When we were there this past summer, we tended to bundle our activities as follows:
LOWER EAST SIDE (half day to full day)
Lunch at
Katz's Deli (Where the “I’ll have what she’s having” scene in “When Harry Met Sally” was filmed.)
Tenement Museum (a.k.a "Who knew that Tuberculosis Spittoons could be so interesting?") Tourist Tip: Don’t wear your Nike hat on the tour like I did or the ever so earnest tour guide will make an example of you too.
Walk through
Chinatown,
Little Italy,
SOHO, and
Greenwich Village (Washington Square/
NYU).
BROOKLYN BRIDGE WALK (Early Evening):
Start on the Brooklyn Side. Take the subway to Brooklyn Heights and walk along the
"Promenade" to the base of the Brooklyn Bridge.
Eat Pizza at
Grimaldi's under the Brooklyn Bridge in Brooklyn. There is usually a LOOOOOONG line waiting outside, but it’s
worth the wait. While someone in your party holds your place in line, the rest of your party can walk down to the waterfront and watch all the brides and their wedding parties having their picture taken with the NYC skyline in the background. There were at least 10 different wedding parties waiting their turn when we were there.
EAST SIDE: (Half Day to Full Day)
United Nations Tour (Great art collection- (make sure to see Nancy Reagan’s donated Norman Rockwell tile mosaic) all set in a surprisingly rundown/well worn, but still architecturally significant building. My boys still talk about the land-mine display they saw during the tour.)
New York Public Library – Make sure to walk through the reading room on the top floor.
Empire State Building – A crowded, expensive tourist trap that everyone visiting NYC has to visit ONCE. The
Top-of-The-Rock is much better.
Grand Central Station:
NBC Studio Tour (Maybe even catch a
TV Show Taping)
Radio City Music Hall (See a show or take a
tour)
FINANCIAL DISTRICT / BATTERY PARK (Full Day)
Ground Zero
St. Paul's Chapel
Wall Street
Battery Park (make sure to see the World Trade Center
Sculpture "Sphere" that was damaged on 9/11.)
Catch a Ferry to the
Statue of Liberty and
Ellis Island; or,
Pick up the FREE
Staten Island Ferry just east of Battery Park and ride it to Staten Island and back right past the Statue of Liberty.
(Tourist Tip: For the best views of the Statute of Liberty from the Staten Island Ferry, sit on the Starboard side (right side of the boat if you are facing forward) when traveling TO Staten Island, and sit on the Port side (left side of the boat if you are facing forward) on the return trip to Manhattan. People will fill-in and stand along the exterior railing on these sides as you approach the statute, thereby blocking the view for the folks who had the good sense to claim seats on these sides. Accordingly, make sure to also have someone in your party claim the railing turf adjacent to your selected seats when boarding. Folks also like to stay in the back of the boat to watch the NYC skyline on the trip out of Manhattan.)
TIMES SQUARE: (Evening)
Before you go to NYC, see if the show you want has discount tickets available for the dates and times you want at
broadwaybox.com. You can also try to score a deal on the day of a show at the
TKTS 50% off booth currently by the Marriott Marquis hotel in Times Square.
Toys-R-Us – Go ahead and ride the Indoor Ferris Wheel.
Recommended Dining Options in Times Square:
Juniors (for cheesecake and more);or
Ellen's Stardust Diner (for singing waitstaff and great hot fudge sundaes).
John's Pizzeria (Great pizza in a brew-pub type atmosphere set in an old theater)
NOT RECOMMENDED BY ANYONE OTHER THAN BOYS UNDER AGE 14:
MARS 2112. (Chuck-E-Cheese goes to Mars and brings his bad, overpriced food with him).
MUSEUMS (Day)
Guggenheim (just up the street from the MET). Start at the top of the spiral and work your way down. The building almost overshadows the art on display there.
Museum of Modern Art – If you have kids, see if you can enroll in one of these
family programs.
BROOKLYN (don’t FORGETTAGBOUTIT): (Half Day while driving out of town)
Brighton Beach (Russian Immigrant community) is right next to
Coney Island and they are connected by the oceanfront boardwalk. Have lunch or dinner at
Primorski Restaurant in Brighton Beach and then stroll the
Boardwalk to Coney Island. Lots of cultural diversity here. Not your typical tourist destination, but still worth a look-see.
The
NYC Aquarium is also here, with plenty of secure parking (for a fee).
Go ahead and ride the
Cyclone.
Sure I listed a bunch of usual NYC tourist stuff, but if you pair a tourist site with non-traditional stuff too, you can get the best of both worlds. Oh yeah, there is also a big park right in the center of Manhattan and a few stores in the city that some folks like going to.
Hope this helps!
-nodge
