New York, New York.

[autopilot]

Going to go an celebrate my 30th birthday in the big apple with my girlfriend this year.

Who here has been? what's worth checking out? Any tips?

[manwithnoname]

It depends what you are interested in...

I spent a day in the American Museum of Natural History http://www.amnh.org/. I was not a big fan of museums but have been to the Natural History one I found it a lot more interesting that I thought I would, so much so I ended up spending a day in The Metropolitan Museum of Art http://www.metmuseum.org/ I do mean a whole day there is lots to see.

I would recommend the trip to the Empire State Building, but I like tall buildings. I wanted to go up at night but never got round to it.

I did not go to Ellis Island/Statue of Liberty I was advised it was a bit boring - not sure if I missed out on anything

It's 10 years ago since I was last in NY, if I could remember any bars - pre sobriety days, the only club I can remember is http://websterhall.com/ all I can recall was a the dance floor clearing and a trapeze act appear from nowhere amazing and confusing.

The tour buses, were a bit of rip off IMHO, if you can get your head round the underground it's the best way to get around was a lot cheaper was well - but you need to know where you are going.

Got flights to JFK and Newark, if you are staying on Manhattan Island there is little difference in distance between the 2. Landing at Newark the final decent was parallel to Manhattan very nice view of the skyline.

I see BA have a few offers on flights humm, anyway I'll see if I can recall any more...

[Tarffie]

Staten Island ferry is a must do on a clear day. Get fantastic views of Manhattan and it's free. Same with the Empire State.

U.S.S Intrepid is pretty cool, dunno if it's somewhere the missus would enjoy though.

The tour buses, were a bit of rip off IMHO, if you can get your head round the underground it's the best way to get around was a lot cheaper was well - but you need to know where you are going.

Well you'd be daft to use tour buses to get everywhere anyway. It's worth it for a one off loop around the city so you get to see the sights you wouldn't normally end up planning to see.

[manwithnoname]

Well you'd be daft to use tour buses to get everywhere anyway. It's worth it for a one off loop around the city so you get to see the sights you wouldn't normally end up planning to see.

Sorry I didn't make myself clear, one of the selling points of the tour buses is you get a day pass you can hop off and hop on as many times are you like, I wouldn't personally waste the time and money. Like I say it all 10 years ago since I was there, err so I cannot remember what I saw, what sights did you see the you didn't plan orginally plan to see - any of them interesting?

[ACiD303]

if you can get your head round the underground it's the best way to get around

Very true, but in all honesty I really underestimated the NY Underground and ended up in Harlem and The Bronx due to easy oversights - always double check the train, just because it's on the right platform doesn't mean its the right line or service.

I spent most of my time walking - which is fine if you have plenty of time and the missus doesnt mind walking either. A block might not seem much, but it can be after 4 or 5. I can't remember which directions the traffic system worked out, but basically once you figure out which way traffic is heading (uptown/downtown, eastside/westside) you'll find your bearings a lot easier.

Oh yeah, and just because the green man says you can cross, there's bound to be a few yellow cabs that will disagree - cars can still 'turn in' to the road.

I think there's probably not that much in NY to actually do (well, I was bored after 3 or 4 days), but its nice just walking around and noticing things that have come up in movies (or in other peoples cases, bumping into celebs).

If you're bored of NY and got time to kill, then it's only $30 return to Boston by coach. Although not as touristy, I much prefer Boston to NY.

[IBM]

I LOVED New York. The sheer energy and power of the city is incredible. Loved the architecture, light, and general hustle and bustle. I was only there for two days and we did nothing touristy, but still had an incredible time. Just walking around and being tourist was great....I hate rushing from attraction to attraction and you end up getting nothing done.

What time of year are you going? If you can manage it, and it's late spring, early summer, get out of bed really, really, really early (5-6ish)....New York early in the morning is incredible, and I mean INCREDIBLE, and it's never time wasted being out of bed that early in a place like that. The steam from the grates, all the deli's opening, the smell of bread, the sun hitting the top of the scrapers....stunning...and it means you can get to the attractions like Lady Liberty early before the crowds hit.