trip report from grateful reader

We enjoyed New York April 2-8 with 12 %26amp; 14 year old daughters. Got lots of great tips from this site: thank you very much!

Had a scarey landing Friday night in a thunder storm. After circling over Atlantic Ocean for over an hour, came in fast and shaking, with one wing dipped to keep us from sliding sideways. People were on their cellphones, calling their loved ones! Yikes! All ended well, and that was the last bad thing to endure.

Found New Yorkers to be tremendously friendly and helpful. A lady in front of the Library told me to get my purse zipped while I fumbled with purse, sunglasses and camera, and then waited until I did. A guy in Central Park explained the whole film crew thing we stumbled upon, and thanked us for bringing our tourist dollars to New York. What a great town!

We would skip the ESB in future visits. The lines (accuate wait times posted on ground floor) were too long and cost too high to justify the event....PLUS being routed past the cheesy photo shoot and then through the cheesy photo shoot buying opportunity was frustrating.

Also, highly recommend heeding advice posted on this site about Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island: if you don%26#39;t buy the audio tours on both Islands, just admire the Statue from the Staten lsland ferry.

Our favorites were WTC and St. Paul%26#39;s Chapel (very moving), Central Park (beautiful in the sun, plus watched film crew at work, don%26#39;t see much of that in our farm town), Sony Wonder Technology Lab (free and thrilled our girls, but recommend you don%26#39;t go til after 1:00 pm, since they give school groups first pass from 10:00 to 1:00), the UN tour (fascinating tour and wonderful art plus cool gift shop), Phantom of the Opera, and the Public Library (beautiful and lots to see, plus hilarious event of trying to print out our boarding passes which took 3 PCs and 3 library staff to accomplish, but all with tremendous good will).

Would be happy to answer questions about teens and travel, as that%26#39;s what we are always looking for.

Had great luck with restaurants near our Hotel (Beekman Tower): would return to Metropolitan Cafe (1st at 53rd or 54th), Meltemi (Greek place on 1st at 51st) and Deux Amis (fabulous French place) on 51st at 1st.

Thanks again to writers on this site: won%26#39;t leave home without you!

trip report from grateful reader

I am so glad you enjoyed your trip despite the rough landing. It must have been very scarey for your daughters. We also thought New Yorkers were very friendly and helpful,and I agree about the ESB. I%26#39;ve done it once, but wouldn%26#39;t go back. We endured long lines, and the hallways were dirty and hot. One elevator was broken, people were confused as to which lines they should be in, and the kids were fed up by the time we reached the top. I would spend more time in Central Park tho...didn%26#39;t see nearly enough. I was glad to hear about the Sony Wonderlab since we didn%26#39;t make it over there. Thanks!

trip report from grateful reader

I enjoyed your trip report. Agree with you about ESB. They seemed cross with the people who refused to have photos taken. We had ours taken but didn%26#39;t buy. Helicopter ride would perhaps have been a better option except I had a rather nasty helicopter experience in St Lucia last year..so never again!

Nice report, Restless. Your landing sounds scary - don%26#39;t they tell people to switch off their mobile phones as they can interfere with the plane%26#39;s electronics?

Sorry your ESB trip was frustrating. We were so lucky in February - 15 minutes from street level to observatory including obligatory stop for photo. On the way down, we looked at ours but when we heard how much they were, we gave it back. The guy acted like he couldn%26#39;t believe that we didn%26#39;t want them!

thanks for that info on sony wonder lab and school groups. we are arriving this coming friday around 1:30 pm, and that is the first place to go on my list. i%26#39;m bringing my 9 year old daughter. (and therefore planning things to do for her this trip). can you tell me any more details about sony? thanks!

Crikey, that landing sounds rough. We didn%26#39;t buy our ESB picturs either, although lots of people around us were. Very pricey for a fake background!

Hello, hi-pockets, details on Sony lab:

its free. If you don%26#39;t have a reservation (not needed), then you make a reservation for the next quarter hour. The first thing you do is record your voice and your photo for the certificate that prints at the end. You also get to keep the swipe card you create that identifies you to all the machines. There are 4 main sections, each with a different focus. My husband liked the hi-definition Alaska film, but my girls skipped it to make more movie previews. The band thing is fun (and all recorded) and the last exhibit where the kids interact with bubbles and their own images in front of a shadow screen is hysterical. At the very end, you get a certificate with your picture, fun for the scrapbook. Hope this helps.

yes it helps alot and i am grateful for the info!!

I would love to be in charge of two things -- the Customs officers at JFK and the people who operate the ESB Observatory. It%26#39;d make such a difference if they%26#39;d go out of their way to make both experiences more pleasant. It wouldn%26#39;t even cost more than a welcoming smile. It baffles me that such boorish behavior is accepted. If any of us TA folks worked at either location, I%26#39;m sure we would go out of our way to make it special for every visitor that came through. I went up to the ESB a year or so ago, and it really made me sad that the wait was so unplesant, the line snaking through hot filthy basement rooms that hadn%26#39;t been painted for 50 years. And the staff treating people like the enemy. How ridiculous! Thankfully most people find the view worth the effort.

Well, maybe when the observation deck opens in Rockefeller Center in the fall, and the ESB has some competition, hopefully the attitude will change. We%26#39;ll see!!!

NYCgirl - you can%26#39;t just drop a bombshell into the conversation like that and go!!! Tell us more! Surely the old observation deck had to make way for the Rainbow Grill? Where will the new one be? I%26#39;m agog!