Hey, we’re sightseeing here!
NYC visitors have their work cut out for them, with so much to see and do — but when a local website asked New Yorkers to help out with suggestions for the “so-called “perfect day” in the Big Apple, a barrage of differing opinions threatened to leave tourists more overwhelmed than ever.
Secret NYC, which specializes in spotlighting the very best Gotham has to offer, put out the plea on social media, with the simple direction: “Someone just asked you the best way to spend 24 hours in NYC….Go.”
Opinions poured in as fast as you’d expect, ranging from “early morning walk on the High Line,” presumably before the crush of spatially-unaware Europeans takes over, to visits to the less-touristed Morgan Library and Arthur Avenue in The Bronx.
Of course, there was plenty of the tried and true — e.g. Chinatown, the Brooklyn Bridge, Central Park in Fall, the Staten Island Ferry for free views of the Statue of Liberty.
And because it’s not a conversation with New Yorkers without a few smart mouths in the bunch, someone suggested driving straight through town and “spending the remaining 19 hours pretending it doesn’t exist,” while another Applephobe supposed that the best place to be in the city so nice they named it twice was “in the airport waiting for a plane out.”
Out of more than 650 replies, the editors of the site culled 15 unique itineraries for people to try — here are just a few of the more creative picks. Do you agree? Share your favorite NYC day in the comments.
“Start the day off by having breakfast at the Loeb Boathouse in Central Park, while listening to the mesmerizing sounds of piano playing and sipping a Bloody Mary with amazing views of the lake in front of you,” one romantic at heart suggested.
“Start by going to Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge in Queens for early AM birding,” said one lover of NYC’s wide open spaces, suggesting visitors follow that experience up with a trip to Jacob Riis Park “for a few hours on the beach” and more birdwatching.
NYC’s ferry network got its share of love as an affordable way to see the sights from the water, as did the world-class botanic gardens in the Bronx and Brooklyn.
Many got highly specific with their picks, shouting out some of their favorite eating and drinking spots, ranging from Chez Moi in Brooklyn — “for a delightful French dinner” to “drinks and singing” at fabled Village piano bar Marie’s Crisis.
And finally, there were were the people who couldn’t seem to recommend enough walks — lots and lots of walking, according to one respondent, who suggested strolling all the way from Battery Park to Central Park, with minimal stops.
“Don’t sit to take a break for too long, just to grab a bite,” they urged.
Truly, the first rule of New York — always be in a hurry, even on vacation.