Attractions
Hudson Valley and the Catskills - Tarrytown
Forty miles north of New York City is Tarrytown, known to Washington Irving fans as Sleepy Hollow, setting for the Legend of Sleepy Hollow. The town is packed with historic homes including the impressive Rockerfeller residence; Irving's home can also be visited. Over of the east bank of the river is Hyde Park, where Roosevelt was born and spent much of his adult life. The Franklin D Roosevelt Home and Library contains hundreds of photos and artifacts, including the specially made car he drove after being struck with polio in 1921, and the letter from Einstein that led to the development of the atomic bomb. Two miles (3km) outside Hyde Park is the Vanderbilt Mansion National Historic Site - a spectacular Beaux Arts mansion.
New York City - The Statue of Liberty
The universal symbol of freedom and democracy, the Statue of Liberty was the first sight to be seen by the 12 million immigrants who passed through the Ellis Island Immigration Center. Sculpted by Frederic-Auguste Bartholdi and modeled on the Colossus of Rhodes, the statue was donated by the people of France in 1886 to commemorate the alliance between the two countries during the American Revolution. Visitors can climb the 354 steps to the statue's crown for a view over New York Harbor - the equivalent of a 22-story building. Access to the monument is via ranger-guided tour only and a time pass is required for visiting the inside of the Monument; advanced reservations are possible by calling (866) 782 8834 or online at www.statuereservations.com. The ferry calls at both Liberty and Ellis Islands.
Liberty Island, New York Harbor
(212) 363 3200; (212) 269 5755 (ferry information)
www.nps.gov/stli
Circle Line Statue of Liberty Ferry from South Ferry at Battery Park to Liberty and Ellis islands. Ferries operate from 9am to 3.30pm, with departures approximately every 30 minutes
Daily 9.30am to 5pm (except Christmas Day). The park service occasionally closes the line to the crown as early as 2pm
No fee is charged, but the ferry costs $11.50 (adults), $4.50 (children). Timed reservations cost $1.75 per ticket
New York City - World Trade Center - Ground Zero
The 16-acre work site has come to symbolize the dreadful events of September 11, 2001 when almost 3,000 people lost their lives. The 1,350ft (411m) World Trade Center towers were the tallest buildings in New York and symbols of the city's skyline. Millions now come to pay tribute at the site and witness the devastation from one of the viewing sites. In April 2003, the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation launched a worldwide competition to design a memorial at the World Trade Center site to honor the victims of September 11. The LMDC received 5,201 memorial design submissions from 63 nations and 49 states making this the largest design competition in history. In January 2004 Reflecting Absence by Michael Arad and Peter Walker was unveiled as the design for the World Trade Center Memorial, and will feature a landscaped civic plaza with two massive voids aligned with the footprints where the twin towers once stood. Currently the perimeter of Ground Zero is accessible to the public. The Tribute Center, across from Ground Zero, offers tours around the perimeter, and provides visitors with an accurate account of what the community endured during the attacks. The Memorial itself is scheduled to open September 11, 2009.
Lower Manhattan, viewing area at Liberty Street and Broadway
(212) 732 7678 (ticket information)
www.buildthememorial.org
Take the subway to Fulton Street, Broadway-Nassau Street or Cortlandt Street. Walk to Church and Liberty Streets and follow signs
Tours of the perimeter: Monday to Friday 1pm and 3pm, Saturday and Sunday 12pm, 1pm, 2pm and 3pm starting from 120 Liberty Street
Suggested donation to the Tribute Center is $10 for adults
New York City - Empire State Building
One of the enduring symbols of New York, and once again the city's tallest structure, the Empire State Building stands 436ft high. Completed in 1931, this Art Deco behemoth remains one of the most impressive engineering feats of all time; it was built in just 410 days and remains the fastest rising major skyscraper ever built. The building has been immortalized in many films - most famously the classic King Kong. The observation decks on the 86th and 102nd floors offer magnificent views of the city.
350 Fifth Avenue, between 33rd and 34th Streets, Manhattan
(212) 736 3100
www.esbnyc.com
Subway B, D or F to 34th Street
Observatory: daily 8am to midnight. The last elevator goes up at 11.15pm
US$16 (adults), $10 (children 6-11), concessions available
New York City - Central Park
With great foresight, the founders of New York set aside 840 acres of central Manhattan as a public space. Central Park was officially opened in 1873 and today provides an essential 'green lung' within the concrete jungle that is New York. Originally designed by Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux, the park contains themed gardens, tennis courts, lakes and even a small zoo. Much of the park is infused by the city's bustle and on nice days swarms with joggers, skaters, buskers and tourists, but there are areas beyond the range of baseballs and frisbees where tranquillity can be found in this beautifully landscaped park. During winter, two ice-skating rinks open up in Central Park, the Wollman Rink (mid-Park at 62nd St) is one of the most picturesque in the world, set among the trees and rolling hills and against the backdrop of Manhattan's skyscrapers.
www.centralparknyc.org
New York City - Museum of Modern Art
The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), founded in 1929, owns the most important collection of modern art in the USA including works by Monet, Van Gogh, Matisse, Picasso, Max Beckman, Ansel Adams, and Kiki Smith. What started as a gift of eight prints and one drawing has developed to a vast and varied collection of 150 000 paintings, prints, sculptures, photographs and other media, and the Museum's Library and Archives boast an impressive collection of books, historical documents and photographs. Priding itself as an educational institution, the Museum of Modern Art offers various activities and programs for the general public, as well as special segments thereof, in order to broaden the community's knowledge of, and approach to, the exciting and puzzling world of modern art.
11 West 53 Street, Manhattan
(212) 708 9400
www.moma.org
Subway: E or V train to 53rd Street and Fifth Avenue, or B, D, or F train to 47–50 Street Rockefeller Center. Bus: M1, 2, 3, 4, or 5 to 53rd Street
Daily 10.30am to 5.30pm (until 8pm on Friday); closed Tuesdays
US$20 (adults), free for children under 16 accompanied by an adult. Free on Fridays from 4pm to 8pm
New York City - The Guggenheim Museum
The Solomon R Guggenheim Museum was designed by US architect Frank Lloyd Wright and was completed shortly after his death in 1959. It is well worth a visit just to see this icon of Modernist architecture, which was designed specifically to showcase the modern art within. Inside, it features a highly commended collection of late 19th- and 20th-century art works, as well as touring exhibitions. From beneath the huge glass dome, a quarter-of-a-mile-long ramp spirals down the inside of the building, past the collection of art, including works by Camille Pissarro, Vasily Kandinsky, Paul Klee, Pablo Picasso, Toulouse-Lautrec, Cézanne, Robert Mapplethorpe and Robert Gober.
1071 Fifth Avenue, at 89th Street
(212) 423 3500
www.guggenheim.org
Subway 4, 5 or 6 to 86th Street; bus M1, M2, M3, or M4 on Madison or Fifth Avenue
Daily 10am to 5.45pm (until 8pm on Fridays); closed Thursdays and Christmas Day
US$18 (adults), free for children under 12. Rates differ during special exhibitions
New York City - Metropolitan Museum of Art
The Metropolitan Museum possesses one of the greatest, and largest, collections of art in the world; it is a cherished New York institution and a must see for any visitor. Banners above the Met's Fifth Avenue entrance herald the current attractions - there are always a few exhibitions on-the-go displaying masterpieces from around the world alongside the Metropolitan's own collection. The highlights of the permanent collection are numerous - American collectors having had the foresight, and cash, to buy up a large number of Impressionist and Post-Impressionist masterpieces from Europeans at the end of the 19th century. The Metropolitan Museum's collection now contains more than two million works of art from all points of the compass, from ancient through modern times, including great works by Van Gogh, Renoir, Monet and Cézanne to rival any gallery in the world.
1000 Fifth Avenue, at 82nd Street
(212) 535 7710
www.metmuseum.org
Tuesday to Thursday and Sunday 9.30am to 5.30pm, Friday and Saturday 9.30am to 9pm. Closed Mondays, New Year's Day, Thanksgiving and Christmas
US$15 (adults) is suggested; free for children under 12 accompanied by an adult. There is no additional charge, beyond the admission contribution, to attend an exhibition
New York City - American Museum of Natural History
Possibly with the exception of its counterpart in London, the American Museum of Natural History is the largest and most important museum of its kind in the world. More than 30 million artifacts are packed into 42 exhibition halls - quite enough to keep anyone busy over a rainy afternoon. The most popular exhibit is a 50ft tall skeleton of a barosaurus in the Theodore Roosevelt Rotunda. There are three more spectacular dinosaur halls on the fourth floor. Other halls include the Hall of Biodiversity, the Hall of Ocean Life, the Hall of Human Biology and Evolution and the fabulous Hayden Planetarium - a 90-ft wide aluminum sphere that seems to float inside a massive glass cube, which in turn is home to the Rose Center for Earth and Space. Those tired of walking can check out the Museum of Television and Radio.
Central Park West, at West 79th Street
(212) 769 5100; 769 5200 (tickets and programs)
www.amnh.org
Daily 10am to 5.45pm, except Christmas Day and Thanksgiving
Museum and Rose Center: suggested admission $14 (adults), $8 (children 2-12); plus Planetarium Space show: $22 (adults), $13 (children 2-12); plus special exhibition or Imax show: $21 (adults), $12 (children 2-11)
Western New York State - Niagara Falls
Straddling the United States and Canadian border, 340 miles (547km) north west of New York City, the Niagara Falls are one of the most popular natural attractions in the country attracting about 13 million tourists a year. The Niagara River has been flowing for about 12,000 years but the eroded escarpment over which the falls flow today is much older, having been formed during the ice age. The river plunges over a cliff of dolostone and shale to make it the second largest waterfall on earth, after the Victoria Falls in southern Africa. The mighty torrent is best appreciated from a spray-filled boat tour. The falls have attracted daredevils over the years, who have gone down them in various contraptions - most have survived. The most famous stunt was done by the Frenchman Jean François Gravelot who crossed the Niagara Falls on a tightrope in 1859. The falls are a major honeymoon destination.
npinfo@niagaraparks.com
www.niagaraparks.com
Hudson Valley and the Catskills - The Catskills
It is no surprise that the beautiful Catskills Mountains area, north west of New York City, has long been a popular vacation spot and the choice of many a wealthy New Yorker for their summer home. The region is dotted with picturesque towns, reservoirs, forests and parks, historic buildings and plenty of resorts, and there is much to see and do. Nicknamed the Borscht Belt, from the 1940s to the 1960s, The Catskills was highly popular with Jewish New Yorkers in particular, and some of the finest Jewish comedians sprung from the area, including Woody Allen, Mel Brooks and Joan Rivers. The region is also famous for hosting one of the world's best-known entertainment events, the 1969 Woodstock Festival. Over 500,000 free spirits gathered on Max Yasgur's dairy farm in Bethel to see some of the finest musicians of the era and today, the site is open to the public, as is a museum that houses archives and interesting information from the event. The Catskills also boasts plenty of exciting activities, including hunting, fly-fishing, canoeing, hiking and camping. The region is also home to several ski resorts, including Belleayre Mountain Ski Center and Hunter Mountain.
Western New York State - Finger Lakes
The 11 narrow lakes that stretch north to south below Lake Ontario are known as the Finger Lakes. The lakes are popular for boating and fishing, and the rolling hills in-between are interspersed with waterfalls, gorges and parks and are ideal for hiking, cycling and cross-country skiing. The Native Americans believed the Finger Lakes were formed when one of their Gods reached out to bless their region and left behind an imprint of his hand; but it is more likely that they were formed by glaciers during the Ice Age. The Finger Lakes are one of the most important wine growing regions in the United States. Most of the vineyards are located on the rolling hills of the Cayuga Wine Trail, overlooking the Cayuga Lake, and many offer tours and tastings.
Western New York State - Buffalo
Dubbed 'the biggest small town in America', New York's second largest city, Buffalo, is situated on the eastern shore of Lake Erie, and is a good base for visiting the Niagara Falls and for exploring the Finger Lakes region. The town was established by the French in 1758 (it is believed that the name derives from beau fleuve (beautiful river), and became an important port for trade with the eastern US. The town has some noteworthy Victorian architecture and some good museums. The Albright-Knox Art Gallery contains an impressive collection of works by American artists and hosts many great touring exhibitions.
Buffalo Zoo is home to elephants, gorillas and Siberian tigers. The nearby Letchworth State Park is popular with hikers and offers wonderful views over the Genesee River Gorge, promoted as the 'Grand Canyon of the East'.
