The parade begins at 9am. People start coming in as early 7am to find a spot in which to watch it. Then of course they stay so traffic is bad most of the day.

I have driven from MD to NYC on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving several times and that too is horrid because of traffic. Even going on back roads.

So if you must drive on Thanksgiving, if you could leave as early as possible, this will help. While the idea of taking the ferry is a good one, you could very well be stuck in Lincoln Tunnel traffic in order to get to Port Imperial. Again, it's up to you.

If you decide to drive into the city, you might want to take the Holland Tunnel and go up the FDR (East River Drive) in order to avoid the west side (where the parade traffic is at its worst).

Have you considered taking the train?

Yes it is! My parents were both from NYC and I have many memories of those holiday trips!

As a matter of fact, I have. AMTRAK from BWI is very expensive ... $160 each. Looks like I can drive to Princeton Junction, park and take a train in though. Parking there is $3.00 per day and I think the round trip train ticket would be about $15.00.

I went ahead and booked the Omni Berkshire for Thrusday and Friday nights. Quikbook is a great site! I wish I had known about it last week when I was trying to find a hotel for Friday night in Atlantic city. They get great rates for the Tropicana which turned out to be my boyfriend's favorite casino.

Thanks again for all the help. Now, any suggestions for a turkey dinner in the area of the Omni???

Now that's what the concierge is for! http://www.flyertalk.com/travel/fttravel_forum/wink.gif I cannot help you in this area as I always go home to my parents for the holiday. Thanksgiving is the one holiday in which I have never gone to a restaurant.

I'm glad you're going to the Omni---again my fave! http://www.flyertalk.com/travel/fttr...orum/smile.gif Your idea about training from Princeton Junction sounds like a good idea. Roundtrip fare is $14.75 and you can get the schedule from their website: http://www.njtransit.com/sf_train.shtm That particular train line is the Northeast Corridor.

I can't remember the name of the restaurant but 2 years ago I was in NYC with my Mom on Turkey day. We had no reservations and were just walking around most of the day. There are a few restaurants at rink level in Rockefeller Center. They had a Turkey day special that was I think about $30 a person. It was quite good and a gracious plenty of food. We actually had them box up our desserts and we ate them later at the hotel. All the rink level restaurants have floor to ceiling glass, and we were given up table right by the window. We were able to watch the skaters as we ate.

That sounds great! I hope I can find something in that price range. Most that I have found are $50+ per person which is a bit expensive for turkey dinner.

Has anyone heard of Hunter's on the upper east side? I hear they have a reasonably priced dinner for Thanksgiving.


[This message has been edited by tazi (edited 11-08-2002).]

You can try the Gershwin hotel, http://www.gershwinhotel.com/, it is an eclectic place, sort of bohemian. They have a coffee shop and art gallery, kind of like the Chelsea Hotel, but newly renovated, cleaner and in a better area, 27th and Park. This is not a high end place, but probably a decent place to stay if you are just looking to crash in NYC for a couple of days.

The restaurant that princess may be referring to on the Rockefeller Skating rink level may be Rock Center Cafe. Ive eaten there too - not bad.

Go to
www.restaurantassociates.com
for their menus and other menus of restaurants they own, in addition to a $25 coupon if you put your name on their mailing list.

Dac - I would hope the Gershwin Hotel is recently renovated - in another life about 5 years ago it used to be a welfare hotel.


Tazi - another hotel I recommend is the newly opened Hyatt in Jersey City - just $1.00 PATH train away under the Hudson from Manhattan. And you could drive directly and park right in the hotel.


[This message has been edited by ljp99 (edited 11-10-2002).]

That's the one. It was not a "fine dining" experience but it was quite tasty and exactly what we were looking for that evening. We were able to dress casually and enjoy a nice dinner. It was definitly under $50 a person with tax and tip.

Thanks again for all the replies. We did book a room at the Omni Berkshire for Thursday night ... only $159 which I think is a great deal for that hotel. Not sure yet if I will be staying Friday night or not. Rate goes up $100 at the Omni so I booked at the Flatotel for $155.

The Rock Center Cafe sounds perfect.

I was thinking of going to the Christmas Spectacular show at Radio City Music Hall. Any recommendations for or against??? I'll be with my 17 year old son.

edit: to fix flatotel price

[This message has been edited by tazi (edited 11-11-2002).]

sounds like you are doing almost an identical trip that I did a few years ago. I wouldn't buy tickets in advance. We met some friends in NYC and they purchased their tickets through ticketmaster before leaving home and they had worse seats than us, and they had to pay the ticketmaster fee. Stand in line at the box office to purchase your tickets. The line looks long but it moves quite quickly. Also buy the best tickets you can afford. The theater is huge and you don't want to be stuck in the 3rd balcony. We had great seats. I think we were in row H or I. We saw the show on the Friday before Turkey Day but actually bought our tickets on Turkey Day just before going to the Rock Center Cafe.

Also - plan on walking up/down 5th Ave to look at the dept store windows. I saw an ad that Lord & Taylor is opening theirs tomorrow.

This season starts earlier every year.

A 17 year old may find the Rockefeller Center Christmas Show corny -
but take him to ESPN zone also, in addition to Times Square stores - Virgin Record store and even the relatively new Toys R Us - any age should get a kick out of that store.

[This message has been edited by ljp99 (edited 11-11-2002).]

I don't know....a 17 year old male might enjoy seeing the Rockettes! http://www.flyertalk.com/travel/fttravel_forum/wink.gif

[This message has been edited by Analise (edited 11-11-2002).]

I've seen a $169 promotional rate at the Eastside Marriott on Lexington Avenue and $99 at the new Jersey City Hyatt. New Jersey's 6% sales tax (vs. 13.25% in NYC) is another advantage. Does anyone know if the Jersey City Hyatt is accessible to NYC via PATH?

0524 -

Its somewhat accessible by PATH - via the light rail. You can see the hotel from the west side of Manhattan - its on the Hudson Waterfront. I believe its the Exchange Place station - which used to go to the WTC area.

http://www.panynj.gov/path/pathmaplinks2.html#

The $99 rate is not available all the time. though.

[This message has been edited by ljp99 (edited 11-12-2002).]