United States: New York Rocks

Arriving in the Big Apple

Depart UK on a morning flight arriving into New York early afternoon. Private Coach Transfer to your chosen the hotel and check-in.  The rest of the days is yours to settle in and explore the local area.

Time to discover New York City

Today you will meet your guide for a full day tour of Upper Manhattan. If you’ve seen a leafy, residential Manhattan neighborhood depicted on TV or in the movies, there’s a decent chance it was the Upper West Side. It’s where Meg Ryan and Tom Hanks lived in You’ve Got Mail, where Jerry made his home on Seinfeld (and in real life) and where Liz Lemon lived on 30 Rock.

The whole Upper West Side is teeming with culture and history, but a few institutions take their subjects far beyond the neighborhood’s boundaries. The area is home to the Lincoln Centre, American Museum of Natural History, the American Folk Art Musuem to name but a few.

The highlight today is a visit to one of the city’s most iconic landmarks – the Empire State Building. Take the lift the 86th floor to the highest open-air observation deck in the City.  The Observation Deck wraps around the building’s spire, providing 360-degree views of New York and beyond. From up here you’ll get one-of-a-kind views of Central Park, The Hudson River and East River, The Brooklyn Bridge, Times Square, The Statue of Liberty and much more. The official Observatory Experience app teaches you about your view from every direction. Then take advantage of the high-powered binoculars to get a closer look.

In the evening visit Times Square, with its flashing neon lights and giant digital billboards, you cannot visit the Big Apple without seeing this are at night.

Reflecting on the past

Today you will visit the 9/11 Memorial and Museum. The National September 11 Memorial & Museum, is located at the World Trade Center, honors the 2,983 people killed in the attacks of September 11, 2001 and February 26, 1993. The Memorial consists of two reflecting pools set in the footprints of the Twin Towers and a plaza of trees, including the Survivor Tree.

The Museum tells the story of the events of 9/11 through artifacts that range in scale from the monumental to the intimate, while presenting stories of loss, compassion, reckoning and recovery.  This may not be suitable for all groups and can be changed if required.

In the afternoon spend time in Central Park, one of New York City’s most breathtaking and celebrated attractions, Central Park is a must-see for anyone visiting the five boroughs. Whether experienced during a fresh snowfall in the winter, the spectacular floral blossoms in spring, the steamy days of summer or the gorgeous, leaf-turning months of fall, Central Park is a sight to behold. Designed by Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux between 1858 and 1873 and currently maintained by the Central Park Conservancy, the 843-acre park is an urban oasis of trees, gardens, rolling meadows, arches, sculptures, statues and vistas.

Visit America’s most famous Lady

Today you will meet your guide to discover Lower Manhattan.  No NYC neighborhood has greater historical resonance than Lower Manhattan. This is, after all, where the City began—a fact evident in the asymmetrical lanes that were footpaths and canals well before the skyscrapers came. Sights like Trinity Church, Federal Hall, Wall Street, One World Trade and the 9/11 Memorial & Museum are centuries apart in their creation but all bring undeniable emotional impact.

Lower Manhattan’s role in American finance looms large too, but that doesn’t mean it’s a stuffy nine-to-five district; a thriving restaurant and shopping scene, anchored by Brookfield Place, draws visitors in equal numbers to powerbrokers.  Time will be spent at the Museum of American Finance (open Tue-Sat only).

The Museum of American Finance is the nation’s only public museum dedicated to America’s finances and financial history. The Museum offers interactive permanent exhibits on the financial markets, money, banking, entrepreneurship and Alexander Hamilton, as well as topical rotating exhibits such as “Tracking the Credit Crisis” and “Scandal: Financial Crime, Chicanery and Corruption that Rocked America.” The Museum is located in the historic former headquarters of the Bank of New York in the heart of the Financial District.

The Statue of Liberty is among New York City’s—and America’s—most familiar landmarks: a massive copper-and-steel cast of a green lady raising a torch, clutching a tablet and donning a seven-point crown. Some tourists miss out on visiting the statue because it’s only accessible by boat, set on a government-run island in the middle of New York Harbor, but you won’t! You will board the ferry to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island Immigration Museum.

Spend time getting up close and personal with Lady Liberty  Then, visit Ellis Island, where you’ll learn about the vast immigration that took place here between 1892 and 1954. Its American Family Immigration History Center contains millions of passenger arrival records and hundreds of ship pictures from the time; anyone whose family arrived in America this way, or who has just a passing interest in the nation’s immigrant history, will find the museum an excellent bonus to a statue trip—or a reason to visit in its own right.

Fly Me to the UK via the United Nations

Your final visit be  a guided tour of the United Nations International Headquarters.  Once you enter the United Nations Headquarters, you will be welcomed by one of the multilingual tour guides and taken on a brief journey through the corridors of international diplomacy. You will learn about the history and structure of the Organization, and receive information on the iconic buildings located by the East River.

You will learn about the work of the different United Nations organs, such as the Security Council and the General Assembly. The General Assembly Hall is where all 193 Members States of the Organization convene to discuss global issues. Then you’ll enter the Visitor Centre where you’ll learn more about the work of the United Nations through exhibits and installations or ask a question.  You can purchase a UN publication at the Bookshop, a souvenir at the UN Gift Centre and write a postcard to your loved ones with a unique UN stamp.

After this transfer back to the airport for your flight back to the UK.

Back in Blighty

Land in the morning in the UK.