Ladies~

We're going on our girl trip to New York this year. Our farthest trip so far, and our ninth trip.
We've already gotten our air fare and we'll be flying in and out of Philadelphia... not sure why, but it was someone's great idea, who didn't ask me.
So... SINCE we're from California... we have a little bit of an idea of where we want to go and what we want to see, but not a HUGE idea .. that said, I'm up for comments and could really use some sound advice/information/tips on where we might get the most bang for our buck.
We need to stay cheap. We'll fly in on a Friday and out on a Friday. The plan is to do the Amish country side over the first weekend and go into Manhattan on Monday.
We want to take the Circle Line ferry (is it considered a ferry) for sure, see at least one show, I want to see the museums, my friends want to shop, I'd love to go out and stay out all night, my friends may not.... I want a Nathan's hot dog, and someone told me about some gotta-have-pizza, and I'm sure we're all in agreement there... oh and of course I want art galleries, they might ditch me on that....they'll shop or some other thing.....

I'm open to all .....oh, and so far, I've got almost no money, P..R..A..Y.. for me... or I could be sitting in the air terminal eating those mustard, ketchup, cracker sammiches like Tom Hanks while my friends go to play.

Kate

There's a wealth of fantastic museums in New York. Metropolitan Museum of Art and Natural History Museum are must-sees. Buy a weekend newspaper or search for "New York Museums" online. What you want to find is the free admissions times, often Tuesday or Thursday evenings; otherwise you pay $5-$12 each. There are also tons of wonderful free galleries AND shopping AND food in SoHo and Greenwich Village. Also in the village: same day half-price theater tickets, cheaper than the downtown tix. Great food everywhere, really -- take it from a native. And yes, take the ferry to the Statue of Liberty.

Be prepared for pushing crowds. Hold your purse in front of you. Probably warm weather, possibly hot and humid. I have no idea about accommodations because I stay with relatives. Parking costs 17 arms and 3 legs, so check into daily or weekly unlimited transportation passes. Public transportation is excellent and takes you everywhere.

Kate they just reopened the Statue of Liberty again since they closed it down after 9/11 and that is a must see. Take a boat ride around the bay as well, not expensive and a nice change from all the crowds etc. It would be nice to see a show if you can too. Buy piping hot fat pretzel from a vendor smothered in either cheese of crab meat, how yummy is that??? Have fun and watch the purse like someone said earlier...

KAte, I'm on vacation now, but when I get home I can give you some specifics.

Look at the Mayflower Hotel online. It's right next to Central Park. We stayer there as a family. If you're trying to save money and don't mind sleeping 2 to a double bed, you can sleep 6 because they have a sleep sofa in the living room.

Also, Toni and Garrie live very near Amish country and I'm only an hour and a half away. I think I see a big boomer gathering coming on. tell us more and I'll give you more info when I get home.

Everyone has such good information.
I checked the Mayflower out online but didn't see a $200 tag on anything but maybe closer to going I'll go online. A friend at work did the hotels.com thing, and was very specific where she wanted to stay (downtown, Manhattan, near Broadway) and ended up getting a room for $100 but there were only two of them, so if we can stay in the $200 range, we'll be so thrilled.
And I want info on where to go that's semi close to Philadelphia too. It's hard to know when you're clear across the country. So I'm appreciating all the input, Girls.

Kate

Kate, I'm going to get my husband on this when we get back from vacation. He loves to plan trips for people. I'm sure he would come up with some places of interest. We lived in Philly for 4 years when we were first married.

Kate,

In Philly, try the Franklin Institue online and see if you are interested. www.FI.edu.

Norht of Philly is Bucks County, PA which I think is beautiful and the city, New Hope is very artsy craftsy.

Statue of Liberty is a must and Central Park. While walking through just think of the age of the park and what it was built for. Just amazing!

Manhattan is a sight. World Trade Center site and Rockafeller Center is worth a look.

I don't know much about accomodations though.

SoHo is a must as Meredith pointed out. Dotsie will be instrumental in getting you in and out of Philly. Lancaster (Amsih Country) if you have the time is beautiful and worth the effort.

I am about 1 1/2 from Lancaster.

Lynn

I'm kind of getting excited. I may have to borrow money and I haven't quite decided that THAT's alright yet, but heck, how many times will I go there?
I'd love to see whoever is within driving distance. And now it looks, from what Lynn posted, that New Hope might be a thought for a place to stay our first two or three nights.

And one of my bosses......(could be the one who's holding up my raise,) used to live in N.Y. and he told me a couple of places to check for hotels too...along with the names of mafia restaurants where "one of the Gambino brothers had a hit put on him.....and has the best cannoli ever..." in the Bronx (?)
So... lots of things to check... keep the cards and letters comin..

Kate

You can get great cannoli in Little Italy, which borders on Chinatown. You don't have enough time to see the Bronx (aka Arson City) and I can't imagine why you'd want to.

Ohhhh Merry....I like all kinds of weird things..but my friends are a little more tame than me so the Bronx are probably out, as is Harlem.

Boy, I've been online looking for inexpensive hotels in the city but with 6 of us we almost need two rooms. I haven't seen the 'family style' room yet, that Dots was talking about....HOWEVER... I think if we wait a little closer to the week we're going, we may be able to get on the expedia or whatever it is and get rooms for cheap at the last minute.

And I've got a list of art/craft fairs that are going on, but I have no idea where so I have to get a map and look all these places up....and the museums in NYC, I have to do the same with those too.......I'm so gonna love this...

Any thoughts on Chinatown? I love it in San Francisco....will I love it in NYC? And what about Little Italy? And do I REALLY have to go to the top of the Empire State building? The thought of it sort of creeps me out. Can't I just see it from a boat or something?

Kate