Anyone want to help me with NYC?

[Bernadine]

We’re thinking about going for a night between Christmas and NYE.

We’ll probably stay in NJ to save money, any suggestions on hotels? It seems that some have shuttles into the city.

Any thoughts on things we shouldn’t miss? I think I want to do the ferry past the Statue of Liberty and Rockefeller Center.

It will be h, A (who actually just went there for a weekend, but she’s dying to go back), 7 yo dd, and me.

[underwaterrhymes]

Bernadine We stayed at the Sheraton Lincoln Harbor Hotel over the summer. It was very reasonably priced and the ferry is right outside. It’s just a 7-10 minute ride to the city. It’s a little dated, but we had an enormous suite and our view was fantastic.

We loved Ellen’s Stardust Diner. Also, we couldn’t afford Broadway tickets, but purchased off Broadway tickets for CatKid - the Musical and our kids LOVED it.

Also, we are super extra and paid $40 to put a 10-second video of our family on a billboard in Times Square. We surprised our kids and they flipped. Best $40 ever spent.

tsx.live/faq.html

[dancingnancy]

We were able to stay in Times Square using Marriott points so I’m not much help there, but I will advise you to research and make arrangements for the Statue of Liberty ferry in advance. We did not and there are multiple companies who hire people to approach you and sell you tickets and I felt dumb for just buying a ticket that way. I’m sure I paid way too much. The hop off hop on bus companies also work this way - people approaching you like they’re are trying to help you and the you kinda feel after like you’ve been ripped off 🥴

[erbear]

You can usually hotwire NYC hotels last minute for cheap and it's worth it to be in the city and not have to come in. Must-dos for infrequent visitors: Central Park, the tree, walk up 5th Ave, walk the Highline if the weather isn't awful. I love Mercato but any of the market places with food stalls (Eataly, Chelsea Market, Gotham Market) are great.

[brooklyn]

Dec 12, 2023 19:37:51 GMT -5 dancingnancy said:

We were able to stay in Times Square using Marriott points so I’m not much help there, but I will advise you to research and make arrangements for the Statue of Liberty ferry in advance. We did not and there are multiple companies who hire people to approach you and sell you tickets and I felt dumb for just buying a ticket that way. I’m sure I paid way too much. The hop off hop on bus companies also work this way - people approaching you like they’re are trying to help you and the you kinda feel after like you’ve been ripped off 🥴

Yeah, definitely don’t buy tickets from anyone on the street hawking them.

Best affordable way to see the statue of liberty is take the Staten Island ferry to Staten Island and back. It’s free!

[minzy]

We saw the Rockettes recently and I thought it was a fantastic show, a classic December NYC experience, so I would recommend that if you can get tickets. My other piece of advice is to consider wearing a mask, even outside. The crush of people around that particular part of the city for the holidays was insane. I regrettably did not wear a mask and brought home the wrong kind of souvenir. 😖

[orval]

We are going to NYC in January. The only authorized cruise to the Statue and Ellis Island is this one
www.cityexperiences.com/new-york/city-cruises/statue/

[underwaterrhymes]

One more thing: we did a bike taxi through Central Park and loved it, but also book that in advance for the same reasons people mention above.

[lpcats]

Downtown Jersey City has two relatively new hotels that are usually decently priced (Canopy by Hilton and Residence Inn) right at the Grove St PATH stop (PATH is basically a subway that goes to NJ, runs 24/7). From there you can either take the PATH to the World Trade Center or to midtown. The Grove St neighborhood itself is also fun with lots of good restaurants.

[sent]

I've seen cheap hotels in Manhattan pop up when I search on the Marriott website, but it could be tight for 4 people.

I love taking my kids on the Staten Island Ferry to see the Statue of Liberty. Your posts reminds me that we should do it again soon!

[waverly]

We did a couple of hotels in Jersey City. One might have been the Double tree. Most recent was Marriot chain near the Exchange place stop.

I feel like sightseeing is based on the person, so not really a don't miss type situation. I would have done more in Central Park but DH and I had conflicting views that morning and then we ran out of time because we had a show booked. But Central Park wandering is more weather dependent anyway. Times Square, you might want to see, but it is crazy with crowds, so it's not really enjoyable for me, just tick the box.

We went for a weekend, we went everywhere walked 8 miles a day and up and down subways. We saw a lot.