. If you’re son is of age, check out the Campbell Apartment, tucked away in Grand Central. You walk up the stairs to a real blast from the past. Gorgeous room, great cocktails. Pricey. If this doesn’t appeal, the Oyster Bar is fun. Hit up the Chinatown Ice Cream Factory and Da Nico in Little Italy. Grab brunch at the Odeon (in Tribeca) or Balthazar (in Soho). When in Soho AVOID BROADWAY! Walk down one of the truer streets (Mercer and Greene are lovely). </p>
<p>What kind of budget are you on? So many fantastic restaurants and bars. Let me know if those would be of any interest.</p>
<p>I would like to put in my two cents for the Whitney Museum of American Art, which is my favorite in New York.</p>
<p>Also, I second the mention of the Circle Line Tour. It’s relaxing and you pick up a lot of information about the City, Manhattan in particular, and it takes you to places you don’t ordinarily go, such as the Harlem River between Manhattan and the Bronx. I never realized how close the Polo Grounds were to Yankee Stadium until I took the Circle Line Tour.</p>
<p>Another favorite is to head up the west side to the church (or cathedral) of St. John the Divine, which is gorgeous, yet unfinished. While you are there you can take a look at Columbia University. Walk up Broadway on the east side of the street and you will spot the restaurant from Seinfeld.</p>
<p>If you don’t choose to spend time standing in line go to the boxoffice and even on soldout show they frequently have limited view or single seats available. I have always found seats…well almost always. Have fun.</p>
<p>Yea the tkts lines might be a waste of time since they tend to be pretty long, but some shows have $30-$40 tickets at the box office. A broadway show is definitely a good idea. </p>
<p>“Walk up Broadway on the east side of the street and you will spot the restaurant from Seinfeld.”
Yea, you’ll see the OUTSIDE of the restaurant from Seinfeld; the inside is completely different, but they have excellent milkshakes!</p>
<p>Central Park and the newly redone MOMA would be on my must do list.</p>
<p>But besides what everybody has already mentioned, how about a jazz club for your trumpet playing son? The new Dizzy’s Club (part of Jazz at Lincoln Center) is near Columbus Circle and apparently has a glass wall behind the stage, overlooking the city. Seems as if it would be a real NYC experience. If you’re in the village, there are lot of clubs in different price ranges. Gothamjazz.com has more listings than the NY Times.</p>
<p>Some free/inexpensive stuff:
Sony Wonder Technology Lab in the Sony Building, 550 Madison Avenue <a href=“http://www.sony.com/SCA/press/031010.shtml[/url]”>http://www.sony.com/SCA/press/031010.shtml</a>
Food from the Food Emporium at 8th Avenue and 49th Street–a take-out/eat-in place on the first floor and a supermarket in the lower level. You can get picnic food and walk up to Central Park to enjoy it.
Hot dogs from Gray’s Papaya–get one for under $1 or enjoy the special of two hot dogs and a drink for $2.50 (I think). Locations at Eighth Avenue and 37th Street (Midtown West), Broadway and 72nd (Upper West Side), and Sixth and 8th (West Village). Featured in the PBS show on hot dogs across the country.
Check out Rockefeller Center especially in the morning when folks are clamoring to be seen on the morning shows.
For a different and impressive view of the city, drive over to Liberty State Park in New Jersey: <a href=“http://www.libertystatepark.org/[/url]”>http://www.libertystatepark.org/</a> and <a href=“http://www.libertystatepark.com/[/url]”>http://www.libertystatepark.com/</a>. You can also take the ferry to Ellis Island from the Park.
And when you visit the Met, do remember that they request a voluntary donation, so don’t feel that you need to pay the full suggested amount if you’re not going to be there the entire day.
(Do I sound like a tightwad? Just saving money for college tuition!)</p>
<p>There are so many greats in New York that it’s hard to focus, but if I had to pick my faves this is what I’d do:</p>
<p>Museums
The Natural History Museum
Go straight to the dinosaurs. After that see as much as you have the energy for.
The Frick
One of the old robber baron’s mansions on Fifth Avenue. A priceless collection of old masters – Rembrandt etc. Small and jewel like.
The Met
If you feel you have to see the Met don’t try to cover it all. Pick two or three areas and concentrate. I like the Egyptian wing and Renaissance painting. It’s a bit overwhelming though.</p>
<p>Central Park
Just stroll and people watch. The Carousel is a good starting point.
Plenty of baseball. Get a frankfurter and sit on a bench.</p>
<p>Circleline Tour
Day or night.</p>
<p>Shopping
Bloomingdales
Kids like H&M on Fifth
Soho and East Village</p>
<p>The Empire State Building at night if it’s clear. It’s open late so you can go after dinner.</p>
<p>During the summer there are many, many venues for music performed outside, in the park, at Lincoln Center, all over town. Get New York Magazine and find out what’s on.</p>
<p>Take a look at Time Out New York <a href=“Time Out New York | New York Events and Things To Do All Year”>Time Out New York | New York Events and Things To Do All Year; and/or the Sunday NY Times Entertainment section before you leave home. Instead of going to TKTS, I recommend ordering tickets online as late as the night before or same day you’re leaving for any Broadway/Off Broadway shows - through <a href=“http://www.playbill%5B/url%5D”>www.playbill</a> online.com or <a href=“http://www.broadwaybox.com%5B/url%5D”>www.broadwaybox.com</a>. I find that these two websites have the most updated discounted tickets available, and there is never a need to stand in that line.<br>
Thanks to everyone for their wonderful posts. Even though we’re always in the city, there is always something new and exciting to explore, so it was nice to hear about your favorite nyc experiences.</p>
<p>My son just flew back today from NYC. He saw the Broadway show “Rent” yesterday. He arrived 2 hrs. early and they had a drawing and he won two 2nd row seats. “Rent” was a musical but lots of shows were sold out; I’d buy online if you can. He really enjoyed Yankee Stadium and the Statue of Liberty and riding the subways.</p>
<p>I saw Rent on Broadway a few months ago, and I’d go back in a heartbeat just to see the scene where the guy who plays drag queen “Angel” does his syncopated dance routine with the drumsticks. It was one of the most incredible displays of athleticism, rhythm, and coordination I’ve ever seen. I was reminded of a Chinese acrobat. I think his name was Justin Johnston.</p>