Aussies in New York

[BJ's Snake]

Hi guys,
Heading over your way on the 28th Dec for a week then on to Orlando then Miami for the Lynyrd Skynyrd Simple Man cruise.Will be in NY over New Year and was wondering what are the must do things while in town.We are staying at the Skyline in the heart of town and leaving for Orlando on the 2nd January.Looking for interesting stuff to do besides the normal tourist bits.Thanks in advance for any ideas.
Cheers

Brett

[Slojo]

Gotta do Ground Zero downtown. If you have never been to NY, I do recommend also checking out the observation deck of the Chrysler building, or of course The Empire State Building. There are so many things to do in NY City it really just depends on your interests. The typucal tourist sites are actually pretty cool.

[Burnd]

Buy tickets NOW (on line) for a Broadway or off broadway show. An afternoon matinee during the week is the path of least resistance and makes for nice variety during the week. If you have kids; the "Lion King" is great and all of you will enjoy it. If it's only adults I would recommend "Jersey Boys" as 1st choice. That show is so good we have seen it twice and we had to buy tickets a year in advance for weekend seats the first time. 2nd choice would be Phantom of the Opera. Get center mezanine seats if possible, although the theatres are small, so you are never far from any of the show. You can read the propaganda on the internet. Your friend in tow will thank you profusely for the special day. You MUST get tickets NOW if you want to do a show.

Another option especially for a bad weather day on short notice is the Museum of Natural History. It may sound corny but the musuem is huge and it's really cool. I can spend a week wandering in that place and never get tired of it. No reservations needed; cheap and very entertaining.

Restaurants can be spectacular if you know where to go or have different cultural tastes: we need to know preferences: culture; atmosphere and size of your wallet.

Bernie

[Rick Weber]

G'day,

Here's a couple of cool things...
1. Tour of Grand Central Station. May sound weird but you won't believe some of the strange stuff that goes on and went on. E.g. there was secret train stop at the Waldorf Astoria and F.D. Roosevelt had his limo in a secret train car that stopped under the hotel. An elevator took his car and all into the garage of the hotel. It was to continue his secret about not being able to walk.
2. Also in Grand Central...there is a cool bar to grab a drink, called Campbell's Apartment. Check it out...not many folks know it exists.
3. There are some cool off-beat tours. E.g. New York underground.
4. Greenwich Village is still fun at night. clubs, music, funky people

Rick