Have itinerary, will travel....but need advice.

Hi,

I have put together an itinerary and I%26#39;m hoping that all you wise people will help me refine it.

Any advise is appreciated. And I%26#39;d just like to say that the New York forum is the best! Lots of locals seem to participate, which really helps all the visitors and creates a positive impression before we%26#39;ve even left home!

Ok here goes.....

Friday 13 May - Arrive LGA at 3:15pm (Trying to get earlier flight which arrives at 12 noon). Check into hotel (Le Parker Meridien).

Go to Times Square. If we arrive on early flight, hope we%26#39;ll have time to see Rockerfeller Centre and Carnegie Hall on our way over and purchase all loops tour (includes ESB pass) at visitor centre in Times Sq.

(Is it a very long walk from Le Parker Meridien to Times Square?)

Go to ESB in time to see daytime and nighttime view.

Any suggestion re where to go for dinner near ESB (to make things complex, I锟斤拷锟絤 vegetarian and my friend is a meat eater)? Hoping to go to comedy club for a show. Any suggestions??

Saturday 14 May 锟斤拷锟?Early start. Bus to Battery Park. Ferry to SOL and Ellis Island. Visit World Trade Centre site and St Paul锟斤拷锟絪 to pay our respects. Stroll around South Street Seaport. (Will fit in lunch here!). Century 21 Department Store. Walk over Brooklyn Bridge. Bus to China Town. Stroll around China Town and Little Italy (or should we go to Greenwich Village and Soho?). Dinner suggestions?

Sunday 15 May - Breakfast at Norma锟斤拷锟絪. Walk (and perhaps carriage ride) around Central Park. The Met, the Cloisters and the Guggenheim Museum. UN Tour. Trump Towers, FAO Schwartz and 5th Ave shops. Back to hotel for quick shower and change. Broadway 锟斤拷锟?The Lion King. The show is at 6:30 and we have to pick our tickets at 5:30. We were thinking of having a late dinner. Any suggestions?

Monday 16 May to Friday 20 May touring Niagara Falls and Washington. Returning Friday evening and staying at the Edison for 2 nights.

Friday 20 May 锟斤拷锟?We want to go to Carmines锟斤拷锟? Have heard that it锟斤拷锟絪 a group place, so hope that people from tour will be keen to go out for dinner. Drinks at the Rainbow Room. (Is it easy to get entry to the Rainbow Room?)

Saturday 21 May 锟斤拷锟?Shopping Day!! Macy锟斤拷锟絪, Bloomingdales and anywhere else we can get to. Hope to squeeze in visit to NYSE. This will be our night out on the town so any suggestions? Nice bars or Clubs near the Edison?

Sunday 22 May 锟斤拷锟?Flight doesn锟斤拷锟絫 leave till 7pm so will sleep in. Brunch at Carnegie Deli. And more shopping!!

Have itinerary, will travel....but need advice.

Wow - you have an ambitious schedule for your first Saturday!

I know Le Parker Meridien%26#39;s location - it is an easy walk from there on West 56th street to Times Square. I also LOVE NORMA%26#39;S but would not recommend that you try to eat there on a Saturday or Sunday. The line gets very long, you will have a much shorter wait during the week.

Enjoy your visit !

Have itinerary, will travel....but need advice.

Hi there

You are so organised that you put me to shame. I%26#39;m travelling to the US in 5 weeks with my two teenagers and I really must start putting some structure around our trip. Sure we have flights, hotels booked, but making the best use of our day is next. Your itinerary will help us greatly. Thanks

Sounds like you%26#39;ve really researched NYC! I have a couple of comments. 1. A bus to Battery Park will take forever. I%26#39;d suggest the subway. It%26#39;s a great way to get all the way downtown in a hurry. 2. After your show Sunday night, why not walk uptown on the West Side, along Columbus Ave. It%26#39;s a really nice neighborhood with lots of great restaurants. 3. I%26#39;m a little confused about your leaving NYC for Niagara Falls and Washington, D.C. Do you know that they%26#39;re in opposite directions, and very far from NYC? How are you getting there? And how much time do you have in each place? Seems to me like you may be taking on too much.

Hi Ejan,

We%26#39;ll be using our all loops bus pass to get around on the bus. But we haven%26#39;t decided if this is the best way to get around. Lots of people recommend the subway. As you said, if the bus stops all the time it%26#39;ll take ages to get anywhere!! The walk along Columbus Ave sounds nice. Any particular restaurant you recommend?

We are doing a organised tour from New York to Niagara Falls (2 nights) then to Washington (2 nights) and back to NYC. We%26#39;ll be travelling by bus.

Hi Mbartel,

I%26#39;m hoping that guests will be given preference at Norma%26#39;s!! Otherwise we%26#39;ll have to find something else near the hotel. :(

Hi Brightonprincess,

Looks like you have been keeping an eye on all the posts too. That%26#39;s all I%26#39;ve been doing and going back and reading some of the trip reports. But I thought that I need a plan if I%26#39;m too see even 75% of my wish list!! Seems like there%26#39;s so much to do in NYC. Also we leave in 9 weeks and will be making our way from the west coast to the east. We will be visiting lots of cities but I%26#39;m most excited about New York. Lot%26#39;s of my fav TV shows and movies were based in New York!

I%26#39;m going in a week and I%26#39;m still a bit unsure of my itinerary! Your day planner has definately helped me out. Thanks!

Hi Sarah,

Be sure to post your trip report here. I%26#39;d be interested in knowing how your trip was.

Glad I could be of help but I don%26#39;t know how much of this I can actually practically do!

Good luck and have a great time!

Aust traveler - give the restaurant a call in the morning before you come down to breakfast...you don%26#39;t want to waste your packed day waiting in the lobby. As a local that eats there, NORMA%26#39;S doesn%26#39;t differentiate between hotel guests and non hotel guests...it is worth the wait though and you will be glad you are getting a great day of activity in after eating (portions are quite large).

Your all loops tour will become effective the day you purchase it. Therefore you will only have a few hours the first day and if its the 48 hour loop a full day the next day.

We did the 48 hour loop including the night tour over to Brooklyn. The second day we really used it more as a taxi down to Century 21 etc. We learnt something different each time we were on the bus about the same area!

Although the neighborhood isn%26#39;t on your ambitious itinerary, if you get an opportunity, drop in for a meal at the Yaffa Cafe on St. Mark%26#39;s Place in Alphabet City. It%26#39;s a vegetarian restaurant open 24 hours a day with some of the best food I%26#39;ve ever had and I%26#39;m as far away from being a vegetarian as it gets. The place isn%26#39;t anything to look at and gets a clientele that is, shall we say, rather eclectic. But it%26#39;s fun. One of the best meals I ever had I had there at two in the morning. Great spot for a late night snack or entire meal.

For your other questions, it will take you no more than 15 minutes tops to walk from your hotel to Times Square.

For dinner on Saturday, have it in Little Italy. Assuming you can eat pasta, try Pellegrino%26#39;s at 138 Mulberry Street. There are a lot of good places for pasta on Mulberry, but I think they%26#39;re the best. Non-pasta dishes ain%26#39;t bad either.

On Sunday, there%26#39;s no way you%26#39;re gonna be able to do all the things you have on your list. I%26#39;d eliminate The Cloisters simply because it%26#39;s too far away, and the U.N. won%26#39;t be doing anything on a Sunday either (that may be a good thing) so you can scratch that. Between Central Park, the Met, Guggenheim, Trump Tower and the shops, you%26#39;ve got a full day.

For Saturday, May 21, I don%26#39;t believe the NYSE is open, even for tours on a Saturday.

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