vodde

Hi

I'm an European, heading for NYC on the 14th of March. I'll be staying for 5 nights, and I'd like to have some questions answered.
It's been about 9 years since I've been to NYC, and while I still remember many things, I'm sure a lot has changed.

- I'm coming in from Brussels, through Washington Dulles. Since the 2nd flight is a domestic one, I'm uncertain if my luggage will be checked through, or if I have to recheck my luggage in Washington. I'll ask this Q to my booking agency, but maybe someone had experience with this. It's a flight from United Airlines, both the Brussels-Washington & Washington-NYC
- What can you tell me about United Airlines ? Good/Bad experiences ? Etc..
- I'm staying at Gramercy. I found a nice hotel that had a good price deal, and I liked the fact that Gramercy is located bout halfway between Central Park & Battery Park. What can you tell me about the neighborhood Gramercy ?
- I'm arriving Saturday @ +/- 6.30 pm. After the cab ride, I expect to be in the hotel and ready to do some evening exploring at 8 pm ~ 8.30 pm. What would be a nice evening walk in Gramercy, and where can I find a good restaurant in that neighborhood ?
- At Sunday's, what would a visit best ? I'm unsure about the museums, where I live, most are closed on Monday, some on Sunday. I could check every museum in NYC, but what is the most common day the museums are closed in NYC. Central Park is an option, how long does a walk take from North to South ?
- My girlfriend will undoubtly ruin my creditcard with a shopping spree. Besides the usual shopping spots, where can I find nice, affordable clothing ? Like hidden shopping gems. Nothing too fancy : denim, nice jackets, etc ..
- What are the operating hours for the subway ? When travelling from and to the obvious locations in NYC after midnight, do you recommend subway or a cab ? I know about the extra fare for cabs.
- My girlfriend comes from a small coastal village. Where in NYC would she get the best feeling she's right at home. For example, are there any places where the fish gets brought in, in the morning ? What's the nicest pier in NYC ? I'm aware that the Hudson is unlike the North Sea, but I'm sure there's something that fits my needs.

I'm sure I'll have some more Q afterwards, but this is a start

Thanks in advance,
Justin

MiamiAirport Formerly NY George

You will need to claim your bag at IAD, however, UA should have a recheck bag station in the baggage claim area. You will need to reenter Security for your NYC flight.

The Gramercy area is one of the nicest neighborhoods in Manhattan. Can't give you dinning suggestions, maybe just walk around and see if any of the menus catch your fancy. Mid March can still be very cold (or even Spring like) so make sure that you check the weather ahead of time for appropriate dress. Part of the fun of NYC is walking around looking for little dininng gems (which may often be quite inexpensive).

The major museums should be open on the weekend. For Central Park, you can easily take the N/R from Broadway along with many other lines. You can print out subway maps and get station info at mta.info.com. The subways run 24/7, however, late at night the trains don't run as often and there are typically loud drunks coming home from a night of partying from 1-2AM or so. Suggest cabbing it after midnight.

For good prices on clothing, try Century 21 Department Store across from the World Trade Center site. You can also tour the waterfront and Wall Street area. On the weekend Century 21 tends to be very crowded and while you may find excellent bargains be prepared for a hectic environment.

For more info, go to nyc.gov which should have links to tourism info. Personally, I would stay far away from the "Times Square" scene (area).

brooks5018

check out the fulton fish market early in the morning

Analise

That's a challenging question, Justin, as NYC is not like a small coastal village.

Keep in mind, that if she wants to be near fresh fish markets first thing in the morning, her best bet is the East River near the South Street Seaport or the Fulton Fish Market at Hunt's Point in the Bronx. The Fulton Fish Market is enormous; I'm not sure what's still available at the Seaport regarding an early morning fresh fish market but maybe someone else can chime in.

On Sundays, you can pretty much do almost anything you like.

You give your girlfriend access to your credit card? Talk about a marriage perk without the marriage. Definitely go to Century 21. It's a huge cheap department store. But it's not a comfortable place in that she'll wait on line to try things on and the changing rooms are tiny. But if she wants to buy gloves, for example, who cares how small the fitting rooms are? If she wants designer clothes for less, she can go to thrift stores which sell clothes on consignment for a fraction of the cost. You'll find several of them on 3rd Ave between 77th and 81st Streets. They are run for charities like cancer and arthritis. There are also 2 of them whose proceeds to go to local prep schools: one for the Chapin Schol and the other for the Birch Wathen School. She might find a Chanel suit for 75% off. Who knows.

At Gramercy, you'll notice a park which is closed to the public. Only those who own apartments surrounding the park have keys to the gates that will allow them entry to the park. It's one of those quirky things about Gramery Park.

There are restaurants galore from which you can choose. Have a ball with that.

Subways are 24/7 but as far as drunks are concerned, they are nothing compared to taking the Tube late at night in London. Maybe you'll see a handful on the weekends late, but it's not too prevalent. Use the city buses late at night if you don't want to pay for a taxi.

Have a wonderful time.

stevenshev

Analise, are you seriously suggesting that someone does anything to give more money to Chapin?

Analise

I'm in for the deals on some great looking clothing for pennies to the dollar! So often you find women who just buy clothing only to give them away to thrift shops like this for cash. They've never been worn. That works for me.

c_stanley

No longer, that's been gone for some time now. No such thing as the Fulton Fish Market, and the market that does exist is in the Bronx, Hunts Point, and not really on the tourist circuit.

To the OP - the Gramercy Hotel has a most excellent rooftop bar that you should be able to access as a guest. I'd recommend that for pre-dinner or early evening drinks at some point. There are many excellent restaurants around that area. One of my favorite if you're a fan of wine is Cru, which you should be able to find online easily and is an easy walk. Many other great choices as well in the area for dining as well as shopping, that's a good centrally located spot.

Analise

Sure it exists but it's in the Bronx. http://www.newfultonfishmarket.com I agree, though, it's not a tourist trap. But it sounds like Justin wants to see a real, early morning fish market.

vodde

Thx, I'll jot it down on my to do list. Since I've seen 2 ppl recommend it so far

The GF likes a good sea breeze, and likes to eat fish. Taking her to a fish market, or a pier, might give her at least somewhat of a familiar feeling I'm sure she'll appreciate it.

I'll be around the whole time, so I have somewhat of a say in what she gets and what not

Might do that, since I've read a Metro card ( prolly buy one of those 7-day cards ) can be used on a bus. However, I'm guessing busses don't drive 24 hrs. a day ?

As you seemed to have guessed, I'm staying at The Marcel's @ Gramercy. I've read about the rooftop bar, and I'll be sure to check it out


- Now, if we would leave NYC for one day, where should be the best spot to go ? In general, and not somewhere that takes half a day to reach. For example Westchester, how's that ? Or New Jersey ?
- It seems I'm in NYC at St Patrick's Day. What can I expect of it ? Besides prolly a lot of festivities and such. It seems it's not an official holiday, so I guess it'll be more noticable in the evening ? Where's a good spot too see the parade ?

Many thanks for all the replies so far.

sbm12

If you're looking for a good sea breeze you should walk the Brooklyn Bridge. Besides being beautiful it'll almost certainly be windy.
Actually many buses do run 24x7, certainly in Manhattan. The frequencies go down to 2-3x hourly, but they are often running. And I'd ride the subway over the buses, but that's just me.
What do you want to see when leaving town? Within a 2 hour radius on mass transit (commuter rail train) you can get anywhere from New Haven, CT to Philadelphia, PA. I wouldn't do Westchester unless you're looking for a shopping mall or suburbia. New Jersey is a big state and has lots going on, but you'll need to be a bit more specific in terms of what you want to do for a recommendation to make sense.
It will be very crowded on 5th avenue because of the parade. There will be lots of people out on the streets, many of them drunk and rowdy, throughout the day and into the evening. Not sure where to stand to see it but my guess is that you'll need to get up early to get a decent place to see it.

Analise

If she likes sea breezes and a coastal town, take the Amtrak train to Mystic Seaport in Connecticut. It's about a 2 hour train ride. True it's touristy, but then, you are indeed tourists and she might really like it.

http://www.mysticseaport.org/index.c...C24ABDB528DB9E

No special place to witness the parade if you want to do so. It will probably be most crowded around St Patrick's Cathedral. It goes uptown on 5th Ave from 44th St to 86th. You'll marching bands and the like. You'll also see a lot of booze. Irish pubs will be packed that night. It's a religious feast day but it's not a holiday outside the church.

dstan

Welcome to FT, vodde!

I'll just add a few points to the excellent advice you've already received upthread.

1) United - For more info on UA's transatlantic service, check the United forum.

2) Museums - Depending on your interests, you could check out the Metropolitan, Guggenheim, MOMA, or Natural History Museum - many others as well, of course, but those are some of the bigger ones.

3) Central Park - definitely worth a visit, especially if the weather is nice. Most of the touristy stuff is in the south half of the park - the north end is more rugged and there's less to see. You can walk around the reservoir starting from either the east or west side at 90th St. (about 2.5 km around). If you're a runner, there are several different loops you can run on Central Park Drive, which goes around the park. The nice thing is that the Park is closed to traffic on weekends. Check out this website for a good map with distances (in miles). One last note, the park is generally safe, but you should always be aware of your surroundings and stay in well-populated areas.

Enjoy your visit!

7Continents

Now in Hunts Point, not someplace I'd send a local or a tourist.....

c_stanley

Don't take the bus. It's a total waste of time unless you really have no money. If you're staying at the Gramercy, you're not the taking the bus type, trust me on this. It's rarely much faster than walking. Taxis are easy, cheap, and usually plentiful. That's the way to get around when the subway isn't convenient.

For longer trips that run along subway lines during the day take the train. For crosstown or diagonal trips that require akward transfers take a cab. And take cabs exclusively after 11pm. That's about when the subway starts to get really unpredictable and the train frequencies drop off sharply.

ALSO - Note that on any given weekend in NYC there will almost certainly be some kind of subway disruption, a line down or diverted. For maintenance. Not the biggest deal but don't assume any given subway line is running on the weekend or at night. Most are, but you should check first, if it matters.

That said the subway is great and very efficient, just read the fine print as it were.

There's no reason to go to Westchester, it's a bedroom suburb. Someone might argue or bring up an exception or two but there really isn't much reason. Same with NJ for the most part. I suppose if I had to pick something I'd suggest a trip up on the Metro North train to Cold Spring or Beacon one of the quaint little Hudson Valley towns for lunch. More for the scenery on the way (nice in mid-Spring) than the destination. Though the DIA Beacon museum in Beacon, NY is utterly spectacular if you like contemporary art. Really one serious destination, utterly massive and a great collection. If you like that sort of thing it's a very worthwhile trip. In fact upon reflection that would be my top recommendation. Google it.

Drunk people pretending to be Irish. You'll live, it can be fun. The parade is average, anywhere along upper 5th ave (I think) should do fine. The real fun will be stopping into a local legit Irish bar for a couple beers in the afternoon. Why not. You're near one of the great classic bars of the world, McSorleys. It's definitely a tourist trap but no less real for it. It will be a mob scene on St. Patrick's but might be worth gawking at.

edwin_p_morales

Some good recommendations already. Another good place to eat right next to that hotel is Casa Mono. Look that up and find many other good restaurants at www.nymag.com under the restaurants tab.

Also century 21 is great, one of the best discount stores for high end goods. But if you want the real thing check out Barneys. Either the main store or the coop location somewhat close in Chelsea. If your girlfriend is a fashionista which is sounds like she'll have a great time.