Having been to New York City 4 times in the last 3 years, I thought I would share some tips and favorites from past trips. I initially envisioned this post as a trip report with photos of what I did on my last visit. Then another blogger posted an amazing re-cap of her recent visit. Seriously, it looked nothing like the trip I had just taken. Her post was full of cab rides, fancy restaurants, party dresses, high heels and beautiful photography. It set me back realizing what a starter blog I have.

 

Truth: I have never been in a cab in NYC. We either walk or take the subway. Once we rented a town car out of desperation and fear of melting like the Wicked Witch during a heat wave. But that was because we couldn’t find an empty cab and we were too far away from a subway station. We have also used Dial 7 to schedule trips to and from the airport.

Truth: I don’t pack high heels for a vacation. That doesn’t sound like a vacation to me. I try to pack light since I don’t want to pay extra for a checked bag.  Ok, Honey might call me a cheapskate.  Where did that expression come from? I can’t wait to head to Italy where there is no addition charge on international flights for a checked bag. Oh, wait.  We are taking in-country train trips and still packing light. Darn.

Google.

I met Michael Symon at a taping of The Chew.  I had wrinkled my noise as the hosts tasted a nutella and cheese roll. At the break he came racing over with the sample and insisted I try one because he saw the face I made at the thought of a dry, hard, cheese and chocolate snack.  (I lose at poker, too.) So, if you have lead-time, google ‘TV shows taping in New York’, or something similar. The Goog will start giving you answers. (Isn’t that beautiful? Was it really that long ago that I had to go the library or buy a book to do a little research?) In the summer the Today show hosts concerts in Central Park, etc. What do you watch on TV? If it’s filmed in NYC maybe you can be a part of the audience.

Warning: If you want tickets to Saturday Night Live, good luck. I think it is a lottery and you have to put in your request a year in advance and be willing to give up your first-born.

 

Yelp for restaurants

We don’t tend to make reservations for restaurants when traveling. Our standard travel policy is to stay away from national/international chains. I know my restaurant friends don’t like the Yelp app. However, in a big city it rarely fails us to find quality, local restaurants. On Yelp, you can search by cuisine, dollar amount and/or proximity. Of course we have had a few duds. Like the time we searched for local barbeque and ended up at a HUGE restaurant by Times Square that was putting out poor quality diner-style fast food. Oh, well.  Life’s not perfect.

Sidenote:  we asked our airport driver where he would buy pizza by the slice.  He said the 1-2 dollar slices with the line out the door. Fresh and hot is always the best!

Ask locals for recommendations

We ate lunch at a great restaurant right around the corner from a store we were shopping at based on the salesperson’s suggestions. Honey thinks I should I mention we were in a Lululemon store we came across after leaving the ABC Studios. Say what? What was I doing in there? Can’t help myself. #luluaddict

We asked the bartender what he would recommend for entertainment. We often sit at the bar so we can chat with others. Also, we can almost always get a seat even if the main dining area is full. He asked us if we were alone. It was a weird question. We hesitated to answer. Then he clarified that if we had kids with us that would make a difference in his ideas. Oh, OK. Now we can talk to this stranger. We ended up that night at neighborhood jazz club in the basement of an Italian restaurant. Jazz normally is not on my playlist, however, I love live music and it was fun to share the experience with locals in their neighborhood.

TKTS discount ticket booth

If you are only going to see one Broadway show while in town this may not be the way to go. Instead, buy advance tickets to insure you get the production you want, on the day you want.  In our case, we planned to see several shows and arrived mid-week.  The booth gets busier and busier over the weekend. After you stand in line for your first ticket, your ticket stub is good for a Disney-style fast past for 3 days. The TKTS employees managing lines have great insight on current musicals and give good recommendations based on your preferences. When you get up to the window, make sure you have a couple of choices in case you don’t like the seat options.

New York Subway App

The city has an amazing subway system that is fast and easy to use. It makes all of Manhattan accessible. Our first trip to NYC we trained into Grand Central Station from the Newark airport. From there our plans were to take the subway up to Times Square. We had diligently researched what train we needed, the time it left the station and what platform we needed to stand on. Sounds a little like Harry Potter, doesn’t it? We checked and rechecked the information and as we stood waiting for our train, suitcases in tow, backpacks on our shoulders, a train arrived. It did not have the same number as our info. A local asked, “Where are you going?” Honey told him Times Square. He then said the arriving train would take us there. We hesitated. As he hopped on, he turned around and sternly stated,” I’m not f$*#ing around. GET ON.” Startled by his passion we clambered on during a busy rush hour. That’s when we found out about this app. Apparently the transit authority had issued an alert that our train number was out of service. We would have been waiting along time. Hello platform 9 ¾.

Top subway tip I can offer: get on any train headed in the direction you want to go and you can find your stop from there. This is the app we used: New York Subway app

And, the last suggestion

Don’t spend a lot of time standing on corners waiting for a walk signal. It will be a sure sign you are a tourist. If the road is clear head across with the rest of the New Yorkers who never stand in one place for too long.