I LOVE NYC (New York City)

Member Name: OhLala-17

Product:	New York City
Date:	08/01/09 (47 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Amazing!

Disadvantages: Not good for young children or if you don't like big buildings.

I have been to New York twice now, in 2007 & 2008. It is one of my favourite places and I can't wait to go back to the City.


~ Shopping ~
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This is one of the main reasons we decided to come to New York along with the sight seeing. With an exchange rate of sometimes nearly double the Pound it is brilliant and it means you can get some bargains!
The closest place for shopping was Manhatten mall, I had high hopes and was excited to visit the mall. It took us a little while to find as it's quite hidden and doesn't really stand out as Macy's is opposite, but it was big, clean and fairly spacious. The only thing it lacked was shops! There was a Steve & Barrys which was a good size and another shop called Charlotte Russ I think which was also good, but other than that I found there was nothing much.
There are other malls just outside of Manhatten- Queens Shopping centre, King Plaza in Brooklyn and another shopping outlet near by which I can't remember the name of. These places are all accessible by the Subway or taxi, although subay would be cheaper. I wish we had tried one of these other malls out but we ran out of time.
There are plenty of shops in Manhatten, lots of little tourist shops which you will find eveywhere, shoe shops, electrical & peoples own shops. I brought some Converses which over here cost £50 and I paid £17 or £18 in America for them!
There are alot of H&M's in New York which is fab if your a fan of their clothes, also other department stores- Bloomingdales amazing to go to and get a little brown bag but expensive!
Macy's- Again brilliant to go to but can be expensive although they have a great MAC counter!!
A good department store we found was Centary 21, it had a range of clothes and accessories we picked up some nice things here.
Times Square is good with a huge Toys 'R' Us which has a big wheel in! Also M&M world, Swatch, there was a great Virgin store which has now closed and many other shops.


~ What To Do? ~
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I didn't get bored once in New York, there is always something to do!
Central Park- We did a bike ride around half the park and it was lovely, we went down to the lake where Stuart Little was filmed and to the FRIENDS fountain which you will see on the beginning of the Friends show. It is so nice you forget your in the middle of a busy city. In the summer local people flock to the 'Green Beach' to get a tan and it has a really lovely atmosphere to it in the summer and to be honest all year round. There are parks dotted around Central Park and baseball fields. Also an indoor merry-go-round which we didn't see but saw the outside of it!
Central Park Zoo is located in Central Park but cut off a bit to make it into a zoo, we didn't come here but I have heard great things about it and would be great for children!

Madame Tussauds/ Museams- We did Madame Tussauds which was brilliant, it was quite busy but everyone is moving around so you don't have to wait to get a picture with any of the wax celebs. They had a huge range of celebs from Ghandi to the Spice Girls and they update it all the time. We did Madame Tussauds both times we came to New York and the 2nd time was no where near as good!
There are a huge choice of museams in NYC the Guggenheim is apparently good, Modern Art, Metropolitan museam of art, museam of television & radio, museam of sex & many more!

Statue Of Liberty- There are two options for this you can either get a boat to the Island, get off and look around the statue or get a boat that takes you up to the Statue (you don't get off) and then around the harbour.
We chose the 2nd option and took a boat up to the statue, we got some amazing pictures and the boat then took us to see the birdges- Brooklyn & Manhatten bridge there is a 3rd one George Washington which we didn't see properly as it is quite far up. There was a tour guide who told us information about all sorts which was interesting. But it was also nice to just sit on deck enjoying the sun aswell!

World Trade Center (Ground Zero)- I came here both times I went to New York to see the development. In 2007 there was nothing much just diggers and a sort of hole, along the fencing was the names of the people who had sadley passed away, a time line of what had happened and information on what the new building and area would look like. It had such a sad, upset atmosphere to it. In 2008 it had come on a bit and the I think the foundations were being done. (Not sure though i'm not a builder but thats what it looked like)

Hop On Hop Off Bus- We got a 48 hour pass for $48 or so for the first time in New York this was great as we could hop on or off as we pleased and we saw alot of New York! There are 3 loops, Uptown, Downtown & Brooklyn also a night tour.
We did Uptown, Downtown & the night tour and everytime you get on a bus there is a tour guide who can be a bit annoying!
The Bus' take you all around New York and the tour guide will point out buildings and where famous people live, it is really good.
I enjoyed the night tour we did the one just before the sun set, it took us through New York and over a bridge into Brooklyn. The bus parked up and we got some amazing views of the Manhatten skyline with the sun setting. By the time we got back into Manhatten the sun had set and we could see all the lights!

Empire State Or Rockefeller observation decks- I personally like the Rockefeller more. (already reviewed) Both have amazing views, from the Rockefeller you can see more of Central park and it also has more information as you walk around inside. Empire State is just the observation deck, both places have shopping at the very bottom.
I would go up day & night as the views from each are very different and breath taking!

Other places- Radio City Music Hall, Madison Square Gardens, Grand Central Terminal, FDNY, NBC, Aquarium & alot more!
In Times Square there is a Gray Line Bus shop, here you can get a range of leaflets for free!

~ Eating Out ~
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There are so many places to eat in NYC it's crazy! Our favourite diner was the Olympia near Times Square it was open 24/7 and did Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner menus. We ate here every morning and it was so cheap, the food was tasty, huge portions and the staff were very kind.
In Times Square there are places to eat although these tend to be more expensive than others.
You won't struggle to find somewhere to eat as there are places everywhere!

~ Broadway ~
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We only walked through part of Broadway and it looked great, we wanted to see Hairspray but it didn't open until a few weeks after we left.
There are many shows such as- Phantom Of The Opera, Mary Poppins, Chicago, Shrek The Musical & The Little Mermaid (these are currently on) but Grease, Wicked, Hairspray, Mamma Mia & Lion King are often on you just have to go at the right time.
Prices will vary and there is a shop in Times Square where you can get cheaper tickets!

We found the people in New York very nice and on a weekend the city seemed to be less busy.
I love New York and would recommend it!

Summary: Amazing!