Other sites to see

Statue of Liberty
Ellis Island
Go see a play (Phantom is great)
Ground Zero
Thanks Giving Day parade is amazing I was there last year for that!!

Have fun!

I was just there a week and a half ago.

Go see The Producers! Very funny and reasonable regular prices at the box office ($36, $46 or $100 if I remember correctly). I went with the $46 ticket and had a decent seat in the balcony. Very entertaining and I thought the show was totally worth the ticket price.

However, if you have the time to lineup this show was one of the shows available at 50% off at the TKTS discount booth in Times Square. **Only cash or travellers cheques are accepted though, so remember to set aside some cash if you want to go this route.

NYC has some great museums, so if you are into art there’s plenty to choose from. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Guggenheim, Museum of Modern Art (this reopens in late November?) and there’s some smaller ones too I’ve heard good things about like the Frick, Whitney, Neue museum, etc. Check their hours before you go, some have free or reduced admission on certain nights.

take the ferry to Staten Island (I think it’s free?)

Have a great trip!

which airport? Don’t take a cab, you’ll waste your money

New York has endless things to do and it’s impossible to get bored. Here are a few ideas:

*The Met
*Times Square
*Broadway, Broadway, Broadway (Avenue Q was great, if you’re looking for show suggestions)
*Central Park
*Natural History Museum
*Chelsea or Canal Street for great shopping
*Chinatown
*Empire State Building
*Greenwich Village
*Nightlife … everywhere

And as Jon mentioned, the Parade, of course

Don’t forget Little Italy!

Since you seem to be getting show suggestions here, I’ll tell you to avoid Contact (I’m not sure its even still playing). It sucks!! I dont’ know why it won the Tony award. Chicago is awesome. Lion King and Aida are wonderful and there are some great things off broadway as well.

That’s awesome, Melia. New York is great. Everything is larger than life in the Big Apple, and the city (namely Fifth Avenue and Central Park) should be nicely-decorated for the holidays.

My favorite things in NYC:
-Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty
-The Metropolitan Museum of Art
-Times Square at night (but too many tourists!)
-Tavern on the Green in Central Park
-Riding the subway (which should still be running Thanksgiving Day, just not as often)
-Walking around the neighborhoods near NYU and Washington Square Park

Depending on which airport you fly into, getting from the airport to Manhattan can be a pain-in-the-ass. I’ve heard that they have plans to extend the subway to LaGuardia, but I don’t think it’s happened yet. JFK is a long and expensive cab ride. Newark Airport is the farthest, but getting into the city is also the easiest from here. Outside, at the far left end of the arrivals terminal, Greyhound-type buses leave every 30 minutes or so and go non-stop to Penn Station and Grand Central Station. I think the fare was $6.50 when I was there last year.

Thanks for all the suggestions. I can’t wait for this little break. Among other thinkgs, I’ll definitely plan on seeing a show or two and looking forward to the subway rides, which I miss living on the west coast. Cheers.

take the airport shuttle to the long term parking and take the train to wall street and then take the F to Port authority all for a mere 3 dollars.
You can also take the AIR TRAN but it is far more expensive to go to Queens and then catch the Express.

You can also go down to GROUND transportation after you come out of Immigration and then ask for the AIRPORTER and even private shuttles to take you to NYC.

Depends how much money you want to spend.

From Newark pen station or airport, take the PATH 3.00 USD round trip off peak to Port Authority too.

Besides the city catch a glimpse of Atlantic City, Philly, Longwood gardens, catch a game at the meadowlands or MSG.

Don’t forget to go to China town when you are up in Little Italy and then have a drink at South Street Sea Port

I am a native new yorker, broke yet still able to have fun, and i’m here to give you some tips:
1.The parade is fun, but it’s waaaay crowded, not really worth it since you cant see much. Police have barricades everywhere so once you are in you can’t get out until the parade is over. not even to pee.

2.Dont do all the typical touristy stuff. its nice for the first time visit i guess but theres lines, everything is so expensive and you dont get to see ny for what it really is. Check out SoHo (South of Houston) for cute boutiques (DEFINITELY go to H&M for the best inexpensive clothing). There are also street vendors that sell interesting knick knacks.

3.If you want to go to a nice NYC restaurant but don’t want to spend a ton of money you can go for lunch. Some of the best restaurants have three-course prix-fixes for under $25. Definitely take advantage of it.

4.Yes the SI ferry is free and yes it has gorgeous views.

5.DONT go to the statue of liberty or ellis island if you only have a few days. There really is nothing much there that you can’t see from the SI Ferry.

6.There’s another secret TKTS booth that is at the South Street Seaport. Barely a line there (at Times Square you can wait for 3 hrs sometimes!) Beware: they don’t sell for all b’way shows, so look at what’s available first. The most classic b’way musical you absolutely must see is 42nd street, by the way.

7.Lower East Side is a cool neighborhood for bohemian-artsy-types. Cool jewlelry stores and sushi restaurants.

8.There’s nothing at ground zero but a construction site. yet, if you must see it then go.

9.Why not go to Brooklyn? there are GREAT bars in Williamsburg not to mention CHEAP restaurants!

10.Secret no-line entrance to the Natural History Museum: when you get off the train there’s an entrance from inside the train station. Go there and then make your way upstairs. You will save yourself at least an hour waiting. On a side note – why not go to galleries in Chelsea? my favorite is the Dia Center for the Arts.

Also, don’t be afraid to ask people questions. New Yorkers are friendlier than advertised. Crime isnt bad in the city (even on the subway at night) but try not to make it obvious youre from out of town (even though we’ll probably know anyway). For good suggestions on places to go or fun things to do get Time Out New York or get the local morning papers "AM NY" and "Metro".

If you want to know anything else I’d be glad to help. jekong@earthlink.net
-Jenn

quote: take the airport shuttle to the long term parking and take the train to wall street and then take the F to Port authority all for a mere 3 dollars.
You can also take the AIR TRAN but it is far more expensive to go to Queens and then catch the Express.

This guy doesnt know what he’s talking about by the way. This makes no sense. At all.

Go to the top of the Empire State Buildind. Awesome views.

er, whichever airport you fly into, no doubt because of the season, you’ll be met with abominable lines for cabs and ALL public transportation. Just except to find that.

Navigating the city between Thanksgiving and Xmas is kind of irritating, but still really fun! Some of the advice I see here is amusing (personally, if you live on the west coast and you’re only in NYC for 4 days, why would you go to Brooklyn if you don’t know anyone there?!..but anyways).

I know you like photography and are kind of an artsy gal, this is why these are my suggestions:

1) Go to MoMA if its open!!!

2) Thanksgiving Day parade is fine, just stake your spot and stay for only a little while – then head off for a drink somewhere. It’s fun for a little while but then it becomes Too Much with all the kids and families.

3) SoHo…around Broadway, Spring Street, Canal Street. You have to check out all the little boutiques there and the designer stores. There is a great Anthropologie store there.

4) Jenn is right about the South Street Seaport being the best same-day ticket place…people don’t know about it and the lines are much shorter! I would also agree with other advice – The Producers is fantastic and very funny!

5) Washington Square Park and Greenwich Village (if you find Carmine Street, you gotta go to Grey Dog’s Coffee…my fave coffee house in the world!)

6) CHINATOWN!!! Cheap accessories, the best dim sum, fun times.

7) Little Italy is right next to Chinatown, worth visiting as well.

8) For night life, my fave places are the East Village (Alphabet City), the meat-packing district, and Greenwich Village.

Just wanted to put in a defense for Brooklyn.
Aren’t most people on these discussion boards looking for advice with the avoidance of tourists being their main objective? Manhattan is sooooo overrun with tourists. The other day I was near Madison Square Garden and couldnt’ even find someone who spoke English (my friend and I were drunk and desperate to see if anyone could guess what our Halloween costumes were). So if you’re looking to meet locals, you might want to jump over to Brooklyn or Queens and hang out for a little while (but avoid the Bronx!). Whatever, just a thought. Depends on what you want out of your trip.
By the way, if you want a great view of the skyline, take the ferry over to Weehawken in New jersey!

No, I’m not dogging Brooklyn – you miss my point entirely.

I’m just saying that if you’re flying all the way over from the West coast, with the hassle and jetlag and also trying to navigate airports around Thanksgiving, that you probably want to stay in one area and not move around too much if you only have 4 days.

If someone was visiting NYC from somewhere on the east coast for 4 days and it wasn’t the holiday season, I’d prob recommend Brooklyn too. But the hassle/time issue outweighs that here. That’s what I mean. But hey, if you’re all about go! go! go to Brooklyn. It’s quite nice and the bars are fun.

quote:The other day I was near Madison Square Garden and couldnt’ even find someone who spoke English (my friend and I were drunk and desperate to see if anyone could guess what our Halloween costumes were).

No reason to get bitchy Hope!

I honestly don’t see the hassle you’re talking about with getting around the city during Thanksgiving weekend. Its hard to get in and out, but I’ve never had any problems travelling within the city.

By the way, where are you from Hope?

People have already covered most of what I would suggest, but if you’re looking for non-touristy places to visit, check out Jackson Heights in Queens. The E train should get you there from Port Authority in about 20 min. (Get off a 74th St.-Roosevelt Ave.) It’s a really small area, but I always liked going there because it felt so authentic — there are tons of women wearing saris and men with turbans. The stores all sell saris and Bollywood movies and beautiful Indian jewelery. And if you’re a lover of Indian food, you have to go to the Jackson Diner…