New York in 18 hrs ??

[M & M]

Hello,
we are Marlijn & Martijn from the Netherlands and we have booked a holiday in september. Our flight-schedule is so that we will be in NewYork for approx. 18 hrs. We will arrive at JFK the 21st of september at 11.20 hrs and will depart again the 22nd at 08.35 hrs.
We very much would like to see something of NewYork, Manhattan in particular seeing the timeframe we have.
Who has some good, interesting tips and advices for us, some must do's and don'ts. Pls let us know .......
Looking forward to read some good tips ......
Regards,
M & M

[ablarc]

What's your age? Can you afford to spend $800 - $1000?

[M & M]

Our ages are 32 and 40
What we can spend .... well, depends on what ....

[antinimby]

Why spend so little time in NY? Sounds like just a stopover so where else are you heading to?

Coming in at that time of night, there's very little to do but to sleep.

[User Name]

Getting in before noon and leaving at breakfast...

That's a few hours less than I had to spend the last time I was in NYC. I had time for lunch on the Upper East Side, shopping in Chelsea, a walkabout at the WTC site, a stroll along the BPC esplanade, Times Square, the lower portion of Central Park, dinner at Frankie & Johnnies, and a short off-Broadway musical before I finally crashed in my hotel room. Got up in the morning, ate breakfast at McDonald's, swung by the Fox studios (got on TV) and finally headed for JFK.

You may not have time for all of it but it goes to show that you can do quite a bit in a short amount of time so long as you plan ahead a bit. That and know what you're doing and how you're going to do it.

[ablarc]

NY IN 18 HRS (Really 21?)

M & M,

When you arrive at JFK at 11:20, your body will tell you it’s mid-afternoon, but it’s just the beginning of your day in New York. Be sure you have a place to sleep at JFK, so you can get to your plane by 7:30 at the latest on the 22nd. This will mean getting up around 6am after a day and evening in the city.

Best for convenient terminal access and general quality and value: Holiday Inn Express JFK, 153-70 South Conduit Avenue, Jamaica, NY 11434.
Hotel Front Desk: 1-718-9773100 | Hotel Fax: 1-718-9776100. http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Review-g47962-d266059-Reviews-Holiday_Inn_Express_At_JFK-Jamaica_New_York.html. Don’t confuse this with the regular Holiday Inn, which is a dump and costs more.

Reserve your room from the Netherlands --well in advance-- to assure a place to stay. When you reserve a room at the Holiday Inn Express, specify: not on the highway side!! Also tell them to expect you at noon, which is three hours before normal check-in.

After you clear customs at JFK, call the hotel right away and they’ll send a little shuttle bus to pick you up at Station C (Federal Circle), and maybe find you a room that’s already vacated and cleaned. Proceed to Station C on the Air Train, http://www.panynj.gov/airtrain/. Shuttle drivers can’t pick up at terminals.

When you check in at the hotel, ask them to call you a cab, and take ten minutes to drop off your luggage in your room and wash up. The cab will be waiting when you get back down to the lobby. The cab will cost you about $60 including tip, but don’t be tempted by alternative transportation; at that time of day it will take you longer to get by train to where you're going in Manhattan, and you might get lost. By now, it will probably be about 12:45.

By taxi, proceed directly to Gray Line Bus, 777 Eighth Avenue (between 47th & 48th Streets in Manhattan). Not gray but red, this open-top double-decker provides (in good weather) Manhattan’s most consistently entertaining mode of tour transport.

I don’t normally recommend tourbuses, but here I’ll make a strenuous exception. Buy the All-Loops Tour ($44 online in advance, $49 if you wait to pay for it at the Gray Line office), and ride both Manhattan lines most of the way through. http://www.coachusa.com/newyorksightseeing/

The high vantage point and open top give you a great perspective and facilitate photography; you can hop off if something really catches your eye for exploration on foot and hop back on the next bus (they run at frequent intervals), and the routes pass through interesting territory.

The tourguides’ patter ranges from witty to bland, from informative and insightful to ignorant and dumb. But hey, if you’re well-informed, you know when the facts aren't spot-on; and when the commentary's truly inspired it's like a rolling comedy club --with all that scenery.

I recommend it no matter how jaded you are or reluctant to do something so touristy. You’ll love it, but better hope the weather isn’t cold or wet.

This is bar-none the best way to get a whirlwind overview of Manhattan --which is all you really have time for; so maybe you’d better not do too much hopping off and on.

http://www.grayline.com/Grayline/destinations/us/newyork.go?mode=activityDetail&apid=1368&sid=529

There is a Downtown Loop and an Uptown Loop; each takes 2-3 hours. When you’re finished you will have glanced at most of Manhattan’s landmarks from a lofty, open-air vantage point tailor-made for photography.

Wall Street, Ground Zero, the Seaport, Chinatown, Greenwich Village, Times Square, Broadway, Fifth Avenue, the Empire State Building, Lincoln Center, Columbia University and Harlem will all parade past your bus as you furiously snap pictures or just sit back and enjoy the passing scene. You may also get a sun tan.

After you pick up your ticket at the Gray Line office (you need to do this even if you bought online; bring your receipt in that case!!), ride the Downtown Loop first.
http://www.coachusa.com/newyorksightseeing/cs.map.asp. The time will be around 1:45.

Before you get back to the loop’s very end/beginning, get off (about 3:40) at stop 19 (Central Park South). This is a Gray Line transfer point where you should switch to the Uptown Loop, which will take you up Broadway, past Lincoln Center and the Cathedral of St. John the Divine, through Harlem, down Fifth Avenue and back to the Gray Line office (whew!). Don’t hop off this bus, as you might be on the day’s last; the last one sets off at 4pm.

Rush hour traffic will be underway by the time you get to the end at the Gray Line office, so take their West Side Waterfront Shuttle Bus (if it’s running --inquire at office; or take a cab if it’s not) to the Hudson River end of 42nd Street and prepare to meet The Beast at the Circle Line’s Pier 83. For just $17.99 this will thrill you and perhaps soak you a little. http://www.allnewyorktours.com/Body.asp?Page=TourDetails&tour=NYC-W0024

The Beast, is a half-hour speedboat escapade that zips down the Hudson, past Downtown’s skyscrapers to the Statue of Liberty and back at a breakneck 45mph. The boat holds close to a hundred, features ferocious Flying Tiger graphics, roars riotously all over the harbor, and you may get a little wet. Absolutely terrific. Last boat leaves at 7pm; aim to get there by 6:40, as traffic will be heavy.

The Beast Hourly 12noon-7pm (except 2pm). 42nd street pier 83.

After you stagger off The Beast at 7:30 comes the day’s piece de resistance. You need to grab a cab right away to get there:

Top of the Rock. Better than the Empire State Building observatory because you don’t have to wait in line for an hour or more, and because it’s less crowded, but mostly because the view is better; after all, from here you can see ... the Empire State Building!! Tickets cost $17.50 and may be purchased on-line before you leave home. A romantic venue for any lover of Deco elegance. Dusk is the perfect time to arrive here. Evening is also very nice.

http://69.64.78.65/
http://www.wirednewyork.com/forum/showthread.php?t=9519&highlight=top+rock
http://www.wirednewyork.com/forum/showthread.php?t=4238&highlight=top+rock&page=4
http://www.wirednewyork.com/forum/showthread.php?t=9757&highlight=top+rock

Now it’s 8:30, and you’ve had only hastily-purchased snack food all day. It’s time for a leisurely, relaxed dinner in opulent surroundings: Cafe des Artistes, possibly New York’s loveliest restaurant with food to match. http://www.cafenyc.com/cafedesartistes/html/index2.htm

Take a cab back to your Holiday Inn Express, and collapse dreamily exhausted into your bed. But don't forget to set the alarm (and ask for a wake-up call).




If you find you’re running out of time, omit The Beast, not Top of the Rock. Or get off the Uptown Loop before the end and take a cab.

.

[ablarc]

Looks like you chased them away, antinimby. ;)

[ablarc]

we have booked a holiday in september.
What's your final destination? Is it as good as New York? Is any U.S. destination?

Come to think of it ... is any place in the world?

[Punzie]

Marlijn & Martijn- Ablarc gave you very nice suggestions for your 18-hour stay in New York. Top of the Rock is particularly exciting, and Cafe des Artistes is a choice suggestion for dinner. I hope that you can enjoy New York for a longer period of time during your next vacation.:) -Rapunzel

[ablarc]

^ Rap, can you email them? They haven't been around since the day they posted their query. They've forgotten. :(

[ablarc]

we have booked a holiday in september. Our flight-schedule is so that we will be in NewYork for approx. 18 hrs. We will arrive at JFK the 21st of september at 11.20 hrs and will depart again the 22nd at 08.35 hrs.
Three weeks.

[milleniumcab]

Too much to do and too little time to do it in....I think they changed their mind and not even stopping for overnight...

[ablarc]

Four days.