Planning a trip to NY

godmode

Ok, so I'm trying to go on vacation in the beginning of August, and I'm bringing along my lady friend. Yes, I know there was another thread about staying in New York for cheap, but I'm looking for a slightly higher level of quality, and I've got cash to blow. I was originally set on staying in midtown Manhattan at first, but exploring hotels on the internet, I managed to find something unsavory about pretty much all of them. I'm must looking for some personal feedback - good hotels, restaurants, bars, that kind of thing that I can compile on my visit (It doesn't all necessarily have to be in midtown - I'm willing to explore a bit). Any help is appreciated!

tl;dr - Good things to do in New York city and places to stay. Ready, go.

Dracil

http://www.goplanit.com/itinerary/view/day/id/36113/auth/1e19e353515b9c57ecc2c2756a4fe388 was my plan for the trip last year, didn't quite turn out that way but it hits most of the tourist spots. My hotel was sorta ghetto (cheap), but fine. Stole wi-fi when the lounge was closed. :P

That said, definitely go to Jean-Georges. I think we decided that was the best place we ate at. Esp. lunch, which is cheap (relatively). We also liked Pearl Oyster Bar, and actually went there two nights in a row.

Definitely go see a broadway show or two. Empire State Building is a bit overrated since it's REALLY long lines such that you might be happy just doing Top of the Rock instead (you get the benefit of actually being able to see the ESB). Hit the standard tourist spots, you might buy a tour book to see what interests you, which is how we planned our trip. Make sure to get the extra ticket to go inside the statue of liberty if you go there (either pre-register early, or go REAL early in the morning)

Make reservations for everything you wanna do if you can. Saves headaches and disappointments.

The Museum of Sex is definitely fun. :winky:

NightDragon

Dracil wrote: »

The Museum of Sex is definitely fun. :winky:

I always imagined it would be a bigger place, too! I thought it was a pretty small museum, considering the subject.

Definitely visit Chinatown and Little Italy, and eat at both places. There are some great, well-priced meals there. Also, get yourself a Metrocard and travel by subway, not by taxi. It's much much much faster, and much cheaper, as well. I figure this goes without saying, but you'll be doing a hell of a lot of walking - so bring good walkin' shoes!

Also, I'm not sure how much money you have to blow, but if you're looking for a considerably fun and expensive evening, you should check out the Ninja restaurant. A couple of friends and I went there last year, and it was a lot of fun, and the food was "excitingly displayed" and delicious. The multi-course meals are pretty large, too - I don't think any of us that took that route could finish the last course - let alone the dessert.

The Metropolitan museum is also pretty fantastic, and massive. NYC has crazy numbers of museums - definitely hit some of 'em up.

The_Glad_Hatter

i'm copypasting this from an old post, so i hope all the links still work,

there's many NY posts:
This One
Where to eat
Some more
Even more
And... More

and since i'm not sure which posts i'm actually listing here,
i'll add some more posts i read/ did while planning my trip to nw (which was superawesome btw)
NY
one of my posts

so basically we built our week around the New York citypass (NOt the new york pass) which covered all the basics.

central park, fifth ave, brooklyn bridge, gugenheim, NATURAL HISTORY (godsmakesureyouseetheplanetarium!), TKTS for broadway...

godmode

Excellent suggestions! Thanks, guys.

The_Glad_Hatter

Dracil wrote: »

Definitely go see a broadway show or two. Empire State Building is a bit overrated since it's REALLY long lines such that you might be happy just doing Top of the Rock instead (you get the benefit of actually being able to see the ESB).

i'd just like to add that i went to the ESB on a monday afternoon/ evening in late march and we could just stroll allll the way through the waiting rows, not another person in sight.
it probably will be busier during the summer i guess.

nexuscrawler

If you want to see a Broadway show you can do it fairly cheap by hitting up the TKTS booth in Times Square in the morning or afternoon. they sell leftover tickets at discounted prices. It's usually the older shows though. Bring cash no credit cards on that one.

Then get the fuck out of Times Square it sucks donkey nuts otherwise.

And MOMA (Museum of Modern Art) is my fav NYSC art place.

supabeast

I second the TKTS booth for cheap Broadway awesomeness. Do yourself a favor and see something serious, stay away from the family shit like Wicked and The Lion King.

Don’t write off midtown because it gets bad online reviews, millions of people stay there every year so there’s no shortage of idiots with an axe to grind at Yelp.com. Hotels around Times Square have some great deals because the economy is doing a number on tourism, watch for cheap rooms at the Flatotel. If you have the money, do the tasting menu at WD-50, but skip the wine pairings unless you can really drink it up because they will get you completely trashed before the night is over. If you like comedy Upright Citizens Brigade theater in Chelsea is dirt cheap and really great. New York is also a great place to buy clothes right now because unemployment is horrible here so there are crazy sales on everything—one place was just doing buy one suit, get another suit, three shirts, and two ties free.

Aurora Borealis

tkts takes cards now.
And the tix are cheap coz they're usually off to the far side or way in the back- the last seats to sell and they want warm bodies to fill the house. Same with the student rush. Some exceptions though, I got a great seat for Equus. You'll have the best luck with that on like a wednesday or thursday when the non-discount tickets don't sell as fast.
Or if you have the money to blow, just go online beforehand, pay full price, and choose the seat you want.

SlickShughes

Rush tickets are hit and miss. I had side balcony obstructed view seats for The Wedding Singer, and front row (which I suppose is technically obstructed view, but, come on, it's front row) for Rent and Avenue Q.

supabeast

And the tix are cheap coz they're usually off to the far side or way in the back…

Not necessarily. In this economy the cheap seats are what sells out, and lately we’ve been nailing awesome seats at half price.

godmode

supabeast wrote: »

And the tix are cheap coz they're usually off to the far side or way in the back…

Not necessarily. In this economy the cheap seats are what sells out, and lately we’ve been nailing awesome seats at half price.

Well, that seems risky. See, I'm trying to impress this girl (:winky:) so I don't want to risk getting shitty seats at the last minute and have to buy a pair of binoculars. I'd honestly just rather fork over the 151 for the decent seats and not worry about it. Also, I'm planning on seeing "August: Osage County." I heard it's good from a friend that works in the biz, and I saw it's won some awards, so I figured it'd be good. Has anyone seen that show already?

godmode

Also, I think I'm set on the Omni Berkshire - nice lookin' rooms for about $250 a night. Definitely doable considering it's right in the middle of the city, and everything that I've been planning is practically next door or a hop, skip, and jump away.

Centurion

I second the plan of going to ESB late on a weekday morning. I did that when I was in NY in September 2005 and could also walk right in. Just make a plan B to go somewhere else and try again some other time if there are lines. I believe later in 2005 they also opened a new observation platform on Rockefeller Center, so that might be an alternative to ESB.

Get a hotdog or sandwich at Katz' Deli (if you haven't already, watch "When Harry Met Sally" together with your girl before you go).

Get coffee and muffins / bagels at New World Coffee. I had the best coffee of my life there, after having the worst coffee of my life the night before, after The Phantom of the Opera, at a Dunkin' Donuts.

Shazkar Shadowstorm

no, that is wrong, the best coffee is at cafe grumpy or 9th street espresso

runner up is joe the art of coffee

get an espresso or a cappucino at these place, these places are legit, they are a whole new level of coffee above average coffee

leaps and bounds

new world isn't anything special that you couldn't get in another city

oh what the hell, i was going to say mercury dime is great but i just checked and it's closed

supabeast

I almost forgot to mention the Doughnut Plant. The Doughnut Plant produces what are widely regarded as the best donuts in the world. It’s a cute little side trip in the early morning before the rest of the city is open.

godmode

That's one hell of a website for a bakery. I am thoroughly impressed.

On a side note - has anyone ever bought tickets to a Mets or Yankees game? I'm having trouble deciphering the seating diagram, and was wondering if anyone had suggestions instead. I noticed Yankee stadium has a sports bar on the premises, is it possible Citi Field has the same kind of thing?