New York in January.

[MushroomHunter]

I am hoping to go to New York at the end of January for 4 nights. Can anyone help with an itinerary? It will be DDs 18th birthday so nice hotel/restaurant required. It will be me, DH dd, DS (15) and DS (12)

Will stay for four nights.

I have nothing to add but a walk through central park!

I think I need a guide book, I don’t know anyone whos been. I really want to do a show and ground zero apart from that I am pretty clueless.

Tricky with kids as I've mainly done it as an art loving adult and presumably it will be freezing?

My favourite places: the Museum of Modern Art, the Frick Collection; Central Park; Ground Zero; One World Trade Centre, Empire State Building or Rockefeller Centre for sunset; Skyline walk; Boat trip to Ellis Island.

It will be very cold....4 days is short so plan carefully....subway is fast and efficient....you will need it to get about and cover the sights as spread out a lot....musuems uptown....interesting areas are downtown...east and west villages....i spent a month there and didnt see all i wanted to !

It's bloody cold. Thermals!!

I don't know if they're still as good, but for my last trip to NY a few years ago, I found the Trip Advisor forums invaluable. Loads of regular tourists and locals alike that are willing to help point you in the right direction, as well as lots of trip reports from recently returned visitors posting their itineraries etc.

My main tip is to capitalise on the jet lag; you're likely to wake early so make the most of it. We were wide awake by 6 and so went for breakfast every morning at 7 when there was no queue. This meant we were out for the day by 8/8:30, taking advantage of the quieter time of morning to do the tourist sites. We were ready for dinner by 5 or 6 (again, nice and quiet in the restaurants but not so dead that they lacked atmosphere) and ready to retire for bed fairly early. Suited us brilliantly!

You need to book most things. You are probably too late to climb the Statue of Liberty but you might get tickets for the pedestal. Try to do an observation deck. Top of the rock is better than the Empire State Building. I haven’t done the one world observatory as it opened just after my last visit.

It can be eye wateringly cold in January so you might need to factor in warming up in indoor places. Chelsea market is worth a visit, walk the high line first.

Definitely buy a guide book or look online and decide what you want to do, them make itineraries for each day by grouping together similar locations. It’s easy to float around seeing nothing in New York, it’s much better with a plan. Decide on a couple of things each to start.

Most people stay mid town, avoid times square if you can, it’s too busy to make a good place to stay, even a block away will be better.

Do you realise kids can’t go in most places if unvaccinated?

Stay in times Square, Hotel Edison is nice or the Crowne Plaza. We brought The New York pass and planned which attractions we wanted to see before we went and created our own itinerary. We did the tour bus on the first day, which helped us locate the attractions.

@CeeceeBloomingdale

Do you realise kids can’t go in most places if unvaccinated?

www1.nyc.gov/site/doh/covid/covid-19-vaccines-keytonyc.page

You’ll love it.

Brooklyn Bridge
Ground Zero
Central Park
The New York Library and Bryant Park behind it.
The cable car from 2nd Ave to Roosevelt Island
Grand Central Station
Watching shows being re order around Penn station area.

I love wandering around New York in winter. It will be cold but there are always shops and coffee bars to nip into for a warm. Much better than summer when it’s boiling hot.

I'd highly recommend the 911 memorial museum, the Natural History museum, and the Top of the Rock at the Rockerfeller centre.

Here are a few things we did recently when there

www.edgenyc.com/en

www.thehighline.org/

Staten Island ferry is free

www.hudsonyardsnewyork.com/discover/vessel

Not necessarily cold - we went Jan 2020 and it was 19 degrees (C!), people going around just in t shirts. Was unnerving actually.

TAO for a restaurant- it's incredible. Go to the Empire State Building in the night when NY is lit up it's beautiful

Re the vaccines I had no idea! The only one that hasn’t got a vaccine is our youngest?! I’ll have to look into that.

I wanted to stay in Time Square is that not a good idea? Also great too with the subways I never considered that. The tour bus is prob a must, we did it in Miami and we enjoyed it. The kids also enjoy museums so that’s no problem.

Any restaurant recommendations?

Ahh the cold, I’d kind of forgotten about that. Is it walkable in the cold? I enjoying walking as much as possible but if it’s to slippy I’ll stick to the public transport.

If you can go to a knicks game do that instead of a show. The kids will love it. I loved jr so much that we've been going in London every year since

It was many years ago I went as a 17 year old, but I mostly enjoyed doing a bus tour and seeing a show on Broadway. I also fondly remember buying cds at 1am, couldn't believe the shops were open! (It was 21 years ago!).

The vaccine rules are very strict, your unvaccinated child won't be allowed inside anywhere if they are over 5

@WakeUpLockie

Not necessarily cold - we went Jan 2020 and it was 19 degrees (C!), people going around just in t shirts. Was unnerving actually.

Yes it can be mild one day then freezing the next. You never know quite what you’ll get!

Times Sq area is very central and lots of hotels, but v busy and loud. I prefer the Grand Central area personally.

One of the best things we did was cycle around central park and eat sandwiches there that we bought in a nearby deli.

Also the tour bus as it gave you access to most places like statue of liberty an Elis island

Ice skating in Central Park could be fun?

I’ll come back - it will be cold though! Apparently they have a lot of covid now (family are nearish and have been there a couple of times in the last few months).

Highline is great - walk around little Italy and Chinatown, see the UN building (I don’t think you can go in these days). Rockerfella centre (see the artworks on the inside - amazing - they were painted over as the original was not deer appropriate).

I wouldn’t stay in Times Square - loud, dirty and smelly. We stay at the Park Lane on Central Park south (really good value considering the prices of the hotels along that road) with views of the city/park (if you are lucky to get a corner room you can see both). It’s not high luxury but ‘nice’.

We always hoof around - there are lots of things to ‘spot’ when you know when to look up!

There is no point going with an unvaccinated child. Our plans are on hold as my youngest is too young to be vaccinated in England right now.

Times Square is busy and touristy, I wouldn’t want to stay there personally, I don’t mind a couple of blocks away but it’s not the epicentre people make it out to be. I wouldn’t do a bus tour there either, too much traffic, we mainly walk when there with the occasional subway ride. I’d like to do a boat trip but probably not in January.

Re the cold, it will likely be very cold out of doors but overheated indoors so most New Yorkers wear very big warm coats, hats, gloves etc that can be whipped off indoors.