Hate to detract from the recruiting info today but I have a question. Looks like I'll have an opportunity to go to NYC for a short time. I fly in at 5pm on a Friday, fly out at 10am on the following Sunday. That gives me one evening and one full day. I'm staying right downtown. The 911 memorial and probably the Empire State Bldg are on my list to see.
I was wondering from anyone who has been there or lived there what can I accomplish in this time frame? Say for example if I wanted to see the Statue of Liberty would that take all day? Do I have to sign up in advance? What other must sees should I consider?
New York City
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LTown Cat
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HelenaCat95
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Re: New York City
I think Central Park is pretty cool.
I've never been to the Empire State Bldg, and I haven't been back to NYC since they rebuilt the WTC. I have visited Ground Zero, and it's pretty moving.
I haven't done it, but I've heard that Ellis Island is worth the trip.
I've never been to the Empire State Bldg, and I haven't been back to NYC since they rebuilt the WTC. I have visited Ground Zero, and it's pretty moving.
I haven't done it, but I've heard that Ellis Island is worth the trip.
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Grizlaw
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Re: New York City
Welcome! 
The Statue of Liberty is not an all-day thing, but it might take you a few hours (particularly if you're there on a heavy tourist day - just waiting in line for the boat and getting through security could take over an hour). Seeing Liberty Island itself takes as long as you want it to take, frankly...some people just set foot on the island, take a few pictures, and get back on the boat to Manhattan; others like to walk around the island, read everything there is about the history of the statue, etc. If you want to see the whole thing, you're probably looking at an hour on the island.
Ellis Island is on the same boat route as Liberty Island, so if you want to see Ellis Island too, that's pretty easy. And again, that can take as long as you want it to - some people spend a lot of time there; others just walk around for a few minutes and then head back to Manhattan.
No need to schedule this in advance if all you want to do is visit the island, but you do need tickets in advance if you want to go inside the statue and up to the crown. I've never actually done that before, so I don't know the details, but I know there is a website for it.
If you don't care about actually visiting the island itself but you just want an up-close view of the statue, one alternative you might consider is taking the Circle Line cruise around lower Manhattan. It's a one-hour narrated boat tour that takes you around both sides of lower Manhattan, and out around the statue. The narrators are pretty good, and they'll give you some interesting history on the city in addition to a view of the statue. It's a good alternative if you're on a limited time schedule, and you have other things you want to see. Tickets can be bought at Castle Clinton, which is the same place you'd go to buy tickets for the boat ride out to the statue.
After seeing the statue, the 9/11 site is an easy walk north from Battery Park. I doubt you'll spend much time there; despite the significance of the site, there really isn't a lot to see (although it's still under construction and I haven't been there in a while, so there may be more than I'm aware of).
The Empire State Building will take about an hour, unless you're there on a very heavy tourist day (in which case you might wait in line forever for the elevator).
In terms of other things to see - Central Park is nice. Broadway shows are always fun; if you go to the TKTS booth in Times Square, you can usually get discount tickets to any of the shows that've been out a while. If you're into art museums, the Met and the Guggenheim are both worth checking out, as is the MoMA.
You should also go to Times Square at night, just to see the lights and get some pictures.
In terms of food, you have to hit one of the good New York style pizza places (John's on Bleeker Street or near Times Square, or Lombardi's in SoHo). You should also get a corned beef or pastrami sandwich at one of the famous NY style delis (Katz's on Houston Street, or the Carnegie Deli at Broadway & 55th). Katz's is my favorite, and it also has some historical significance as the restaurant where the "orgasm scene" from When Harry Met Sally was filmed, if you care about that kind of thing.
Feel free to PM me if you have other questions, or if you'd like to have a beer while you're here. My office is only a couple blocks from the Empire State Building, so it'd probably be easy, and I'm always happy to chat with a Montanan our here.
The Statue of Liberty is not an all-day thing, but it might take you a few hours (particularly if you're there on a heavy tourist day - just waiting in line for the boat and getting through security could take over an hour). Seeing Liberty Island itself takes as long as you want it to take, frankly...some people just set foot on the island, take a few pictures, and get back on the boat to Manhattan; others like to walk around the island, read everything there is about the history of the statue, etc. If you want to see the whole thing, you're probably looking at an hour on the island.
Ellis Island is on the same boat route as Liberty Island, so if you want to see Ellis Island too, that's pretty easy. And again, that can take as long as you want it to - some people spend a lot of time there; others just walk around for a few minutes and then head back to Manhattan.
No need to schedule this in advance if all you want to do is visit the island, but you do need tickets in advance if you want to go inside the statue and up to the crown. I've never actually done that before, so I don't know the details, but I know there is a website for it.
If you don't care about actually visiting the island itself but you just want an up-close view of the statue, one alternative you might consider is taking the Circle Line cruise around lower Manhattan. It's a one-hour narrated boat tour that takes you around both sides of lower Manhattan, and out around the statue. The narrators are pretty good, and they'll give you some interesting history on the city in addition to a view of the statue. It's a good alternative if you're on a limited time schedule, and you have other things you want to see. Tickets can be bought at Castle Clinton, which is the same place you'd go to buy tickets for the boat ride out to the statue.
After seeing the statue, the 9/11 site is an easy walk north from Battery Park. I doubt you'll spend much time there; despite the significance of the site, there really isn't a lot to see (although it's still under construction and I haven't been there in a while, so there may be more than I'm aware of).
The Empire State Building will take about an hour, unless you're there on a very heavy tourist day (in which case you might wait in line forever for the elevator).
In terms of other things to see - Central Park is nice. Broadway shows are always fun; if you go to the TKTS booth in Times Square, you can usually get discount tickets to any of the shows that've been out a while. If you're into art museums, the Met and the Guggenheim are both worth checking out, as is the MoMA.
You should also go to Times Square at night, just to see the lights and get some pictures.
In terms of food, you have to hit one of the good New York style pizza places (John's on Bleeker Street or near Times Square, or Lombardi's in SoHo). You should also get a corned beef or pastrami sandwich at one of the famous NY style delis (Katz's on Houston Street, or the Carnegie Deli at Broadway & 55th). Katz's is my favorite, and it also has some historical significance as the restaurant where the "orgasm scene" from When Harry Met Sally was filmed, if you care about that kind of thing.
Feel free to PM me if you have other questions, or if you'd like to have a beer while you're here. My office is only a couple blocks from the Empire State Building, so it'd probably be easy, and I'm always happy to chat with a Montanan our here.
I work as an attorney so that I can afford good scotch, which helps me to forget that I work as an attorney.
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wbtfg
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Re: New York City
I was there for a similar time (day and a half) about 10 years ago or so and got a lot accomplished. The first afternoon I went to Letterman (register for tickets early) and then went to a broadway show (got half price tickets at the ticket booth in times square). I don't remember everything I did the next day, but I did statue of liberty, ellis island, top of the empire state building, madison square garden, times square, central park, kennedy center, 30 rock, grand central station, world trade center area, wall street...etc. and just walked around some cool neighborhoods looking for food, famous people, and the cash cab (I struck out on the last two). I was basically just checking things off a bucket list so I didn't do many museums or anything else that would take up a significant amount of time. Also, I was staying out of the city, so I had to ride the train in and out both days.LTown Cat wrote:Hate to detract from the recruiting info today but I have a question. Looks like I'll have an opportunity to go to NYC for a short time. I fly in at 5pm on a Friday, fly out at 10am on the following Sunday. That gives me one evening and one full day. I'm staying right downtown. The 911 memorial and probably the Empire State Bldg are on my list to see.
I was wondering from anyone who has been there or lived there what can I accomplish in this time frame? Say for example if I wanted to see the Statue of Liberty would that take all day? Do I have to sign up in advance? What other must sees should I consider?
I purchased a day pass on the subway and was amazed how quickly I could get around. I had a great time, and I'd love to go back with more time and money.
Monte eats corn the long way.
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LTown Cat
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Re: New York City
Awesome guys--thank you!
Grizlaw--once I know our schedule a bit better I might hit you up for a Friday evening brew. Trouble is I don't think we'd be downtown until probably close to 7. I imagine you'll be long gone for the weekend by then. Again thanks for the great info. I'll show all this to my co-worker who is going with me and we'll get a plan together.
Grizlaw--once I know our schedule a bit better I might hit you up for a Friday evening brew. Trouble is I don't think we'd be downtown until probably close to 7. I imagine you'll be long gone for the weekend by then. Again thanks for the great info. I'll show all this to my co-worker who is going with me and we'll get a plan together.
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Grizlaw
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Re: New York City
Sounds good. Definitely hit me up when know your schedule - I am usually gone from work by 7:00, but I sometimes end up in the city later than that (either because the wife gives me a hall pass, or because we get a sitter and she meets me in the city for dinner), so you never know...
I work as an attorney so that I can afford good scotch, which helps me to forget that I work as an attorney.
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BelgradeBobcat
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Re: New York City
Even if you do nothing but walk around it's all just awesome. The Empire State Building is really fun and it's a great view. Take a ride on one of the double decker tour busses if it's nice out. One of the coolest things we did when we were there, and it's free, is stroll over the Brooklyn Bridge. Then walk back or take the subway back. The most fun thing for me was just navigating the subways-but then I'm a big nerd about that sort of thing.