New York Fun Tours
3-Hour Tour (Lower Manhattan)
In the massive city of New York, where do you begin exploring? What should you see? Toss aside your heavy guidebooks and allow your private guide, an in-the-know New Yorker, lead the way. After hotel pickup, just sit back in your spacious SUV and enjoy the ride. You’ll be able to get out at most locations to walk around and snap pictures.
Start in the historic West Village, the former favorite haunt of New York's bohemians and now residence to some of the city's most influential citizens. In SoHo, pass by trendy shops and art galleries, and check out TriBeCa, site of the annual film festival, listening to informative commentary along the way.
Along Hudson River, reach the World Financial Center, where you’ll ponder over Ground Zero and admire the Winter Garden, a gorgeous multi-level barrel-vaulted glass atrium. Then catch sight of magnificent boats at cobblestoned South Street Seaport.
Cross the Brooklyn Bridge, one of the world's first suspension bridges built in 1870, and gaze at the stunning Manhattan skyline from Brooklyn Heights Promenade. Admire another great suspension construction, the Manhattan Bridge, used by over 350,000 commuters each day.
Depending on traffic conditions, drive through Chinatown, home to the largest Chinese population in North America, and Little Italy, which boasts more than 20 historical landmarks. Learn about the neighborhoods’ rich immigration history dating from 1800 to 1965.
At the conclusion of your tour, your SUV takes you back to your hotel. If you’ve selected the 5-hour tour (see below in Itinerary), see the rest of the best of New York City.
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ITINERARY
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Optional 5-Hour Tour (Lower, Upper and Mid-Manhattan)
After exploring Lower Manhattan, you’ll begin at Spuyten Duyvil, or Spouting Devil, at the northern tip of Manhattan Island, for amazing views. Then make your way down the city grid and view The Cloisters and Dyckman Farmhouse, the city’s sole remaining Dutch colonial farmhouse.
Reach Washington Heights and see Morris Jumel Mansion, built in 1765, the oldest house in the borough, as your guide sheds lights on its importance during the American Revolution. Drive by Yankee Stadium and Rucker Park before heading to Morningside Park and Columbia University. At the Gothic-Revival St John the Divine Cathedral, look at Peace Fountain, a 40-foot-tall (12-meter-tall) bronze sculpture.
Learn about New York’s affair with jazz as you drive by the Cotton Club, Duke Ellington’s statue, and travel along 125th Street, the ‘Main Street’ of Harlem. Maybe it’s time to grab a snack at Red Rooster, named after a Harlem speakeasy and popular with the locals.
Then head down the elegant, tree-lined Museum Mile, hugging 5th Avenue and home to top-notch museums and eye-catching mansions. Observe more classic New York architecture at Lincoln Center and the brownstones of the Upper West Side.
In Midtown, gaze at the Beaux-Arts-style Grand Central Terminal and the Art Deco lines and curves of the Chrysler Building. Wander through Central Park and pass by the Alice in Wonderland statue, the zoo and Strawberry Fields inspired by John Lennon.
A fan of Seinfeld, Sex in the City, Gossip Girl or Woody Allen flicks? During the tour, your guide points out popular filming locations. If you’re fashion-focused, get tips on where to shop along 5th Avenue, where you’ll also see St Patrick’s Cathedral, an impressive display of American Gothic Revival architecture.
Round out your tour at Rockefeller Center and check out Radio City Music Hall, 30 Rock and the Today Show studio, before being transported back to your hotel.