Weekend Trip to NYC

[orval]

We are taking a quick weekend trip to NYC on MLK weekend. Basically we will have all day Sat and Sun.  I haven't been there in years and am struggling with a plan.  We are going for my ds' 13th bday.  We are staying Midtown/5th Ave. 

He wants to do the Empire State Building, Grand Central Station and  ARTECHOUSE so those are definite.  Statue of Liberty-- do we want to get off at the island and also do Ellis Island?  Or just a skyline cruise around?  Any advice on Big Bus Tours - hop on hop off?  One of our friends suggested this as a way to see a lot of the city.

Any suggestions to maximize our time or any restaurants (we like all beer!).  Thanks!

[majesty318]

I think you have to decide how badly you want to see the statue and Ellis, as both take a while. If you want to spend the time, definitely prebook the statue as well as the Ellis Island hardhat tour (which I love and I could see a teenage boy thinking it was cool). I am not sure if you could do both in a day though. For this short time it might be better to just cruise around.

[goldengirlz]

I personally would not waste the money on the Skyline cruise or Hop On/Hop Off bus. They’re ridiculously overpriced and the magic of NY is best unlocked by walking. If you want to be stuck in traffic, you can do that for the price of a Metrocard on a city bus!

If you want to see the Statue of Liberty (but not necessarily go inside it), you can take the free Staten Island Ferry, or of the weather is nice, head out to Governor’s Island.

I’d also check to see if there are any good shows playing. For a teenager, walking around the East and/or West Village could be fun too.

[orval]

Jan 9, 2020 23:24:46 GMT -5 goldengirlz said:

I personally would not waste the money on the Skyline cruise or Hop On/Hop Off bus. They’re ridiculously overpriced and the magic of NY is best unlocked by walking. If you want to be stuck in traffic, you can do that for the price of a Metrocard on a city bus!

If you want to see the Statue of Liberty (but not necessarily go inside it), you can take the free Staten Island Ferry, or of the weather is nice, head out to Governor’s Island.

I’d also check to see if there are any good shows playing. For a teenager, walking around the East and/or West Village could be fun too.

Thanks -- normally the hop on hop off is not our thing -- we like to explore so thanks for making me think about this.  
SI Ferry sounds like a plan too -- sounds like a full day if we did the statue/ellis.