How to spend an afternoon in NYC?

Suppose someone had a Saturday afternoon to explore NYC (between, say, 12 noon and 7 pm). They have $50 in their pocket. Where should they go? What should they eat? What should they take pictures of?

Oh, wow. How could you narrow it down.

1) Metro Card and Map.

2) Central Park. MoMA.

3) Soho, Little Italy, Chinatown

I give up. I can't even boil it down.

With only $50? Hmm, well, the first thing I'd say is prepare yourself for NYC prices. It's like another planet. You're entering the land of the $6.00 cerial box and the $3500 a month one bedroom apartment the size of your closet. In other words $50 won't get you a whole lot.

Now that you're good & scared, relax a little. You can have a fun filled day on less than that, and see a lot of cool things. The first thing you should do is get yourself an unlimited ride metro card so you can take the subway or the buses wherever you decide to go. Do NOT try to drive in the city. You'll end up blowing the whole $50 on parking. The metro card will set you back $7, so now you're down to $43.

You can see the city itself for free, of course, and Central Park is always nice, but the city is so big it's hard to really feel like you've seen anything. It's more of a feel thing, and once you've felt it, which will happen in the first hour or so, it's not very exciting anymore to keep walking around going, "Hark, another really, really, really tall building." So where to next?

Well, one of my favorite places on Earth is The American Museum of Natural History. They've got dinosaurs out the wazoo, a butterfly conservatory (actually cooler than it sounds), an Imax theater, some kind of new space exhibit that I'm interested in seeing if I can find time to get over there, and just about every other interesting bit of natural science you can imagine. They've also got suprisingly good food for a museum, but I'd stay away from it, considering your budget. The museum ticket itself will cost you $26, so you're gonna be down to $17.

If you're hungry, you can head over to China Town which is the one place in NY that you can eat like a king for $17. If you like Chinese food, there's no better place to get it in the entire world. Alternately, Lombardi's Pizza in Soho is worth a looksee. It was the first pizzeria in North America, and they still cook the pizza the same way they did when they first opened over 100 years ago, in a coal oven at 900 degrees.

What might make more sense though is just to do what New Yorkers do and buy yourself a hotdog on the corner. After spending $2 on that ultimate New York experience, you'll have $15 left, wich is just enough for the Metropolitan Museum of Art (assuming you're not all museumed out by this point). The Met is one of the finest art museums in the world.

If art's not your thing, and you're feeling athletic, the Statue of Liberty is worth a gander. It'll only cost $11.50 for the boat ride to get there, which would mean you'd have enough for a second hot dog since that first one was so good. Just hop on the subway to South Street Seaport.

Between the Natural History Museum and the Met or the Statue of Liberty, you can easily kill six or seven hours. If you're decide to do the statue, I'd recommend spending no more than a couple hours at the museum. The statue takes a while.

Chosen, I get the vibe you should write a combo texture & travel guide.

Hmm...if you're into being an off-the-beaten-path-tourist, you might enjoy exploring places that few tourists see. I wish I could give you tons of examples but.....the only place I know of so far is Museum of Roerich. Union square and Nyu area is really nice too. Also I think most tourists overlook the East Side, which is a beauty to look at and walk around in.
You could post your question on craigslist under New york and see what residents might tell you And foodwise...lol this may be bad advice but...a nice healthy smoothie from Jamba juice costs only$5 and can be the replacement of a meal Pret a Manger has organic food and is relatively cheap as well...there's one on 42nd street...

I should probably provide a better guide, and perhaps I will later, but I highly recommend teany a vegeterian cafe owned by Moby The food is great, you can't beat the vibe and Moby is often there working and hanging out. It's NYC cheap, which means a sandwich will run you $6. Here's a link to the menu with prices

As far as cheap goes, I'm a big fan of Dojo also vegeterian friendly (maybe there is a pattern here).

If there are any vegeterian/vegan travellers coming to NY and you want the inside scoop, let me know via IM/PM/Email (Satchmo.Prototype@gmail.com). I can give you the scoop on places like Moo Shoes

Moby? Cafe?! Wow that guy is something. *faints*

Yes it's one of those experiences where your in a very small cafe with a very famous person, eating really great food... trying not to stare at his bald head I like his music, I never expected him to be hanging out there... it was a treat.

HELLO!!! trash and vaudeville! 4 st marks place ask for jimmy....tell him his favorite girl from massachusetts sent you!

...you could check out the SL Convention Travel Guide! It was created to answer just this question.

Fantastic list... if your not the electronic music type, The Mercury Lounge is a really really killer indie rock club... just one of many places mentioned in that great guide.

chicken salad melt
our lovely chicken salad sandwich with melted sharp cheddar

I'm so making that at home for lunch today.

pan bagnia
arugula, basil, tomato, roasted red peppers, olive tapenade, red onions, oil and vinegar,
with or without pecorino cheese, served on cibatta bread.

I'm so making that for at home for dinner today

First and foremost, food.


Gray's Papaya (all over town) is cheap and descent. And of course, Ray's Original Pizza (also all over town cause no one seems to remember which one is the original), cheap and good as well.

If you want something with more taste, chinatown is litered with good eats, Lil Italy, good eats, mid town deli's, good eats... I mean seriously, unless you want McDonald's you should find most places have good food and you can readily tell the inexpensive from the expensive.

Traveling up and down, subway. Unless you got extra cash to waste on a 15$ 15 min taxi ride


As to where to go.... that is tough cause you gave no parameters on what they/you like. NYC is literally a slice of every damn thing I can imagine (and more I can not).

You like just taking beautiful snaps, central park is great, plus, the east and west sides outside of the park are also great. Midtown is great. And that would be the cheapest of all things, go to the park, walk down to midtown (2 or so hours at a slow, take it in pace), stop in to Ray's, get a slice, and you'll still have 35$+ in your pocket and about 10 less rolls of film LOL.


Statue of Liberty is a nice, cheap visit (if you have never been).

Empire State building is a nice visit (again, if you have never been).

Times Square (of course).

etc etc... the list on the convention site has a good list of stuff if you have never been to NYC, and if you have there are about 2,000 other places and things to do, its a very wide question lol.

As to that list, I highly recommend Blue Smoke (great food) and CBGB's (if it was later and the party was started).

Here is the quick and easy to understand version.

Buy a map.

Take a cab to Times Square... go to the TKTS booth in the center and buy discounted tickets for a Broadway show that evening... make the time for this if you can.

Take a cab to and do the tour of the Empire State Building.

Take a cab to 5th avenue n Central Park. If you can afford a carriage ride of Central Park do it. Horses pick up there. There are a couple of famous Hotels there. Don't be afraid to go in the lobby and check em out.

Shop by walking down 5th avenue. Bring a credit card bc $50.00 won't get you much. You will spend that on cabs. Start at Central Park and just go until you get tired.

You have to eat at the Carnage Deli and order a Corned Beef Rubin. You will crave this for years after it is so good.

Take a cab to and walk around Rockefeller Center, shop, check out Letterman's place etc...

Walk back to Times Square and see your Broadway Show... it is ok if you aren't dressed to the max... walk around Times square... check it out.

Go home.

Check out the ethnic neighborhoods, and use a metro pass for all transportation -- cabs will add up quickly. If the weather's nice -- walk... it's an amazing city and you miss a lot of it underground.

Back to the ethnic neighborhoods -- there is a lot of competition among the restuarants in them... Watch the lines, and follow them. If a restaurant has a good stream of people in and out, its for a reason. You can get incredible Italian food, Chinese food, Greek food, etc, by following the lines.

As for sightseeing, there are enough free things to las you days, if not weeks.

MOMA is a good place, but NOT CHEAP. $20 per adult. Ouch. The Whitney Museum of American Art is on Madison Ave, it's $12 per adult - and on Saturdays they are open 11-6. I'm not een sure the MOMA has Sat. hours.

NYC is definately doable on less than $50 per day, let alone just 7 hours. I visit NYC at least 3-4 times a year, and spend less than $50 every day I'm there. Course I'm staying with friends so that helps a lot.

But yeah, NYC is possible on $50. Search the net. I just did a search on Google for cheap sightseeing nyc and got a lot of possibilities.

have fun!

I'm heading to the SLCC, but got sticker-shock from the price of hotels in NYC. Not to mention, I couldn't book a flight from Flint, MI that didn't have me getting up at the crack of dawn.

So, I'm flying into Newark, and staying at a hotel on-airport. From the map, it looks like as the crow flies, Newark is about 15 miles from Manhattan.

But then I heard, its a $60 cab ride away...

So, my question - to anyone that's a native around there:

What's the best way to get from Newark to the SLCC, considering I've never been to NYC before? I'll ask the consierge for specifics at the hotel, but am I best taking a cab - riding a bus - taking the subway? How much time should I realistically give myself?

If I head to the bar & attend the party, and get out late... do the subways stop running after a certain hour, so I'll be stuck taking a cab back to my hotel?

Any advice would be much appreciated!

Travis, it's been a while since I lived in that area, but the rule of thumb is always that public transportation is the way to go. Avoid taxis altogether. They're way too expensive and traffic is completely unpredictable. What was a 20 minute ride yesterday could be 4 hours today, and that goes for the whole area. You might want to check out this article. Sounds like the Air Train is your best bet.

Travis, you can take the New Jersey Coastline Train from Newark straight to Penn Station in NYC. You can also do the Path train.

The Coastline train will dump you into the city in about 20 minutes

Also, the last train back to Newark usually heads back around 12-1 am. You can get the schedule at www.njtransit.com

Buy some cheap wine and get a cheap hooker, then head for a nice, comfy alleyway. You might possibly get mugged, as an added tourist bonus.

That wasnt nice...

the Path can be a great friend. cheap and easy.. i've been going into NYC to go to a club called "Albion" and usua;;y have just gone up to Jersey City and taken the Path (they run all night).

if you're a meat eater, after the SLCC kick-off.. i suggest finding a corner where they sell "meat on stick, man.. yeah!". beautiful drunken food.. gnaw at that as you stumble down the street.. wandering around until you find the PAth again that you probably passed a couple times aong the way.

as far as the afternoon goes.. i agree with the museams idea.. either that, or just see if you can grab a seat on one of the NYC tours. i don't think it matters which one, any of them are pretty much the same "here's this famous building, hee's another one.. oh, we'll stop here for food.. now we're off again". i did this recently (for the first time) when my mom was visitng from Florida and actually had a groovy time of it... granted i was comparing almost all the architecture and stuff to SL, but hey.. it's only natural for us SLers!

from what i've read, the Dinosaur exhibit at the Museam of Natural History is well worth the price/visit.

honestly though, i'd just get into NYC.. don't stray too far from where you need to be later in the night and meander about and stop and chill at cool places whenever you run across them. you can easily spend hours just wandering about looking at the divergence of old world buildings (Flat Iron district and the such) to ethnic destinations {Chinatown and the surrounding area), not to mention the various street markets.

oh yeah.. and if you run across Rockefeller Center.. go inside and check out the paintings on the walls and ceilings.. it's a huge panoramic story, told through art, about the history of man. (mythologically speaking) ..yeah, it's more than just "where that BIG tree goes!".. lol.

St. Peter's Church is a good visit.. and "Ground Zero" is quite moviong as well.. check out the church there. the scuffs on the pews are from the firefighters and rescuers who spent many hours helping as they could during those dark times. moving and beautiful all in one.
-


{...just don't forget to get to Off the Wagon by 7p!! )