I am going to NYC on Saturday. Besides the normal tourist attractions, what should we not miss?

Question

We are staying around 16th street. Would love to see a Broadway show if we could get tickets. We are in our 40's, no kids with us and just there through Monday.

Answer 1

Visit the Chelsea Market on Ninth Avenue between 15th and 16th Streets; it used to be the Nabisco factory - they made Oreos and Mallomars there. A lot of little shops and food places opened there. Be sure to try a Fat Witch brownie (they usually have free samples on the counter). The Lobster Place - a fish market has an excellent lobster roll - they also have very good soups that you ladle out yourself (I like a little bit of the sweet corn chowder mixed with the lobster bisque). Excellent place for gelatto in Chelsea Market, and Amy's Bakery makes great bread (they have samples, too)

Get a "Cuban Sandwich" (a pressed sandwich with roast pork, ham, cheese, pickles - its sooo good!) - Eighth Avenue has several Cuban restaurants that serve this - I like a hole in the wall place on Eighth Avenue and 20th Street called Chelsea Havana - you can get a small sandwich for about $4; a big one for $5. Try a mango batido (milkshake). Another good hole in the wall is La Taz D'Oro on Eighth Avenue and 15th Street - very inexpensive Puerto Rican food - great rice and beans.
An excellent restaurant is The Red Cat on Tenth Avenue and 23rd Street - the food's wonderful.
htthttp://www.theredcat.com/redcat.htmlp:

Buy a copy of the magazine TimeOut New York - you have a complete listing of all theatre, concerts, museum exhibits, sales, sporting events, free events and special events for the week.

For theater tickets, you can get half-price tickets for the same day at the TKTS booth in Times Square. But, your choices are going to be limited. Some shows have never listed their shows here - "Wicked" for example. There are long lines, so often by the time you get up to the cashier, the show you wanted to see is sold out. Check out the Off Broadway shows - some of them are wonderful - cost a lot less and don't have a three-month waiting list.("The Fantasticks" is back). If you are going to purchase your tickets before you get here, check these places for discount codes (they change every week) - you have to "join", but membership is free
http://www.broadwaybox.com/broadway.aspx
http://www.playbill.com/club/offers/

Take a ride on the Staten Island Ferry (it's free) - you'll get a great view of the Statue of Liberty and the Manhattan Skyline.

If the weather is nice, walk up Fifth Avenue - from 50th Street (Rockefeller Center and St Patrick's Cathedral) up to 59th Street (Central Park). See the famous Fifth Avenue stores - Tiffany, Cartier. If you walk west on 59th Street, go into the TimeWarner Building. Go to the fourth floor and look at some of New York's most expensive restaurants (Per Se and Masa are there). Check out the exhibits at the Samsung store on the third floor - you can use the cell phones, cameras, computers, etc. The first floor has a lot of upscale shops and designer boutiques. The lower level has a large Whole Foods with seating - get off your feet and have a cup of coffee or a snack.

If you are going to a museum, the Metropolitan is one of the world's finest. The Museum of Modern Art is wonderful - if you like modern art. My favorite's always been the Museum of Natural History.

There should be nice weather this weekend. Right now - Friday, 9am, it's 52 degrees and raining very hard. It is supposed to be sunny, and low 50's Saturday and Sunday. Monday looks ugly.

Have a great time!

Answer 2

One of my favorite things in the city is the Museum of the Moving Image, which is in Astoria, Queens (a short walk west of the Steinway stop on the R, G, or V subway). It's a fascinating hands-on museum about movie-making. While you're in Queens, go to Gantry Plaza on the waterfront in Long Island City for the absolute best view of the midtown skyline. It's especially beautiful at sunset.

Another place that's not high on the tourist radar but really is quite interesting is the Cloisters Museum clear at the north end of Manhattan (190th Street on the A-train). Set in a gorgeous park, the place looks like a medieval castle and houses a fascinating variety of art (it's operated as a part of the Met).

Answer 3

Okay, food and zoos not withstanding, go to Ground Zero.

The very site of it will make you pause and reflect. It may bring tears to your eyes. In any case, it will make your visit to New York City one you'll remember, especially before the Surrender... errrr... Freedom Tower starts construction.

I grew up in the area, and moved to Texas back in the 70s. I remember 9/11, and how it affected me, and all the memories it evoked (I worked as a runner for one of the brokerage houses right after high school and often went into WTC). Looking at it today is very powerful, even if you don't have an attachment. Think of it as the Pearl Harbor memorial in Manhattan.

Sorry if I rambled, but I took my Texas-born wife there a year ago, and it was moving for both of us.

Answer 4

Bronx Zoo,
Staten Island Zoo,
The Central Park.
Travel in a ferry to Staten Islands.

Answer 5

Go check out a broadway show.

Answer 6

Tottono's Pizza in Coney Island (Mermaid ave)

You'll be "RUINED" like the rest of us pizza lovers !

After "Tottono's", you will only dream of it every time you eat another slice of pizza from somewhere else, it truly stands ALONE !

Answer 7

The weather sucks now, so I would just stay in your hotel room , raid the mini-bar, and stare out the window. Maybe order some pizza and a pay-per-view.

Answer 8

you can get tickets from TKTS (do a google search for more info) and a really fun place to go is Madame Toussaud's Wax Museum (spelling?) have fun!