RandyWanger
Je suis rôti de boeuf
Got told yesterday I need to start traveling for work again. First stop, NYC. Life used to be easy, traveling now seems like a hassle.
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New York
- Thread starter Frutos
- Start date
Dr Bandler
Well-known member
Agree. I have to go to Boston in September and maybe Toronto. Covid meant I don't have to commute anymore and I just think "who can be bothered?", especially as my company only expense Premium Economy to east coast.
JFK passport control/immigration was a breeze.
Once we got through Heathrow’s hurdles, all good.
No masks, no testing. Just needed the usual vax x 3 proof, a mini Attestation form and the usual ESTA.
Lower West Stander
Well-known member
Be a bit careful in Harlem, especially at night. Apollo Theatre is an absolute must (but I'm sure you know that already) there are some cracking diners around there - all good as its not very touristy. Walk over to Sugar Hill towards Columbia. Also worth popping up to Yankee Stadium in the Bronx if you are going during baseball season. And Cortland Park...
Pavilionaire
Well-known member
- Jul 7, 2003
- 30,632
Sat in JFK now waiting for flight to Vegas. Airport v. quiet considering it's holiday season. Getting here from UK customs was 1hr 15m. New York very expensive, so much empty downtown real estate but my first time here and had a wonderful time.
Fignon's Ponytail
Well-known member
My wife and youngest son are off to NY in October with the mother in law for 3 days before cruising back on the QM2.
They're really excited to be going, but as the M.I.L is very limited with her mobility these days, is there anything that is an absolute "must see" for such a short time in the city, and that is relatively easy to get to / around for the disabled?? They're staying in the heart of midtown on the Ave of the Americas I think, just a few blocks south of Central Park....
They're really excited to be going, but as the M.I.L is very limited with her mobility these days, is there anything that is an absolute "must see" for such a short time in the city, and that is relatively easy to get to / around for the disabled?? They're staying in the heart of midtown on the Ave of the Americas I think, just a few blocks south of Central Park....
I visited New York for the first time a couple of weeks ago on a work trip and what surprised me was just how compact the city is and how close most of the major landmarks are. I was staying just off Broadway and having arrived on the Monday evening I went for a walk and was able to see Times Square, Central Park, 5th Avenue and do the observation deck at the Rockefeller Center all in the space of a little more than an hour. The observation deck enables you to see all of the iconic buildings - Empire State, Chrysler Building, One World Trade Center and you can just about make out the Statue of Liberty in the distance. Here’s a photo I took.
As you can see, the financial district and therefore the World Trade Center and 9/11 museum is a little further away. I took an Uber for about $50 there and back and though I didn’t have time to do the museum it’s nevertheless quite moving to see the footprints of the old towers, adorned with the names of all those who perished (I looked for, but didn’t find, Robert Eaton’s).
From there you can walk to the waterfront from where you can see the Statue of Liberty and have the option of boat trips if you have time. I didn’t, but apparently the views of Manhattan from the waterfront are stunning. The journey back in the taxi took me past Brooklyn and Williamsburg Bridge, and so in a grand total of about 3 hours of spare time I managed to at least see just about everything I had hoped to.
Naturally, it’s easier for me as a fully mobile bloke in his thirties, but aside from Times Square (which is worth seeing briefly to tick it off, but not worth sticking around as it’s a pretty horrible tourist trap) the city wasn’t as hectic as I had anticipated and you can see a lot without having to walk for miles.
Hope this helps a bit.
Fignon's Ponytail
Well-known member
Cheers Poojah. As they are cruising out of NY they will see the waterfront and Statue of Liberty from the ship as they sail right past it - but good to know all the other stuff is really close to each other. I think they are right near the Rockefeller Center too, so will tell them to get up there to the observation deck!
For anyone going to NY soon I can recommend going to an MLS game. I saw NYCFC at Yankee Stadium earlier in July and it was a great experience.
The stadium is way too big for the 5-10k fans who go regularly but despite that they make plenty of noise and the football was pretty decent, Championship level, end to end stuff.
The stadium is way too big for the 5-10k fans who go regularly but despite that they make plenty of noise and the football was pretty decent, Championship level, end to end stuff.
Just back from an amazing time in NYC, the finale was the Top of the Rock on Wednesday evening.
The 9-11 museum/exhibition is incredible, I think it’s fully accessible.
The 9-11 museum/exhibition is incredible, I think it’s fully accessible.
Some excellent photos of NYC on this page.
dolphins
Well-known member
Some really useful stuff on this thread. We're going next month, in part to catch Roger Waters in concert at MSG. The view from Top of the Rock looks decent - have done ESB on my previous two trips (glorious art deco in there) but looks like going to have to do the alternative as well (going with our sons this time - their first visit to the large apple, so there's loads of stuff they want to do).
Will be doing the 9/11 museum this time - saw the memorial last time, with the (surprisingly small) footprints of the original towers. Had a pause when I found Robert Eaton's name amongst the many, many there. Not bothering with the Statue of Liberty as my sons aren't interested in visiting it, just want to see it from a distance (whether that's on land, or on water, is yet to be decided). First time, with a friend, we did the crown, which was tiny and felt a waste of time and effort, so when I returned, with my wife, we only did the main inside visit. One of those things to tick off, I guess, but not somewhere to rush back to. Felt the same about the Grand Canyon which was fine, but hard to reconcile the size and distances involved. (Side note, when we were at the GC, there were a couple of New Zealand girls who turned up when we were having a good look; they got to the edge, and said with big disappointment, "Ah, it's just a bunch of frigging rocks!", a phrase that has lived with my wife and I some 25 or so years later!
)
Will be doing the 9/11 museum this time - saw the memorial last time, with the (surprisingly small) footprints of the original towers. Had a pause when I found Robert Eaton's name amongst the many, many there. Not bothering with the Statue of Liberty as my sons aren't interested in visiting it, just want to see it from a distance (whether that's on land, or on water, is yet to be decided). First time, with a friend, we did the crown, which was tiny and felt a waste of time and effort, so when I returned, with my wife, we only did the main inside visit. One of those things to tick off, I guess, but not somewhere to rush back to. Felt the same about the Grand Canyon which was fine, but hard to reconcile the size and distances involved. (Side note, when we were at the GC, there were a couple of New Zealand girls who turned up when we were having a good look; they got to the edge, and said with big disappointment, "Ah, it's just a bunch of frigging rocks!", a phrase that has lived with my wife and I some 25 or so years later!
)
Some really useful stuff on this thread. We're going next month, in part to catch Roger Waters in concert at MSG. The view from Top of the Rock looks decent - have done ESB on my previous two trips (glorious art deco in there) but looks like going to have to do the alternative as well (going with our sons this time - their first visit to the large apple, so there's loads of stuff they want to do).
Will be doing the 9/11 museum this time - saw the memorial last time, with the (surprisingly small) footprints of the original towers. Had a pause when I found Robert Eaton's name amongst the many, many there. Not bothering with the Statue of Liberty as my sons aren't interested in visiting it, just want to see it from a distance (whether that's on land, or on water, is yet to be decided). First time, with a friend, we did the crown, which was tiny and felt a waste of time and effort, so when I returned, with my wife, we only did the main inside visit. One of those things to tick off, I guess, but not somewhere to rush back to. Felt the same about the Grand Canyon which was fine, but hard to reconcile the size and distances involved. (Side note, when we were at the GC, there were a couple of New Zealand girls who turned up when we were having a good look; they got to the edge, and said with big disappointment, "Ah, it's just a bunch of frigging rocks!", a phrase that has lived with my wife and I some 25 or so years later!
I first saw the Grand Canyon with a flight in a small plane from Las Vegas, we landed, had a look, then flew back. It was okay. A few weeks later when we were driving we visited the park in Flagstaff. Although it was many years ago now I still remember the feeling as I walked to a viewing point amongst trees and having this sense of things being close-by, talking to a friend, and then suddendly seeing the canyon...the sheer size, the vastness, the eery silence was literally breathtaking. It was way more impressive than I'd seen in my previous visit from LV.
BigBod
Well-known member
- Dec 12, 2014
- 357
The best steak house EVER! https://gallaghersnysteakhouse.com/ Right by Broadway. Book a show and eat at Gallaghers after, gotta book it all up first though. Real old school restaurant. All the stars from Broadway have eaten there...
RandyWanger
Je suis rôti de boeuf
I went to Keens Steakhouse, 72 W 36th. Worth a look, a lot of history in that place too.
Keens Steakhouse owns the largest collection of churchwarden pipes in the world. The tradition of checking one's pipe at the inn had its origins in 17th century Merrie Old England where travelers kept their clay at their favorite inn - the thin stemmed pipe being too fragile to be carried in purse or saddlebag. Pipe smoking was known since Elizabethan times to be beneficial for dissipating "evil homourse of the brain." Keens's pipe tradition began in the early 20th century.
The membership roster of the Pipe Club contained over ninety thousand names, including those of Teddy Roosevelt, Babe Ruth, Will Rogers, Billy Rose, Grace Moore, Albert Einstein, George M. Cohan, J.P. Morgan, Stanford White, John Barrymore, David Belasco, Adlai Stevenson, General Douglas MacArthur and "Buffalo Bill" Cody.
I'm a non smoker and now a vegan, but still would recommend this place for those who like to partake.
RandyWanger
Je suis rôti de boeuf
I work at 10 Hudson Yards, never been to The Edge, not even one employee has suggest it to me. How strange. I'll check it out when I'm back over, looks amazing on Google Images.
Yeah it’s great ! The platform is huge, has a bar up there - so easier to spend more time up there then Rockefeller or Empire State. Was really impressed with it when I went in May. Way better views uptown / downtown too
I'd been a couple of times by car and that flat approach for miles and miles makes the drop incredible. On the third trip we got the last two of daily restricted tickets to walk down to the bottom and back.
Being October it was cool up top but sleeping in a tent next to the Colorado was warm. The reverse of normal treks where you start at the bottom and get colder. Incredible 2 day hike.