Date: 24th October 2015
What We Did: We flew Heathrow to New York via Toronto. I think Heathrow is my favourite airport to date, it felt super relaxing and lots to do. We had a lovely breakfast and a few drinks at one of the bars. We were flying with Air Canada, and the flight was great. We were very impressed with the service from Air Canada. We slept most of the way and got woken up by the people in front of us to look out of the window. The view was amazing as we were flying over Greenland and could see the icebergs and glaciers. Worth getting woken up for!
We had a stopover in Toronto for around 2 hours. We found a bar and had a few drinks, which we ordered from iPads. The good thing about stopping over on the way to New York is that we went through border control in Canada and missed the queue at New York. This was great as we had heard that it could take ages to clear immigration in New York. Once we arrived at LaGuardia Airport, we walked straight to baggage claim. We then joined the very long taxi line and were taken to our hotel.
We stayed 6 nights at Hotel 31. This was a great place to stay as it was cheap and just what you needed. The room was comfy, and we had a shared bathroom. We didn’t bump into anyone for the bathroom the whole 6 days, and it was always really clean. The biggest plus was the location, as around the corner was the Empire State Building, which we loved walking past on the way back at night to see the different colours they project on the top. Once we were checked in and had dropped our bags, we wanted to go and explore. It was rather late, so we decided to just walk and see what we could find.
The first place we got to was the library, which we had seen in films such as ‘The Day After Tomorrow’. We were excited to see inside, but the floor we wanted to see was shut due to maintenance. The building was very big and grand, with the lion statues on the outside guarding it.
We then basically followed the bright lights to find Times Square. This was a great place to people-watch, and I think we visited every day of our trip and sat on the steps to watch the world go by. It was a lot smaller than I imagined, but the lights were so bright you could think it was daytime. We were now getting tired from all the travelling, so we decided to walk back to the hotel and have an early night, ready to explore tomorrow. On the way back, we got our first glimpse of The Empire State Building all lit up, and it became our favourite building.
Food and Drink:
Breakfast at Heathrow Airport in one of the cafes. Mike had a full breakfast and I had fruit with yoghurt. Very tasty and of course the beer and prosecco as it is a tradition while in the airport.
Lunch on the airline. I cannot remember what we ate but it tasted ok for airplane food.
Dinner at Uncle Sam’s Burger Bar where we both had a burger and fries. It was really good.
The Highs: Being in New York which we have wanted to visit for years. The hotel was a nice surprise as it was cheap, clean and really close to the centre.
The Lows: None!
On Date: 25th October 2015
What We Did: We stopped in the café across the street for breakfast. It was amazing, and we came back every morning to eat…usually the same thing. This morning, we decided to walk around and see some of the main sights and go and pick up our New York Pass and hop-on/off bus tickets. On the way to pick up our pass, we stopped for a quick look in Macy’s. It had to be done, we found it to be very much like Selfridges in London, absolutely massive!
We then walked up towards Times Square, on the way we picked up our New York Passes. One tip is to pick up these passes early, as the shop was so busy and we had to queue for a long time! We sat on the red steps, and people watched before heading into M&M World and Hersheys, which are again a couple of tourist must-dos! We then decided to grab something to eat before deciding where to first go with the New York Pass. We ate at Bubba Gumps and it was really good.
While sat eating lunch we looked through the New York Pass book and decided to try and catch the Rockefeller Centre Tour. We walked over the Rockefeller Centre to start the tour. It was very interesting and we learned a lot about the history and arts of the centre. On the inside it is black and gold which makes it look very clean and shiny. During the tour we also saw the statues of Atlas and Prometheus, which are very famous. The best part of the tour was talking about the Christmas Tree. There is a grate on the floor which shows where the Christmas Tree has come from and the date, every year the person who supplies the tree will receive this grate as a thank you. It is a huge building with a lot to see and do, it is also a great place to people watch ice skating.
After the tour we decided to go and look for Dylan’s Candy Company which we had read about on Trip Advisor. We found it and WOW!! I have never seen a sweet shop like it. We decided to go for a few cocktails and ice cream in the café upstairs. The theming was amazing. We also picked up a tub of pick n mix sweets, which we had money off with the New York Pass.
It was then time to go back and get changed and head over to Madison Square Garden for our first Ice Hockey Game. Madison Square Garden, I think, is the best arena I have ever been to. There didn’t seem to be a bad seat in the house. The only thing I do recommend is to wrap up warm for the Ice Skating as it does get very cold inside the arena…. Seems obvious now, I say it but didn’t think of it at the time! We watched the Calgary Flames vs. New York Rangers, it was a fast-paced game that took a while to even work out what was happening. It was so much fun and had an amazing atmosphere. We loved hearing the national anthems and the t-shirt cannons during the breaks. We would highly recommend it and will definitely be back.
Food and Drink:
Breakfast at Cosi’s across the street from our hotel. This little café soon became our favourite and go to place for breakfast. We had a squagel with ham and cheese and porridge to share. The porridge station was amazing as it had its own toppings bar with sugar, fruits, nuts and granola.
Lunch at Bubba Gumps on Times Square. It was our first time at Bubba Gumps and it didn’t disappoint. We loved that on the table you had a sign that said Run Forrest Run and Stop Forrest Stop, you could use these to show if you wanted service. We ordered two things and shared them both. We enjoyed both meals with a few cocktails.
Shrimper’s Heaven – Hand breaded coconut shrimp, grilled shrimp, fried shrimp and Japanese style tempura shrimp served with fries and dipping sauces.
We also had a bucket which had shrimp, celery, corn steamed with garlic and different spices.
Drinks at Dylan’s Candy Bar where we had a cocktails.
The Highs: Today’s high was definitely the Ice Hockey Game. It was so much fun and exciting. Everything was a new experience and it only took a few goals for us to learn the chants being sung. Within 10 minutes we were singing along. We also loved Madison Square Garden as a venue.
The Lows: The queue where we had to pick up the New York Pass. There didn’t seem to be any order inside the shop and people were getting confused on what all the different lines were for. It took a long time to get our passes.
Date: 26th October 2015
What We Did: We were up early again this morning and headed straight over to Cosi Café for breakfast.
Our first stop this morning was The Empire State Building. We were going to the top to see the city! What a view it was! At 86 floors above the ground, we could see The Hudson, Brooklyn Bridge, Times Square, The Statue of Liberty, One World Trade Centre, Chrysler Building and the Flat Iron Building (Mike’s favourite building). This observation deck was outside, and then we went up to the 102nd floor to see even more. From that height, we could see the shape of Manhattan and all the bridges that connect to the other boroughs. I am glad we got there early, as it was already getting busy. Make sure you leave time to look at the lobby of the building, as it is so shiny and bold.
We then jumped onto the City Sightseeing Tour Bus out towards Yankee Stadium for the stadium tour. We went past Central Park, The Guggenheim and The Natural History Museum. We arrived at Yankee Stadium, which looked huge but not like the stadiums we are used to in the UK. It didn’t look as flashy as other stadiums, which have huge billboards on the outside. It was also very cold within the stadium. It was busy, and we had an hour to kill before our tour, so we decided to go and grab a snack and drinks from Hard Rock Café next door.
The tour was good, full of information about baseball and a lot of exhibits about the game. The way they showed the baseballs and kit was really well done. Our favourite part was Monument Park which was peaceful and celebrated the legends of baseball.
We then got back onto the Hop on Off bus and headed back towards Manhattan, driving through the Bronx on the way. This is a really great way to travel around New York, as you get to see a lot from the top of the bus and listen to facts about what you are seeing. We got off the bus in Times Square and headed to the Hunger Games Experience, which was included in the New York Pass. This was another great place if you enjoy books and films. There were lots of costumes and props from the film, including the dresses that Katniss wore.
We were then waiting for the night tour to start, so we wandered around Times Square. We went to Toys R Us to see the large Ferris wheel. I then decided to go and buy another jumper from H&M because it was so cold tonight, and we knew we would be on top of the bus for a few hours. The night tour was amazing, we went through Chinatown and Little Italy. Our guide was full of information about the New York Skyline. It was funny because he kept telling us to remain seated, then at one point, he nearly got knocked out by a road sign because they were so low. Going across the Brooklyn Bridge was bitterly cold, and we were shivering. However, being that cold was totally worth it for the view. The New York Skyline is amazing, and I could have sat there all night looking at all the lights and skyscrapers. When we went back across the Brooklyn Bridge, they played the song ‘New York State of Mind’. This is a must-do in New York.
Food and Drink:
Breakfast at Cosi Café where we both had oatmeal with all the toppings from the oatmeal bar. This is by far the best breakfast I have had and I now want a toppings bar at home for when I have porridge.
Lunch at Hard Rock Café. We never really eat at places like these that you can find in every city around the world, however there wasn’t much choice around the stadium. We shared a huge portion of nachos and drank a couple of cocktails before it was time to head into the stadium for our tour.
The Highs: The night tour on the bus was by far the best part of today. You have to see the New York skyline from Brooklyn at night. The twinkling lights are amazing and you can really see the different heights of all the buildings. Just remember to wrap up warm as it was so cold!
The Lows: Being so cold going across the Brooklyn Bridge. I don’t know what we were expecting in October but we definitely did not pack enough warm clothes for our trip.
Date: 27th October 2015
What We Did:
We were up early and headed straight down to the bottom of Manhattan, where we caught the ferry to Ellis Island. Make sure you arrive earlier, as it takes a while to clear airport-style security and get onto the ferry. The boat ride over was amazing, and that is where you will probably get the best views and pictures, of the Statue of Liberty and the New York Skyline, including the One World Trade Centre. We really enjoyed the boat ride over, just remember to wrap up warm if you’re visiting in winter, as it was very windy on the top deck!
Our first stop was on Ellis Island, which was very interesting and full of information on immigration to the USA. We enjoyed learning about what people went through to try and get into America and the conditions in which they suffered. Make sure you talk to the staff there. We were ushered over by the man working in the large hall you first come into. He was great and gave us some great facts! It is a lovely island to walk around and see the views of New York and, of course, Lady Liberty herself. We spent a good few hours on Ellis Island seeing all the different rooms and then trying to find our name on The American Immigrant Wall of Honor… which we did.
The next stop on the boat was for the Statue of Liberty, after reading many reviews and blogs on New York we decided to skip this stop. If we had tickets to go into Lady Liberty, obviously, we would have stopped. However, we decided it was not worth the waste in time waiting for the next ferry, and we decided we had a perfect view from the boat. So it was back to Manhattan!
We then walked over to One World Trade Centre, which is the tallest building in New York. We were moved by the 9/11 memorial pools at the site of the Twin Towers. We spent time here reflecting and thinking about all those people who lost their lives. It is a beautiful memorial. We have no photos of this as we didn’t feel it was respectful, see our lows of the day for more info on that! We then went to see One World Trade Centre, where we went up to the observation level. It was airport-style security, so please plan this into the time. The elevator travels to floor 102 in 47 seconds, and you could feel your ears popping! Inside the elevator, all walls were screens showing the development of New York and, in particular, the Twin Towers and then One World Trade Centre. Once at the top, you were ushered into a theatre to see a short film about the making of One World Trade. The end of the film gave me goosebumps. I won’t spoil the surprise if you haven’t been, but it’s well worth it! We then spent another hour walking around the observation deck looking at the Brooklyn Bridge, Statue of Liberty and beyond. You had no perspective of the city from that high up as everything looked so small.
We then walked to the Brooklyn Bridge which took a lot longer than first thought, in particular trying to get onto the bridge. There was a lot of road works going on at the time so a few paths were closed. Once we were on it was easy and we just followed all the other tourists walking across to Brooklyn! Every now and then stopping to look back and take photos of Manhattan. Please allow around an hour to walk across and take in the views. Once we were in Brooklyn we had pizza and Ice Cream sat at Brooklyn Heights. This was a perfect place to spend the afternoon. Instead of walking back across the Brooklyn bridge we decided to get the water taxi up the Hudson to the other side of Manhattan. Use of the water taxi was included in our New York Passes!
Once we were off the water taxi we were hoping to have a little look at the High Line but today had taken a lot longer than we had thought. We headed over to the theatre to pick up our tickets and take our seat for Matilda. This musical was really good, the actors were amazing especially the kids. The only part that was lacking for us was the songs but we didn’t know whether that was because there are not many songs in the film. All in all it was good and I’m glad we went but probably wouldn’t watch it again.
Food and Drink:
Breakfast at Cosi’s where as usual we had oatmeal and filled it from the toppings bar. I have been dreaming of this since we left New York. You cannot make this at home, it just doesn’t taste the same.
Lunch at Grimaldis Pizza just off the Brooklyn Bridge. This is probably the best pizza we have ever tasted and the line was out the door to sit down. We decided to take away and eat it overlooking the Manhattan Skyline. We saw them make our whole pizza from fresh including the dough. It was amazing and a must try while in New York. We then finished off with Ice Cream from the Brooklyn Ice Cream Factory which was also delicious.
The Highs: The iconic sights that you see all over the screen. Can’t believe I have now seen the Statue of Liberty.
The Lows: The biggest low and disappointment for us was the people around the 9/11 memorial pools taking selfies. We thought this was totally disrespectful and were shocked at people taking photos with selfie sticks with huge grins on their faces. That’s literally getting a picture for the sake of it and not thinking about where you are. There were people there placing flowers next to people’s names, so we felt sorry for them having to fight through the tourists and selfie sticks.
Date: 28th October 2015
What We Did:
Today was a bit of a washout as it rained …all day, not just a little… it poured. Our day therefore did not go to plan. We were hoping to walk around Wall Street but it was just too wet to even get there. On our way down to the bus stop we went past the Flatiron building.
We decided to take the bus tour around Brooklyn and listen to the history and what it has to offer. The hop on/off buses with Citysightseeing were amazing as they get you from A to B and tell you lots of information on the way. The only problem we had was the weather as it was just too wet to go and explore anywhere and I think that was our fault for not packing better clothing.
By now it was time for a late lunch/early dinner and to decide what we were going to do for the rest of the evening. There was then a small gap in the rain so we got off the bus and started walking back to the hotel to change our clothes. On the way back we found a lovely place to eat called Rare Bar and Grill. This was an amazing place with great food, drink and atmosphere. While finishing up we decided to try and get some cheap Broadway tickets from the TKTS stand in Times Square.
It was still raining and very cold as we headed over to the red steps. The TKTS booth is directly underneath the red steps. We looked at all the available tickets at discounted prices, we were surprised at how quiet it was. In the end we decided on Phantom of the Opera, which was amazing! The theatre was small and cosy and all seats had a great view. We really enjoyed the show!
Once out of the theatre we went for a few drinks with some friends from Wales who had also booked a trip to New York at the same time as us. We had drinks at Planet Hollywood on Times Square which were nice and chatted until late about all we had done in the city.
Food and Drink:
Breakfast was again at Cosi Café ….I know again. With both of us having the oatmeal and a juice.
Lunch/Dinner at Rare Bar and Grill. We both had burgers cooked medium/rare. You know it’s going to be a good burger when they ask you how you would like it cooked! Mike’s burger came with a whiskey. We then both had a cheesecake for dessert, had to be done in New York.
The Highs: It was a quiet day which is what we needed. The last few days had been hectic full of long walks and touristy things. It was nice to take today at a slower pace to recharge a little for the rest of the holiday.
The Lows: Today is an obvious one, the weather was awful. It rained heavy all day and made it impossible to do much without getting soaked. However a part of this was down to our shocking packing where we did not pack for the rain or the cold.
Date: 29th October 2015
What We Did:
Today was our last day in New York City and we were so sad! It has been the most amazing week and we have fallen in love with a city… we never thought that possible. Before coming over we had the image of a busier London and we were, frankly, worried. We are not keen on London, purely for the amount of people and the pace of life and that we find people are often rather rude because they are all in such a rush. We did not get this feeling in New York, it’s just amazing and we already cannot wait to come back!
Our first stop today was Madison Square Garden for the tour, which we both loved. We definitely agree with the statement that it is the best arena in the world. Within a week we have watched basketball and ice hockey at the arena and we were amazed at how fast they could transform the arena to fit different events. The tour was very informative about it’s history. We loved seeing behind the scenes and the boxes for the VIP guests. Whilst there, staff were placing T-Shirts on the chairs to celebrate the first basketball game of the season. This made us even more excited for the game we were attending that night, I mean who doesn’t like a free t-shirt?!
We then walked up to Central Park where we rented bikes. This is such a calm setting away from a busy city. You could be in any park in the world. The park itself is huge and it took a few hours to cycle around the outskirts, including the stops for photo opportunities. It is an amazing place to spend time and we enjoyed this together. It was hard work to cycle up some of the hills, mainly as the bikes we rented had no gears. The colours of the park were amazing and I highly recommend visiting in the Autumn.
We gave our bikes back and headed over to Fifth Avenue for a little wander and some window shopping. On our way we managed to see Grand Central Station which was huge and so bold. The inside looked exactly like it does in the films and it is very grand, so a fitting name
We walked down Fifth Avenue and back to the hotel to change and then we headed back over to Madison Square Garden to watch the basketball game between the New York Knicks and Atlanta Hawks. I love any sport that starts with a national anthem. This was our first basketball game and we really enjoyed. It was fast paced and full of fun and energy. The crowd were very loud and so enthusiastic for supporting their home team. We also got our own blue t-shirts (the ones we saw being placed on the chairs during our tour earlier).
It was late by the time the basketball finished but we had one more thing we had to tick off our list, Top of the Rock. On our walk over we stopped at the Pandora store where we bought a New York Exclusive Charm of an apple. Top of the Rock was another amazing view and this time we were looking at the night lights. We managed to catch the last elevator up to the top and it was rather quiet but very windy. I loved seeing all the buildings lit up (Empire State and Chrysler) and you could really see Times Square because of the lights coming off it. It was past 1am by now and we had a 4am wake up call so it was time to pack our stuff and go to bed!
Food and Drink:
Breakfast at Cosi Café for the last time 🙁 so I filled my oatmeal to the top with all the delicious toppings. We will miss this little café.
Lunch at Cosi Café (again! I know, I know) where we both had a salad which was so fresh and tasty. Lunch was just as good as breakfast.
The Highs: We loved ending our New York Stay with a trip to Top of the Rock. The view was amazing and we got to see all our favourite parts in one place. We have loved the Empire State Building, The Brooklyn Bridge, Times Square and all the museums and memorials.
The Lows: It was our last day, that was a really big low. Another low for us was while we were enjoying the views and different things around Central Park we didn’t realise we had cycled straight past Strawberry Fields! We were gutted as by the time we noticed we were too far away and running out of time. So this is top of our list for the next time we visit.