Trip Report - weekend in NYC for first-timers

Friday December 16th

My husband and I arrived in New York on a beautiful sunny and rather warm December afternoon. As this was our first time ever in your wonderful city, the absolutely perfect weather made our trip even more spectacular.

Aftering checking into the Herald Square Hotel on West 31st street (just south of Times Square) we soon discover that we had lost our tickets for Sunday鈥檚 matinee performance of Wicked. After getting some quick directions from the concierge, we walk over to the Gershwin Theatre to see if there was anything that could be done. Unfortunately, since we had ordered them from a discounted website (broadwaybox.com), there was nothing that could be done. But we were finally in NYC and we weren鈥檛 going to let this minor setback ruin our weekend.

We continue to walk north to take in the sights until we reach the Guggenheim. We spend a couple of hours at the Guggenheim taking in a fabulous exhibit of Russian art. We then head over to the Metropolitan Museum of Art where we spend several more hours taking in as much of the gallery as we could. The place is massive and I鈥檓 sure that we saw only a fraction of what is has to offer. By this time we were getting quite hungry so we decided to have dinner at the MET. The art at the MET is fabulous unfortunately I can鈥檛 say the same about the food.

Cab back to the hotel for a good night鈥檚 rest. The hotel by the way is small, no-frills but the rooms have recently been renovated and I was impressed by how clean and cozy it was. And for only $179 per night, a real bargain!!

Saturday December 17th

Rise early and walk over to Times Square Visitor Information Centre to find out where to catch the Party Shuttle Bus Tour. They are unable to help us but luckily we were able to call and we quickly rush over to 7th and 50th where we board the bus. As first timers to NYC, we wanted to make sure that we took in all the major sights and this guided bus tour proved to be invaluable.

The tour included: Dakota Building, Strawberry Fields, Central Park, the Lincoln Centre, the Flatiron building, Ground Zero, St. Paul鈥檚 Chapel, Madison Square Park, Wall Street, New York Stock Exchange, Soho Chinatown, etc. We stopped for lunch at the South Street Seaport and then we did a round trip on the Staten Island Ferry where we were able to see the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island from a distance.

Five and half hours later we returned to Times Square where we stopped for a hearty pub-fare type lunch. Sorry I can鈥檛 recall the name of the restaurant but the food was decent and the portions quite large.

We then spent the rest of the day walking up and down 5th Avenue taking in all the sights and store windows. And we joined the throngs of adults and children taking in the animated xmas windows. An absolute must see at this time of year!!

We fight our way through the crowds to watch the skaters at Rockefeller Centre before making our way over to Grand Central Station to watch the free ceiling laser light show at 9:00 p.m. We didn鈥檛 do any shopping at all but I did manage to sneak into Ann Taylor and buy myself a dress for my sister鈥檚 upcoming wedding.

Hungry again we happened upon The Soup Man on 42nd street (apparently he was the inspiration for the soup nazi character in one of the Seinfeld episodes). We ordered two small bowls of soup and the price was outrageous at $18 but I must admit that the soup was amazing. As there was nowhere to sit, we decided to have dinner on the steps of the New York Public Library. This was by far my most favourite part of my new york city experience. We then decided to burn off the calories by walking back to our hotel where we could rest our aching feet.

Sunday December 19

Up early again. We walk over to the Empire State Building where the wait is only about 10 minutes. We head straight to the top where we took some great pictures. Again a great weather day with very little wind so it was warmer than I expected up there.

We then head over to Brooklyn. After lurking on this site for restaurant recommendations, I had made a brunch reservation at the River Caf茅. After arriving in Brooklyn, our cab driver has no idea how to get to our destination and drives around in circles for about 10 minutes. We finally pull over to ask someone for directions. The third person we ask gives us precise instructions and we make it to the restaurant just in time.

The River Caf茅 was magnificent. The view of the Brooklyn Bridge was stunning and the food was absolutely delicious. Although it was on the expensive side ($120 for 2 people for brunch with no alcohol) we would eat here again in a heartbeat. And the service was impeccable.

Since we had originally planned at being on Wicked this afternoon, we had to alter our plans. So we headed over to Chinatown where we walked around Canal Street and Little Italy for a bit. We then decided to hop on the subway and we made our way over to Central Park (east side). We explored as much of the park as we could --- I had no idea that it was so large. We then decided to walk through to the park to the west side and we made our way over to the American Museum of Natural History. After visiting the museum we decide to start walking back towards our hotel. Hungry again, we did a repeat of Saturday night, i.e. eating soup on the steps of the NY Public Library. And for dessert, we indulged in some roasted almonds from one of the street vendors.

We finally arrive back at the hotel to collect our belongings and grab a cab to La Guardia. Can鈥檛 wait to come back in spring!!

And thank you to all of you who post your questions and recommendations on this site. It was of tremendous help.

Trip Report - weekend in NYC for first-timers

I%26#39;m glad you enjoyed yourselves. I feel terrible that you missed out on ';Wicked.'; And the box office should have helped you out. For future reference, you did not order the tickets through broadwaybox.com. They do not sell tickets, but refer you to Ticketmaster, which is the exclusive ticket agent for Wicked. The box office should certainly have known that. And Ticketmaster could easily have looked up your order and verified the purchase. What a shame.

(I didn%26#39;t even realize there were discount codes available for Wicked.)

Anyway, you didn%26#39;t let one setback upset your trip. I%26#39;m thrilled you also love the River Cafe. I think it%26#39;s one of the most special restaurants, and they always treat you like it%26#39;s a special occasion.

See you in the spring!

Trip Report - weekend in NYC for first-timers

Thanks for the details. My daughter and her boyfriend are heading to New York next week. I am curious about the laser light show you mentioned at Grand Central. Is that done every night at 9 ?

Enjoyed your report, also glad that you loved The River Cafe, it is indeed a special place. Will heading there myself shortly.

As far as the light show in Grand Central, it runs thru 12/31 every hour on the half hour. It is light show on the ceiling, worth a look ,as is the building itself, just gorgeous, with a wonderful food court on the lower level.

NYCgirl...thanks for the info on the light show. I think my husband would like to see that.