New York! New York!

archangel

archangel

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Mrs archangel has decided that I need to take her to New York for our 25th wedding anniversary...what I need is suggestions of places to stay and visit....of course I will have the camera but I am not really tourist orientated......all suggestions welcome....:)
 
New York is a fantastic place to visit, so much of it has been ingrained via popular culture and news events over the years that you will spend every turn of the next corner saying "wow look at that!"

It was a few years ago now that I went (pre 9/11) but stand out experiences for me were Ellis Island and the Statue of Lliberty, walking across the Brooklyn Bridge and visiting Central Park with snow on the ground on and the Subway was rather "interesting".

Make sure you get a bit off the beaten path for food as there are loads of great restaurants, be prepared for a bit of a diet / tailoring afterwards.

Have a great time

D
 
Walk the High Line.
 
Will be watching this with interest - wife's 40th next March plus our 10 year wedding anniversary so plan to spend a few days there too.
 
We went in October for 5 or 6 days.

Preferred the experience at Top of the Rock to the Empire State although the Empire state felt more historic. Grand central is quite easy to get to...it's on the subway. The library is also quite impressive architecturally and there are free audio tours, might be limited times, can't remember.

I wrote a few reviews on trip advisor. Just my opinion obviously but might help. This one is for B&H but think you can navigate to my others if you're interested.

https://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Attra...Reviews-B_H_Photo-New_York_City_New_York.html

Well worth a visit if you're close. My wife sounded more impressed with B&H than Macy's, although preferred the stock in Macy's... she's not into photography or tech.
 
Oh and the 9/11 memorial and museum. I'm not overly emotional but it was thought provoking and I thought quite tastefully balanced between being educational and respectful to the victims.
 
Went at the beginning of February day after the biggest snowstorm in 100 years, simply fantastic, but no matter how much time you have you wont be able to do it all. Prioritise!

If you want to do Statue of Liberty, book as soon as you know your dates... It books up very quickly particularly if you want to do the crown as well.

Ride the subway for a bit of fun, but walk as much as possible.. You can't see anything under the surface!

Make sure you do Top of the Rock at sunset, get the two visit ticket and do morning & evening, well worth it.

Brooklyn Bridge, walk across just before sunset and watch the sun go down under the bridge near Janes Carousel... Then walk back over the bridge at night, watch for the lunatic cyclists though!!

As mentioned 9/11 memorial, museum & Trade Centre are a must.. Jump on subway to last station & walk back along Broadway or 5th Avenue.. Will take a while, but it's a must.

Avoid the tourist trap places to eat, look for the specials and happy hours! Tripadvisor was spot on for us and kept us away from the chain stuff.

We had four & half days and have to go back as we ran out of time,

Have fun it's simply the best city I've ever visited!
 
you have to do it don't you ,all i got for my birthday last weekend was a weeks all inclusive for me and the wife in greece come september ,and with 14 other family members tagging along to ,nice to have grateful daughters init :banana::banana::banana::banana:
 
I'd suggest Airbnb for places to stay.
 
NY is incredibly expensive. I'd keep watching hotels.com and other booking sites for some real bargains until you see something truly tempting. I can't suggest anything to-do because I can't say I enjoyed any of it - I found it to be a bigger version of Birmingham - Glassgow crossover.
 
I found NY cheaper than SF, LA or Chicago (although living in SF is cheaper than visiting :-) )
NY is a fantastic city.
As mentioned previously, prioritise as there's really too much to see / do in one visit.
 
What I love (not) about NY and probably this applies to the rest of the US is their tipping system. When I first went to the states customer service was good and attentive and they only expected 10 - 15%. Now, service is poor and the bill now come pre calculated with tips of 18, 20 & 22%. As much as the US appears cheap it's because no one factors in the tip. And do they really get peeved if you don't tip or at the right level. Trouble is, everyone now expects tipping.
 
LongLensPhotography said:
re food at US - its best to only eat "organic" and avoid tap water as it is full of fluoride (just like in the midlands here) and other very nasty things.
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Please. The food and the water are fine FFS. o_O
 
skiking said:
What I love (not) about NY and probably this applies to the rest of the US is their tipping system. When I first went to the states customer service was good and attentive and they only expected 10 - 15%. Now, service is poor and the bill now come pre calculated with tips of 18, 20 & 22%. As much as the US appears cheap it's because no one factors in the tip. And do they really get peeved if you don't tip or at the right level. Trouble is, everyone now expects tipping.
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I found that although the bill had the breakdown of the tip, it was never a must pay it attitude. On many occasions if not all I ignored that and paid a tip at a level I believed to be appropriate. This is exactly the same as I would do in England, in fact in the bars I didn't tip at all. Why tip for someone pulling a pint or passing you a bottle, might be on the bill but don't have to pay it. You're never going to meet these folks again, so why get hung up on it f they get p'd off..

But, I will agree that NYC is expensive. We found beer in particular to be very expensive; food, not really. So much choice and as long as you don't do the chain restaurants in the tourist areas and look for the happy hours, (usually 3 or 4 hours) then food was excellent and a better quality at a price in many cases cheaper than London, Manchester, or Leeds. The chain restaurants were ridiculous money, we checked menus in windows and the prices were crazy. Avoid like the plague!

It was all about research before we went and ignoring recommendations of Lonely Planet!

JMHO
 
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LongLensPhotography said:
re food at US - its best to only eat "organic" and avoid tap water as it is full of fluoride (just like in the midlands here) and other very nasty things.
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I'm surprised there is not more of a backlash against the doctoring of drinking water with fluoride - it apparently lowers IQ and makes people placid so they are then less likely to object
 
LongLensPhotography said:
NY is incredibly expensive. I'd keep watching hotels.com and other booking sites for some real bargains until you see something truly tempting. I can't suggest anything to-do because I can't say I enjoyed any of it - I found it to be a bigger version of Birmingham - Glassgow crossover.
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I felt much the same about NY. I can't confirm the Brum/Glasgow comparison but I live inside the M25 and it was a bit underwhelming having got used to London. Because of the way we're delivered images of NY over here you just expect it to be a cut above everywhere else. Having said that if you don't live in a city it is a great place for a long weekend.

We went the year after 9/11. Our experience of NY was fine overall but the best bits of the USA are between the cities.

That doesn't really help the OP, sorry. All the above suggestions are spot on but I would add, if you can stretch to it, a helicopter tour is supposed to be amazing. We decided against it (idiots!) but our neighbours did it and said it was their highlight.
 
boliston said:
I'm surprised there is not more of a backlash against the doctoring of drinking water with fluoride - it apparently lowers IQ and makes people placid so they are then less likely to object
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Key word there is "apparently"; often used alongside " allegedly ", and rarely in the same sentence as " proof ". ;)
 
Been three times for a week at a time and will look to go back next year- love it.
We've stayed at Hotel Chandler, Park Central and Marriott Marquis. The nicest was Hotel Chandler, best location was Park Central but the Marquis was too big and in the middle of Times Square which I wouldn't stay near again.
As to what to do, the list is endless but some of our favourites:
Breakfast in Brooklyn (Clarkes Restaurant) and walk back over the bridge
Food Tours of New York (Done Greenwich Village and China Town)
One World Observatory
The Highline
The Beast Boat
Barnaby Greengrass (Jewish diner)
Palma Restaurant
Top of The Rock
The Ride
Central Park
Helicopter tour (Zip aviation)
9/11 museum
5th Ave shops
B & H cameras

the list goes on!
 
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IS it best to stay central New York or travel in each day?
 
We stayed quite central, just down a side street off Times Square. It had the advantage that we could easily walk round Times square in an evening and walk back from a show or the Rockefeller centre.

We had a subway station at each end of the street so it was easy to get wherever we wanted.

Didn't notice the noise much. We had bad luck with some scaffolding going up right outside the hotel one night and another night there were a few horns beeping in the street because of road works in Times Square. I don't think it would be a problem normally. Apart from traffic queuing for the road works the street itself was remarkably quiet considering it joined the square.

Either way you're going to need to travel to get to all the sights. We preferred the subway. We could have walked a bit more but there was quite a bit or walking anyway and the subway saved time.
 
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Notice lots of things to do, but not much for where to stay.

Took the Mrs for here 50th back in February (there for the big freeze).

Stayed at the Hotel Metro on W 35 Street between 5th and 6th Avenue (roof terrace with superb view of Empire State which was just over a block away), subway station on the corner of the block, free wine at 17:00 to 18:00 daily. Really close to Macy's if the wife wants a bit of (expensive) shopping. 5-10 minute walk from Times Square.

We actually walked up to Rockerfeller Centre, Central Park and the American Museum of Natural History (we do enjoy walking), and down to Battery Park (for Liberty/Ellis Island) and WTC.
 
Tony_M said:
Notice lots of things to do, but not much for where to stay.

Took the Mrs for here 50th back in February (there for the big freeze).

Stayed at the Hotel Metro on W 35 Street between 5th and 6th Avenue (roof terrace with superb view of Empire State which was just over a block away), subway station on the corner of the block, free wine at 17:00 to 18:00 daily. Really close to Macy's if the wife wants a bit of (expensive) shopping. 5-10 minute walk from Times Square.

We actually walked up to Rockerfeller Centre, Central Park and the American Museum of Natural History (we do enjoy walking), and down to Battery Park (for Liberty/Ellis Island) and WTC.
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That sounds nicely placed :-)
 
Really wasn't excited about going to NYC, but loved it. Of course it's not for everyone. I know I am in the minority in thinking Benidorm is a s*** hole, but hundreds of thousands of Brits go there every year.
 
archangel said:
IS it best to stay central New York or travel in each day?
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I do quite a lot of city breaks (never been a typical beach holiday type of person!) and find that more central generally means smaller rooms & less facilities for a specific budget than a hotel with a less convenient location. The way I look at it is that I would rather be out seeing things and doing things than stuck in a hotel so if the rooms are small and the hotel does not have a fancy pool or gym then no great loss to me. Also it's sometimes handy to pop back to the hotel during the day which would be a pain if it's not central. Trip advisor is a good guide and some central independent (non chain) hotels can be good value.
 
viv1969 said:
Key word there is "apparently"; often used alongside " allegedly ", and rarely in the same sentence as " proof ". ;)
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Chemicals are well researched and documented. You can read up should you wish to consider the truth

HF MSDS http://www.fishersci.com/msdsproxy?...o=A463-500+&vendorId=VN00033897&storeId=10652

Hazard Statements May be corrosive to metals Fatal if swallowed Fatal in contact with skin Causes severe skin burns and eye damage May cause respiratory irritation Fatal if inhaled ______________
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HPF6 MSDS http://www.strem.com/downloads/MSDS/93-1531.pdf

Looks appetising so far but it re-calcifies your teeth or allegedly they say so. You get plenty from toothpaste and ingesting the poison doesn't do anything for the teeth. At the same time I know as a chemist that it slowly eats away the bones and causes all sorts of skeletal problems at old age. It is also know to induce cancer.

And if that is not enough recent medical studies show that it is a neurotoxin http://www.thelancet.com/journals/laneur/article/PIIS1474-4422(13)70278-3/fulltext#article_upsell

It is your right to consume toxic chemicals but please don't advocate that the rest of us should follow or be unknowingly misled.
 
LongLensPhotography said:
Chemicals are well researched and documented. You can read up should you wish to consider the truth

HF MSDS http://www.fishersci.com/msdsproxy?productName=A463500&productDescription=HYDROFLUORIC+ACID+OPTIMA+500ML&catNo=A463-500+&vendorId=VN00033897&storeId=10652



HPF6 MSDS http://www.strem.com/downloads/MSDS/93-1531.pdf

Looks appetising so far but it re-calcifies your teeth or allegedly they say so. You get plenty from toothpaste and ingesting the poison doesn't do anything for the teeth. At the same time I know as a chemist that it slowly eats away the bones and causes all sorts of skeletal problems at old age. It is also know to induce cancer.

And if that is not enough recent medical studies show that it is a neurotoxin http://www.thelancet.com/journals/laneur/article/PIIS1474-4422(13)70278-3/fulltext#article_upsell

It is your right to consume toxic chemicals but please don't advocate that the rest of us should follow or be unknowingly misled.
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And drinking bottled water....eating (supposed) organic food on a holiday will make not one jot of difference to your long term health.

Most bottled water is a rip off, and much of so called organic food is no such thing.

Live your life chasing impossible nutritional dreams if you wish, but don't advocate that the rest of us should lose sleep attempting to do so.
 
viv1969 said:
And drinking bottled water....eating (supposed) organic food on a holiday will make not one jot of difference to your long term health.

Most bottled water is a rip off, and much of so called organic food is no such thing.

Live your life chasing impossible nutritional dreams if you wish, but don't advocate that the rest of us should lose sleep attempting to do so.
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healthy lifestyle doesn't have to stop after holiday?! That will and does make a big difference on long term health

parts of UK including midlands and north east England are also unfortunate enough to receive fluoride treatment and all the other contamination http://www.bfsweb.org/onemillion/09 One in a Million - The Extent of Fluoridation.pdf . I wonder why London doesn't get any?! I am sure they still pull enough of antibiotics, antidepressants and pesticides from Thames though.
Tap water may be safe in places with deep underground water reservoirs and particularly in mountainous areas otherwise I wouldn't touch it now. Bleach makes it taste and smell rancid, destroys flavour of good quality teas, but that is the least of your worries...
 
LongLensPhotography said:
healthy lifestyle doesn't have to stop after holiday?! That will and does make a big difference on long term health

parts of UK including midlands and north east England are also unfortunate enough to receive fluoride treatment and all the other contamination http://www.bfsweb.org/onemillion/09 One in a Million - The Extent of Fluoridation.pdf . I wonder why London doesn't get any?! I am sure they still pull enough of antibiotics, antidepressants and pesticides from Thames though.
Tap water may be safe in places with deep underground water reservoirs and particularly in mountainous areas otherwise I wouldn't touch it now. Bleach makes it taste and smell rancid, destroys flavour of good quality teas, but that is the least of your worries...
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I never said anything refuting the presence of fluoride in water etc.
It's the dietary advice re a short trip to NY that made me laugh.
I'll leave you to your conspiracy theories.
 
LongLensPhotography said:
re food at US - its best to only eat "organic" and avoid tap water as it is full of fluoride (just like in the midlands here) and other very nasty things.
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And watch out for those black helicopters as well :) But organic steaks and import beer it is :thumbs: :)
 
archangel said:
IS it best to stay central New York or travel in each day?
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I'd stay central, for work I often have done it the other way around (stayed central - well Manhattan - and travelled out for work to Islandia but it is quite a trip and I was lucky enough to be provided with a driver), and whilst I haven't used it in the US I would try airbnb as well. Had fantastic success with that across Europe and stayed in some amazing locations. New York caters for all tastes through a variety of locations. I quite like the West Side (Village) but your preferences may be different.
 
MFlip said:
We stopped in 'The Sanctuary' 47th Street between 6th and 7th Avenues. One of the few hotels we found that included breakfast.
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We deliberately choose a hotel that doesn't include breakfast as we like eating in different establishments. NY breakfasts are part of the experience.
 
Craig1912 said:
We deliberately choose a hotel that doesn't include breakfast as we like eating in different establishments. NY breakfasts are part of the experience.
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Damn right, you gotta breakfast in an authentic NY diner!
 
Just use airbnb, way better than hotels, especially if you're not going to use the hotel facilities.

Last time we stayed in West Village, near meatpackers which I have to say I loved. Middleclass downtown vibe with easy access to pretty much everywhere.

For me a must is the walk over Brooklyn bridge and then exploring DUMBO a bit, fantastic views and a different feel to to Manhattan.

Also, walk along the sky train (I think it's called), that is also fantastic.

My photos from November last year are here: https://www.flickr.com/photos/72341657@N02/albums/72157660869522016
 
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Nawty said:
Just use airbnb, way better than hotels, especially if you're not going to use the hotel facilities.

Last time we stayed in West Village, near meatpackers which I have to say I loved. Middleclass downtown vibe with easy access to pretty much everywhere.

For me a must is the walk over Brooklyn bridge and then exploring DUMBO a bit, fantastic views and a different feel to to Manhattan.

Also, walk along the sky train (I think it's called), that is also fantastic.

My photos from November last year are here: https://www.flickr.com/photos/72341657@N02/albums/72157660869522016
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Do you mean the Highline?
Sky train runs from JFK to downtown, and I'm fairly sure they discourage walking it :LOL: ;)
 
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