Help me plan surprise trip to NYC

[dr&momto2boys]

My DH turns 40 in September. I'd really like to give him a BIG surprise! He loves to travel and has always wanted to go to New York. I need help with a few things...

I've never been so please help me create an itinerary for our short trip including recommendations on where to dine. He's not a theater fan, but may go to mainstream shows if there's something really great. He loves touristy stuff and major landmarks. I'm thinking we should go the Friday before Labor Day weekend and fly back on Sunday morning.

Since this IS the budget board...any money saving tips or discounts would be appreciated! I do want a great experience though including staying at a four star or greater hotel. Any recommendations? I know nothing--not even which airport we should fly into.

I could use some help figuring out how to surprise him too considering he does all the finances. I'm thinking of getting a credit card to my business address (I own the business) that he would not know about. I would have to make up some reason to cut a significant check to the office manager ($1000? for air and hotel) and have her write a check to the credit card to pay it off. That's all I can come up with. Any simpler ideas?

Finally, I'll have to let DH's mother in on the plan and ask her to watch the kids for the days we're gone. I'll have to tell DH I've planned a weekend in Chicago(close to us) or something so we can prepare the kids that they'll stay over with Grandma and Grandpa. DH can pack for himself then too, and just be surprised we're going to NYC instead of an hour away to Chicago.

Hope this isn't too complicated. Mostly I'm looking help on creating a great itinerary, but in case anyone has suggestions on the how to surprise him part, I thought I'd include my situation! Thanks!

 

[semo233]

Since this is a surprise for him, you could gather the details together and let him pick what you will do. Tourist stuff includes:
$ Empire State Building
? Twin Towers Memorial
$ Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island
Grand Central Station
$ Radio City Music Hall
Rockefeller Center
$ Museums (too many to list!)
Times Square
Central Park ($ Carriage Ride)
United Nations
$ Cruise around Manhattan

Good Luck and have a super time!

 

[krcit]

Check out travelzoo for hotel deals or Hotwire/Priceline. Betterbidding has really great info and they will walk you through how to bid on priceline. I f he loves the touristy stuff I suggest staying right in Times Square. Since his is 40-my age-I really recommend seeing Rock of Ages. It is not your typical Broadway show. It's full of 80's music and it's very funny. I loved it and can't wait to go back. I also loved doing the tour bus thingy. I have to try to remember the name of the pass..it's a really good price for a lot of touristy stuff. You can buy a one, 2, 3 etc pass.

 

[mjkacmom]

If you want to take the ferry to the statue, get tickets ahead of time. It might be too late to get into the crown - check online. We tend to pair of a visit to the Museum of Natural History with a walk over to Central Park, where you can rent bikes or boats. It's really an incredible park (and huge). I'd do Top of the Rock over the ESB. I'm guessing you might need more than $1000 for air and hotel on a holiday weekend.

 

[krcit]

Ok, I remembered the name of the pass. It's the Explorer Pass. Another fun thing to do is Accomplice NY.It's like an interactive play where you get clues and have to figure them out to find your next destination. My dds and I did that last spring and loved it. I'm sure there is a website that explains it a bit more. They have a Village one whcih I bet is a blast...great way to see the Village.

 

[bamor]

Hi
As far as hotels, check travelzoo and the NYC lodging specials.
You could bid on a 4Star through Priceline. www.betterbidding.com or www.biddingfortravel.com are two sites with good info on priceline.

Metropolitan Museum of Art and Central Park (the museum is suggested donation)
Rockefeller Center and Top of the Rock (do this and skip the Empire State Bldg) then walk around Times Square....possibly see a show
Take the Subway to Brooklyn and walk the Brooklyn Bridge back into Manhattan then take the Staten Island Ferry past the Statue of Liberty
Walk around Chinatown, Soho, and Little Italy
Lower East Side Tenemant Museum
5th ave, the Library, and Bryant Park

www.broadwaybox.com for theater discounts
www.hopstop.com for walking and/or subway directions
www.menupages.com for restaurants by area
There is a ton of GREAT advice on the Trip Advisor New York City Forum!!!

 

[dr&momto2boys]

You guys are awesome! This gives me a ton of stuff to look into already! We're actually planning to go the weekend before Labor Day weekend--sorry I worded that wrong. Figured that would save me money and be a bit less busy!

 

[Halle]

A friend of mine planned a surprise trip for her DH and she paid for her groceries with a check and got as much cash back each time that the grocery store allowed.

 

[dr&momto2boys]

A friend of mine planned a surprise trip for her DH and she paid for her groceries with a check and got as much cash back each time that the grocery store allowed.

Good idea, but my DH does the grocery shopping!

The only way I can see to pull it off on him is to somehow skim off my own business. (For which he also keeps the books.) It sounds like DH is controlling or something but that's not the case. That's just part of his job division--along with groceries, laundry, and most of homeschooling! He's a stay at home Dad w/ an MBA. I just happened to make the most money so when we started having kids he got to stay home and I continued working. It makes the most sense for us.

 

[Halle]

Didn't realize your name DR and Mom , my DH is a physician too and I do all of the office finances like your DH does! Makes it much easier for me to surprise him than you to surprise your DH.
Back to NYC I agree with the previous posters regarding things to do. If you do a carriage ride be sure to tell the driver what you want regarding history of CP. Some drivers are better than others.
A great hotel but a bit pricey is the Marriott Millenium in Times Square. There is a revolving lounge/restaurant at the top with spectacular views. We went up for drinks after a play, very special.
There are also the Circle Line Cruises, grew up in Jersey so I never took one but BF did and thoroughly enjoyed, it.
Best of luck with the planning.

 

[bamor]

Brunch at Norma's in the Le Parker Meridien. Very close to Central Park.

 

[daisy2jae]

a romantic walk in central park

 

[dr&momto2boys]

Brunch at Norma's in the Le Parker Meridien. Very close to Central Park.

a romantic walk in central park

Ahhh, those both sound sooo good! It's obviously been a long time since just me and DH have gotten away! (Pre-kids.) I'm not sure I'll be able to leave our 18month old with Grandma. My boys are just ready now at 3 and 5 to start spending the night anywhere! So she might be tagging along. It will still be relatively romantic!

Didn't realize your name DR and Mom , my DH is a physician too and I do all of the office finances like your DH does! Makes it much easier for me to surprise him than you to surprise your DH.
Back to NYC I agree with the previous posters regarding things to do. If you do a carriage ride be sure to tell the driver what you want regarding history of CP. Some drivers are better than others.
A great hotel but a bit pricey is the Marriott Millenium in Times Square. There is a revolving lounge/restaurant at the top with spectacular views. We went up for drinks after a play, very special.
There are also the Circle Line Cruises, grew up in Jersey so I never took one but BF did and thoroughly enjoyed, it.
Best of luck with the planning.

Great suggesions, thanks! The revolving restaurant sounds cool!

 

[Lucky4me]

It's hard to surprise my dh because he handles most our financial stuff.
One time I opened a new credit card in my name, booked the whole trip and the bill was waiting for him when we got home. I let him know about it on the trip, so it was all good.
Bill me later might be something you're interested in-you can use it for the airfare and hotel interest free for 90 days.

We've stayed in several 4 star hotels through Priceline and Hotwire in Manhattan, all under $135 a night. Midtown East and Times square are both central areas with great hotels, walking or train distance to everything.
I would start looking at Priceline and Hotwire a couple of months before you were ready to travel. You won't be disappointed in any 4* you get in those areas.

I agree with skipping the Empire state building and instead going to the top of the rock. I've heard Jersey Boys is the must see Broadway performance this year. Central Park, China Town, a museum, Statue of Liberty, and Times square are all first timer must sees. I would suggest leaving your baby with Grandma if at all possible. You will still be able to do some things with her, but the play, romantic dinner and possibly the museum will probably have to wait. Also, Chinatown is wall to wall people. Very hard to navigate a stroller through there most days. You will just see a lot less with her. But that means you can come back again, so it's all good.

Have a great time!

 

[simonsmom]

agree that top of the rock is a must do ! also maybe the red double decker bus tours (you can get on and off at will). we bought a 2 days pass thru expdia pretty cheapwhen they were running a special. you can also buy top of the rock discount passes ahead o time thru them. look under activities

 

[micheleq]

I know you said DH isn't a big theater fan, but Rock of Ages is a great musical. It's all music from the hair bands of the 1980's! Think Journey, Whitesnake, you get the point, music that took me back to high school (I'll be 38). If you sign up at www.Playbill.com there are alot of discounts out there right now.

There are lots of great things in/about NYC. My DH just went to a little bar in Grand Central called The Campbell Apartment - it was Vanderbilt's private apt. in GCT and is now a bar. Little things like that are fun to do. There are also some great walking tours of lower Manhattan centered around food (Chinatown, Little Italy, Jewish foods).

September in the City is amazing. Weather should be great. Go to the top of the Met for a drink at sunset! There's an amazing view of Central Park from up there. Have fun!

 

[ShootingStarMom2]

I took DH on a NY trip for his 30th. I surprised him with a dinner cruise on a boat called the Bateaux. It was awesome! It's a glass enclosed boat and all the tables were along the window or faced outwards so you could cruise along and see the skyline at night. Try to get near the window but don't worry if you sit in the middle. I think the view was better from there anyway! We went near the Statue of Liberty as well. It was terribly windy that night but it was so worth it. The cruise was out of Chelsea Pier.

 

[Donnainnj]

I don't know if it would work for you, but you may want to look into CityPass. Do a search and you will find it. It offers a lot of the touristy things to do, with a discount.
Donna

 

[ennisb]

Flight: You can fly into any of the three airports but if you plan to stay in Mid-town area than Newark airport in NJ is less than 30minutes from mid-town by cab.

Dinner: Another great place is Patsy's on 57th famous for their secret red sauce. Sinatra loved to eat there. $$$ but very good

Shows: Yup Jersey Boys, Wicked, Mamma Mia, and Marry Poppins are all very good

As so many others have said SOHO, the Village,Central Park, 5th Ave so many nice (free) things todo just walking around and enjoying the city.

 

[clori]

For now I would only book a refundable hotel. I'm going to NYC in April and am now starting to find good deals. I like travelzoo for hotel deals. I'm traveling with my sister and two girls. We will probably get the www.newyorkcitypass.com.