New York in One Day Guided Tour

[NCteacherlovescruising]

We have all day to kill in either Jersey City or NYC the day before our cruise because our flight lands at 8 AM in Newark. We are staying at the Residence Inn Jersey City and plan to go there first. We hope for an early checkin, but if not we can at least leave our luggage there. 

 

This tour is rated #1 for NYC, with the vast majority of reviews extremely positive. We would have to be in Midtown in time for an 11:00 tour. That shouldn’t be a problem, should it?  We can take a taxi or Uber from Jersey City if needed. We are taking one from the airport to the Residence Inn as well. Has anyone done this tour?  

Edited July 30, 2019 by NCteacherlovescruising

[Got2Cruise]

Do you have a link so I can look at it to see?  

[NCteacherlovescruising]

1 hour ago, Got2Cruise said:

Do you have a link so I can look at it to see?  

I can’t seem to link it from my phone, but this is it. You just need to go to Trip Advisor under tours and it’s the #1 recommended tour there. 

 

[NCteacherlovescruising]

Oh!  Here it is. 

 

https://usaguidedtoursny.com/new-york-day-time-tour/

[markeb]

Any idea what the boat cruise costs on its own?

 

No, I haven't done this tour. Most of the Midtown activities are walkable; it might be a hike to the Dakota, but Strawberry Fields may be in Central Park (barely), but it isn't Central Park. There are a lot of "drive bys", probably in traffic, I'm afraid.

 

If you're mobile and adventurous at all, you can see most of that by walking and a couple of quick subway rides. It does sound like they get good reviews for the guided parts of the tour, and the boat tour should be nice.. But you can see the Midtown sites on foot in a easy couple of hour walk from either Times Square, or more likely Penn Station if you take Jersey Transit into town (I'll defer to Carol here as to whether your hotel is convenient to the train to the WTC; if so, you can either start there or end there easily). What you'd miss is the drive by SOHO, the Village, Chinatown, and Little Italy, but those aren't actual stops.

[Got2Cruise]

Hi. So I read thru it and I think it’s a good tour if you don’t want to do things DIY. If you only have one day and this is your first time to NY it will show you a lot plus you have the tour guide showing you things. 

[markeb]

23 minutes ago, Got2Cruise said:

Hi. So I read thru it and I think it’s a good tour if you don’t want to do things DIY. If you only have one day and this is your first time to NY it will show you a lot plus you have the tour guide showing you things. 

 

Re-reading my post, and I'm probably a little negative (not a bus tour guy). I personally would DIY, but this is a pretty good tour, with a good overview. Just recognize you're on a bus for a long day...

[mking8288]

A few quick notes - with about 2.5 to 2.75 hour from wheels down on the runway at EWR @08:00 (peak hours for airport traffic & gate holds/delays) - baggage claims & "quick" ride to nearby hotel for early check-in or bag drops, then, Uber into East Side of Manhattan - is probably doable on a Saturday but somewhat doubtful on a weekday, sometimes ... late morning commuting/rush hour isn't over until past 10 to 10:30.  What does others think ??

 

Do not take a taxi into NY, it will be costly - either use a car service (Carmel or Dial 7) or Uber/Lyft it (but, beware of congestion & surge pricing and tolls).  

 

From the description, it's not clear what kind of cruise is included for SOL/EI - there are standalone ones for 1 to 3 hours, priced between $25 to $35 p/o & bookable in advance - going around / cruising by and not necessary stepping foot on either, as that alone should/could be easily 4 to 6 hours on foot.  The Staten Island ferry (round-trip) from/to the Battery/Lower Manhattan is free, no tickets needed - walk on & off at will - is another option to get close to the Statue of Liberty.  

 

Overall, the price for the tour isn't bad - probably a good chunk of time sitting on the bus listening with drive-by narrative.  I would ask about restroom stops & whether the luxury bus is equipped ... pack some snacks or lunch on the go, bottled water for hydration.  Behind tinted windows, not always easy to take good photos - make good use of those 15 minute quick stops.  Ask about cancellation policy, i.e. in case of poor weather. 

[NCteacherlovescruising]

3 hours ago, markeb said:

Any idea what the boat cruise costs on its own?

 

Nope!

 

3 hours ago, markeb said:

No, I haven't done this tour. Most of the Midtown activities are walkable; it might be a hike to the Dakota, but Strawberry Fields may be in Central Park (barely), but it isn't Central Park. There are a lot of "drive bys", probably in traffic, I'm afraid.

 

If you're mobile and adventurous at all, you can see most of that by walking and a couple of quick subway rides. It does sound like they get good reviews for the guided parts of the tour, and the boat tour should be nice.. But you can see the Midtown sites on foot in a easy couple of hour walk from either Times Square, or more likely Penn Station if you take Jersey Transit into town (I'll defer to Carol here as to whether your hotel is convenient to the train to the WTC; if so, you can either start there or end there easily). What you'd miss is the drive by SOHO, the Village, Chinatown, and Little Italy, but those aren't actual stops.

 

Yeah, you have me second guessing this. I found the free walking tours (donations) that sound pretty cool. If we could make it on time we could do SoHo, Little Italy, and Chinatown from 9:45-11:45, then do the 9-11 Memorial in our own, followed by their 2:00 Lower Central Park tour. Sound feasible?  

 

Heres a link to that, which also has good reviews. 

 

 

 

https://freetoursbyfoot.com/new-york-tours/

 

3 hours ago, markeb said:

 

Re-reading my post, and I'm probably a little negative (not a bus tour guy). I personally would DIY, but this is a pretty good tour, with a good overview. Just recognize you're on a bus for a long day...

 

No worries!  I don’t know that I would enjoy being cooped up on a bus myself, but on the other hand I want a guide. That’s why I think I might like the walking tour. 

[NCteacherlovescruising]

3 hours ago, Got2Cruise said:

Hi. So I read thru it and I think it’s a good tour if you don’t want to do things DIY. If you only have one day and this is your first time to NY it will show you a lot plus you have the tour guide showing you things. 

 

I don’t want a DIY because I enjoy learning what I can from the tour guides. See above, where I’m also looking at walking tours, and DIY at the Memorial. 

[NCteacherlovescruising]

57 minutes ago, mking8288 said:

A few quick notes - with about 2.5 to 2.75 hour from wheels down on the runway at EWR @08:00 (peak hours for airport traffic & gate holds/delays) - baggage claims & "quick" ride to nearby hotel for early check-in or bag drops, then, Uber into East Side of Manhattan - is probably doable on a Saturday but somewhat doubtful on a weekday, sometimes ... late morning commuting/rush hour isn't over until past 10 to 10:30.  What does others think ??

 

Now I found something which is much closer (I think?), yet an earlier starting time. I mentioned it above. A free walking tour (at the end give them what you think it was worth) of SoHo, Little Italy, and Chinatown. It’s from 9:45-11:45. Is this doable?  It’s on a Saturday, but it’s also Labor Day weekend. I haven’t flown for 14 years because I’ve been too scared, but I’m going to try to overcome my fears. Since I haven’t flown for so long, I have no idea how long it will take from landing to get our baggage and Uber to our hotel...  

 

I’d like to follow that with a self guided tour of the 9-11 Memorial. Then catch their 2:00 Lower Central Park walking tour. 

 

57 minutes ago, mking8288 said:

Do not take a taxi into NY, it will be costly - either use a car service (Carmel or Dial 7) or Uber/Lyft it (but, beware of congestion & surge pricing and tolls).  

 

I think we will use Uber. 

 

57 minutes ago, mking8288 said:

From the description, it's not clear what kind of cruise is included for SOL/EI - there are standalone ones for 1 to 3 hours, priced between $25 to $35 p/o & bookable in advance - going around / cruising by and not necessary stepping foot on either, as that alone should/could be easily 4 to 6 hours on foot.  The Staten Island ferry (round-trip) from/to the Battery/Lower Manhattan is free, no tickets needed - walk on & off at will - is another option to get close to the Statue of Liberty.  

 

Good info!  Thanks!

 

57 minutes ago, mking8288 said:

Overall, the price for the tour isn't bad - probably a good chunk of time sitting on the bus listening with drive-by narrative.  I would ask about restroom stops & whether the luxury bus is equipped ... pack some snacks or lunch on the go, bottled water for hydration.  Behind tinted windows, not always easy to take good photos - make good use of those 15 minute quick stops.  Ask about cancellation policy, i.e. in case of poor weather. 

 

They provide bottled water. They also provide potty breaks. We stop for lunch at 1:00.  The tickets are non-refundable, which makes me nervous.  I mean, what if for some reason our flight is delayed?  I emailed to ask them about that, but they haven’t replied yet. 

[mking8288]

12 hours ago, NCteacherlovescruising said:

 

Now I found something which is much closer ... free walking tour of SoHo, Little Italy, and Chinatown. It’s from 9:45-11:45. Is this doable?  It’s on a Saturday, but it’s also Labor Day weekend ... no idea how long it will take from landing to get our baggage and Uber to our hotel...  

 

I’d like to follow that with a self guided tour of the 9-11 Memorial. Then catch their 2:00 Lower Central Park walking tour.  I think we will use Uber. 

We fly in/out of JFK mostly but live across the runway from LGA and can comfortable advice you of both, but not EWR which I hate ... logistically.  I am sure some of the EWR regulars can give their best opinion about timing. Just a few thoughts of mine, for what it's worth: 

 

Being that it's Saturday over Labor Day holiday, traffic in/out of NY in the morning should be lighter than usual.  From your Jersey City hotel, it should be a quick 30 to 45 minutes to Soho/LI/CT in Lower Manhattan.  My concern is whether your flight will land on-time (sometimes, a little early) as it can take another 10 or 15 minutes to taxi & deplane at the gate, another 15 minutes to wait/retrieve luggage & head outside to the curb to meet your Uber ride.  EWR to hotel, should be 20 to 30 minutes ... that would be close to 9 am, even if it's a quick early check-in / luggage drop-off before turning around to rush into SoHo area (where is this walking tour meeting ?) - that's 30 to 45 minutes (via Uber)  There's virtually nothing to cushion against delay, traffic, flight issues, or weather, etc.  

 

138East/Carol is the expert on getting around EWR & practically anything around Cape Liberty and transportation to/from NJ - but, I believe taking the weekend PATH train (a quick, 1 city block from the hotel) into NYC might be just as fast and easy, depending on the tour's starting point.  Let's leave that for now.

 

How long is that guided Central Park tour at 2 p.m. as it will take about 30 minutes to get there from downtown, not giving yourself plenty of time to see & take in the 9/11 Memorial (rushing to try to jam everything in a single day)

[NCteacherlovescruising]

2 minutes ago, mking8288 said:

We fly in/out of JFK mostly but live across the runway from LGA and can comfortable advice you of both, but not EWR which I hate ... logistically.  I am sure some of the EWR regulars can give their best opinion about timing. Just a few thoughts of mine, for what it's worth: 

 

Being that it's Saturday over Labor Day holiday, traffic in/out of NY in the morning should be lighter than usual.  From your Jersey City hotel, it should be a quick 30 to 45 minutes to Soho/LI/CT in Lower Manhattan.  My concern is whether your flight will land on-time (sometimes, a little early) as it can take another 10 or 15 minutes to taxi & deplane at the gate, another 15 minutes to wait/retrieve luggage & head outside to the curb to meet your Uber ride.  EWR to hotel, should be 20 to 30 minutes ... that would be close to 9 am, even if it's a quick early check-in / luggage drop-off before turning around to rush into SoHo area (where is this walking tour meeting ?) - that's 30 to 45 minutes (via Uber)  There's virtually nothing to cushion against delay, traffic, flight issues, or weather, etc.  

 

138East/Carol is the expert on getting around EWR & practically anything around Cape Liberty and transportation to/from NJ - but, I believe taking the weekend PATH train (a quick, 1 city block from the hotel) into NYC might be just as fast and easy, depending on the tour's starting point.  Let's leave that for now.

 

How long is that guided Central Park tour at 2 p.m. as it will take about 30 minutes to get there from downtown, not giving yourself plenty of time to see & take in the 9/11 Memorial (rushing to try to jam everything in a single day)

 

Dh wasn’t overly excited about the SoHo, Little Italy, Chinatown tour so I think I’m going to cancel.  He said he would prefer seeing the Statue of Liberty and the 2:00 Central Park tour. 

I’m fine with skipping the SoHo tour, I don’t want to start our vacation feeling rushed anyway. I think we would like the following itinerary:

 

-Uber to Residence Inn, checkin if possible, if not leave luggage with them. 

-Brownstone Diner for breakfast 

-SOL boat tour (undecided on which one)

-lunch in NYC (if hungry)

-2:00-4:00 CP tour

-Head over to 9–11 Memorial

 

Question- Should we just head over to Liberty State Park and take their ferry to the SOL or are there better options that will give us a better view?   Does this stop at the islands or just pass them. If it stops, can we get on whichever ferry we wish when leaving?  We are fine with just seeing them from a boat/ferry.  I believe we read somewhere that we could get on in Jersey and off Battery Park. Would that allow us time to see the Memorial before the 2:00 tour?

 

I found a nice boat tour, including a couple drinks but it was at 3:00 so it didn’t work for us. 

[princeton123211]

19 minutes ago, NCteacherlovescruising said:

Should we just head over to Liberty State Park and take their ferry to the SOL or are there better options that will give us a better view?

The best views of the Statue are not from Liberty Island. You get a side view from lower Manhattan but the best are the head on views from Governors Island. I think though to get close and to save time, I would recommend using the Circle Line from Midtown for either their 1 hour SOL cruise or the 1.5 hour longer cruise that covers downtown landmarks. Stopping on the island will take a lot of time from your day. 

[NCteacherlovescruising]

27 minutes ago, princeton123211 said:

The best views of the Statue are not from Liberty Island. You get a side view from lower Manhattan but the best are the head on views from Governors Island. I think though to get close and to save time, I would recommend using the Circle Line from Midtown for either their 1 hour SOL cruise or the 1.5 hour longer cruise that covers downtown landmarks. Stopping on the island will take a lot of time from your day. 

 

Thanks!  I've been checking them out.  I see they have a sunset cruise too, which would free up our day for seeing other sights.

[138east]

2 hours ago, NCteacherlovescruising said:

 

-Uber to Residence Inn, checkin if possible, if not leave luggage with them. 

-Brownstone Diner for breakfast 

-SOL boat tour (undecided on which one)

-lunch in NYC (if hungry)

-2:00-4:00 CP tour

-Head over to 9–11 Memorial

IMO you don’t have enough time to get to Residence Inn, get to the Brownstone Diner for breakfast, get yourselves into midtown Manhattan for a 1.5 hour SOL tour, and then get yourselves to Central Park by 2 pm let alone allow for any kind of lunch stop.

 

You should end the day in downtown Manhattan with a SOL boat tour that leaves from Battery Park and do the 911 Memorial before or after that.  Take the NY waterway ferry back to Exchange Place and walk the 4 -5 blocks to your hotel.  Here’s the PATH ferry info.

 

During this time, PATH service to World Trade Center will terminate at Exchange Place Station. Each Saturday and Sunday from 7 a.m. to 11:30 p.m., transfer will be available for NY Waterway ferry service between Harborside Ferry Landing in Jersey City and Brookfield Place Terminal in New York City.

 

ORIGINATING AT WORLD TRADE CENTER: Customers can pay the PATH fare directly at the ferry terminal with their SmartLink Card. They can transfer from the ferry to the PATH at Exchange Place without paying again. Customers without SmartLink Cards will be required to pay their usual PATH fare by entering World Trade Center Station to receive their ferry transfer ticket before proceeding to the ferry. They can transfer from the ferry to PATH at Exchange Place by presenting the remaining portion of their ferry ticket to a PATH representative.

Edited July 31, 2019 by 138east

[Got2Cruise]

If you are cruising NCL out of Manhattan you’ll get a good view of Statue of Liberty during sailaway. So you can free up time and go straight to 9/11 Memorial and not be rushed. 

[NCteacherlovescruising]

1 hour ago, 138east said:

IMO you don’t have enough time to get to Residence Inn, get to the Brownstone Diner for breakfast, get yourselves into midtown Manhattan for a 1.5 hour SOL tour, and then get yourselves to Central Park by 2 pm let alone allow for any kind of lunch stop.

 

You should end the day in downtown Manhattan with a SOL boat tour that leaves from Battery Park and do the 911 Memorial before or after that.  Take the NY waterway ferry back to Exchange Place and walk the 4 -5 blocks to your hotel.  Here’s the PATH ferry info.

 

During this time, PATH service to World Trade Center will terminate at Exchange Place Station. Each Saturday and Sunday from 7 a.m. to 11:30 p.m., transfer will be available for NY Waterway ferry service between Harborside Ferry Landing in Jersey City and Brookfield Place Terminal in New York City.

 

ORIGINATING AT WORLD TRADE CENTER: Customers can pay the PATH fare directly at the ferry terminal with their SmartLink Card. They can transfer from the ferry to the PATH at Exchange Place without paying again. Customers without SmartLink Cards will be required to pay their usual PATH fare by entering World Trade Center Station to receive their ferry transfer ticket before proceeding to the ferry. They can transfer from the ferry to PATH at Exchange Place by presenting the remaining portion of their ferry ticket to a PATH representative.

 

How about the following:

 

*Residence Inn

*Brownstone Diner

*9-11 Memorial

* snack

*2:00 Central Park tour

*Early dinner

*Sunset Cruise -perhaps Harbor Nights Cruise by Cruiseline Tours @ 7 PM

 

 

Does this look better?

 

31 minutes ago, Got2Cruise said:

If you are cruising NCL out of Manhattan you’ll get a good view of Statue of Liberty during sailaway. So you can free up time and go straight to 9/11 Memorial and not be rushed. 

 

We aren’t. We are cruising on the Summit out of Bayonne. 

[markeb]

5 minutes ago, NCteacherlovescruising said:

 

How about the following:

 

*Residence Inn

*Brownstone Diner

*9-11 Memorial

* snack

*2:00 Central Park tour

*Early dinner

*Sunset Cruise -perhaps Harbor Nights Cruise by Cruiseline Tours @ 7 PM

 

 

Does this look better?

 

 

We aren’t. We are cruising on the Summit out of Bayonne. 

 Are you just doing the outside of the Memorial? If so, it's open until 9:00. Where's the cruise depart from? You really don't want to backtrack on that tight of a schedule. Carol's suggestion of leaving from Battery Park eliminates backtracking if you start in Midtown (Central Park) and end at Battery Park. I'd at least look at beginning in Central Park, grabbing an early meal, subway to the 9/11 Memorial, visit, walk down to Battery Park, and take your evening cruise. Still tight, but doable.

 

If the cruise leaves from Midtown/Chelsea, you're better off, but the Memorial visit is outdoors with a late closing.

[NCteacherlovescruising]

1 hour ago, markeb said:

 Are you just doing the outside of the Memorial? If so, it's open until 9:00.

 

 

Yes

 

Quote

Where's the cruise depart from?

 

If we go with Circle Line it departs from Pier 83 on 42nd St. 

 

Quote

You really don't want to backtrack on that tight of a schedule. Carol's suggestion of leaving from Battery Park eliminates backtracking if you start in Midtown (Central Park) and end at Battery Park. I'd at least look at beginning in Central Park, grabbing an early meal, subway to the 9/11 Memorial, visit, walk down to Battery Park, and take your evening cruise. Still tight, but doable.

 

If we begin at Central Park that isn’t till 2:00. 

 

Quote

If the cruise leaves from Midtown/Chelsea, you're better off, but the Memorial visit is outdoors with a late closing.

 

If we go with Circle Line Tours, they are at Pier 43 on 42nd St in Midtown.  It much closer to CP than the Memorial. We are looking at the Harbor Nights sunset cruise which is from 7-9. 

[waterbug123]

5 hours ago, NCteacherlovescruising said:

 

Dh wasn’t overly excited about the SoHo, Little Italy, Chinatown tour so I think I’m going to cancel.  He said he would prefer seeing the Statue of Liberty and the 2:00 Central Park tour. 

I’m fine with skipping the SoHo tour, I don’t want to start our vacation feeling rushed anyway. I think we would like the following itinerary:

 

-Uber to Residence Inn, checkin if possible, if not leave luggage with them. 

-Brownstone Diner for breakfast 

-SOL boat tour (undecided on which one)

-lunch in NYC (if hungry)

-2:00-4:00 CP tour

-Head over to 9–11 Memorial

 

Question- Should we just head over to Liberty State Park and take their ferry to the SOL or are there better options that will give us a better view?   Does this stop at the islands or just pass them. If it stops, can we get on whichever ferry we wish when leaving?  We are fine with just seeing them from a boat/ferry.  I believe we read somewhere that we could get on in Jersey and off Battery Park. Would that allow us time to see the Memorial before the 2:00 tour?

 

I found a nice boat tour, including a couple drinks but it was at 3:00 so it didn’t work for us. 

 

Couple of thoughts...

I agree with your DH about SoHo, Chinatown, Little Italy.  They are iconic neighborhoods, and I'm sure the guide would tell you interesting things, but if you are trying to hit all the highlights in one day, you'll be on a hamster wheel so leaves these out. 

Regarding the 9/11 memorial, are you aware that the memorial and the museum are two different things?  The memorial is outside and free, and it doesn't really take a lot of time to see it.  The adjacent museum on the other hand, is not free and lines can be long.  It's full of exhibits; I've been twice and it was excellent.  But I'd allow 2-3 hours to do it justice.

The schedule you have above has some backtracking...downtown for SOL, back to the upper part of midtown for CP, then all the way back downtown for 9/11.  Find a way to do SOL and 9/11 back to back to make the best use of your time.  If necessary, you can skip the actual tour of CP and walk through part of it on your own.

[princeton123211]

3 hours ago, NCteacherlovescruising said:

We are cruising on the Summit out of Bayonne. 

Often, but not always, the Summit will turn up river and sail past the SOL and then turn down to exit the harbor. Sailing from Bayonne they do it every time the river traffic allows them to. 

[NCteacherlovescruising]

1 hour ago, waterbug123 said:

 

Regarding the 9/11 memorial, are you aware that the memorial and the museum are two different things?  The memorial is outside and free, and it doesn't really take a lot of time to see it.  The adjacent museum on the other hand, is not free and lines can be long.  It's full of exhibits; I've been twice and it was excellent.  But I'd allow 2-3 hours to do it justice.

 

Yes, we were just planning on doing the memorial.  If we were going to be there longer we might consider the museum, but it wouldn't start our vacation off very well for me to be a teary mess.

 

1 hour ago, waterbug123 said:

The schedule you have above has some backtracking...downtown for SOL, back to the upper part of midtown for CP, then all the way back downtown for 9/11.  Find a way to do SOL and 9/11 back to back to make the best use of your time.  If necessary, you can skip the actual tour of CP and walk through part of it on your own.

 

We would have no idea where to go or what we were seeing if we did CP on our own.

 

29 minutes ago, princeton123211 said:

Often, but not always, the Summit will turn up river and sail past the SOL and then turn down to exit the harbor. Sailing from Bayonne they do it every time the river traffic allows them to. 

 

I told him a couple of you had said this so he says it's no big deal if we miss it.  

[markeb]

14 minutes ago, NCteacherlovescruising said:

We would have no idea where to go or what we were seeing if we did CP on our own.

 

 

It's incredibly easy to see Central Park on your own. How long is the tour? I'm assuming it's a walking tour? A guide will keep you from heading down a trail and having to double back, but it's easy enough to hit the highlights at least on the southern end of the park.

 

A tour is fine, but if that time slot causes issues, you can see a lot on your own.

[NCteacherlovescruising]

5 minutes ago, markeb said:

 

It's incredibly easy to see Central Park on your own. How long is the tour? I'm assuming it's a walking tour? A guide will keep you from heading down a trail and having to double back, but it's easy enough to hit the highlights at least on the southern end of the park.

 

A tour is fine, but if that time slot causes issues, you can see a lot on your own.

 

It's the Free Tours By Foot walking tour.  (Pay what you think it's worth at the end of the tour)  It's from 2-4. It's is over the Southern part of the park.  Here is there description:

Join Free Tours by Foot as we stroll through the park and tell the epic story of New York's green oasis. This Central Park tour explores the southern half of the park, wandering the winding pedestrian paths, passing a pond, rocky outcrops, bridges, open fields and skyline views -- all great photo opportunities. The tour also includes a stop in Strawberry Fields, a living tribute to John Lennon, and will end in front of the Dakota Hotel, where the great Beatle's life was tragically ended

 

This food tour looks really good to me, but it overlaps with the CP tour.  

https://www.foodsofny.com/foods-ny-tours-2/nolita-noho/

 

Edited August 1, 2019 by NCteacherlovescruising