Everything & Anything New York City

waxxy

just been too first choice store and got this deal ..i fly with continental airways direct to new york from manchester then 4 nights in the manhatten hotel time square all that for £1150 they knocked over £400 off the price because id gone in with info you gave me m4rkm..i know i could have maybe got a slightly cheaper deal but this is 4 stars and the lady told me its close to everything ive not paid yet ive gotta go back in later im waiting for my electronic visa too be granted ive applied and paid but it says it can take upto 72 hours for answer how long do they useally take to get granted and is it slower on sundays ?thanks

lisadolphin

Waxxy The Manhattan hotel didn't get very good reviews from Trip Advisor. Check for yourself the first 10 pages of reviews.

M4RKM

OK. The lady at First Choice is lying to you. Bear in mind she is on commission, and wants to get paid. I help people find holidays for fun and my love of the city. I'm 100% honest in everything I say, you can't say that for someone on commission.

Times Square is NOT, and will never be, "Close to everything"

It is over 4 miles away from Wall Street, New York City. I dare you to ask her how close it is to places like the Metropolitan Museum of Art, (2.2 miles), I could list other attractions that are miles away, and not really within walking distance.

You cannot get a hotel close to "everything", and my deal I found was cheaper than hers, at a much nicer hotel.

M

phatbear

M4RKM wrote: »

Times Square is NOT, and will never be, "Close to everything"

Its close to everything in Times Square!!

waxxy

oh poo ive just booked it nothing i can do now....my wife got excited and went straight back in and booked it..do you think maybe theyd change the hotel or is it too latebeen checking on other sites and they gabe it good reviews the only thing a few people commented on was the pool water was cold and dont get a room near the lift and one or two said things about bath sheets wernt clean but they reportd it and got new ones ..ive stayed in some real shitteholes in my time and as long as its better than most the hotels ive stayed in london ill be happy too be honest we will only be sleeping in there we will be out shopping and eating as long as my room is clean/safe and not too far away from things ill be happy..ive checked on maps and its close to shopping/theatres which is what my wife wants..oh and another thing a few people commented on was rude waiters demanding tips but i wont put up with crap like that im like chuck norris if pushed too hard lol

hows the shoping in new york ive just been told theres no tax on clohing and shoes is this true?

M4RKM

waxxy wrote: »

oh and another thing a few people commented on was rude waiters demanding tips but i wont put up with crap like that im like chuck norris if pushed too hard lol

hows the shoping in new york ive just been told theres no tax on clohing and shoes is this true?

Depends where you eat and what you tip. If you don't leave a tip at all, then the waiter will be well within their rights to complain to you. You expected them to bring the food to you and take your order, but you haven't paid for it. Tipping is customary for service in NYC. Certain tourist restaurants will just add the tip on for people, the easiest thing to do is just double the tax that is written on the check. The price you see on the menu is for the food only. Service is not included.

Shopping in New York is only just slightly less boring than Shopping anywhere else in the world. And yes, there is tax on clothing and shoes.

M

beeza

I drafted something for my trip last week that ended up as a 3000 word blog so as not to bore you, these are the details that might help other first timers

Delta from Manchester to JFK - Fine although in-flight ents were lacking seatback screens. We arrived in New York about 3pm on Friday afternoon, stayed at Crowne Plaza Hotel on the NW corner of Times Square and I've made comment about hotel previously.

Like many who ask questions on this thread, this was our first time in New York and we were intending to hit most of the obvious tourist attractions. Weather was clear and dry for most of the trip but very cold, -5 on Sat/Sun, dropping to -10 on Monday. Tuesday it snowed so warmer - almost tropical at about 0.

Friday afternoon
Walked from TS downtown to the Empire State Building via Macys. No queues, it was like a ghost town in there. After headed back uptown towards 9th Ave but gave up going further north at 46th St (Restaurant Row) and found somewhere for dinner (Swing 46). Long day so had an early night.

Saturday
Grabbed a coffee and went uptown to CP, turned east and headed toward 5th Ave. Hit FAO Schwarz and Tiffanys and then east to Bloomingdales. Spent a while over here, lunch at the David Burke Cafe there. Headed back toward 5th Ave, shopping along the way hitting St. Patricks on 5th Ave before going back to the hotel. For dinner walked out to Hell's Kitchen's 9th Ave starting out around 43rd and eventually picked a place called Eatery on the corner of 53rd. Very good and wlaked back to TS after.

Sunday
Grabbed a coffee and uptown to CP again, stopping for photos at Carnegie Hall and Russian Tea Room along the way. Walked up through the centre of Central Park to the Met (past the Wollman Rink). Cold and 6" of snow over the park. Whistlestop tour of the Met, concentrating ont he sort of thing you don't find over here. Highlights were a couple of Hannock paintings and the panoramic Versailles landscape. Walked back down the park, different route past the zoo. Got ourselves a basic CP carriage ride for $40 (advertised rate is $50 so DO ask) before having brunch at Sarabeths. After this we went to MoMA which we found disappointing after what people had told us.

Dinner required a taxi down to the Meat Packing District and we went to Buddakan, next to Chelsea market. Dinner was very good and after we dropped into the Spice Market for a drink before getting a taxi back.

Monday
Walked downtown to the Library and Grand Central Station. Both great building/spaces to have a good look round. The library especially surprising. Headed back uptown to TOTR (had MoMA combo ticket from Sunday). Cold but good views. Had lunch at the Four Seasons restaurant. Sublime but very expensive. Caught the subway to Soho and spent the rest of the afternoon/early evening mooching round there and subway back to TS. Crept out of the hotel later to grab a burger.

Tuesday
Last day so early start to get the subway down to South Ferry. Picked up Liberty tickets and got the ferry across. Had Crown Access tickets and climbed all 354 stairs to get there. Weather poor so views not great but some satisfaction from climbing up to the rather underwhelming landing at the top. Ferry back to Manhattan, skipping Ellis Island and walked up to Wall St. Taxi up to the Universiity/Greenwich Village, stopped at a Irish/Mexican bar for lunch before setting off on a walk. Washington Square to the Meat Packing District via "Tiles of America" and the Magnolia Bakery (Caramel Pecan Cheescake ftw). Caught the subway back to TS to pick up cases and get a taxi to JFK.

The trip overall was brilliant. A couple of minor hiccups along the way but nothing to detract from the experience. It was like everything we expected it to be but better. Really enjoyed the (limited) time spent in Soho/Village as well as the obvious tourist things and want to go back and explore some more as not much point doing the same things again as well as having a long list of things still to see: Chinatown/Little Italy, Brooklyn Bridge, exploring Central Park fully and all those other things you think of in New York. I thought this would be the only chance we'd get to go to NY but now I've got to find a way of doing it again.

M4RKM wrote: »

I dare you to ask her how close it is to places like the Metropolitan Museum of Art, (2.2 miles), I could list other attractions that are miles away, and not really within walking distance.

Walkable but a very long way indeed

bb69

beeza wrote: »

I drafted something for my trip last week that ended up as a 3000 word blog so as not to bore you, these are the details that might help other first timers

Delta from Manchester to JFK - Fine although in-flight ents were lacking seatback screens. We arrived in New York about 3pm on Friday afternoon, stayed at Crowne Plaza Hotel on the NW corner of Times Square and I've made comment about hotel previously.

Like many who ask questions on this thread, this was our first time in New York and we were intending to hit most of the obvious tourist attractions. Weather was clear and dry for most of the trip but very cold, -5 on Sat/Sun, dropping to -10 on Monday. Tuesday it snowed so warmer - almost tropical at about 0.

Friday afternoon
Walked from TS downtown to the Empire State Building via Macys. No queues, it was like a ghost town in there. After headed back uptown towards 9th Ave but gave up going further north at 46th St (Restaurant Row) and found somewhere for dinner (Swing 46). Long day so had an early night.

Saturday
Grabbed a coffee and went uptown to CP, turned east and headed toward 5th Ave. Hit FAO Schwarz and Tiffanys and then east to Bloomingdales. Spent a while over here, lunch at the David Burke Cafe there. Headed back toward 5th Ave, shopping along the way hitting St. Patricks on 5th Ave before going back to the hotel. For dinner walked out to Hell's Kitchen's 9th Ave starting out around 43rd and eventually picked a place called Eatery on the corner of 53rd. Very good and wlaked back to TS after.

Sunday
Grabbed a coffee and uptown to CP again, stopping for photos at Carnegie Hall and Russian Tea Room along the way. Walked up through the centre of Central Park to the Met (past the Wollman Rink). Cold and 6" of snow over the park. Whistlestop tour of the Met, concentrating ont he sort of thing you don't find over here. Highlights were a couple of Hannock paintings and the panoramic Versailles landscape. Walked back down the park, different route past the zoo. Got ourselves a basic CP carriage ride for $40 (advertised rate is $50 so DO ask) before having brunch at Sarabeths. After this we went to MoMA which we found disappointing after what people had told us.

Dinner required a taxi down to the Meat Packing District and we went to Buddakan, next to Chelsea market. Dinner was very good and after we dropped into the Spice Market for a drink before getting a taxi back.

Monday
Walked downtown to the Library and Grand Central Station. Both great building/spaces to have a good look round. The library especially surprising. Headed back uptown to TOTR (had MoMA combo ticket from Sunday). Cold but good views. Had lunch at the Four Seasons restaurant. Sublime but very expensive. Caught the subway to Soho and spent the rest of the afternoon/early evening mooching round there and subway back to TS. Crept out of the hotel later to grab a burger.

Tuesday
Last day so early start to get the subway down to South Ferry. Picked up Liberty tickets and got the ferry across. Had Crown Access tickets and climbed all 354 stairs to get there. Weather poor so views not great but some satisfaction from climbing up to the rather underwhelming landing at the top. Ferry back to Manhattan, skipping Ellis Island and walked up to Wall St. Taxi up to the Universiity/Greenwich Village, stopped at a Irish/Mexican bar for lunch before setting off on a walk. Washington Square to the Meat Packing District via "Tiles of America" and the Magnolia Bakery (Caramel Pecan Cheescake ftw). Caught the subway back to TS to pick up cases and get a taxi to JFK.

The trip overall was brilliant. A couple of minor hiccups along the way but nothing to detract from the experience. It was like everything we expected it to be but better. Really enjoyed the (limited) time spent in Soho/Village as well as the obvious tourist things and want to go back and explore some more as not much point doing the same things again as well as having a long list of things still to see: Chinatown/Little Italy, Brooklyn Bridge, exploring Central Park fully and all those other things you think of in New York. I thought this would be the only chance we'd get to go to NY but now I've got to find a way of doing it again.


Walkable but a very long way indeed

Hi there
Nice to hear you had a good time
Have you posted your blog anywhere?

janelski

Thanks, sounds like you had a great time, now looking forward to our trip 19th feb

Lady_S

phatbear wrote: »

Its close to everything in Times Square!!

Seconded. It is also close to everything around Times Square aswell ( which is quite a lot).

Personally, I like being central, then I am never too far from anything. If I want to go up to the park, i'm not too far away, if I want to go to Union Square, I am not too far away.

There is nothing wrong with wanting to be in the middle. The middle is good ( sure this is an advert)