Monday, April 23, 2007

New York


My husband and I decided to take advantage of some of Southwest Airlines' low fares, and we plan to fly to Long Island, NY next month. The boys are staying with Gramma. Neither of us has ever been to New York, and we're trying to decide and plan what to do in a long weekend. I think no matter what I do I'll feel as if I didn't see enough, but that's the breaks I guess. So...if any of you have any recommendations for Manhattan or the surrounding area, please let me know--I'd love to have some insider advice! I can't wait!

11 comments:

Sara Hantz said...

No advice... just have a wonderful time. NY is on my list of must-see places. I'm totally jealous!

Lucy said...

I went in 2000 and had someone who had lived in Manhattan give me some advice. He told me to eat lunch one day in little Italy (I did). He told me to people watch in Central Park on a Saturday (kinda, sorta did). You can get discount tickets for Broadway shows in TimesSquare - take advantage of that if you can. (He told me about that too.)

We took a bus tour that made frequent stops and was good for a day or two and that helped.

We also went to Ellis Island, Empire State Building, and the Statue of Liberty - all things I could recommend doing.

Someone else told us we had to be sure and use the restrooms in the Plaza Hotel. She didn't tell us though that there are only certain hours that non-guests can enter the hotel so we had to time it just right, but we did that too.

Anyway, I don't know how much time you will be spending in Manhattan but those are a few of the things we did in the four days we spent there.

Let us know what you end up doing. :~)

Lucy said...

Oh, and you should ride the subway at least once!

Lindsey said...

I went in 2002 - we also did the tour bus thing. I can't remember the name of the company, but it was great because it doubled as transportation. We bought three-day passes for the tour bus and you could just hop on the bus at any time, and hop off anytime for three days. And they were everywhere, so it was really convenient.

We were also told to eat at a place call Angelo's in Little Italy, and we liked it so much that we went back twice! Out of all the restaurants in NYC to try, we had to go back to Angelo's because it was just sooo good! I love Italian food :)

Erica Ridley said...

Hmmm. I was there Christmas of 1999, so I'm not sure how valid my advice would be. I took an open-air bus tour (the kind you can get on and off of throughout the day) to get the lay of the land, and also went to a Broadway play. That way, I'd be sure to see the main sights and do something I could only do in NYC. Ate in Chinatown and Little Italy, both of which were good. When I was there, it was freezing cold, so I did not end up hanging out in Central Park. Definitely something I plan to rectify next time I'm over that way. Can't wait to hear how it goes!

Stacy said...

No recommendations (as I've never been there either) but have loads of fun!

Unknown said...

I went to NY for a High School trip. I was so blown away by the whole experience. I would try and go to the MET. I think you'd love it!

Tempest Knight said...

Hey, even if all you do is laying down in a hotel bed, it's a vacation. That's what counts!

Alyssa Goodnight said...

Thanks so much for all the wonderful suggestions! I'm definitely making notes!

Kat said...

I lived there and miss it alot! You should go to Broadway of course. China Town is amazing.
If you have time go to the MET.
Soho has alot of great cafe's for a wonderful lunch. And the Statue of Liberty is fun but takes most of the day.

Andie said...

I could give you TONS of suggestions. I've been to NYC about 6 times, and I have friends who live there.

RE: broadway tickets- if you go to www.playbill.com you can get discount codes for some broadway shows.

Also, you must go to Ferrara's in Little Italy, have either some gelato OR pastries from there. THey have the BEST.

Casa Bella is a great Italian restaurant in Little Italy.

Pax Deli's are great for bagels and stuff. you must try an authentic NY bagel.

Those buses are nice for a first timer- you can see everything by riding along, and it serves as transportation.

you should DEFINITELY get a pocket subway map... and go to Grand Central Station just to observe. It's a beautiful place.

I love NYC. If I could afford it, I'd totally move there!

FYI- the plaza hotel is no longer a hotel. Last summer, they were converting it into apartments.