The Big Apple (Sights & Attractions in New York in general)

Member Name: adamp111

Product:	Sights & Attractions in New York in general
Date:	06/06/09 (27 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Lots to do, can be done on a shoestring

Disadvantages: Staying in an 'unsafe' area can tarnish an otherwise excellent experience

I had the fortune to visit New York in early September 2008, just before the dollar slid from highs of $2 to £1. I stayed for 4 nights, and was lucky enough to take in a lot of New York whilst I was there.

***The Empire State Building***

We arrived from Boston in the evening, and headed straight for dinner in Times Square (HardRock Cafe) and then onto the Empire State Building. We bought an excellent 'CityPass' booklet, (www.citypass.com) which cost £40 and includes admission into six attractions: Empire State Building, American Museum of Natural History, Guggenheim, Museum of Modern Art, Metropolitan Museum, & Statue of Liberty/Ellis Island. We only visited three of these, but still felt it represented good value since it allowed us to skip the queues for tickets and security, and when you're only there for 4 days, you don't want to spend 2 hours queueing. That said, when we arrived (9pm), the Empire State wasn't busy, and it took around 15 minutes from entry to get to the top. The views from the top are excellent, and aside from giving great panoramic views of the city, it also gives a profound sense of the noise that the city generates; it's only possible to appreciate the 'hum' from such a high perch. It was well worth visiting, and having been at night and during the day, I personally preferred the night time visit.

***Statue of Liberty & Ellis Island***

Having consulted the guidebook, we woke early to go to the Statue of Liberty & Ellis Island, with the hope that we could secure one of the early and 'elusive' monument passes. We were lucky enough to get one, and were looking forward to getting inside the lovely lady. When we arrived, we elected to go for a guided tour of the area led by the Park Rangers. Despite trepidation, the tour turned out to be a fantastic experience, and I would wholly recommend it, particularly since its free. The disappointment came when we went to use our coveted monument pass, and found a queue around an hour long to get inside. It's hardly elusive if you have to queue for an hour. On the advice of our guide, we decided not to go inside, but we were somewhat disappointed.

We moved onto Ellis Island and things started to perk up (suspiciously after pausing for a bagel). It's not the place for kids, and most would be bored out their minds, but as a geography student, I found the exhibits on migration to be very interesting. They also have a 'search for ancestors' area that people seemed to be getting some surprises from. It's worth visiting, but I could understand if some people, particularly youngsters, were a little bored by it.

***Natural History Museum***

After stumbling through the somewhat confusing central park for an hour, we managed to eventually find the Natural History Museum. It was worth the effort, and the exhibitions were varied and interesting; perhaps the biggest criticism would be a lack of seating, so be prepared to spend a lot of time on your feet. Attached to the Natural History Museum is the Rose Centre, and this provided the highlight of our visit to the Museum. In the middle of the Rose centre is a large sphere that plays host to a 3D viewing theatre, and in it we washed a very interesting an engaging presentation about 'Cosmic Collisions' - children and adults alike seemed to enjoy this. The Natural History Museum on its own is perhaps a little week, but when supplemented by the Rose centre, it's a good place to visit.

***Other Things***

We were lucky enough to get tickets to the US Open whilst it was on, and this was a very interesting experience. We watched an emotion-filled match between James Blake and Mardy Fish (Blake was due to be best man at Fish's wedding the week after), as well as a clash involving Dinara Safina. The complex was interesting and vibrant, and the frebies on offer were also pretty good! The tickets were also reasonably priced, at around £25 each.

A word of caution: we stayed in a neighbourhood in which we didn't feel safe, and this marred our experience somewhat, since we were apprehensive about returning in the small hours. Despite being hard up, I wish I had spent slightly more on staying in a more salubrious area.

There's plenty to do in New York, and the shopping is good, and although it's expensive, it can be done on a (relative) shoestring. We kept ourselves constantly busy from 8am till midnight everyday, and there were still things we didn't have time to do.

We'll definitely visit against in the future.

Summary: An excellent place to visit, but be prepared to wear yourself out