Manhattan terminal at night

[Pink15]

I am from UK on a UK cruise line, so the main attraction of the cruise was the overnight in NYC.

It is actually a Wednesday/Thursday that we are there, so some matinees are available, but I was trying to plan my visit to make the best use of my time in the city. 

[lenquixote66]

12 hours ago, GTJ said:

It is not very common for cruise itineraries marketed to those persons residing in North America. However, for vessels coming from across the pond, and largely carrying Europeans and treating New York as an intermediate port of call, they may stay in New York for multiple days because New York City is such a big attraction for them. It is fair to say that New York offers more than almost any other destination, and that a one day visit is an inadequate port of call. Most itineraries marketed to North America residents use New York as an embarkation and/or disembarkation port, and persons from outside New York can easily adjust their travel plans to spend as much time in New York, before and/or after their cruise, to see what they would like to see.

Thanks for letting me know this .As an aside I still miss the good old days of Pioneer and Command .😀

Edited May 7, 2023 by lenquixote66

[lenquixote66]

When people post on here that they are visiting NYC for the first time and would like to see other areas besides Manhattan I suggest taking a Command commuter bus ,specifically the one going to Sheepshead Bay.

If they go in a non rush hour time they can see a lot of Brooklyn and at the last stop can tour Manhattan Beach,Brighton Beach and Sheepshead bay.

[BklynBoy8]

1 hour ago, lenquixote66 said:

When people post on here that they are visiting NYC for the first time and would like to see other areas besides Manhattan I suggest taking a Command commuter bus ,specifically the one going to Sheepshead Bay.

If they go in a non rush hour time they can see a lot of Brooklyn and at the last stop can tour Manhattan Beach,Brighton Beach and Sheepshead bay.

 

The outer boros.. are interesting too!

[lenquixote66]

32 minutes ago, BklynBoy8 said:

 

The outer boros.. are interesting too!

To get from Manhattan to the Bronx you need to take the subway and do not see anything .I love Staten Island but you are going over highways and bridges.The same for Queens.

[GTJ]

2 hours ago, lenquixote66 said:

When people post on here that they are visiting NYC for the first time and would like to see other areas besides Manhattan I suggest taking a Command commuter bus ,specifically the one going to Sheepshead Bay.

Alas, a number of years ago the City of New York bought out the rights to the bus routes formerly operated by Command Bus Company, and these are now operated by MTA Bus Company. Additionally, the once-excellent service operated by Command Bus Company on route BM3, destined for Sheepshead Bay every 20-to-30 minutes during the day, has been decimated, with buses now operating every 70 minutes during the day.

 

But with the larger advice I have agreement. There's really two types of tourist visits to New York City. First, the tourist circuit that this industry revolves around, the group of sights in Manhattan that they all urge the tourists to visit as "must-sees." And while at least some may be very much worthwhile, mostly people visit because they have been told to do so by the tourism industry, and the patter provided by guides is often filled with disconnected factoids lacking much context. Second, visits to those places that are truly historic, cultural, or otherwise interesting for other than making money for the tourism industry. It requires a bit more effort in preparing, and perhaps even engaging a specialize guide (my favorite is The Geography of NYC, http://www.geognyc.com)., providing interpretive visits to places of geographic interest). It won't be Disneyland, with some spectacular around every corner, but rather it can provide an appreciation for what this city is, how it became that way, and where its future might be.

[BklynBoy8]

10 minutes ago, lenquixote66 said:

To get from Manhattan to the Bronx you need to take the subway and do not see anything .I love Staten Island but you are going over highways and bridges.The same for Queens.

 

Sorry but you have to work around the slices to see the Big Apple....

[lenquixote66]

10 minutes ago, GTJ said:

Alas, a number of years ago the City of New York bought out the rights to the bus routes formerly operated by Command Bus Company, and these are now operated by MTA Bus Company. Additionally, the once-excellent service operated by Command Bus Company on route BM3, destined for Sheepshead Bay every 20-to-30 minutes during the day, has been decimated, with buses now operating every 70 minutes during the day.

 

But with the larger advice I have agreement. There's really two types of tourist visits to New York City. First, the tourist circuit that this industry revolves around, the group of sights in Manhattan that they all urge the tourists to visit as "must-sees." And while at least some may be very much worthwhile, mostly people visit because they have been told to do so by the tourism industry, and the patter provided by guides is often filled with disconnected factoids lacking much context. Second, visits to those places that are truly historic, cultural, or otherwise interesting for other than making money for the tourism industry. It requires a bit more effort in preparing, and perhaps even engaging a specialize guide (my favorite is The Geography of NYC, http://www.geognyc.com)., providing interpretive visits to places of geographic interest). It won't be Disneyland, with some spectacular around every corner, but rather it can provide an appreciation for what this city is, how it became that way, and where its future might be.

I was not aware that Command is no longer functioning.They had several wonderful drivers .

[lenquixote66]

5 minutes ago, BklynBoy8 said:

 

Sorry but you have to work around the slices to see the Big Apple....

That is moot at this point since I just found out that Command no longer exists.

[Turtles06]

19 hours ago, lenquixote66 said:

Aha,I never heard of an overnight in Manhattan.

A few years ago, we were on a Celebrity westbound TA from Southampton to Florida. Among our port calls was an overnight in Manhattan. 😊

[lenquixote66]

Just now, Turtles06 said:

A few years ago, we were on a Celebrity westbound TA from Southampton to Florida. Among our port calls was an overnight in Manhattan. 😊

I was not aware until people on this thread posted this .One can learn something every day on this great site.

[Lois R]

I had an overnight in Manhattan back in 2019 as well. I actually got to see 2 Broadway shows.....one pre-cruise and one post😀

[GTJ]

23 minutes ago, lenquixote66 said:

I was not aware that Command is no longer functioning.They had several wonderful drivers .

Most of the drivers for Command Bus Company were hired on by MTA Bus Company . . . same routes, same drivers. That said, since the change, MTA Bus Company has hired many new drivers. The hiring process was changed. Command Bus Company used its discretion, within the limits of employment law, to hire drivers, while MTA Bus Company uses a civil service system, including written examinations, to hire drivers. Thus, new driver quality may have changed.

[lenquixote66]

I never stayed overnight in Manhattan.

[lenquixote66]

Just now, GTJ said:

Most of the drivers for Command Bus Company were hired on by MTA Bus Company . . . same routes, same drivers. That said, since the change, MTA Bus Company has hired many new drivers. The hiring process was changed. Command Bus Company used its discretion, within the limits of employment law, to hire drivers, while MTA Bus Company uses a civil service system, including written examinations, to hire drivers. Thus, new driver quality may have changed.

In the late 90’s some of the regular drivers left Command to be owner driver of vans charging the same price as Command .

[GTJ]

6 minutes ago, lenquixote66 said:

In the late 90’s some of the regular drivers left Command to be owner driver of vans charging the same price as Command .

While some might have done so, most drivers were happy with the wages and benefits they received from Command Bus Company (notwithstanding their claims otherwise during contract negotiations). The service operated by Command Bus Company was subsidized by the City of New York, both as to the fare and the provision of buses to operate the service. Operating vans was competitive, required capital investment (or at least payment for vehicle leases), frequently the target of police department harassment, and in the end not particularly lucrative.

[lenquixote66]

18 minutes ago, GTJ said:

While some might have done so, most drivers were happy with the wages and benefits they received from Command Bus Company (notwithstanding their claims otherwise during contract negotiations). The service operated by Command Bus Company was subsidized by the City of New York, both as to the fare and the provision of buses to operate the service. Operating vans was competitive, required capital investment (or at least payment for vehicle leases), frequently the target of police department harassment, and in the end not particularly lucrative.

You would know better than I .