Just got back from going to New York for the second time. It is a place that should be on everyone’s bucket list. There is so much to see, and do while you are there. Thought I would share some travel tips on what to do in New York City.
If you have never been to New York I would suggest doing one of the site seeing tours. We used City Sites. Doing the tour saves you money by being able to bundle everything together like entrance into Empire State Building, Harbor Cruise, and the bus tour that takes you all around Manhattan. The bus tour is hop on and hop off so you can get on and off wherever you want. Plus the tour guides do a great job of pointing out sites, and giving you fun interesting facts about the things you see. They even point out things like good places to eat. Last time we went one of the tour guys told us about Joe’s Pizza in Greenwich Village (where they filmed the opening of Spiderman with Toby Maquire). Ended up liking Joe’s so much we went back when we went this time.
When it comes to where to stay that depends on what you want to do and how much you want to spend. First time we went we stayed at The Wellington near Times Square, and this time we stayed at the Millennium Hilton near Ground Zero. The rooms at both hotels were around the same price. The room at the Millennium Hilton was nicer and a little bigger. Staying near Time Square you are more centrally located, but you will pay a higher price. Near the Millennium we found a few good places to eat that I would recommend you try if you are down near Ground Zero. Panini and Co was a decent place to go to if you are looking for healthy food options. Mudville 9 had some good bar food like burgers & chicken strips, and great drink specials. Steve’s Pizza was right by the hotel also and would highly recommend stopping by for a slice of pizza.
Eating in Time Square is going to be expensive, because they up the price on everything since you are in Time Square. I would recommend eating at Carmine’s in Time Square though because the food is incredible, big portions, and reasonably priced ($25/plate).The portions are so big four of us ordered two dishes. The four of us really could have just ordered one plate cause we only ended up eating about half what we ordered. My friend had told me before we went that Carmine’s was a must cause the food was so good, and she was right.
We also tried Dallas BBQ in Times Square it was ok but wouldn’t say it was a must go to. While in Times Square you should stop by Roxy’s for Cheesecake.
Even if you are not big into theater. You really should not miss out on going to a Broadway play. The theaters themselves are awesome to see. We debated on if we wanted to spend the money to see one or not and decided to see Wicked. It was worth the money.
West Point has some amazing scenery, and views. The 2 hour tour is worth the time if you are into history. General Custer is buried there, cannons from different wars, and lots of pieces of history to see. Weekends are the only time they offer the 2 hour tour rest of the time it is 1 hour tour. Andy’s Restaurant is right across the street from the visitors center, and has a really good breakfast. About 15 minutes from West Point is Orange County Choppers. If you watched the show you should go by you can see bikes they have done, they have a bowing alley, and cafe inside. The OCC Cafe had some pretty good food. They even put the OCC logo on the hamburger bun when you get a burger.
McSorley’s is the Oldest Irish Pub that is in New York. Abraham Lincoln had a drink there, so you can actually say you had a drink where Abraham Lincoln did. They have some handcuffs from Houdini on the bar. They have not removed any of the decor since they opened. It was really interesting to see. Not to mention they have cheap drinks (2 pints for $5.50).
What places would you recommend in New York?