My guide to New York sightseeing - top ten (Sights & Attractions in New York in general)

Member Name: mrsgladwin

Product:	Sights & Attractions in New York in general
Date:	06/06/09 (48 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Lots to do and see

Disadvantages: The price of some attractions are a bit steep

New York is definitely the place for sightseeing. There are so many places that you have seen on TV or in the movies that, if you're anything like me, you are dying to see in "real life". We went for ten days so managed to pack in quite a lot of sightseeing so rather than boring you with every single thing we saw, I'll just give you my top ten must sees.

*Please note*
I was eight months pregnant when I went, so some attractions like skating at Rockefellar Centre we didn't get to experience, so I apologise for not being able to give an opinion on those.

10) Museum of Natural History

Located just down the street from our hotel on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, this museum is home of all sorts of interesting artefacts, from the skeleton of a T-Rex to uncovered items from ancient civilisations. It's the set of the Ben Stiller movie Night At The Museum, and I'm not ashamed to say that's what appealed to me in the first place!

If I'm completely honest apart from the dinosaurs section and the odd bit about the Aztecs and "The Big Bang" I found this museum a bit boring. I'm not exactly an avid scientist and I found some of the exhibits a bit dull. This makes me think that apart from the dinosaurs, it may prove a bit boring for kids. However, my husband the geek loved it, as he loves anything remotely sci-fi. So I guess it just depends what you're into.

9) Planet Hollywood

As well as being a science geek, my husband is also a bit of a movie geek (just a geek in general really :-D) Having been to the Planet Hollywood in London we decided to try the on in New York. The food is pretty basic, burgers, steaks, pasta, that kind of thing, it is actually pretty good quality and for the low price (approx $50 for the two of us, including drinks) was really good value.

The main attraction however, wasn't the food, it was the film memorabilia. They had hand prints from Will Smith and the likes as well as real items from the movies, such as the keyboard from Big, the mask from Predator and the clothing worn by Leo and Kate in Titanic. My husband was most excited by the clothing worn in Die Hard while I, ever the musical lover, was thrilled to see the "curtain clothes" from the Sound of Music.

Definitely worth a visit, for a quick bite and a nosey at the memorabilia.

8) Empire State Building

Many would be surprised that this isn't higher up the list, but I personally prefer Top of the Rock, which I shall talk about later. I had previously read Trip Advisor reviews that said to visit TOTR rather than Empire State, but considering we'd probably only be in New York once, we had to try it. We got there early to avoid the queues and it was pretty quiet, we only had to queue five minutes or so, which is good considering we heard you can wait up to three hours during peak times.

The views of New York and the building itself were pretty impressive. My only criticism was it being so freaking cold! We almost got blown away on the top observation deck, but it was January and we were very high up, so what did I expect?

7) Central Park

No trip to New York would be complete without a stroll through central park From the John Lennon memorial to the musicians playing their instruments, there is a lot to see and do. We went in January and I imagine it's even nicer in the Spring/Summer.

We walked through central park nearly every day as we took the scenic route around the city. My only advice is to avoid going off the walkway. As it had been snowing heavily we were unable to see the path and were unsure where we were going, meaning we ended up completely lost, in the dark, with a pregnant me getting stuck up a slippery high section, telling my husband we were never going to escape and were going to end up being eaten by wolves!

6) Broadway

Arguably the most famous theatre strip in the world. As I mentioned earlier I am a huge musical lover and so Broadway was a must do on my list. We decided to watch Chicago and so tootled on down to the theatre to buy tickets, presuming we'd have to book in advance. The assistant was very helpful and told us for $2 more than the lowest priced tickets we could get good seats for the matinee performance a couple of hours from then. We bought them and were hugely impressed by our seats; we were just five rows from the front, slap bang in the middle.

The show itself was amazing. I'd seen Chicago before on the West End and loved it but this was something else. The whole cast were superb, they could sing and dance and looked great...I hated them all!! Even my husband enjoyed it, despite not exactly being a musical lover

5) Tiffany's

Ah Tiffany's. Scene of my favourite ever film, there was no way I was going to miss out on being Holly Golightly for the day. It was cold and miserable outside and simply delightful inside. There were four floors of jewellery, each specialising in diamonds, engagement rings, gold, or silver. We took the lift up to the silver floor, the only place where there was any chance of being able to afford anything! There was even a man inside the lift to press the buttons for you!

The sales assistants were lovely, not snooty and condescending as I imagined them to be. Hubby bought me a pair of earrings but to be honest I was more excited by the little Tiffany's box and bag!

4) Tribute WTC Visitor Center

We came across this when we were taking a look round ground zero. It's a museum that pays tribute to those who died and those who worked to save lives. It's full of artefacts from the towers, real life stories and rather harrowingly extracts from phone calls from those who knew they weren't going to make it.

To say it was moving really doesn't do it justice. It was absolutely heartbreaking. I was in floods of tears reading the stories of those who died, and the families who were left behind. One particular thing I remember was a soft toy that appeared in perfect condition, that was found amongst the rubble in the arms of a fire fighter that didn't survive.

A really touching and respectful tribute.

3) Madame Tussauds

Being a lover of all things celebrity I loved this! And begrudgingly so did my husband! The quality of the wax works were unbelievable. It wasn't the cheapest attraction, it cost us approximately $80 for the two of us, but we were there a couple of hours. There were a number of floors, each had a theme, from the party theme where there were wax works of Beyonce and Usher, to the historical figures such as former presidents and members of royality.

I found it interesting to read abouyt the various personalirties, actually learning things about the person that I didn't previously know. Well worth a visit, after all, where else can you have your photo taken with Johnny Depp?

2) Statue of Liberty

The most iconic monument in America, and arguably the world. We got there early to avoid the rush (although about 50 people had the same idea!) and bought a ticket that included both the statue and Ellis Island in the price.

After going through the very tight security, it was amazing to see such an iconic monument at such a close distance. Again, it was absolutely freezing (and snowing!) but it didn't take anything away from the wow factor. The museum explaining all about the statue was very informative and interesting.

The only negative was that the lift to the top of the statue was broken, and so to get up there you had to walk all the way up via the stairs. They were warning people that its not suitable for everyone, And once you started walking up you couldn't come back down. This was a huge no no for me, not only would I be claustrophobic knowing I coulkdnt turn around, at 8 months pregnant there was no way I could climb all those steps, so I feel I missed out slightly.

1) Top of the rock

As I mentioned previously I found this far superior than the Empire State. The viewing decks are over three levels, the first two have a low wall with large glass screens which enable you to get great views and photographs, without getting blown away on a windy day! Unlike the ESB! The top deck however is not to be missed, it has no screens, just a wall and a fantastic view of Central Park, and the rest of Manhattan.

The only negative is that you do not get an unobstructed view of the Chrysler Building, but you do get a great view of the Empire State Building, something you obviously would not get if you went up the ESB itself. By far my favourite attraction in New York, a must do for any visitor.

Other places that are worth a visit but were not included in my top ten are:
- Greenwich Village - Friends and Sex and the City buildings
- Brooklyn Bridge
- Fifth Avenue
- Grand Central Station
- Wall Street
- United Nations

And my review of New York would not be complete without a special mention to Starbucks, our little haven away from the biting cold of the streets outside. No matter where you are in New York you know you're no further than half a street away from a Starbucks!

Summary: Never a dull moment!