First trip to NYC

Starmcmahon14

Hi,

Myself and b/f are looking to visit NYC in Sept/Oct for 5 nights, neither of us have been before.

Looking for some realistic advise on spending money for the trip to cover eating out, sight seeing etc. Not planning any major shopping, trip is more about experiencing NYC and sightseeing than stocking up on designer goodies!

Also looking for any recommendations on hotels for a first time visitor. Been looking on Booking.com etc and the choice is overwhelming. Ideally we are looking for something central enough, all we want it something clean, own bathroom and good value for money.

Any hints/advice/tips are greatly appreciated

RachealB

Hi Re Hotels. I have stayed in Comfort inn manhattan on west 34th street, good prices if you payupfront. Also stayed in Holiday Inn west 31st all above near macys nice quite spots. nice irish bars across from both. Both are walking distance to timesquare and all other tourist things. About 4 mins walk to bryant park which is realy nice.
Hotels I would ring the hotels as sometimes get better deals if you. Also the milford plaza on 8th avenue is nice I heard and cheap just steps from timesquare. I paid 800 dollars for 5 night around the same time you want to go last year in the holiday inn west 31st.... Nice hotel, nice roof bar to see the empire state building which is across the road
Shoppping if you looking for designer you should go to woodbury common/ jersey garden is more domestic goods, not much designer.there is tommy hilfigner/ gap/.juicy .and so forth but better designer in woodbury common and cheap also. Eating out if you are staying in the above nice cheap diners around. You will never be stuck for dinner options.

Spending money : I have been to nyc and been shopping for 2 kids and had with me 2400 dollars and brough money home. Its cheap if you want it to be. Example near the above two hotels i listed. there was a pizza place on the corner of 5th avenue and 33st I think around there, 2 dollars for pizza and drink? cant go wrong for that price. It can be dear if you want it to be. Look around on tripadvisor . I am going in November with 2 kids and hubby and bringing about 2000 dollars again, so it can be done. You dont have to eat in McDonalds at all. Unless you want to.

Sight seeing: I know its a bit cheap we got the staten island ferry last time to see the statue of library. Free got pictures of nyc and city line. Great for a few hours out.

Dont get the pedal cab/guys on a bike/ very very expensive and not worth it.

Time square. As with the time difference/ you may be up really in the morning. go to timesquare then to get pic.s

Have a great time. Any more let me know.

RachealB

Oh yeah I forgot about the apple core hotels. These are cheap, free brekkies and nice clean rooms.www.applecorehotels.com i think

Starmcmahon14

RachealB wrote: »

Hi Re Hotels. I have stayed in Comfort inn manhattan on west 34th street, good prices if you payupfront. Also stayed in Holiday Inn west 31st all above near macys nice quite spots. nice irish bars across from both. Both are walking distance to timesquare and all other tourist things. About 4 mins walk to bryant park which is realy nice.
Hotels I would ring the hotels as sometimes get better deals if you. Also the milford plaza on 8th avenue is nice I heard and cheap just steps from timesquare. I paid 800 dollars for 5 night around the same time you want to go last year in the holiday inn west 31st.... Nice hotel, nice roof bar to see the empire state building which is across the road
Shoppping if you looking for designer you should go to woodbury common/ jersey garden is more domestic goods, not much designer.there is tommy hilfigner/ gap/.juicy .and so forth but better designer in woodbury common and cheap also. Eating out if you are staying in the above nice cheap diners around. You will never be stuck for dinner options.

Spending money : I have been to nyc and been shopping for 2 kids and had with me 2400 dollars and brough money home. Its cheap if you want it to be. Example near the above two hotels i listed. there was a pizza place on the corner of 5th avenue and 33st I think around there, 2 dollars for pizza and drink? cant go wrong for that price. It can be dear if you want it to be. Look around on tripadvisor . I am going in November with 2 kids and hubby and bringing about 2000 dollars again, so it can be done. You dont have to eat in McDonalds at all. Unless you want to.

Sight seeing: I know its a bit cheap we got the staten island ferry last time to see the statue of library. Free got pictures of nyc and city line. Great for a few hours out.

Dont get the pedal cab/guys on a bike/ very very expensive and not worth it.

Time square. As with the time difference/ you may be up really in the morning. go to timesquare then to get pic.s

Have a great time. Any more let me know.

Oh wow thank you so much for the hints on hotels much appreciated. I will be sure to check them out. The Statten Island ferry is def on the to do list has been recommended by others. I csnnot wait to go!

coylemj

1. Wear comfortable shoes, you will do a lot of walking in NYC

2. The sticker price in shops exclude sales tax which in NYC is 8.875%

3. Tipping in restaurants is effectively mandatory, especially if your server is female. They can kick up a stink if you leave them short and being New Yorkers, they ain't shy about doing so in a very public manner which is designed to warn anyone else foolish enough to try it.

4. Familiarise yourself with the subway (underground) network before you go by downloading the map from the web, buy a Metro card when you get there, you swipe it through the reader when going through the turnstiles. If travelling out of Manhattan, be aware that express trains don't stop at every station. http://web.mta.info/metrocard/tourism/index.html

5. Don't go near any of the independent electronics/gadget shops in Manhattan, they will rip you off with false product descriptions and possibly switch the product at the last minute to an inferior (e.g. US-only 110V model which won't work in Europe) or last year's model. Their sharp practices have been exposed on US TV consumer shows so even the locals are wise to them. Stick to the likes of Radio Shack, Apple, Best Buy and Staples.

6. If you are even remotely interested in photography, pay a visit to the B&H superstore on the corner of 9th Ave. and 34th St. but note that it's closed on Saturdays and Jewish holidays as the vast majority of the staff are orthodox Jews. They also sell a vast range of non-photographic gadgets. http://www.bhphotovideo.com/

InTheTrees

coylemj wrote: »

3. Tipping in restaurants is effectively mandatory, especially if your server is female. They can kick up a stink if you leave them short and being New Yorkers, they ain't shy about doing so in a very public manner which is designed to warn anyone else foolish enough to try it.

Oh god. Yes, In the USA you have to tip, the MINIMUM tip rate is 15%. less than that and you're sending a direct message that you didnt approve of the service. Do it enough someplace you visit regularly and you'll find your coffee tasting "funny" soon enough.

I know it seems crazy outside the USA, but you really have to budget in Tax and Tips when thinking about eating out.

The minimum wage for wait staff in NY is around $5/hr because they rely on tips. Its a whole different "minimum wage" to other types of workers, some states its as low as $2.50/hr. The Dept Of Labor even lists the rates:

http://www.dol.gov/whd/state/tipped.htm

Gatica

Go to Central Park, you can hire a row-boat on a small lake, which I thought was fun. There are many buffet style diners in NY for very cheap, so you can fill up on very little spend. Their underground lines mainly run N/S, so try not to stay too far from one, as you could be walking a few blocks to get to a subway. Many of their stops are also quite far apart so you'll more than likely have to walk it or grab a taxi. Their taxis there are quite cheap compared to here mind you.
Find out opening days for any museums you want to visit, some of them are closed certain days, e.g. Monday, so don't assume it'll all open all the time.

coylemj

Gatica wrote: »

Their taxis there are quite cheap compared to here mind you.

So much so that a NYC yellow cab will not hang around if you hail it but don't get in immediately he pulls up. There's also the risk that if you don't do so, someone else will steal the taxi from under your nose and the driver will drive off, as happened the lady who was in labour this week and who ended up giving birth to a baby on the sidewalk because the cab her apartment block doorman hailed was taken by someone else.

http://www.breakingnews.ie/world/former-dublin-resident-gives-birth-on-new-york-street-after-taxi-swiped-623717.html

carlmango11

I stayed in Best Western on 36th one night when I was stuck for accommodation. Was cheap enough, clean, etc. and is just off Herald Square.

Stayed in Hotel Pennsylvania before too. From what I remember it was less modern and took a loooong time to check in. It's on 7th between 32/33 or something so it's central too but I can't remember what the price was like.

Re: cost of eating out. As others have said you can find cheap food (I lived on $1 pizza slices for 3 months). As others said, remember to tip. 18% is about normal in New York. It's a stupid, stupid system but waiters get paid like $2-$5 an hour.

I found NY to be a city with a fair amount to see for free. Once I had a friend visit and she wanted to do a bus tour which was $40. It was alright I suppose but you can see everything by subway/walking if you want.

Things I'd recommend are:

Brooklyn Bridge Park at night - great view of downtown Manhattan + the bridge
Bryant Park - little green area surrounded by skyscrapers, if you're there in September it'll still be warm enough to sit down in the grass and relax after walking a lot. I've fallen asleep there so many times
Washington Square Park
The High Line is pretty nifty

cena

carlmango11 wrote: »

I stayed in Best Western on 36th one night when I was stuck for accommodation. Was cheap enough, clean, etc. and is just off Herald Square.

Stayed in Hotel Pennsylvania before too. From what I remember it was less modern and took a loooong time to check in. It's on 7th between 32/33 or something so it's central too but I can't remember what the price was like.

Re: cost of eating out. As others have said you can find cheap food (I lived on $1 pizza slices for 3 months). As others said, remember to tip. 18% is about normal in New York. It's a stupid, stupid system but waiters get paid like $2-$5 an hour.

I found NY to be a city with a fair amount to see for free. Once I had a friend visit and she wanted to do a bus tour which was $40. It was alright I suppose but you can see everything by subway/walking if you want.

Things I'd recommend are:

Brooklyn Bridge Park at night - great view of downtown Manhattan + the bridge
Bryant Park - little green area surrounded by skyscrapers, if you're there in September it'll still be warm enough to sit down in the grass and relax after walking a lot. I've fallen asleep there so many times
Washington Square Park
The High Line is pretty nifty

Byrant park is a lovely little park.

Starmcmahon14

Thank you for your advice guys. Much appreciated! Booked the Comfort Inn for 5 nights for €800. Not the most luxurious hotel but hey not going to NYC to.spend time in the hotel!!
Can't believe I am finally going to New York!!

Dave1442397

It's funny to hear about Bryant Park being so nice - when I first went to NYC in the '80s it was called Needle Park because of all the heroin addicts shooting up there

The Staten Island Ferry is a great sightseeing trip. If you'd like to see more of the island by boat, a really nice option is to take a sailboat tour. We went on this boat when my parents came to visit last year - http://www.sail-nyc.com/schooner-america-2.0-sails

The boat holds 75 passengers, and the day we sailed there were only 13! We saw the Circle Line boat while we were out, and it was packed. For a few $ more, we had a much better experience.

You can also walk across the Brooklyn Bridge and explore DUMBO - it's a nice way to spend a few hours. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dumbo,_Brooklyn

If you want to visit the top of the Empire State Building, go early or book in advance to avoid long lines. And I mean long.

I actually prefer the view from the Rockefeller Center - http://www.topoftherocknyc.com/experience/
What I like about Top of the Rock is that there are multiple levels with balconies, and the top level does not have glass barriers getting between you and the scenery, which is nice when taking pics. You can also see the Empire State building from there, and Central Park, the bridges, etc.

As people said, don't buy anything from the electronics stores you see all over the place. They are a total ripoff. B&H and 47th St. Photo are good if you know what you want, but even they will try to sell you bundled items if you let them, so you end up with a lot of useless crap if you're not careful.

If you plan on clothes shopping, you can take a bus trip to Woodbury Commons (but you will pay NY sales tax) or go to Port Authority and take a bus to the Garden State Plaza Mall in NJ. There is no sales tax on clothing in Jersey, and the GSP is one of the largest shopping malls in the country.

Starmcmahon14

Dave1442397 wrote: »

It's funny to hear about Bryant Park being so nice - when I first went to NYC in the '80s it was called Needle Park because of all the heroin addicts shooting up there

The Staten Island Ferry is a great sightseeing trip. If you'd like to see more of the island by boat, a really nice option is to take a sailboat tour. We went on this boat when my parents came to visit last year - http://www.sail-nyc.com/schooner-america-2.0-sails

The boat holds 75 passengers, and the day we sailed there were only 13! We saw the Circle Line boat while we were out, and it was packed. For a few $ more, we had a much better experience.

You can also walk across the Brooklyn Bridge and explore DUMBO - it's a nice way to spend a few hours. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dumbo,_Brooklyn

If you want to visit the top of the Empire State Building, go early or book in advance to avoid long lines. And I mean long.

I actually prefer the view from the Rockefeller Center - http://www.topoftherocknyc.com/experience/
What I like about Top of the Rock is that there are multiple levels with balconies, and the top level does not have glass barriers getting between you and the scenery, which is nice when taking pics. You can also see the Empire State building from there, and Central Park, the bridges, etc.

As people said, don't buy anything from the electronics stores you see all over the place. They are a total ripoff. B&H and 47th St. Photo are good if you know what you want, but even they will try to sell you bundled items if you let them, so you end up with a lot of useless crap if you're not careful.

If you plan on clothes shopping, you can take a bus trip to Woodbury Commons (but you will pay NY sales tax) or go to Port Authority and take a bus to the Garden State Plaza Mall in NJ. There is no sales tax on clothing in Jersey, and the GSP is one of the largest shopping malls in the country.

Cheers for this. Top of the Rock is def on the list, views look amazing

InTheTrees

cena wrote: »

Byrant park is a lovely little park.

Also, the building at one end is the New York Public Library and they have Great Pubic Loos. Very easy.

There's a nice outdoor restaurant there too. Good place to hang out and sit for awhile.