FAO:- Zoolooter - New York City for New Visitors

rocktron

NEW YORK CITY for NEW VISITORS

1. IMPORTANT INFORMATION FOR VISA

UK citizens do not require a visa for travel to the USA.  We belong to their Visa Waiver Program (VWP). However, you do need to apply for ESTA, and they are now charging $14 for the privilege.

Do make sure that you submit your application form online about a week before your travel date.

Approved ESTA applications are valid for 2 years, or until your passport expires if that comes before.

Apply here:-  https://esta.cbp.dhs.gov/esta/ and have your credit card handy.

IMPORTANT NOTE: Do make a record of your Application Number before closing the web page.

 

2. SOME HINTS AND TIPS

1.  Hotel Address:  Have the address of your Hotel on hand to inform the Immigration Officer where you are staying, just in case you are asked (very unlikely). 

2. Money:  Change your $50 dollars and $100 dollars notes to $20 and $10 dollars notes. Checkout staff often scan for counterfeit notes, especially larger denominations. Do have $5 and $10 notes available, and save the $1 notes for tips in bars and restaurants, and subway stations.

3. US Dollar Notes:  The dollar notes are almost identical. Always check the figure on your dollar notes especially when giving tips. You do not want to find that you handed over two $50 notes in tips when you really intended to give two $1 dollar notes. 

4. Sales Tax: One annoying thing I find with buying anything in the USA is the Sales Tax. The marked price on an item is not the final price you will pay at the checkout. Sales Tax is added at the till and is 8.875% in NYC. A pocket calculator is useful to have, or you can approximate to just less than 10% of the marked price. Clothes and footwear costing under $110 dollars are not taxed. Food in supermarkets are not taxed, but meals in restaurants are.

5. Time Out Magazine:  For music venues and theatre shows do look out for a copy of Time Out magazine in the magazine bins around Times Square.   

rocktron

3. ARRIVING AT JFK: 

I normally fly to JFK with American Airlines which arrive at their own Terminal 8, or British Airways which arrive at Terminal 7, and not the main International Arrivals Terminal. This avoids the long queues.

This description is for arrivals at the American Airlines Terminal 8 and is over a year old, so things may have changed since then:-  

 NOTE 1: Visitors travelling on (a) an ESTA, and (b) using the same passport which was used previously to enter the USA now join a separate, Fast Track queue. There are electronic machines available to do the immigration checks which were previously done by Immigration Officers.

 NOTE 2: Visitors travelling on (a) an ESTA but using a new passport, and (b) those travelling to the USA for the first time, must join the normal, Foreign Visitors queue. 

 For NOTE 1, a member of the ground staff directs visitors to the next free machine which scans passports, takes finger prints, takes a portrait picture, asks a few questions which you reply to with a tick on the touch-screen, and prints out a receipt showing the data taken. (I suspect that the machine also does an invisible face recognition match with your passport photo, though I am not sure about this.)

Take your printed receipt from the machine to an Immigration Officer who will ask a few questions (Did you visit any foreign country immediately prior to travelling to the USA? How long do you plan to stay in the USA? etc). It is all done very quickly.

 Keep your receipt to show the Customs Officers after collecting your baggage at a carousel.   

 Immigration and Customs: After you have cleared Immigration, go to the designated carousel to collect your baggage, if you checked-in any. Have your Customs Card Receipt ready to show the Customs Officer. Usually, they are very easy going on Brits because they are aware that our airport check-in security in the UK is tight.

 After clearing Customs, follow the exit signs for transport - Airtrain, Taxis, etc. 

rocktron

4. GETTING TO MANHATTAN FROM JFK: Some hotels offer a mini-bus shuttle service to pick up their guests. This is cheaper than using a taxi, but you may have to wait a long time at the pickup point. They may charge a nominal fee of $10. You may need to phone your hotel to inform them that you have arrived. This seems too much like a long wait to me.

Yellow Cab Taxi: Not all Yellow Taxi Cabs operate from JFK to Manhattan. Some go only to either Queens, Brooklyn, or the Bronx. If you are travelling to Manhattan, you must join the queue for the taxis going to Manhattan. Tell a Yellow Cab Controller where you are going and he would direct you to the next cab. The cabs arrive in quick succession in a queue, so you would be waiting only for about half a minute.

Fare:  The Yellow Taxi flat fare to Manhattan is about $55, plus about $5 dollars tip from JFK to your hotel. Ensure that you do not get overcharged, or give too much in tips.

5. USING THE AIRTRAIN TO GET TO MANHATTAN

NOTE about the Airtrain: The Airtrain at JFK is a driverless, computer controlled shuttle with two carriages which has three routes:-

1. To Jamaica Station (Long Island Rail Road – LIRR), which connects to the Sutphin Boulevard subway station.

2. To Howard Beach Station, and

3. Goes around the 8 Terminal Buildings in a circular loop.

It takes about 10 minutes to get from JFK to Jamaica Station, depending on which Terminal you board it.

Summary

You do not buy a ticket at JFK to board the Airtrain.

Get on the Airtrain going to Jamaica Station.

At Jamaica Station, buy an Airtrain travel card from a vending machine, and exit.

Follow the signs to the Sutphin Boulevard subway station. There are elevators to go down.

At Sutphin Boulevard subway station, buy a Metrocard from a vending machine (the ticket office attendants are often not too friendly).

Swipe your Metrocard to go through the barrier to the trains.

Take the escalator down to the E-train platform going towards Manhattan.

Get off at 34 Street-Penn Station (for midtown destinations).

You do not have to swipe your Metrocard again to exit at your destination station.

You would need to know where your hotel is located in Manhattan, so that you can plan for which Subway Station to get off on the E-train line. Alternatively, you can get off at 34th Street-Penn Station in midtown and get a Taxi on 7th Avenue in front of Madison Square Garden to your hotel, or you can walk to your hotel if it is nearby. This option would be much cheaper.

rocktron

6. GETTING TO MANHATTAN: I usually take the Air-Train from JFK to Jamaica Station. You do not buy a ticket to board the Airtrain at JFK. On arrival at Jamaica Station, there are rows of ticket vending machines by the exit barrier. Buy an Airtrain Travelcard (cost is $6 dollars - £5 dollars + $1 dollar for a new card), to exit the barrier. Ask an attendant for help, if necessary.

Follow the signs to Sutphin Boulevard subway station. Take an elevator to go down to the subway station. At the subway station, buy a Metrocard for a single ride. The cost of a new Metrocard is $3 dollars. Swipe the card at the barrier (be careful how you do this) and take the escalator to the E-train platform going towards Manhattan.

NOTE: Keep the Airtrain Card and the Metrocard because you can top them up for future use, and you won’t have to pay the extra $1 dollar for a new card.

Get off at 34th Street – Penn Station if your hotel is nearby, or plan for which station to get off nearer to your hotel.  

7. RETURNING TO JFK:  You can get the Hotel Reception staff to book a taxi to take you back to JFK. Do enquire about the cost.  It should be about $55 US dollars. Allow plenty of time, due to traffic.

 Alternatively, you can take the E-train from 34th Street-Penn Subway Station to Sutphin Boulevard Station, and take the Airtrain to JFK. The cost is $5 dollars when you refill your old Airtrain Travelcard.

NOTE: On some weekends, there is subway track maintenance, so check that the E-train is running and stopping at Sutphin Boulevard at Archer Avenue for JFK. There are usually notices at the stations to state this.

To complicate matters, be careful that you do not get on the F-train which stops at the second Sutphin Boulevard station at Hillside Avenue. If you do this, you will have to walk along  Sutphin Boulevard to Archer Avenue to get to the Airtrain, but it is a short walk of a few blocks.

If in doubt, ask the train passengers.

rocktron

8. LEARN TO USE THE SUBWAY:  http://web.mta.info/maps/Large_Print_Map.pdf

Pay attention to the young lady in this video:- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jVlAZOy1KyI  and the dude in this video:- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cpUIbyhHvls

It will save you a lot of time and money. I usually buy a 7-Day Unlimited Travel Metrocard costing $31 dollars, but it may not be cost effective if you do not plan to use the subway every day for getting about the city. The Subway Stations have automated ticket vending machines, or you can purchase Metrocards from the ticket office. TIP: Do remember to ask the ticket office attendant for a free Subway Map.

The cost is $3.00 if you ride to one stop, or several stops, or stay on the subway network all day without getting off.  However, if you exit the barrier at a station, you have to re-enter with a new Metrocard, or an old Metrocard which has been topped up.

NOTE: Do not throw away your Metrocard. You have to pay $1.00 dollar for a new one in addition to the fare. The old Metrocard can be topped up at a vending machine.

Click on this Subway Map to see a larger image:-  

http://mappery.com/maps/New-York-Subway-Map.gif  <= click on the map to expand it

9. USA TENNIS CHAMPIONSHIPS

From Manhattan, take the No. 7 subway train going Uptown to Flushing Queens from Times Square subway station on 7th Avenue between 41st and 42nd Street, or from Hudson Yards subway station on 33rd Street & 10th Avenue  to 111 Street Station in Queens and walk to the Arthur Ashe Stadium.

As you are aware, some of the matches are played at night, so make sure you know how to get back to your hotel.

rocktron

10. LEARN YOUR BEARINGS East –West – North – South, Uptown and Downtown:  You cannot get lost in Upper and Midtown Manhattan. However, you can get lost in Lower Manhattan, South of Houston Street (SoHo), where the streets are not in a rectangular grid pattern, and have names – not numbers. You would definitely need a map there.

Uptown – Subway trains go to Queens, or the Bronx

Downtown – Subway trains go to Lower Manhattan and Brooklyn.

 

Street and Avenue layout:

a). Avenues run North to South.
1st Avenue is in the East, and 12th Avenue is in the West.

b). Streets run East to West.
Higher numbered streets are in the north (going uptown) and lower number streets are in the south (going downtown)  

Generally, 5th Avenue divides Manhattan into East and West:-
Addresses East of 5th Avenue are written as East of the Street Number. eg E23St.
Addresses West of 5th Avenue are written as West of the Street Number. eg W57St.

The distance between Streets is very short. The distance between Avenues is very long.

3 Street blocks = 1 Avenue block, approximately.

Asking For Directions:  Many people you encounter, and taxi drivers, are foreigners, or “out-of-towners”, so asking for directions is often a fruitless exercise. You will find that you are more likely to know more than they do.

Walking:  Fortunately, most of the places you would want to see are within walking distance. Take your most comfortable shoes for walking, if you are used to just driving at home. The United Nations  Building, and the 59th Street Cable Car could be a long away from your hotel, but the street sights along the way are superb. The advantage of walking compared to using the subway is that you are above ground and get to see a lot of places.

rocktron

11. CHEMISTS / PHARMACY: There is one, or even three, on almost every street. They have three chains, Duane Reade, CVS Pharmacy, and Rite Aid. They are like Boots and Superdrug, and sell a variety of goods, and not just pharmaceutical products.

12. SALES TAX: One annoying thing I find with buying anything in the USA is the Sales Tax. The marked price on an item is not the final price you will pay at the checkout. Sales Tax is added at the till and is 8.875% in NYC. A pocket calculator is useful to have, or you can approximate to just less than 10% of the marked price. Clothes and footwear costing under $110 dollars are not taxed. Food in supermarkets are not taxed, but meals in restaurants are.

13. BUYING MENS CLOTHES:  Macy’s on 34th Street between 6th and 7th Avenue. JC Penney, Aeropostale, Old Navy, and XIOS have superb T-shirts. JC Penney is close to Macy’s on 6th Avenue between 32nd and 33rd Street. Aeropostale is in the same Manhattan Mall building as JC Penney.  Old Navy is on 34th Street opposite Macy’s. Unfortunately, XIOS is in Queens.

14. COFFEE and BURGERS in the PARK:

1. Bryant Park at the corner of 6th Avenue (Avenue of the Americas) & 42nd Street. This is where the Winter Village and Ice Skating Rink are set up from October to January. https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=bryant+park+winter+village&&view=detail&mid=C791CE1E449769D276C6C791CE1E449769D276C6&&FORM=VRDGAR

2. Corner of 23rd Street and Madison Avenue for Shake Shack burgers and milkshake.

rocktron

15. FOOD and BARs: You can eat as cheaply, or as expensively as you wish. There are restaurants and delis in almost every street in New York City. There are too many to list here. Be advised that food in NYC is not necessarily cheap, especially in mid-town Manhattan. For food on a budget, you have to go out to the boroughs. For a treat, you can try Serafina at 210 West 55th Street & Broadway www.serafina.com , but it is likely to be expensive. If you are on a budget, try the restaurants at the lower level in Grand Central Station (42nd Street & Park Avenue), and the lower level in PENN Station (on 7th Avenue between 33rd and 34th Street), or deli/diners/pizza parlours in most areas.

16. CAMERAS, COMPUTERS, and ELECTRONICS:  Visit B&H, which is a very large, well stocked store. It takes up the entire block on 9th Avenue between 33rd and 34th Streets. B&H will give you professional advice. Don’t get overcharged by camera stores in Times Square – go to B&H.

Note: At B&H, you take a numbered receipt from the sales person for the item you selected to the checkout, and pay and collect your purchase.

17. GUITAR and MUSIC STORES: 

1. Sam Ash on 34th Street, between 8th and 9th Avenue.  www.samash.com

2. Guitar Center at 218 West 44th Street at Times Square (on the Hard Rock Café side of 7th Avenue). Lookout for the store entrance as it is easy to walk past it. 

https://www.guitarcenter.com/Ibanez/GRGM21-Mikro-Electric-Guitar.gc#productDetail

 

3. Guitar Center on 14th Street between 5th and 6th Avenue, close to Union Square

https://stores.guitarcenter.com/manhattan

 

TIP: Many of the staff working in the music stores are musicians. You can find out from them where bands are playing.

rocktron

18. PLACES TO VISIT

 

1. One World Trade Center:  Observatory, 9/11 Memorial, The Memorial Pools on the Footprints of the former Twin Towers, The Oculus, and the Westfield Shopping Mall in the Oculus, Eataly Restaurant. The Shopping Mall has public toilet facilities. There is the Century 21 store just across the road at Church Street which has keenly priced gifts for wives and girlfriends.

The Oculus: https://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Attraction_Review-g60763-d10340693-Reviews-The_Oculus-New_York_City_New_York.html

How to get there: From midtown 34 Street - Penn Station (this is a big station so follow the signs for the subway E-train). Go to the lower level to get the subway E-train going downtown. Ask a station staff member, or a cop in the station for help, if necessary. Get off at the last stop World Trade Center. Follow the signs.

Returning to Midtown: Follow the directions to the E-train platform (this station is connected to the Fulton Street Station so be careful not to go there). Use your Metrocard at the barrier, and get off at 34th Street – Penn Station. 

 

2. Empire State Building Observation Deck: The entrance is on 5th Avenue between 33rd and 34th Street. Be careful that you purchase visitors tickets for the observation deck from authorised vendors who may be on the street. Alternatively, buy your tickets from the Ticket Office in the building. Open from 8:00am to 2:00am.

TIP: There is the Heartland Brewery and Rotisserie Restaurant at the corner of 5th Avenue and 34th Street under the Empire State Building.

 

3 Top of the Rock Observation Deck at Rockefeller Center: The entrance is at West 50th Street between 5th and 6th Avenue (Avenue of the Americas) at Rockefeller Center.  

 TIP: There is a summer garden restaurant and bar where the Ice Skating Rink is located, and there are shops and restaurants at the lower level of Rockefeller Center. Do pop down to have a look around.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_W_3xKSsyC0

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QzwCoIek99M

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_FVlM6Mgkdc

rocktron

4. Trump Tower: Tourists can visit Trump Tower to view the marble atrium. It is located on 5th Avenue between 56th and 57th Streets. You may have your bags inspected by security officers, some of whom are heavily armed. Take a ride on the escalators up to the atrium 5th floor. There is a Starbucks restaurant on the 2nd floor, and public toilets are located in the basement. I’m not sutre that the open air bar on the 5th Floor is open these days, but you can go there to take street view photos. You will have to cross the bridge next to the waterfall to get to the other dide of the building.

 TIP: On the ground floor level, walk to the back where there is a lovely atrium where you can buy, coffee, smoothies, and cakes and relax for a while. Also, there is an doorwsy to the Nike store.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=le2OF-oBUfM

 

 5. UniQlo on 5th Avenue: If you are bursting for a wee, pop into UniQlo on 5th Avenue and go up the escalator.   

 

6. Central Park: For a quick stroll in Central Park, start at the corner of 5th Avenue & 59th Street. You will see an entrance on 5th Avenue, just past the horse-drawn carriages, which leads to the Trump/Wollman Ice Skating rink. Walk around the rink to the small lake where the path leads to the corner at 59th Street and take the stairway back to street level.

https://www.wollmanskatingrink.com/      

 https://www.wollmanskatingrink.com/hours

 

https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=wollman+trump+ice+skating+rink&view=detail&mid=AFC4F464BFE1977E68D9AFC4F464BFE1977E68D9&FORM=VIREhttps://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=wollman+trump+ice+skating+rink&view=detail&mid=AFC4F464BFE1977E68D9AFC4F464BFE1977E68D9&FORM=VIRE

rocktron

7. Time Warner Center – Shops at Columbus Circle: Walk along 59th Street to the other corner of Central Park. You will see The Sphere at Trump International Hotel & Tower. Cross Columbus Circle to the Time Warner Center which has a shopping mall, bar, and restaurant on the upper floors.

There are public toilet facilities on the 2nd Floor.

At the entrance is an escalator which leads down to a Wholefoods Supermarket and Restaurant.

In the entrance foyer there are two huge sculptures depicting Adam and Eve by the Columbian artist Fernando Botero. 

 

8. Cable Car – Roosevelt Island Tramway: Not many visitors know that there is a cable-car in New York City. I usually take a ride in the early evening, when it is just about starting to turn dark.

From the corner of 5th Avenue & 59th Street, walk along  59th Street to 2nd Avenue. At the corner of 2nd Avenue & 59th Street you will see the Roosevelt Island Tramway. Go up the stairway. You will need Metrocards for each way. There is a Metrocard vending machine at the entrance. If there is only one Cable-Car running (there are usually two) on the day you are there, exit and walk quickly around to board it via the opposite door on its return trip to Manhattan. You will need to swipe your Metrocard to enter.

Note: You can save time to catch the cable car on its return trip by buying a new return Metrocard at the Manhattan side, or topping up the Metrocard which you already have. The ride one way takes about 8 minutes and it is over all too quickly, but is absolutely worth doing.

 This is an excellent video: - https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=roosevelt+island+tramway&view=detail&mid=F83C747BBBB95ECEB77DF83C747BBBB95ECEB77D&FORM=VIRE

 

 9. The Vessel and The High Line: The Vessel is a new attraction at the Hudson Yards on 33rd Street & 10th Avenue. The High Line is nearby, so you can schedule a visit to both. NOTE: The Sam Ash Music Store is nearby on 34th Street between 8th and 9th Avenue, and B&H Photo and Video is on 34th Street at the corner with 9th Avenue, so you can visit all these places when you are in the area. 

https://www.new-york-city-travel-tips.com/the-vessel/

  

10. Statue of Liberty – Staten Island Ferry: The Staten Island Ferry gives a good view of the Statue of Liberty if you do not have the time to actually go to Liberty Island on a tourist boat. https://www.siferry.com/    https://freetoursbyfoot.com/staten-island-ferry/

How to get there: Take the No. 1 subway train from 34th Street Station (the entrance is on 34th Street at the corner with 7th Avenue, opposite Macy’s), to South Ferry Station. Follow the signs to the Ferry Terminal for the Staten Island Ferry. You do not to have pay to ride the Staten Island Ferry – it is free. Do get to the side of the ferry which gives you the best view.

When you arrive at Staten Island, disembark the ferry and walk around to join the next ferry returning to Manhattan. It could be the same ferry, or a different one. Again, it is free.

On arrival back at South Ferry Station in Manhattan, follow the signs to get the No. 1 subway train to go back to 34 Street – Penn Station. At 34 Street – Penn Station, use the 34th Street exit to get out of the station at the same point where you entered, in front of Macy’s

tony99

Can you do the same but for San Francisco please?

FarleyUK

That's great and all, but I'm off to Utah....

Zoolooter

@rocktron Well, I’m stunned! Thanks so much for all the info, what a gent! So useful and plenty of great ideas. 

Just hope the the strike action doesn’t sabotage our trip. I’m on my mates BA staff ticket.