New York City
August 21 - 29, 2009
9-day tour
This tour features not only the typical New York spots such as Central Park, Time Square, and the
Statue of Liberty - but also gives you a bit of an
"insiders view" of the City not typically part of other group tours. For example, we'll eat
Dim Sum in Chinatown, learn about New York
history by walking with noted local historians, enjoy a bit of the nightlife of Williamsburg,
Brooklyn, and visit both the Cloisters and the
Cathedral of Saint John the Divine.
Day 1 - Friday, August 21, 2009:
Travel day with a stop in Ohio.
We'll leave early in the morning with our regular stops and meal breaks as we travel through
Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana, and into Ohio. We'll stop in Elyria, Ohio, for our overnight stay
at the Country Inn & Suites.
Day 2 - Saturday, August 22, 2009:
Travel day with an evening meal view of Manhattan.
On this day, we'll enjoy breakfast at our hotel (included) and will continue our journey through
Ohio and Pennsylvania and into New Jersey.
For dinner in the evening, we'll stop at the Liberty
House Restaurant, which offers us a spectacular first view of New York City and the Statue
of Liberty. While enjoying your dinner (included), you'll also have the chance to meet our hosts
during our visit to New York: Jodi Nooyen (Kathy's daughter), her husband Robin Lester, and their
two young children. Jodi has been working at the United Nations Headquarters for the past nine
years, and Robin grew up in NYC. What a great way to be welcomed to the Big Apple!
After dinner, we'll then cross the Hudson River into New York City, where we will stay at the
sophisticated Milford Plaza Hotel, located on 45th
Street and 8th St. We'll be within walking distance of Time Square, Central Park and Rockefeller
Center.
Day 3 - Sunday, August 23, 2009:
St. Patrick's Cathedral, Chinatown,
Brooklyn Bridge, City Hall Park, St. Paul's
Chapel, Ground Zero, the World Financial
Center, a jazz brunch at the Blue Note, and a
Broadway Show.
In the morning, after a continental breakfast (included daily at our hotel), you're welcome to
attend a 9am mass at the spectacular St. Patrick's
Cathedral, located just a 4-minute drive (or 15-minute walk) from our hotel.
After mass, we'll then head to Chinatown, where we will have the unique opportunity to try
Dim Sum (included), a Sunday brunch tradition
popular in Hong Kong and the Canton area of China. From carts passing by your table, you'll be
able to choose from a wide range of light dishes served with Chinese tea. Dishes come in small
portions and may include meat, seafood, and vegetables, as well as desserts and fruit.
After lunch, we'll visit the Brooklyn Bridge where we'll walk to the first tower. Then we'll visit
City Hall Park, St. Paul's Chapel, World Trade
Center (Ground Zero), and the World Financial
Center.
From there, our coach will take us to the Blue Note, arguably the world's most popular jazz club,
for the 2:30 seating of their Sunday Jazz Brunch (included).
We'll then return to our hotel to rest and freshen up before taking in a Broadway Show in the
evening (exact show to be announced).
Day 4 - Monday, August 24, 2009:
NBC studio tour,
lunch at Tavern on the Green, walking tour of
Grand Central
Station, and a tour of the United Nations.
We'll begin the day with a tour of
NBC studios, followed by
a leisurely lunch at Tavern on the Green in
Central Park. After lunch, we'll enjoy an award-winning walking tour of the architecture and
social history of the
Grand Central
Station neighborhood. Just a few blocks from there, we'll end our day of sightseeing
with a trip to international territory as we tour United Nations
Headquarters. The evening will be free for you to enjoy. Suggested restaurants and
activities will be provided. For example, you may be interested in a double-decker bus night tour
(included), which, led by a local tour guide, will let you see ‘the city that never sleeps' lit up
for the evening. Other suggestions include a carriage ride in Central Park, the Top of the Rock
observatory, an off-Broadway show, and/or The Garage for
free Big Band music, dinner that is approximately $20-35, and a chance to meet the trumpet player,
who we know.
Day 5 - Tuesday, August 25, 2009:
All-day pass on a double-decker bus tour.
Today is your day to explore the city on your own. To help you, we'll provide an all-loops passes
on a double-decker tour bus that will take you to more than 50 famous sites in the city. You may
simply stay on the bus and listen as your tour guide tells you about the sites that you pass – or
you may choose to get off at any of the sites to look around before boarding another bus that will
soon pass by. The evening will be free for your enjoyment. Besides the suggestions from the
previous night, may we also suggest some of the following: many wonderful recommended
restaurants, a free Philharmonic concert in Central Park, jazz and food at
Smoke, jazz at
Birdland, and one of the events certain to be happening on
a summer evening in NYC.
Day 6 - Wednesday, August 26, 2009:
Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island,
South Street Seaport, Wall Street walking tour,
Williamsburg, Brooklyn, and an off-Broadway Show.
In the morning, at Battery Park on the southern tip of Manhattan, we'll board a ferry that will
take us to explore the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island.
For lunch, we'll return to Manhattan and our coach will take us to the
South Street Seaport, an area with great views
of three bridges in the East River and many restaurants to choose from.
Just after lunch, those interested may take a 90-minute historical walking tour of the Wall Street
area, a former Dutch colony and the oldest part of Manhattan. After the tour, the coach will take
us back to our hotel to allow us a couple hours to relax.
For dinner (on your own), we'll head to Williamsburg, Brooklyn, where there are many excellent
restaurants to choose from within a few blocks of each other. Home to the current New York art
scene, there are also several galleries and trendy shops nearby.
After dinner, we'll enjoy an off-Broadway Show (to be announced).
Day 7 - Thursday, August 27, 2009:
The Cloisters Museum and Gardens,
Cathedral of St. John the Divine tour,
and Circle Line Boat Tour.
In the morning, we'll visit "The Cloisters", an
art museum that incorporates elements from five medieval French cloisters (monasteries). Located
in the middle of a hilltop park in northern Manhattan, it has a breathtaking view of the Hudson.
For lunch, we will be going to The New Leaf Café
- the proceeds from this restaurant support park restoration projects, and it's located in the
same park as The Cloisters. After lunch in the park, we'll take a tour of the nearby
Cathedral of St. John the Divine, where
we'll discover the myths, mysteries and spirit of this exuberant place
Later in the afternoon, we'll board a Circle Line
Ferry, for a tour of Manhattan from the water - a fitting and relaxing end to an
action-packed week. The evening will again be free for you to enjoy on your own.
Day 8 - Friday, August 28, 2009:
Journey Back to Ohio
We'll begin our journey home with our regular stops for meals and breaks. We'll arrive in Elyria,
Ohio, for our overnight stay at the Country Inn & Suites.
Day 9 - Saturday, August 29, 2009:
Journey Home
We'll finish our travel home with fond memories of our time in New York City.
Includes:
| Price per person: |
$1,899.00 Double |
| $1,859.00 Triple |
| $2,499.00
Single |
|
