Cruiser Formerly Known As Cheapo Dad's Trip Report on Odyssey of the Seas Sailing to A Minus B Plus C Plus H Islands

[detroitavant]

When we were there last year we were told that one of the buildings in Times Square is completely empty on the inside.  Even with the sky high real estate pricing in New York City, they make more money from all of the digital LED screens they have plastered all over it.

[harryfat1]

20 hours ago, perfect match said:

Harry, I know you’ve done your research so you must have learned that New York is the city that never sleeps! At any hour of the day or night there will be people out there doing whatever it is that they do. The nonstop activity level in the city is part of my love/hate relationship with that nonstop city. I find it an exciting, wonderful place to be, but it also exhausts and overwhelms me. It’s a place I’ve enjoyed visiting but I wouldn’t want to live there.

 

Your pictures and descriptions are, as usual, spectacular! 

Nancy,

 

Thanks for the compliment.  NYC is full of photo opts.  Everyone can take these pictures. 

 

Nowadays the cell phones are so smart that it takes no brainwork to take these pictures in trying to fiddle around with f/stops or filters or switching lenses. 

 

It's a simple case of Dummy see, Dummy take out cell phone, Dummy press the white button the cell phone and Dummy post pictures online and throw in few YouTube videos.  Voila, you have an instant CC trip report…

 

Yeah, NYC is full of things to do lat night where many other cities are done for the day but in NYC, you have people dacing at Time Square or standing in line for food cart late at night.

[harryfat1]

20 hours ago, NHProud said:

Not so crowded when my husband made an appearance.  I don’t know why he visited the NASDAQ offices.

When was this picture taken?  Maybe it was more crowded during the summer months with families and youth groups visiting NYC when we were there.  I will show the groups in my later pictures.

 

But you saw how crowded Times Square was during our visit.  We would come back in a couple of days later as our initial visit was cut short due to the rain but I think the second visit was even more crowded (if that was possible).

[harryfat1]

14 hours ago, KmomChicago said:

 

This is where I have the best of both worlds. I grew up an hour outside of Chicago; it’s where I mostly fly from to visit other places. But it has always been and is still an excursion to get in the city, so I only do it occasionally, and I still see it as a tourist. 
 

I go in for “daycations” or overnights a couple times a year. For spring break this year I took my teenager  for 2 nights and we stayed in a different neighborhood (Lincoln Park) than usual (Loop) and had a great time exploring.

 

Loving what you’ve done with NYC. Plenty to photograph in the world’s greatest city.

 

There are actually a lot of cruises from Bayonne (RCI brands) and Manhattan (Carnival brands) so this is definitely a relevant bonus report.

Hi, @KmomChicago

 

Nice to chat with you again.  Yeah, NYC city is very lively.

 

Growing up in the 70s/80s era, the images of NYC back then are very different than now.  In the old days, NYC was a more scary place with drugs and shootings.  Nowadays, they have cleaned up most of the tourist areas and as people can see from my photos, there are plenty of open spaces for tourists/locals to hang out/enjoy the city.

 

Yes, many cruise ships are sailing out of the NY/NJ area.  I showed a picture of QM 2 the other day and when we get to the Statue of Liberty visit, I will have pictures of MSC and Celebrity ships to share.

 

The next time we go back to NYC, it will be like in December when it’ll be very festive with the holiday lights at Rockefeller Center and the city will have a different vibe than the summer crowd.  Then maybe take a cruise out of NY/NJ going south after a few days in NYC pre-cruise as the next visit will be much shorter as we won’t need to go repeat some of the sights.

[harryfat1]

14 hours ago, rncruiser said:

I’ve lived in NYC all of my life. I grew up in the Bronx and moved to Queens when I got married. Most of NYC is not like Manhattan. II is much quieter and some parts even feel suburban. It is nice to only be a 30 minute subway ride from Broadway shows, museums, and all that Manhattan has to offer. But it is nice to be able to return home to a more peaceful existence. I could never live in the crowds and congestion that most people think is all there is to NYC. 

Yes, if a tourist visits NYC for a short period, say 4 to 5 days, they would likely stay in the Midtown/Times Square area and hit all the major tourist attractions (traps) in Manhattan, and for them, that is NYC with skyscrapers and traffic with people honking and cursing at each other when no cars are moving.

 

We got glimpses of non-Manhattan lifestyles in visiting Brooklyn and Queens during our visit so we know there's more to NYC than just Manhattan.

 

Similar to people visiting San Francisco and thinking that’s all there’s to the Bay Area but many of us take the subway to SF if we need to go into the city but not everyone rides cable cars/drives across the Golden Gate Bridge or visits Fisherman's Wharf.

 

Tourists see a city differently than locals do.

 

[harryfat1]

10 hours ago, dani negreanu said:

Another "art critic" here who doesn't "understand" Rothko....

 

I've asked by BFF, who is a frequent visitor to museums around the world, what she "finds" in Rothko, whom she admires....

 

Her reply (which had me chuckle) -- "He fulfills my soul".... 

 

Here's one of my DH Rothko inspired paintings....

 

 

I rest my case 😉

 

Ahhh, yes, I am feeling very fulfilled in looking at this picture. Similar to your BFF.  I'm getting that vibe now looking at this picture.   

 

Oh, wait, that was my burrito lunch that I’m feeling.  Never mind…

[harryfat1]

10 hours ago, dani negreanu said:

 

My friends and us "swear by" Hampton Inn Times Square North 😎

Ahhh, Dani likes to be “next to the action”.

 

Yeah, this Hampton Inn is just one block away from thousands of your new daily BFFs at Times Square.

 

The hotel certainly has easy access to all Times Square has to offer.

 

 

There are many hotels near Times Square as many tourists like to stay here for the ease of shopping and a large variety of food options

 

 

At Midnight every night, Times Square has the “Midnight Moment” where all the neon billboards are synchronized for an art show.  We don’t have enough energy to be hanging out there at Midnight but if your hotel is one block away, definitely spend one night checking it out:

 

http://arts.timessquarenyc.org/times-square-arts/index.aspx

 

[harryfat1]

6 hours ago, detroitavant said:

When we were there last year we were told that one of the buildings in Times Square is completely empty on the inside.  Even with the sky high real estate pricing in New York City, they make more money from all of the digital LED screens they have plastered all over it.

Yeah, I heard a similar story from one of the YouTuber videos I saw a while ago.  Crazy amount of neon lights trying to attract millions of eyeballs there every year. 

 

Here in the US, only Vegas can rival the Time Square Lights.

 

[harryfat1]

Onward with the NYC trip report.

 

OK. What now? The rain is showing no signs of letting up.

 

 

 

The red steps that were full of people a while back is now empty as they don't allow people to go up there in the rain for fear of tripping/falling in the rain with the steps being very slippery

 

 

Time to go to one of the biggest souvenir stores in NYC – Grandslam as it’s got 3 floors selling the obligatory NYC gear.  To use the cheapo dad terminology, it's time to visit the uncle in prison

 

 

…

[harryfat1]

By the time we walked outside the store, it was 10:20.  It was still raining.  Well, time to head back to the hotel dry off, and shower.

 

 

Walked by Adel’s Halal food from day 1.  You still can see the long line of people waiting for food from across the street at 10:30 PM on a Saturday night as they open until 5 AM.

 

 

 

 

Made it back to the hotel to dry out and shower.

 

Distance walked for the day = 10 miles

 

This concludes day 4 of the NYC trip report

[harryfat1]

Day 5, June 30 – Statue of Liberty/Ellis Island/Flushing Chinatown (Planned but had to be scrubbed)

 

After breakfast in the hotel, it was time to head out to see the Statue of Liberty/Ellis Island.

 

My son's breakfast

 

 

 

View from the hotel as the rain overnight had stopped (for a while at least)

 

[harryfat1]

Same subway route as day 3, going all the way down to the Bowling Green station. Always take the Express train to get to your destination if it's listed.  Much faster.

 

 

 

 

Exit and avoid all the Statue of Liberty cruise scammers as soon as you walk out. They all look “official” with their red or blue polo shirts with the cruise name on the shirt but trust me when I say, keep walking.

 

 

[harryfat1]

Here is a good time to explain the difference between the “real” Statue of Liberty cruise versus the “fake” ones.  There is only ONE cruise operator that is authorized to dock at Liberty Island where the Statue resides.  If it is important for you to be on that island, you must buy your tickets through this agency.

 

Other boat operators are only allowed to see the statue from afar out in the bay.  If that’s OK with you, you can book many of those online.  But just know those are not allowed to dock at Liberty Island.

 

Here is the official website:

 

https://www.cityexperiences.com/new-york/city-cruises/statue/statue-liberty-and-ellis-island-tickets/

 

Be very careful even if you Google Statue of Liberty cruise tickets as the top results from Google search is not the official one.  Those are either 3^rd party ticket resellers or they area just bay cruises. 

 

I got caught myself initially in looking at the wrong web page when I first started to plan this excursion and went to the wrong site when I clicked on the web page.  So be very careful when you book.

 

You know you are on the right page when the web page is selling you the 3 options of seeing the Statue of Liberty:  1) General Admission 2) Pedestal Access 3) Crown Access.

 

 

All 3 types of admissions cost the same – about $25 USD.  However, the differences between the various types of tickets limit on where you can go once you arrive at Liberty Island.

 

General Admissions just gets you onto the island to walk around the perimeter and take few pictures and see the museum and you are done. 

 

Pedestal Access allows you to go up to the Pdedetal (base) of where the statue is.

 

Crown Access lets you walk up the narrow stairs inside the statue and see the outside from the narrow windows of the crown (hence the name).  However, this is the most coveted ticket and you MUST reserve MONTHS in advance as there is a limited number of these tickets daily.

We didn’t decide on the final dates of when to visit NYC until just 2 months before and by then it was too late to get the Crown Access.  The best we could do was the Pedestal Access.

 

[harryfat1]

As an example, if you want the Crown Access now for 4 people, the earliest reservation left is last day September - 2 plus months out  This is after the height of the tourist season is over.  So if you want to see it in the June/July period, you need to reserve more than 2 months out.

 

 

The final info to be aware of is they run the ferry service from either NY or NJ so you need to make sure you select the right departure site when booking.  Also, be sure to board the correct ferry when returning as you need to make a right or left from Liberty and Ellis Island to be on the right boat coming back.  Don’t want to end up in NJ if you started in NYC.

 

 

[harryfat1]

OK. Enough explanation on the ticketing system and try not to be scammed, it was time to get in line for the boat. 

 

As I mentioned on Day 3, when you reserve the ferry in any of the 30-minute interval slots (10/10:30/11, and so on).  If you are too early for your time slot, you will not be allowed to stand in line so plan your day accordingly.  If you have a 2 PM time slot, don’t expect to line up at 9 AM as they will kick you out...

 

 

As I mentioned, we couldn’t book the Crown Access so we got the Pedastl Access as the next best option.  As a bonus (no extra cost bonus – the best kind), the crown and pedestal access have a special shorter line than general admission.  Similar to being in suites on the cruise, you don’t have to stand in line with the masses.

 

See the separate line for entry as well as the "scammer alert" to the right on bad people selling you wrong tickets

 

 

[harryfat1]

After they scan the tickets on the phone, you go through the typical airport-style scanner. They send you enough text reminders that you can easily pull up the ticketing info from the phone before arriving.  But being 9.2 anal, I printed out a hard copy (just in case – favorite words of anal people)…

 

 

As you can see, it was overcast for the day and the weather forecast said more rain would come.  We are hoping to see everything before the rain arrives in the afternoon.

 

 

You can see the Statue way out in the distance

 

[harryfat1]

My wife and the boys were on the starboard side (right) and I went to the Aft side to take pictures of the NYC skyline as we departed so you will see 2 different perspectives as I want to make sure you get your money worth in upgrading to the "premium tier" membership at CC as only higher tier folks have access to these exclusive content:

 

 

 

 

 

[NHProud]

3 hours ago, harryfat1 said:

When was this picture taken?  Maybe it was more crowded during the summer months with families and youth groups visiting NYC when we were there.  I will show the groups in my later pictures.

 

But you saw how crowded Times Square was during our visit.  We would come back in a couple of days later as our initial visit was cut short due to the rain but I think the second visit was even more crowded (if that was possible).

It was taken quite a few years ago . Yes , so crowded that I once just stood there looking at the crowds and the tall buildings and someone came up to me to ask if I needed help.  
 

You are too modest about your photos . The composition is outstanding.  Sometimes people don’t think of the clutter in their pics.

Edited July 25 by NHProud

[rncruiser]

13 hours ago, harryfat1 said:

Ahhh, Dani likes to be “next to the action”.

 

Yeah, this Hampton Inn is just one block away from thousands of your new daily BFFs at Times Square.

 

The hotel certainly has easy access to all Times Square has to offer.

 

 

There are many hotels near Times Square as many tourists like to stay here for the ease of shopping and a large variety of food options

 

 

At Midnight every night, Times Square has the “Midnight Moment” where all the neon billboards are synchronized for an art show.  We don’t have enough energy to be hanging out there at Midnight but if your hotel is one block away, definitely spend one night checking it out:

 

http://arts.timessquarenyc.org/times-square-arts/index.aspx

 

As a native New Yorker I have never heard of the Midnight Moment. I am learning a lot about the Tourist side of NYC that I never knew about or have never seen before. Keep it coming, Harry. 

[dani negreanu]

13 hours ago, harryfat1 said:

Ahhh, Dani likes to be “next to the action”.

 

Yes, she does 😉.

 

Moreover, she also likes to travel "cheap"...

 

You can reach this hotel by taking the air train from JFK and line E, which leaves you just to cross the road and be at the hotel.

[harryfat1]

10 hours ago, rncruiser said:

As a native New Yorker I have never heard of the Midnight Moment. I am learning a lot about the Tourist side of NYC that I never knew about or have never seen before. Keep it coming, Harry. 

I think it’s another example of tourists seeing a city differently than locals.

 

Most New Yorkers probably avoid Times Square anyway, let alone staying there late at midnight. 

 

After the event, you’d need to take the subway to go home and probably won’t get back until close to 1 AM.  Not to mention who knows what weirdos you might encounter on the train that late at night?

 

It’s much more convenient for tourists, especially if they are staying at Dani’s Hampton Inn one block away or many other Times Square located hotels closeby.

 

We never made it to this event as it was too late for us since we have something planned every morning during the trip but I would think if someone is staying within 3 blocks of Times Square, it’s worthwhile to go in and take a look for one night.

 

Here’s one video that shows what the event looks like.  A lot fewer people at midnight than at 10 PM when we were there but this was taken during non-peak summer season:

 

 

 

 

[harryfat1]

10 hours ago, dani negreanu said:

 

Yes, she does 😉.

 

Moreover, she also likes to travel "cheap"...

 

You can reach this hotel by taking the air train from JFK and line E, which leaves you just to cross the road and be at the hotel.

How is it to ride the E subway train from the airport?  Did you have any issues with the luggage?

 

I opted for the LIRR even though it’s $2 more because I liked the extra space/better seats and faster (only 1 stop) from Jamaica station.  We all had full-sized luggage so I didn’t want to deal with a crowded subway train and instead opted for LIRR, which was mostly empty and easier to store the luggage.

 

But I certainly appreciate the E train as it stops at various areas and is more convenient if your hotel is near Time Square.

 

For those interested in taking the E train from the airport, follow what we did in taking the AirTrain to Jamaica station and make a right to take the subway instead of making a left to go on the LIRR like us as you see the signs on the right that says Subway train "E"

 

 

As I posted above, having a hotel near Times Square is convenient for the Midnight Moment show as well as being in the middle of all the action

 

[harryfat1]

Onward with the trip report:

 

Here’s a map of the harbor to make things easier to follow as to which way is which:

 

 

The Statue of Liberty cruise makes a loop going from Manhattan to Liberty Island (Statue of Liberty) and Ellis Island.  See the red arrow in the middle of the map.

 

MSC and other cruise ships such as Queen Mary 2 from the previous day, they use the cruise terminal in the Brooklyn side (purple arrow).

 

Celebrity and RCI ships are out on the New Jersey side (lower left-hand).

 

We would see a Celebrity ship later in the afternoon.

[NHProud]

2 minutes ago, harryfat1 said:

How is it to ride the E subway train from the airport?  Did you have any issues with the luggage?

 

I opted for the LIRR even though it’s $2 more because I liked the extra space/better seats and faster (only 1 stop) from Jamaica station.  We all had full-sized luggage so I didn’t want to deal with a crowded subway train and instead opted for LIRR, which was mostly empty and easier to store the luggage.

 

But I certainly appreciate the E train as it stops at various areas and is more convenient if your hotel is near Time Square.

 

For those interested in taking the E train from the airport, follow what we did in taking the AirTrain to Jamaica station and make a right to take the subway instead of making a left to go on the LIRR like us as you see the signs on the right that says Subway train "E"

 

 

As I posted above, having a hotel near Times Square is convenient for the Midnight Moment show as well as being in the middle of all the action

 

Back in the day when we made our annual visit to Manhattan , we took a cab for the astounding amount of ~$35 .  It was amazing driving by Flushing Meadows ( big tennis fan ) , driving on the Van Wyck and across the Queensboro bridge to our go to hotel in midtown, the Sheraton at 51st & 7th.  One of the payoffs of travel is being able to say I’ve been there.  Van Wyck was mentioned numerous times on Seinfeld . I expect to see some familiar sights in Paris. 

[harryfat1]

As this is supposed to be a cruise-related form, let's toss in some cruise pictures once in a while

 

Way out in the distance, you will see the MSC cruise ship docked on the NY side.  I have never taken an MSC cruise even though their prices are fairly low as I have read too many negative reviews about them. Anyone with MSC experience, please feel free to chime in.

 

 

You also see the Celebrity Cruise ship docked in the New Jersey side.  So for those of you who will be taking the RCI cruise out of the area (like the Odyssey), you will be over at the NJ side.