New York questions & advice required
 

In planning for my upcoming trip to New York, I was hoping that people here could offer a few recommendations:

• Limo/car service from EWR to Times Square -- any recommended companies? Nothing fancy, just a Towncar or equiv to get two people plus light luggage into the city
• Helicopter tour of the city -- I've seen Liberty Helicopters but are there any other companies who provide this service? Anyone ever done one of these? Is it worth it?
• World Yacht restaurant -- sounds like a nice way to spend an evening, at least according to Zagat's
• Tosca or Marriage of Figaro -- which production is better? Do people still wear black tie to the opera in New York on a Friday/Saturday night?

I'd be grateful for any advice you can offer. Looking forward to our trip to the Big Apple!

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I see people at the MET dressed in anything from formal attire to leather shorts. Business clothes are the most popular choice.

I've seen the MET production of Tosca 3 times and the Marriage of Figaro once. Both are great productions of great operas and the cast at the MET is likely to be good-to-amazing. See both if you can.

If you've never seen Tosca, do it, unless Pavarotti is singing. He's past his prime
and the big deal tenor arias are more than he can handle.

You can get tickets on the web from

http://www.metopera.org/season/

This could change your life.

[This message has been edited by dulcamara (edited 01-24-2002).]

[This message has been edited by dulcamara (edited 01-24-2002).]

Limo/Car:

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/Forum1/HTML/006193.html

Concert:

My wife still insists that for visits to venues like The Met or for the theatre etc., that one should dress "appropriately" - yet you'll literally see it all, and it's really your choice as I see it.


I've never taken a helicopter tour of Manhattan, nor have I done the World Yacht Dining Tour (being a local) in particular, but I've heard only that the view is VERY nice and that the food is "acceptable" in a tone that suggested perhaps just barely! http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/wink.gif

Hope this helps! Enjoy your stay in the Big Apple! http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/smile.gif

World Yacht use to be much better then it is now, but it's still an incredible view of the city if the night is clear.

You can wear anything to the opera, but like the others, I prefer a bit more formal then casual.

Another local chiming in...

Opera - I usally wear business clothes, as a female this means black wool trousers and a silk blouse. But, as everyone has said, you can wear anything.

Restaurants - most of the "view" restaurants tend to be just that, the food isn't great. Same as Tavern on the Green - beautiful eating outside in the park, but the food doesn't live up to the prices. For a view, go to the Rainbow Room for a drink and then head out to a restaurant frequented by locals. If you give a better idea of price, type of food, etc. I'm sure all us locals could recommend some great ones.

Transport from EWR - if you are willing, there is a bus from EWR that stops at Times Sq., the Port Authority and Grand Central. You put your luggage underneath and the driver will help you stow it. I can't remember the name (Olympic?) but just follow the signs for ground transport and the ticket desk is right there in the various terminals in EWR. Cost is $13 each way. The seats are quite comfortable.

A cab will be outrageous. Car service around $40.

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I Love New York

Skip World Yacht. There are so many other wonderful restaurants to enjoy in Manhattan.
I can offer suggestions based on cuisine.

Some places that come to mind are: Nobu, Gotham Bar & Grill, Union Pacific, Grammery Tavern, Daniel, Aureole, Peter Luger, Blue Ribbon Bakery, Blue Ribbon Sushi, Tang Pavillion, Cafe des Artistes and Park Avenue Cafe.

I must respectfully disagree. The bus is quite uncomfortable, there is absolutely no legroom (and I am short). A taxi is a flat $34 + tolls + tip. The toll will be the Lincoln Tunnel ($6), and an optional scenic route toll via the NJ Turnpike ($1). A limo service, using a sedan, is listed at $34 at the major cheapo limo services (see the thread that doc linked). Again, tax and toll additional.

The scenic route is used more often on the reverse trip (Manhattan->Newark), as you are required to pay both way tolls in NYC taxis. Note that from Newark airport, only Newark or Elizabeth cabs (depending on the terminal!), and not NYC cabs, will be taking you. In my experience, these cabs are of fairly low quality, sometimes bordering on non-functional.

[This message has been edited by flightrisk (edited 01-24-2002).]

For the opera I would choose Tosca. It's very grand. No special dress code. Before the opera visit the antipasta bar at Cafe Firello across the street. Don't be put off by all the people in line (they wait to be seated in the main restaurant), move straight to the bar, there are always 2 seats (at 6pm). Share the choice of 5 selections from the great variety with a Pinot Grigio or two, and Tosca looks even more grand.

As an alternative to the World Yacht there is Circle Line (www.circleline.com) with a three hour day tour around Manhattan. I think it still is one of the nicest tourist things to do here.

That way you could save the evening and the money for better dining, e.g. Gotham Bar and Grill, my favourite, a real NY experience.

And if you like Opera, you might as well want to visit the Frick Collection on Fifth Avenue - not to overwhelming, just the right size museum for a shorter visit.

Don't forget to stroll through Central Park and after have some Oysters at the counter in the dungeons of the old Oyster Bar in Grand Central for lunch.

Enjoy!



[This message has been edited by reisevergnuegen (edited 01-24-2002).]

Since you are coming from London I will caution you that you should not expect our taxi drivers to possess "the knowledge", or any knowledge at all, for that matter.

Also, all our paper money is the same size. You actually have to read the numbers. You'll need a lot of this at the Met. (By the way, most of our policemen do not sing. "Met" refers exclusively to the Opera.)

If you happen to drop into a bar or tavern, which are what we call "pubs", and you can't figure out why you can't get more than grunts and gestures out of the bartender, it's probably because you neglected to tip him after your first drink. In fact, one of the things that make New York City uncommonly expensive is that our most important rule of thumb is that, when in doubt, you probably ought to tip everyone you encounter, police, firemen, and bus drivers excepted.

I could go on and on .... http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/biggrin.gif

OK, I can't for the life of me remember how to spell it, but I never forgot seeing De'Laguarda in Union Square. It is along the lines of interactive theater and you should heed warnings to not wear anything too nice. It might be something different to consider

About choosing between Figaro and Tosca:

First off, either one would be a very, very good choice.

If you know little or nothing about opera, I'd recommend Tosca. The story is straightforward, the music decent, and it doesn't drag on and on (you'll be out of there in 2-1/2 hours, tops). Tosca also follows the standard formula that when the major characters are all dead, the opera is over.

Figaro is probably the better choice for those who go to the opera a lot. The music iteself is far more interesting and challenging (which you'd expect from Wolfie), while the story is not likely to hold anyone's attention. It's a comedy, so the stage isn't littered with bodies. And don't go to The Marriage of Figaro if you want to hear that opera song that has "Figaro, Figaro, Figaro!" in the lyrics -- that's another one altogether.

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p.s., a joke for opera fans only:

Q: In Tosca, what is Scarpia's first name?

A: Looie. You know, just after Tosca stabs him, she says, Avanti a lui tremava tutta Roma!

Great advice above.

The "Met" can also refer to the art museum on 5th Avenue--The Metropolitan Museum of Art. They have a roof top sculpture garden which is a nice place on Friday evenings at happy hour--the serve wine, etc.--and there is a nice view of hte park at sunset.

The circle line also has a shorter tour of the best views of Manhattan if 3 hours is too long.

The train service from Newark is a real breakthrough, 20 minutes to Penn Station for $11.50 each. No road options can hope to compete. Penn Station is about ten blocks from Times Square. Trains are pretty frequent, but check on the schedules for the time of day you'll be arriving.

The train is a nice option now - you can take the monorail in the terminal to the train and then its a 20 minute trip into Penn Station. Trains come about every 15 minutes. You'll have to weigh the difference between the train and a taxi. The taxi will cost about $40-45 (incl. tolls and tip) vs. the $23 for the train (for both of you). Also, the train gets you into Penn Station, about a 15 minute walk from Times Square. You can take the subway from Penn Station to Times Square (the #1, #2, or #3 subway lines) for $1.50 each. A taxi from Penn Station will be about $5-6.

My suggestion is to take the train if you are arriving anywhere near rush hour (4:00 pm to 7:00 pm) as the tunnels into Manhattan can have backups of 1 hour or more.

I agree with previous posters that the World Yacht isn't the best choice, given the abundance of top notch food in New York. With respect to restaurants, every New Yorker has their favorites - and is more than willing to give you their opinions. Rather than do that, I suggest going to the zagat website again:

http://www.zagat.com/

Look at the top food and most popular categories. They will give you some of New York's finest choices.

Enjoy!!

[This message has been edited by jginnyc (edited 01-25-2002).]

wideman - Funny post! Though, ... I think half your jokes wouldn't be quite as funny.

While it's not likely that this is the case of MatthewClement, if you really are an opera novice, might I also suggest looking at operas at the New York City Opera, which is right next door to the Met? The NYCO tends to have younger, rising talent and IMHO more believable acting/production values. Many Met stars started at NYCO. The spring season starts March 1.


[This message has been edited by flightrisk (edited 01-25-2002).]