The Big Apple Re-visited
We flew with United from Manchester to Newark, hopped into a yellow taxi and we were at the Westin Times Square just 40 minutes later.
The Westin in centrally located and within reach of a lot of the places most people want to see - Times Square, Empire State Building, Central Park, Rockefeller Centre and Macys - and the hotel is surrounded by bars, restaurants and theatres.
The higher the floor, the better the view so it's worth paying a little bit extra for a higher room if that's important to you. The rooms at the Westin are fair sized for New York and we were in a recently refurbished Premium Deluxe room which was plenty big enough for three with a lovely, spacious bathroom.
If there's a Broadway show you particularly want to see, it's worth planning ahead. We got tickets to see Misery starring Bruce Willis and it was amazing!
With so much to see and do, it's definitely worth planning and pre-booking at least part of your trip before you go. We decided that the 'Top of the Rock' was a must-do activity so we pre-booked this before we left. Our ticket was open dated allowing us to be flexible as to when we went, but it also gave up VIP entrance so it cut down on the wait time. We went up around 5.30pm and watched the sun set and I can quite honestly say it was one of the most spectacular scenes I have ever seen.
Another thing on our list was the Statue of Liberty. This must be pre-booked especially if you want to get tickets to go up to the pedestal or the Crown as only a set number of tickets are sold per day. Ticket price includes the boat out to both Liberty Island and Ellis Island and I can thoroughly recommend this trip.
When down at the south of the island we took the opportunity to visit the new One World Trade Centre, dubbed 'Freedom Tower' and memorial which was incredibly moving. We wandered down Wall Street and had our photos taken with the Bull. If anyone likes shopping then you will love Century21 which is just a few minutes' walk from here. For a full day shopping experience it's worth considering a trip out to Woodbury Common outlet village.
We then decided to go to one of New York's oldest pubs for lunch - The Paris café where the food was amazing!
http://thepariscafenyc.com/
In the heart of Times Square is The View Restaurant. This is a revolving restaurant at the top of the Marriott Marquis and does a fabulous Champagne Sunday Brunch where you can sit back, relax and view the Manhattan skyline.
One of my most favourite places is still Grand Central Station. It is a great place to people watch! We did the official 75 minute tour so if you need to know anything about this awesome place - just ask me!
Another highlight of our trip was Central Park. We took a half hour horse and carriage trip through the park which we loved.
There are so many things to do in New York that you really can't do it all in one trip - which is probably why I keep going back.
Before we knew it, it was time to come home and what better way to travel to the airport than in a white stretch limo......
If you are thinking of visiting New York and need any help planning your trip, I can promise to help you make the most of the time you have so please get in touch.