You've got 24 hrs in NYC...On your mark, get set..GO!

[ZoeBell]

On the spur of the moment I looked up hotels in NYC for Labor Day. Apparently not many people want to be in NYC on Labor Day. Booked the Hilton Times Square for under $100.

It's going to be a quick whirlwind trip. Driving in the wee early morning for a 6 hr drive to NJ and take the NYWaterway Ferry in.

So we got about 24-30hrs in NYC for myself and my teenage daughter. What should we do?

Thanks!

 

[mrsklamc]

Well I've never been to NYC so this may not be good advice, but I would try to see the WTC memorial and Newsies. Maybe the Statue of Liberty & visit Central Park.

 

[mommyto3girls]

You should see a Broadway show!

 

[Lisa_M]

My sister and I did this a few years ago. Took the bus in and stayed overnight and left late the next day. We had tickets ahead of time to a show, but you could go to the TCKTS booth in Time Square for discount tickets (although I think Broadway is dark on Mondays so you may be out of luck for the major shows). We went to Central Park, FAO Schwartz, Harry Potter memorabilia exhibit in the Discovery Center, Times Square, a yarn shop, the Empire State Building and Rockefeller Center. We also ate dinner at this great Italian place just off of Times Square. Very reasonable and VERY good. I'll try to think of the name. We also went to Cafe Un Deux Trois for lunch the day we arrived, which we always try to eat there when we go. Got cupcakes at Magnolia Bakery. Took the subway down to Chinatown/Little Italy and ate lunch there the next day.

The great thing about NYC is you can just do whatever you want. There is something there for anyone's interests.

Can't believe I was able to track this down online based on what I remember, but the Italian place we went to was Joe G's http://joegrestaurant.com/home.html It was recommended to us by the hotel we were staying at. The restaurant is downstairs and a bit narrow, but very tasty food. I'm posting this so I can track it down when I go back to NYC

 

[JillianMarie]

Personally, I'd head straight to the high line, go uptown to the Met and then maybe back downtown for a show. I would not, however, eat or hang out near Times Square. If either of you are history buffs, I really enjoyed Ellis Island.

 

[Where'sPiglet?]

Ellis Island is still closed while they continue to repair Sandy damage. The Statue of Liberty has reopened. However, if I only had 24 hours, I would skip visiting the island. The lines for the ferry can get very long and visiting the island can easily take several hours. If you want to get a glimpse of the Statue of Liberty for free, the Staten Island Ferry sails pretty close to it as it passes. It takes about 30 minutes each direction.

24 hours is just not enough time in NYC! I'd have a very difficult time deciding what to do. I'd try to see something on Broadway and visit Central Park and/or the Highline (an old elevated train track converted to a park). I'd maybe take the A train to High Street Station in Brooklyn and then walk back into Manhattan over the Brooklyn Bridge. (When you get off at High Street, take the exit closest to Cranberry Street, cross the street (Cadman Plaza W) into the park, and follow the curved path towards the left and it puts you at the stairs to the bridge.)

That neighborhood (DUMBO) is also home to the Grimaldi's Pizza. Next door to Grimaldi's is Juliana's, which also has great pizza and you'll likely find a much shorter line. Brooklyn Bridge park is also very nice, and there is often a taco cart called Calexico in the area. They have great burritos.

I'd also do some shopping. No tax on clothing or footwear items that are under $110.

I'd also consider a museum if I had time. There are so many to choose from. I like the Lower East Side Tenement Museum and the MTA Transit Museum (which is closed this weekend); those two are often overlooked. Check mta.info for information about weekend subway work that affects schedules and stops if you plan to take the subway to any of your adventures.

Enjoy your trip!

 

[ZoeBell]

Thanks everyone for the ideas! I'll be considering them all and formulating a plan of action. I know it's only a short time in NY..but we are going to make the best of it. WE can actually have longer on Tuesday. I just want to be back over to NJ and on the ride by 5pm. Doesn't really matter what time we get home. I just want to get in more familiar roads before it's gets super dark.

 

[mchllevns]

If you are taking the waterway from the Weehawkin area, you can also stop in at Carlo's Bakery (Cake Boss) in Hoboken before you leave NJ...

Macy's, Disney Store, and the like are fun...lots of shops on "Fashion Ave"...a Broadway show if you can is more than worth it.

If you are taking the Waterway there are buses that run loops depending on where you want to go...you may want to check out the website ahead of time to see the bus routes.

 

[msmama]

If I only had 24 hours I'd stick in mid-town. Lots of delays and reroutes on the subways on the weekends and my guess is that Labor Day would be the same (though I don't know that for sure). So I'd wear walking shoes and avoid the subway to maximize time for other stuff.

Once is an amazing show if you're looking for broadway. I've seen it several times now (like a pp said, broadway is usually dark on Mondays but I'd guess not on Labor Day).

What kind of stuff are you into? The met, the natural history museum and MOMA are all within walking distance of Times Square. Maybe picnic in Central Park?

Have fun!

 

[clh2]

Our biggest disappointment when we went to NYC was that that many of their museums are closed on Mondays. Unfortunately - that was the day that would have worked best for us. Of course - this does give us a reason to go back...

Now - while some theaters are dark on Mondays - we saw Newsies on a Monday! We LOVED that production!

If the 9/11 Memorial interests you - you will need tickets in advance.

Load the HOPSTOP application onto your smartphone if you have one - it is a great app!

Have a great time!

 

[meajuly5]

I would see a show, shop on fifth and Madison, and/ or tea at the plaza hotel. Good food court there as well! Your daughter would probably like shopping in Chinatown or soho

 

[mmounsey]

We did a quick three day trip earlier this year for my fortieth...


Here's some of what we did:

The met
Moma
Harry potter at discovery Times Square
Wicked
Stardust diner -right after wicked...great way to end the night
Grays papaya
Rockefeller center
Top of the rock
Times Square-Disney store
Tiffany's
Apple store
Fao
Lego store
Staten Island ferry


That's what I think of off the top of my head, we had some great pizza, black and white cookies, churros and hot chocolate ( much needed in February!), pretzels, bagels, and a great burger at the spotted pig.

We walked, took cabs, and the subway(that was fun), and I'd go back in a heartbeat.

Absolute favorites were wicked, the met, and hp. And moma. And the churros.

Wished we had time for: Chinatown, more of Central Park...we drove by in a cab.

And grays papaya was the best.

I think I'm ready to go back now. Have fun!

 

[ElenaRN]

Just had family in from Cali and this was our sight seeing day schedule (bear in mind we got a late start-noon, so you can probably fit more in):

Took subway to Financial District and walked to 911 Memorial- FYI - you do NOT need advance tickets, but the line is much quicker if you do have them. Be prepared for high security checks. Also, 911 Museum is not open yet.

Walked over the SI Ferry took the ride to SI- best free view of Statue of Liberty IMO.

Once in SI walked to the 911 memorial there- about a 5-10 min walk from ferry station.

Took return trip on ferry to city and walked past Stock Exchange, bull and Trinity Church.

There is a free Native American Museum down there also. My cousins husband is into NA history so we spent some time there as well.

We ate at Fraunces Tavern- its a cool spot where George Washington gave his farewell speech. There is an Irish microbrewery that is associated with Fraunces now and the beer selection is huge. If you eat/drink there you'll get free admission to a small museum upstairs while you wait.

We ended there bc my cousin and I are both 5 month pregnant and were exhausted.

But I would suggest taking the subway up to Top of the Rock. If you can get tickets for sunset, it is a beautiful view.

I love Broadway shows, but I would tend not to recommend that, if you only have one day.
It takes up a lot of time and there is so much to see and do.

A walk through Central Park is nice too. If you enter around W70 St- you can walk to duck pond and see the famous bow bridge were many movies were filmed.

Hope I helped.

 

[ZoeBell]

Thanks for even more suggestions.

I like the idea of starting downtown(can you still I've been obsessively reading up on NYC?) doing the Staten Island Ferry and WTC. and then working our way back uptown. The WTC is the only thing *I* want to do while we are there.

While I'd love to see a Broadway show, there are only limited shows tomorrow evening and with only limited time I think we should spend it more wisely.

But I think we'll be eating at the Stardust Diner. That looks fun and I think my daughter will get a kick out of it.

I also decided we are going to get up about 5:30 on Tuesday and head over to the Today show/explore in the early morning hours. Then we can head back to the hotel to chill/rest/shower/sleep before noon checkout. If we are ready to leave we then can, if not we'll have the hotel hold our bags.

I'm so excited!

 

[nycdisneygal]

Our biggest disappointment when we went to NYC was that that many of their museums are closed on Mondays. Unfortunately - that was the day that would have worked best for us. Of course - this does give us a reason to go back...

The Met is now open o n mondays!!

 

[cobright]

On the spur of the moment I looked up hotels in NYC for Labor Day. Apparently not many people want to be in NYC on Labor Day. Booked the Hilton Times Square for under $100.

It's going to be a quick whirlwind trip. Driving in the wee early morning for a 6 hr drive to NJ and take the NYWaterway Ferry in.

So we got about 24-30hrs in NYC for myself and my teenage daughter. What should we do?

Thanks!

1. Take the staton island ferry round trip. It's free, and you get a great view of the statue of liberty.
2. Take the Roosevelt Island Tramway round trip. It's included on the daily metro-pass card and you get a great view of the eastern river.
3. Walk the Brooklyn bridge then take transit up to DUMBO (down under manhattan bridge overpass) to watch some hipsters eat artisinal cheese.
4. Buy a slice of pizza from Grimaldis.
5. Tour the United Nations building, free or close to it.
6. Get a skyscraper deli sandwich from Carnegie Deli
7. Go see Central Park conservatory and watch them sail RC sailboats like in stuart little.
8. Visit the Strand Book store.
9. Walk through grand central station and see the building blown up by michael bay 900 times.
10. Walk through Chinatown. Maybe buy a good knockoff handbag (wait for someone wlking buy mumbling "handbag handbag handbag..." then say, "Handbag!" to them then follow them to a backroom or basement to shop the good stuff. They won't murder you, I promise.

Most of that list starts at Battery Park and moves north (some exceptions) But this is a full day that will not break any budget.

 

[Where'sPiglet?]

1. Walk the Brooklyn bridge then take transit up to DUMBO (down under manhattan bridge overpass) to watch some hipsters eat artisinal cheese.
2. Buy a slice of pizza from Grimaldis.

My friend lives in DUMBO. I'll have to ask her about the cheese.

You cannot buy pizza by the slice at Grimaldi's; they only sell whole pies....and cash only.

 

[cobright]

My friend lives in DUMBO. I'll have to ask her about the cheese.

You cannot buy pizza by the slice at Grimaldi's; they only sell whole pies....and cash only.

My office used to get a Grimaldi pie once a week and I never thought about slices. When the manhattan Grimaldi opened I remember being served a slice ...

In any case maybe the best pizza. Deeper into Brooklyn get a siscilian from michaels.

 

[wendyt_ca]

I love NYC! If I was going there for 24hrs I would mainly stick to Times Square. Maybe go up to top of the rock or the Empire State Building. Def check out the Disney store in Times Square. And in the evening go to a broadway show. Wicked was absolutely amazing! Me and my husband loved it and I am going to see it again in dec with a friend when we take a trip there. But you would need to buy those tickets in advance.

 

[Where'sPiglet?]

OP - How was your trip? What did you end up doing?