Broadway Tickets

[dabecs]

In New York I want to go and see Mary Poppins so I want as much info on going to see a Broadway show as possible!

Can anyone give me advice please?

 

[BobbyRach]

I have been to New York 3 times and have never pre-purchased tickets for a show having said that though if there is a show you really want to see you may like to look at doing this.

You can buy tickts from the Ticket Booth at Times Square and also at some hotels. We stayed at the Marriot at Times Square and just got our tickets from the lobby at the hotel. The ticket booth line at Times Square can be very LONG and usually the saving is not massive...

I am taking my 5 year old nephew to Disneyworld and New York for the first time in September and still deciding whether to take him to a broadway show. He is most excited about the Toys r Us being 4 levels and having a ferris wheel!

Whereabouts are you guys staying in New York??

 

[dabecs]

Thanks I have seen mentions of cheap tickets on the day but I don't really want to spend time queuing and even then might not get tickets.

We are staying in the financial district - we needed somewhere big because we have 6 in our party (hubby and me, our two girls and my parents). Where will you be staying? My girls are 5 and 6 so I will look forward to hearing what activities your nephew enjoys.

I have already bought tickets to the Rockettes Christmas spectacular, but I really wanted to go to Mary Poppins when it was here but my girls were a bit too young. I am taking them to see Annie on the school holidays

At the moment Mary Poppins tickets for the show I want are about $125 each - but by booking early I will get better seats...

 

[BobbyRach]

Yes i would not waste your time queing especially with 2 little girls! $125 each sounds like a good deal.

I can imagnie how hard it was to get accommodation for 6 people in NY. We are staying at the Mariott Times Square. I was tossing up for a long time of between there and Double Tree Guest Suites as I had read on these boards what a great place it is. But I have stayed at the Mariott before so went with that.

So far the only things my nephew has picked out to do is to go to an indoor skate park and Toys R Us. Obviously we will be doing more than that but he is obsessed with skateparks so may try to get him to one somewhere in the States while we are there.

I am thinking if we go to a broadway show we will see Spiderman.

Have you looked at the hop on hop off bus? I have never done it myself before as we generally walk but thinking this may be a good idea with my nephew as walking the blocks can be very long for kids...

Are your girls going to go to American Girl? I brought a friend's daughter a doll from there last year and she absolutely loves it. You can even get the same clothes for the kids as you can the doll!!

 

[dabecs]

Yes American girl is on my list!

We haven't told the girls we are going yet so no requests from them A skate park sounds fun!

I was thinking of taking hubby to Spiderman the musical but we are now thinking of going somewhere for dinner and out for drinks afterwards - just soaking up the late night NY atmosphere. My parents are happy to look after the girls

I am planning on looking into the hop on/hop off - same reason as you - I am worried that little legs will be exhausted. I haven't done any research into it yet...

I hope you do a trip report

 

[Jade+3]

I took DD6 to Mary Poppins last year. It was one of the highlights of our trip. I brought the tickets a few days before the performance using a code I found on mousesavers. The 2 tickets were a total of $130. We were on the mezzanine level. I was concerned that DD would not be able to see, but we were offered a booster cushion for her by the usher.

We got tickets for the hop on hop off bus from one of the guys in the red coats that you will see everywhere. He said he would do me a deal, and I only had to pay for 1 of our kids. Once we had paid he said that if they asked the age of our 5 year old, to say he was under 3. The bus stops were not very well sign posted, and some did not have a sign at all. I wish we had figured out the subway earlier, as that was a much easier way to get around. The kids all groan when the bus is mentioned. We did one of the loops, which took over 2 hours, in the rain. Kids were not impressed.

 

[dabecs]

I took DD6 to Mary Poppins last year. It was one of the highlights of our trip. I brought the tickets a few days before the performance using a code I found on mousesavers. The 2 tickets were a total of $130. We were on the mezzanine level. I was concerned that DD would not be able to see, but we were offered a booster cushion for her by the usher.

That is a good price! At the moment I can get mezzanine second row from the front just off to the side which would be great seats for the girls to see what was going on. I didn't know they would offer kids a cushion though - that would help a lot.

Everyone I know who has seen MP have had rave reviews, and to see it on Broadway =

We got tickets for the hop on hop off bus from one of the guys in the red coats that you will see everywhere. He said he would do me a deal, and I only had to pay for 1 of our kids. Once we had paid he said that if they asked the age of our 5 year old, to say he was under 3. The bus stops were not very well sign posted, and some did not have a sign at all. I wish we had figured out the subway earlier, as that was a much easier way to get around. The kids all groan when the bus is mentioned. We did one of the loops, which took over 2 hours, in the rain. Kids were not impressed.

My parents have been to NY a lot and my mum is a big fan of the subway - I just wondered if a bus would have a better view. I don't like the sound of the red coat man though sounds pretty dodgy!

 

[Jade+3]

The red coat man was dodgy as. The kids were getting tired, and DH was getting grumpy with them. I tried to avoid red coat man but DH was an easy target for him. Most expensive bus ride ever. We had another 2 days on the ticket, but the kids refused to get back on the bus. I got some great photos from the top of the bus, so yes, the view was good. The kids did not appreciate the view and complained the whole time.

Just found my receipt for Mary Poppins. We were row JJ, on the aisle. We had to go and get the cushions from a cloak room. There were heaps in there. The theatre was smaller than I was expecting. Afterwards we walked back to the hotel via Magnolia Bakery for cupcakes. A nice girly evening. We got back to our room at about 11.30pm and I felt quite safe walking around that late at night without DH. We stayed at Radio City Apartments, so not too far from the theatre.

From memory, the code was advertised on mousesavers a couple of months prior to our trip.

 

[dabecs]

We were row JJ, on the aisle.

From memory, the code was advertised on mousesavers a couple of months prior to our trip.

The tickets I was looking at are BB also on the aisle. I wouldn't mind sitting a few rows further back at half the price

I'll keep my eye on mousesavers - thanks for the tip

 

[Ms. Shuttergirl]

I took my kids to see Mary Poppins in New York in 2009 and it was a wonderful experience. We bought our tickets in advance because I wanted to be sure we had tickets but that mousesavers code sounds awesome.

 

[WAMUMOF4]

There is mouse savers code at the minute but it's only good till the 19th August we need the 26th so I am hoping they will extend it, the kids didn't want to see it here in Perth they are busting to see it in NY

 

[austraveler]

We are in New York in September as well, staying at the Affinia Manhattan. It is across the road from the Maddison Square Garden subway stop so I plan to use the subway a lot. I LOVE travel books and I wanted to mention one of my best NY ones. It is a restaurant guide written by a 12 year old and it is called Pines Picks. My boys (8, 11 and 12) are poring over it, marking the destinations on a map they printed out. They have the best brownies, calamari, and ice-cream all marked up.

 

[shushh]

I wrote this summary for a friend earlier in the year. Easier to cut and paste and you can choose which bits are helpful to you!

Musicals
I am assuming you want to watch a musical. Correct me if I'm wrong as there are plays on broadway as well. So the popular ones are still there. Mary Poppins, Jersey Boys, Wicked, Chicago, Lion King, mamma Mia, Phantom Of The Opera, Memphis etc. Buying advance tickets will set you back $100-$200 per ticket. Do this if you are set on watching a particular show at a particular time.

Other options:
1) Check for deals on the direct website of the production. Doesn't happen often for the popular shows! I checked the most popular ones for you already...
2) Broadway discount tickets online newsletters and websites. Once again you don't have time to stalk them for good prices.
3) TKTS Booth - http://www.tdf.org/TDF_ServicePage.aspx?id=56
Typically you get 25-50% off full price tickets but you need to line up the day of the show to buy the tickets. And what they sell will be dependent on what's left. The choices though are usually decent. For example this was what was offered last week.
ANYTHING GOES
BARRYMORE
CHICAGO
GODSPELL
HOW TO SUCCEED…
JERSEY BOYS
JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR
MAMMA MIA!
MARY POPPINS
MEMPHIS
ONCE
OTHER DESERT CITIES
PORGY AND BESS
PRISCILLA, QUEEN OF THE DESERT
ROCK OF AGES
SEMINAR
SHATNER’S WORLD
SISTER ACT
SPIDER-MAN
THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA
THE ROAD TO MECCA
VENUS IN FUR
WAR HORSE
WIT
4) Rush tickets at box office
Rush tickets are normally available either when the box office opens or a few hours before the production starts. Rush tickets are normally about $20-25 each. Sometimes a student ID is required to purchase tickets. Many times, box offices will only accept cash as payment for rush and standing room only tickets, so arrive at the box office prepared. With so many variables depending on the production and box office rules, the most accurate information can be found out about rush and standing room only tickets by calling the box office for the particular show you'd like to see. In my experience, they are very helpful and can even tell you which nights might be easiest for getting tickets.

In short, I'd recommend the last 2. First thing you must do is prepare a shortlist of the musicals that you are happy to see, say about 5 in order. The TKTS booth is often busy and people are impatient! Then I'd go to the TKTS site and make sure you're familiar with it. Where it is, how to buy tickets, where to line up, when it opens, etc. The Brooklyn one might be worth going to as it always less busy than the Times Sqaure one. The recommendation for Times Square is to get there 1 hour before it opens. Be aware that usually mornings are for matinee shows and booths open again at 3pm for evening shows.

Rush tickets are also worth it but a lot more work. Here is a good link on how to do it.
http://www.ehow.com/how_2064157_get-rush-tickets-broadway-show.html

Or if you don't want to wait in line and you don't want to do any work. Just buy full price...

 

[Anne_Aus]

I loved Mary Poppins on Broadway so much better than the show in Aus - even though I still enjoyed that

I used Travel Zoo for cheap tickets to Mary Poppins and Seminar

 

[BobbyRach]

We are in New York in September as well, staying at the Affinia Manhattan. It is across the road from the Maddison Square Garden subway stop so I plan to use the subway a lot. I LOVE travel books and I wanted to mention one of my best NY ones. It is a restaurant guide written by a 12 year old and it is called Pines Picks. My boys (8, 11 and 12) are poring over it, marking the destinations on a map they printed out. They have the best brownies, calamari, and ice-cream all marked up.

That book sounds awesome i might have to get it for my nephew! Where will you be there in September? We will be there from 15 to 19 September.

That was interesting about the hop on/hop off buses - it does not sound like a great experience. I might have to do some more research into that!!

 

[austraveler]

We are there from the 22nd to the 28th. You can get the book from borders online which happens to have a 20% off sale on right now.

 

[dabecs]

Thanks for all the help everyone!

I talked to hubby about it tonight and he thinks we should prebook - he said I would be more than $250 (the amount we could save if we got them half price) worth of sad if we missed out on tickets when we were there. And I think he is right.

I like the look of Pine's Picks - book depository has it for about $14 free shipping. Looks like a fun way to eat around NY

I really can't wait to read all the September traveler's trip reports - you will all have to be prompt so I can get ideas for our trip!

 

[Melbourne5]

Booked a few tickets last year Chicago,Priscilla queen of desert and cirque de soleil ) through broadwaybox.com very competitively priced, pre booked and fantastic seats. I note they have 2 current specials for Mary poppins at present. Good luck

 

[becpee]

Booked a few tickets last year Chicago,Priscilla queen of desert and cirque de soleil ) through broadwaybox.com very competitively priced, pre booked and fantastic seats. I note they have 2 current specials for Mary poppins at present. Good luck

I might have a look at that too, thanks

Mary Poppins is my pick, but I may be going on my own, pretty sure it's not DH's thing, although he has been known to surprise me before...

 

[DisneyGirlInOz]

We saw Mary Poppins on Broadway last year and it was wonderful. We were front row center and I loved every minute of it. We bought our tickets with the mousesavers code so we got a good deal but even if we had to pay full price I would have been happy to do so.

We also saw Wicked which was great as well