Honeymoon Road Trip to NYC

Hey all... I'm getting married on April 4 and my hubby-to-be and I are road tripping from Dandridge, TN to New York City. We will be making some stops along the way in Washington, D.C. and Boston, MA for sure... any other places we should check out along the way? I am a huge fan of the crazy roadside attractions on the back roads. I was just wondering if anyone had any suggestions. My finace and I have never been to New York. Any ideas on what to do other than the obvious (i.e. Empire State Building, Statue of Liberty, Groud Zero, Museum of Modern Art)? We are both big history buffs so we will definitely hit up the museums. Just looking to grab more ideas before we start... Thanks!

And when you get to Times Square... make sure you have your picture taken with the Naked Cowboy.

I lived in Wash DC for 34 years - suggest you see the National Building Museum, the new Indian Museum at the Smithsonian and the US Botanical Gardens.

Hey! I'm born and raised in NY, so I feel a duty to offer some suggestions-

1. Don't Drive!! This is the one place on EARTH that you especially do NOT want to have a car! Parking can be as much as $80/day, so defiantly work that out before you arrive.

2. Try just walking around the west village. It is one of my favorite parts of the city. Stop being a tourist for a few hours, and walk around like a local. Start at Sheridan square and walk east down MacDougal until you get tired. (I say that because I did it last weekend and had a blast!) The next day walk around the East village and alphabet city.

2a. Get a map so you know where I am talking about!
2b. Check out times square (42nd and 6-7th) and walk around with the tourists. When you get tired of that, walk to 3rd ave and walk north up to 60th. Stop somewhere on the way and have lunch.

3. Walk through the park (if you're following my route, walk from east to west, and visit the museum of natural history on the west side).

4. Ride the subway! Anywhere! Its a must-do NYC experience

5. Ground Zero is a construction zone, sorry; but you missed the gaping hole in the ground. Your time may be better spent elsewhere.

6. Try a ferry ride around the sites (from the south street seaport) to see the statue of liberty and Ellis island.

7. The big city red bus tours are good to get around, and get your bearings. Just remember this will give you the "tourist" view of NYC. For a local's view, just walk around and eat or shop in any place that seems interesting.

8. Visit the empire state building and ride the elevator to the top.

9. Have a drink on a rooftop bar that has a scenic view.

10. Check out nymag.com to see what is happening around the city when you arrive

I'm guessing you're not going to brooklyn, queens, or the bronx, so this should keep you busy for a few days. If you have more time, see a broadway show, visit MOMA, and check out the village voice to see who is playing in town.

I'm sorry for the rambling suggestions, but NYC is a HUGE city and I could write a 100 page post and just scratch the surface. My best advice is explore the streets, and make the city your own!



-Moose

Actually, I love driving in Manhattan -- I've driven all sorts of vehicles -- It's not a city to drive in if you are timid or shy -- but if you like assertive driving techniques -- it can be quite a hoot.

That being said, of course, public transit is preferred by most visitors.

Mark

I live in New York as well. I don't think you are going to find anything resembling a backroad experience in NYC unless you study Forgotten New York and Ephemeral New York and find things that most New Yorkers are oblivious to.

If you absolutely can not separate your road trip to the mid-Atlantic and New England from your trip to New York City, then you might want to abandon either DC or Boston and save it for another trip.

If you decide to do it all, my advice is to take interstates directly to the cities and spend all of your time in them. Save the back country road trip for your neck of the woods.