Help with Solo Trip to NYC

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SuzBanyan
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Help with Solo Trip to NYC

Post by SuzBanyan »

It’s been more than 30 years, so everything is on the table for my mid-August trip. Arriving late Saturday at Newark and will probably Uber/Lyft to the City. I will have a Sunday and most of Monday on my own before I join the Road Scholar Broadway tour. The hotel for the RS is Hampton Inn Times Square Central. I can stay there for the 2 nights prior (the price is reasonable) or somewhere else.

I’m thinking of visiting the Museum of American Folk Art on Sunday as I am interested in the current exhibit. And then, despite the mediocre reviews, I might just see the matinee of the Camelot revival at Lincoln Center since I’m already there (unless that will be included in my RS tour). Also thinking about a pre-opening tour of MoMA on Sunday. Not sure about Monday. Guided walking tour of Central Park to counter the rest of the week that will be indoors? Other thoughts? It looks like lots of things are closed on Mondays.

After the tour, I will probably take the AirPort Express bus back to EWR on Friday for an early afternoon flight.

Thoughts or suggestions?
muffins14
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Re: Help with Solo Trip to NYC

Post by muffins14 »

Crom laughs at your Four Winds
Topic Author
SuzBanyan
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Re: Help with Solo Trip to NYC

Post by SuzBanyan »

muffins14 wrote: Wed May 31, 2023 1:37 pm viewtopic.php?p=7290177#p7290177
Thanks for linking to your other comment. I think the walking tours of the lower east side through the Tenement Museum look great (and are available on Mondays!). Have you taken them? Any you particularly recommend?

9/11 Memorial feels too intense to me. I still recall that morning.
rk6
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Re: Help with Solo Trip to NYC

Post by rk6 »

Why not take the NJT train directly to/from EWR to midtown? Probably less than 5 min walk to/from your hotel. Sat PMs you might be fighting a lot of traffic with people driving into the city for whatever reason.
pomomojo
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Re: Help with Solo Trip to NYC

Post by pomomojo »

NYC has nearly endless choices. It's an easy to navigate solo, especially with the convenience of the subways complimented by Uber and Lyft. I suggest that you avoid eating around Times Square. The restaurants are far better in quality and quantity in Hell's Kitchen, Chelsea, and the West Village.

Here are two sample itineraries

The Whitney is open on Mondays. As an alternative to Central Park, the Highline can be a pleasant stroll during off-peak hours (e.g. a Monday morning). Consider grabbing a cup of coffee and pastry, joining the Highline in the W20s or 30s, and walking south to the Whitney.

Plan B, would be to train or Uber from midtown West to W72nd street. Walk from the West Side to the East, pass the Bethesda fountain and Lake, and wander up to E82nd to the Met Museum. Visit for a few hours, and eat a light meal in the American Room Cafe. It overlooks Central Park and the views are great
Last edited by pomomojo on Thu Jun 01, 2023 4:09 am, edited 1 time in total.
psteinx
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Re: Help with Solo Trip to NYC

Post by psteinx »

If you haven't been to NYC in 30 years, I would leave some time open to walk around/explore, on your own. Central Park, 5th Avenue, Times Square. Interesting places/people/stores to see, interesting food to try.
Stoomboot
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Re: Help with Solo Trip to NYC

Post by Stoomboot »

Staten Island ferry, high line, 9/11 memorial (you should go.)
DoTheMath
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Re: Help with Solo Trip to NYC

Post by DoTheMath »

I recommend a walk through High Line Park if the weather is agreeable. A nice way to start the day!
“I am losing precious days. I am degenerating into a machine for making money. I am learning nothing in this trivial world of men. I must break away and get out into the mountains...” -- John Muir
Topic Author
SuzBanyan
Posts: 2015
Joined: Thu Jun 02, 2016 11:20 am

Re: Help with Solo Trip to NYC

Post by SuzBanyan »

Thank you everyone for your helpful comments. My favorite way to see a new place is enjoy a few things and not worry about whether I have checked off the list of Must Sees. I’m not like the sailor in On The Town, guidebook in hand, “Got to see the whole town, From Yonkers on down to the Bay. In just one day!”

I’m particularly intrigued by the suggestion to walk the High Line to the Whitney. I’ve been sucked in by the fabulous photos of the High Line gardens in the NYT. Of course, August is not likely to look the same as late Spring.
crefwatch
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Re: Help with Solo Trip to NYC

Post by crefwatch »

If you are going to the Folk Art Museum, you might want to see the Museum of Art and Design, near your hotel as well. Write down the Folk Art hours, I think they're later than many other museums. It's not a huge place.

You don't indicate how frequent a Broadway viewer you are. But since you've booked a "Broadway Tour" (whatever that is), I will say that I was very disappointed with the 2 hour 55 minute "Camelot". But there are not a lot of traditional (whatever that means) Broadway musicals right now. You have to research some of the newer-style options, like Six, &Juliet, or Some Like It Hot to make sure it's what you're looking for. I would observe that Hadestown is a pretty safe choice, and easier to get into than, say, Wicked. The TKTS (discount priced last minute) booths can have long lines during tourist season. And be ready with a written, ordered, list of shows you'll be happy with when you get to the window. Download the TKTS app so you can study availability the same day of the week for two weeks before your trip.
Topic Author
SuzBanyan
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Re: Help with Solo Trip to NYC

Post by SuzBanyan »

crefwatch wrote: Thu Jun 01, 2023 10:35 am If you are going to the Folk Art Museum, you might want to see the Museum of Art and Design, near your hotel as well. Write down the Folk Art hours, I think they're later than many other museums. It's not a huge place.

You don't indicate how frequent a Broadway viewer you are. But since you've booked a "Broadway Tour" (whatever that is), I will say that I was very disappointed with the 2 hour 55 minute "Camelot". But there are not a lot of traditional (whatever that means) Broadway musicals right now. You have to research some of the newer-style options, like Six, &Juliet, or Some Like It Hot to make sure it's what you're looking for. I would observe that Hadestown is a pretty safe choice, and easier to get into than, say, Wicked. The TKTS (discount priced last minute) booths can have long lines during tourist season. And be ready with a written, ordered, list of shows you'll be happy with when you get to the window. Download the TKTS app so you can study availability the same day of the week for two weeks before your trip.
Thank you for your thoughts. I have not seen any theater in NY for 30 years ( I saw Phantom in the year after it opened) but my interest was revitalized by recent stories in the NYT as more shows are opening. I appreciate your thoughts on Camelot, as the NYT also found it to be disappointing. My interest in the production comes from having grown up listening my grandmother’s Broadway Cast Recording from 1960. I may have seen a local summer production many decades ago. So Camelot is on my list, but not necessarily a “must do” at this time.

My Road Scholar trip includes 3 plays: 1 off-Broadway, 1 non-musical and 1 musical. We will know which ones about 6 weeks prior. It also includes presentations by “theatrical professionals” and the Museum of Broadway. My husband loved the theater but was born in NY, so hated the idea of NY as a vacation destination. This is one of my first solo trips since my husband passed last year and I thought an organized tour was a good way to start.
crefwatch
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Re: Help with Solo Trip to NYC

Post by crefwatch »

Thanks for your helpful reply. I don't want to provide more input than you want, but maybe waiting in the hot sun to buy a "half-price" ticket isn't a big draw for you! It is certain that other people on the tour will be talking about TKTS, so it's worth getting familiar with it. (The fact is that only tickets chosen by the producers of the shows are "sent" to the TKTS booth, so they have an unfortunate tendency to send the most expensive tickets to be discounted, if you see what I mean!) Some posters on newsboards prefer to buy tickets in advance, from the official ticket site, because exact seating choice is so important to them. You don't get to choose an exact seat at TKTS.

https://www.tdf.org/discount-ticket-pro ... ts-by-tdf/

You didn't mention any of the more old-fashioned art (?) museums, which can be a nice refuge on a sweltering summer day. Alas, most tickets are around $25 these days.
Valuethinker
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Re: Help with Solo Trip to NYC

Post by Valuethinker »

SuzBanyan wrote: Thu Jun 01, 2023 12:39 pm
crefwatch wrote: Thu Jun 01, 2023 10:35 am If you are going to the Folk Art Museum, you might want to see the Museum of Art and Design, near your hotel as well. Write down the Folk Art hours, I think they're later than many other museums. It's not a huge place.

You don't indicate how frequent a Broadway viewer you are. But since you've booked a "Broadway Tour" (whatever that is), I will say that I was very disappointed with the 2 hour 55 minute "Camelot". But there are not a lot of traditional (whatever that means) Broadway musicals right now. You have to research some of the newer-style options, like Six, &Juliet, or Some Like It Hot to make sure it's what you're looking for. I would observe that Hadestown is a pretty safe choice, and easier to get into than, say, Wicked. The TKTS (discount priced last minute) booths can have long lines during tourist season. And be ready with a written, ordered, list of shows you'll be happy with when you get to the window. Download the TKTS app so you can study availability the same day of the week for two weeks before your trip.
Thank you for your thoughts. I have not seen any theater in NY for 30 years ( I saw Phantom in the year after it opened) but my interest was revitalized by recent stories in the NYT as more shows are opening. I appreciate your thoughts on Camelot, as the NYT also found it to be disappointing. My interest in the production comes from having grown up listening my grandmother’s Broadway Cast Recording from 1960. I may have seen a local summer production many decades ago. So Camelot is on my list, but not necessarily a “must do” at this time.

My Road Scholar trip includes 3 plays: 1 off-Broadway, 1 non-musical and 1 musical. We will know which ones about 6 weeks prior. It also includes presentations by “theatrical professionals” and the Museum of Broadway. My husband loved the theater but was born in NY, so hated the idea of NY as a vacation destination. This is one of my first solo trips since my husband passed last year and I thought an organized tour was a good way to start.
My condolences for your loss.

The thing that really will have changed is the 9-11 Memorial. So that's definitely a destination to consider.

I agree the Tenement Museum is absolutely fascinating.

New York seemed to hit bottom some time in the 1980s (when you were last there?) in terms of street crime, hassle & ugliness. Then got radically better in the 1990s. Last time I was there (before the Global Financial Crisis in 2008 but post 9-11) we noticed more homeless people, things getting scruffier and a little more sketchy (not unsafe by American standards). I understand it may have become even more so with and since Covid (the subway, for example). As a tourist in daytime, taking normal precautions, it shouldn't be a big issue.
Topic Author
SuzBanyan
Posts: 2015
Joined: Thu Jun 02, 2016 11:20 am

Re: Help with Solo Trip to NYC

Post by SuzBanyan »

crefwatch wrote: Fri Jun 02, 2023 8:35 am Thanks for your helpful reply. I don't want to provide more input than you want, but maybe waiting in the hot sun to buy a "half-price" ticket isn't a big draw for you! It is certain that other people on the tour will be talking about TKTS, so it's worth getting familiar with it. (The fact is that only tickets chosen by the producers of the shows are "sent" to the TKTS booth, so they have an unfortunate tendency to send the most expensive tickets to be discounted, if you see what I mean!) Some posters on newsboards prefer to buy tickets in advance, from the official ticket site, because exact seating choice is so important to them. You don't get to choose an exact seat at TKTS.

https://www.tdf.org/discount-ticket-pro ... ts-by-tdf/

You didn't mention any of the more old-fashioned art (?) museums, which can be a nice refuge on a sweltering summer day. Alas, most tickets are around $25 these days.
Thanks. I appreciate all the input on TKTS. My gut reaction is to buy a ticket in advance. We saw Cats on a visit to Chicago and bought same day tickets in the last row of the theater. I was never sure whether my disappointment with that show was due to the lousy seats or being exhausted after a long day of sight-seeing or it was just a disappointing show.

As to art museums, at someone else’s suggestion from this Board, I am thinking about the Whitney, but I also have The Met and the the Guggenheim on my list for Monday. Sunday will probably involve Museum of Arts & Design (yes, even with the Taylor Swift costume exhibit) and American Folk Art Museum plus a show. But I may swap out the early entry tour at MoMA for MAD. Nice to have so many choices.
Topic Author
SuzBanyan
Posts: 2015
Joined: Thu Jun 02, 2016 11:20 am

Re: Help with Solo Trip to NYC

Post by SuzBanyan »

Valuethinker wrote: Fri Jun 02, 2023 8:43 am
SuzBanyan wrote: Thu Jun 01, 2023 12:39 pm
crefwatch wrote: Thu Jun 01, 2023 10:35 am If you are going to the Folk Art Museum, you might want to see the Museum of Art and Design, near your hotel as well. Write down the Folk Art hours, I think they're later than many other museums. It's not a huge place.

You don't indicate how frequent a Broadway viewer you are. But since you've booked a "Broadway Tour" (whatever that is), I will say that I was very disappointed with the 2 hour 55 minute "Camelot". But there are not a lot of traditional (whatever that means) Broadway musicals right now. You have to research some of the newer-style options, like Six, &Juliet, or Some Like It Hot to make sure it's what you're looking for. I would observe that Hadestown is a pretty safe choice, and easier to get into than, say, Wicked. The TKTS (discount priced last minute) booths can have long lines during tourist season. And be ready with a written, ordered, list of shows you'll be happy with when you get to the window. Download the TKTS app so you can study availability the same day of the week for two weeks before your trip.
Thank you for your thoughts. I have not seen any theater in NY for 30 years ( I saw Phantom in the year after it opened) but my interest was revitalized by recent stories in the NYT as more shows are opening. I appreciate your thoughts on Camelot, as the NYT also found it to be disappointing. My interest in the production comes from having grown up listening my grandmother’s Broadway Cast Recording from 1960. I may have seen a local summer production many decades ago. So Camelot is on my list, but not necessarily a “must do” at this time.

My Road Scholar trip includes 3 plays: 1 off-Broadway, 1 non-musical and 1 musical. We will know which ones about 6 weeks prior. It also includes presentations by “theatrical professionals” and the Museum of Broadway. My husband loved the theater but was born in NY, so hated the idea of NY as a vacation destination. This is one of my first solo trips since my husband passed last year and I thought an organized tour was a good way to start.
My condolences for your loss.

The thing that really will have changed is the 9-11 Memorial. So that's definitely a destination to consider.

I agree the Tenement Museum is absolutely fascinating.

New York seemed to hit bottom some time in the 1980s (when you were last there?) in terms of street crime, hassle & ugliness. Then got radically better in the 1990s. Last time I was there (before the Global Financial Crisis in 2008 but post 9-11) we noticed more homeless people, things getting scruffier and a little more sketchy (not unsafe by American standards). I understand it may have become even more so with and since Covid (the subway, for example). As a tourist in daytime, taking normal precautions, it shouldn't be a big issue.
Thank you for your kind thoughts on my loss. Having hugged my husband as we watched the unfolding events on 9/11, it feels too soon for me to visit the memorial.

The Tenement Museum sounds really interesting, but I might save it for trip in a different season.

I was last in NYC in 1988 and 1989. I never felt unsafe walking or taking cabs, but I don’t think I ever took the subway.
muffins14
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Re: Help with Solo Trip to NYC

Post by muffins14 »

SuzBanyan wrote: Fri Jun 02, 2023 12:14 pm
I was last in NYC in 1988 and 1989. I never felt unsafe walking or taking cabs, but I don’t think I ever took the subway.
Subways, busses, cabs, and walking will all be safe options for you. I’ve quite enjoyed busses lately, as it’s nice to be above ground sometimes :). But if you can, walk!
Crom laughs at your Four Winds
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