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| | | | First bite of the apple
For once, the cliches are true. This is a city ruled by money: Babylon on the make.
You will be abused by taxi drivers, ignored by offhand shop assistants and pushed and shoved on the subway. But you will still want to come back.
New York in 15 minutes: buy a pretzel from a vendor in Central Park and walk to the Bethesda Fountain where Woody Allen met Diane Keaton in that classic scene in Annie Hall.
Stand on a street corner and watch the steam coming out of the ventilation shafts.
Walk into a sandwich bar, order a corned beef on rye and yell: 'Hold the mayo.' There is a 50-50 chance the sandwich maker will understand you - and if he doesn't, so what ?
There is no road map to the heart of Manhattan, but you should plan your days carefully. For most people, the price of hotel rooms, driven skywards by recession-proof property prices and expense accounts, rules out a long stay.
Five nights is about right; fewer than that is manageable but tiring. Your choice of hotel will depend on your budget and whether you need internet access from your bidet, wheatgrass juice for breakfast or a meeting room for 48.
Plus service and taxes. Rather more important is location. Manhattan, a rectangular island 13 miles long and three miles across, is the most important of the five boroughs that make up New York City.
For shopping, Midtown - above 34th Street and below 60th Street - is the place to be, but you want nightlife, you'd be better off staying downtown.
Greenwich Village and the East Village have their own enthusiasts but in recent years, the action has moved further south.
SoHo, NoHo and TriBeCa, with their reclaimed warehouses and industrial space, may be too gritty and grungey for some. Call me old fashioned, but I prefer bars with paint on the walls.
This is the New York of hugely expensive modern galleries, puffed-up designer shops and a gourmet restaurant owned by Robert de Niro.
It's fun to visit, but it lacks the glamour of old New York - gleaming skyscrapers, Art Deco detailing, Audrey Hepburn, and dry Martinis for lunch - that seems familiar even if you have never set foot in the city.
For proper New York glamour, you cannot beat the Rockefeller Center.
In winter, when the ice rink is open, it is the most romantic spot of all.
It sums up the essence of old New York: smart, stylish and as well-finished as one of Frank Sinatra's suits.
Travel Guide: New York
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Travel Guide: New York
Explore America the Amtrak way
From the Daily Mail
There are no bells and no whistles; just a hasty stubbing out of cigarettes, and the sort of long, drawn-out 'All abo-o-o-o-ard!' that you might hear in Disneyland.
Then the South West Chieftain pulls out of Los Angeles on its way across the U.S.
After the 1930s station, with its fabulous movie theatre exterior, palm trees and mission-style gardens, the train is a workaday affair.
It has 14 coaches, four locomotives (to pull the massive load of mail that we will pick up), observation and dining cars - all in Amtrak Superliner livery.
And it's so American! So shiny! Fluted metal carriages, around 15ft high, run on 56-inch-wide rails across a 3,000 mile-wide continent.
On board our car attendant is busy showing people how to hang their clothes in ingenious narrow closets, reassuring them that, yes, he will put their top beds up while they are in the dining car, and pointing out the coffee machine and route maps.
People react differently to their first time in this intimate environment: some are sociable, some display their nerves by complaining (Americans are demanding customers at the best of times, let alone when unpacking matching luggage into 6ft 6in by 3ft 6in compartments).
Dinner offers a choice of steak, pasta bake or Southern fried chicken and garlic mash. Amtrak food is pretty average, but I liked it.
It's included in the price for Sleeper passengers, extra for those in Coach. (Three courses with a glass of average wine or a beer costs around $15 (£10) per head.)
The meals split the days like markers, as they did when Harvey Houses graced the tracks.
There's still one at Winslow, Arizona, early on in the trip, and another at the dusty little town of Las Vegas, New Mexico.
Travel Guide: New York
Touchdown in New York
Playing rugby for club and country takes you all over the world, but all that training doesn't leave much time for sightseeing. A weekend away therefore usually means Richmond rather than Rome.
Now that I've retired from the game, I'm off on my travels whenever I can. And choosing my first short break was easy - it had to be New York.
Until last week I'd only managed half a day there, but that was enough to see what a fantastic city it is - clean, friendly and fun.
Our wish list was pretty straightforward. See a few famous sights, do a bit of shopping and, oh yes, tickets to a big American football game.
NFL game tickets are like gold-dust so we took a package from Indigo Sports Tours, the appointed UK tour operator for the NFL Europe League, which included a $75 big-match ticket, flights and a decent central hotel so that we could walk round the city.
Flying out on a British Airways scheduled flight Friday morning and back late Monday evening gave us almost four full days away for the price of only two days off work.
We unwound at our hotel, the Metropolitan on Lexington Avenue and East 51st Street, a few blocks from Central Park and Times Square, then strolled out, soaking up the atmosphere and checking out the bars, ending up in SoHo.
It's a great area, full of restored cast-iron buildings, trendy galleries, designer shops and, of course, excellent restaurants and clubs. Try the Lotus Room - we had good fun there until the early hours.
It was a slow start to Saturday and breakfast in a little local deli. Then we tackled the Empire State Building. That view from the 102nd floor is still worth the queue. Next the shops: Macy's, Bloomingdales, Saks - we did them all. I'm a big guy and it can be hard finding clothes that fit, but not in New York, and it was good value to boot.
For the first time in my life I possess a ski suit which fits me so I can look forward to my first ski trip in 12 years.
Travel Guide: New York
The Empire strikes back
As we circled over Manhattan in the plane, the Empire State Building seemed to be a pivot on which the city was revolving. The man sitting beside me, who was from Chicago, said: 'It's such a tiny building, but it is beautiful.'
Let's look at that word 'tiny'.
Leaving aside radio masts, the Empire State Building is 1,250 feet high, smaller only than the Petronas Tower in Malaysia (1,483 feet), and the Sears Tower in Chicago (1,454 feet).
It was also smaller than the twin towers of the World Trade Centre (1,368 feet), but when Osama Bin Laden destroyed the WTC he promoted the Empire State.
Now it is not only restored to its former status - the tallest building in the greatest city on earth - but a new poignancy comes with that status. If the rubble of Ground Zero is a dismal full stop, then the Empire State remains as a proud capital letter.
It was always more loved than the Twin Towers - as pure and aspirational as the sharpened pencil on which the architect, William Lamb, based his Art Deco design.
It occupies the optimum site, at the intersection of 33rd Street and Fifth Avenue, in the heart of the city. The first Waldorf Astoria hotel stood there, and the catchphrase of New Yorkers was 'Meet me at the Waldorf '.
Then, from the building's completion in 1931, there was an ungrudging transition to 'Meet me at the Empire State'.
Not for nothing was it the romantic focus of When Harry Met Sally: it's the number one site for New York marriage proposals, and many actual marriages take place there on weekends.
Nonetheless, news stories have been appearing about office tenants quitting the Empire State. Could the event that destroyed the WTC be killing the Empire State, too, by the corrosive power of fear?
Travel Guide: New York
The Big Olive!
There's a story about a New York businessman sitting on his bar stool, scrutinising the bartender's every movement as he prepares a dry Martini. When the barman reaches over for that final twist of lemon, the man snaps: 'If I want fruit salad, I'll ask for it.'
The Martini connoisseur has definite views on the amount of lemon peel or the number of olives; he understands the proportion of gin to vermouth.
I've never failed to enjoy a Martini. What better pick-me-up can there be than this sophisticated cocktail with a kick so powerful it's come to be known as 'Fred Astaire in a glass'.
And what better place to search out the perfect Martini than New York City, spiritual home of what Truman Capote called a 'Silver Bullet'.
But no New Yorker better understood the Martini's allure than the wit, poet and literary critic Dorothy Parker. 'I like to drink Martinis. Two at the most. Three, I'm under the table, four I'm under my host.'
Dorothy Parker's drinking was done at the infamous Algonquin Hotel, the 'Gonk'. It's the grand old lady of New York hotels: walk into its dark, panelled lobby, settle in one of its armchairs and let the faded Art Deco elegance bring back the ghosts of its literary past.
Order a Martini, discover it is chilled to perfection, then imagine the Gonk in its heyday, a few decades after it was built in 1902, when New York's infamous Round Table gathered there for its long liquid lunches.
Parker was foremost among the Table's bunch of newspaper writers, magazine editors, critics, actors and hangers-on.
That great New York humorist, James Thurber, was always circumspect about his Martinis - 'One is all right, two is too many, and three is not enough,' he said. But I ignored his advice and opted for a second by nipping over the street to the Royalton Hotel.
I'd been told it boasts what the purists dread - an extravaganza of lurid variations on the Martini, served at its own, post-modern bar dedicated to the cocktail. I kept to the classic dry Martini and it was good, though colder would have been better. But the place was trying too hard to be hip.
Travel Guide: New York
New York's winter wonderland
New York's festivals - like its buildings and French fries - come super-sized. Lavish parades and festivities are mounted almost every month: St Patrick's Day, Easter, Puerto Rican Day, Fourth of July, Columbus Day, Veterans' Day and, of course, the annual mayhem that is New Year's Eve in Times Square.
But nothing quite matches New York's attachment to Christmas. One of Manhattan's oldest Christmas traditions takes place at the cavernous Church of the Intercession on Broadway and 155th Street in uptown New York.
The annual candlelit service commemorated the life of Clement Clarke Moore and the poem, A Visit From St Nicholas, which famously begins:
'Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house / Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse...
The poem, written in the early 19th Century, played a key role in popularising the modern picture of Father Christmas travelling from house to house on his sleigh on Christmas Eve and dropping down the chimney with a sackful of presents for children.
It was read during the service and afterwards a lantern-lit procession, including someone dressed as Santa Claus, made its way from the church through the snow-covered cemetery to Moore's grave where a glowing tribute was paid to the author.
A charming Christmas moment - except that the tribute is being paid to the wrong man. Recent literary detective work has revealed that the real author of the Christmas poem was one Henry Livingston.
After Livingston's death in 1822, Clement Clarke Moore included the poem in a collection of his rather turgid verse, thereby niftily claiming ownership.
Moore's descendants have made it clear that they are not taking the accusations lightly and are ready for a fight.
For those of us in Britain where the only remaining significant Christmas tradition worthy of note is the midnight opening of PC World, New York's calendar of yuletide events is impressively big and rather touching.
The programme kicks off with Thanksgiving Day on the last Thursday in November. This annual holiday has its roots in the story of the Pilgrims' harvest festival shared with their Indian neighbours.
Travel Guide: New York
Going to the theatre is a must
I travelled to New York in May for my 40th birthday and stayed at the Palace Hotel which is absolutley first rate in every sense of the word.
I enjoyed first class service, beautiful rooms looking down the avenue to the Hudson river. As part of our package staying in thesuite, we had breakfast, afternoon snacks and light evening snacks and drinks for two hours.
It was great vaule for your money. You feel just that little bit special throughout your stay.
Going to the theatre is a must. Seeing a show is something you will remember for a long time after. Great vaule tickets can be purchased early in the morning at the theatres on the day of your preferred viewing at huge discounts. But you should be prepared to queque.
Travel Guide: New York
New delights each time I visit
I have been to the Big Apple on several occasions and am still experiencing new things. There is lots to see, lots to do and loads of shopping if you can fit it in.
Travelling by train can be a bit confusing, but you will soon get the jist of it.
The people are really friendly and if they realise that you are from London then they want to get you "saying" things.
I love it out there and recommend it to just about all my friends and to you too, if you've never been.
Travel Guide: New York
A great city to explore by foot
For my 60th birthday in August, my husband suggested a trip to New York. Having never been to the States before, I jumped at the chance.
The cab ride from the airport to our hotel on Central Park South was wonderful. It was so exciting to see buildings which, up until then, had just been a picture in a travel brochure or on the television news.
We had decided to get in one visit on that day, so we headed to Bloomingdales which was around eight blocks from the hotel.
The next day, we had decided to jump on a Gray Line bus which did the downtown tour. For around $25 each, you can visit all the tourist sights and can jump off and on wherever you like.
Our first stop off was at the site of the World Trade Centre. We stood, along with hundreds of other people, just staring at nothing. It was deadly quiet, apart from the odd person crying. It was a very emotional time.
We then walked to the Staten Island Ferry, which is free and takes around 30 minutes each way. Halfway across, you get the best ever sight of the Statue of Liberty, passing within 20 yards of it.
Jumping on the bus once more, we got off at Wall Street. I don't really know what I expected to see, but I was very disappointed, as the Stock Exchange is marked by just a small door in a tiny street.
The following day, we headed on the bus again to the Empire State Building, which we were told opened up at 0900. When we arrived, it was 0915, and we thought we had escaped the rush. However, we had to queue for two hours in order to buy tickets and get a place in one of the many lifts.
The views from the top were simply magnificent. The whole world seemed to stretch out in front of you, and we had the best views of the Chrysler Building, which must be one of the finest Art Deco buildings ever.
After an hour at the top, we descended in the street and straight facing you is Macey's, billed at the biggest department store in the world. I can certainly agree with that. There are so many floors that you can't possibly do all your shopping there in one day. We had a lovely lunch in the basement restaurant, and were pleasantly surprised at the bill.
The next day, which was our last before coming home, we caught the Gray Line bus to do the Uptown route, jumping off at the Dakota Buildings, which was John Lennon's home at the time of his murder.
Crossing the road and entering Strawberry Fields in Central Park was a fabulous experience. There is a circle of flowers there, which is dedicated to John and is still tended by his widow Yoko Ono. Across the centre of the ring is the word IMAGINE. Another touching moment during our trip.
The rest of the day was spent in the park, marvelling at the horses and carriages which rode through the park, the horses with flowers threaded into their manes.
Altogether, it was a wonderful experience visiting a city I had long wished to see. My advice to future travellers, take the most comfortable shoes you possess because you will be surprised at how much walking you will do.
Travel Guide: New York
My New York is too rich for me
From the Mail on Sunday
Howyadoin?' The waitress was talking my language, I was raised round here, but I was doltish with jet lag. 'Sorry, what was that?'
'I said: 'Howyadoin'? You doin' good or what? So whatsitgonnabe?'
'I'm really sorry, but could you repeat that again?'
'Like I said: Whatsitgonnabe? You hear me now or what? Like I don't got all day standing here and asking you whatsitgonnabe. Waddayawant?'
'Coffee.' 'Now we're gettin' somewhere. Coffee and what?
'What do you recommend?' 'Hey, do you think I'm a menu or somethin? Like it's not like I'm not talkin' English, know-waddamean?'
Now I did. She meant I was back home on the Lower East Side in the venerable 2nd Avenue Deli on 10th Street, still pure Pastrami on rye, elderly waitresses with dyed black hair sculpted with a blowtorch, framed photos of minor celebrities and a die-hard bombastic clientele.
A visitor strolling down 2nd Avenue below 14th Street can still glimpse Manhattan as it was before the huge economic boom.
Here you can see that car crash of Jewish, Russian and Hispanic cultures that has made this corner of the East Village a unique ethnic brew - a jumble of delis, Lithuanian coffee shops and Puerto Rican bodegas still showing what the island was like before the arrival of the Young Urban Professional.
Love at first bite
A magnificent city
In December 2002 I was really looking forward to going to New York. We'd booked it a few months in advance and the anticipation had only added to the excitement.
With £1,000 spending money saved up to do all that Christmas shopping, I couldn't wait to head to Fifth Avenue. However, on the plane I started to feel sick. We arrived at our hotel and I felt awful. So I retreated to our room. Despite a sickness bug, I still found New York amazing and managed to see most of the sights. Times Square in particular, is magnificent, especially at night. I'm hoping to go back one day and hopefully my sickness bug won't come with me.
Travel Guide: New York
Buzzing, but avoid summer
I never had a strong desire to visit New York, not like some of my friends, so I was overwhelmed by how much I enjoyed my first trip there. The city really does have that buzz that everyone talks about, with people on the streets at all hours of the day and night.
Of course, the shopping was brilliant. And the food - I was amazed by the sheer volume of restaurants and cafes in such a small space. It's not like London, where you have your little areas of shops broken up by lots of residential streets; in Manhattan, every avenue is completely lined with storefronts.
New York really is cheap, too. We ate out most nights for well under $20 a head, which included wine, dessert, the works. It seems odd to go to a city and then sit in a cinema, but the "movie theatres" in New York have a brilliant atmosphere, packed every night and with lots of late shows to choose from.
My only complaint was the weather. Next time, we won't go in the summer. Some days were just so humid and sweaty, and the smells from the street are best left to the imagination!
If you do end up there in hot weather, there are a couple of good ways we found to escape the heat. Take the free Staten Island ferry, or head up the Empire State Building. The breezes soon cooled us down, to the point where we even got a little chilly.
Travel Guide: New York
A great value city break
New York was fantastic in September - still t-shirt weather but with less crowds in main attractions like the Empire State Building, Central Park and Ground Zero.
The subway didn't take long to master and at $7 for a day ticket it's a cheap way to get to all the sights.
If you want to see the Statue of Liberty, forget the more expensive tourist ferries and jump on the Statton Island ferry which is free at weekends. You can get some great close-up photos, too.
One museum not to miss, especially if holidaying with the kids, is the Sony Museum. It's very hi-tech and interactive. Best of all, it's free.
If you're looking for clothes or trainers, head over to Brooklyn flea market on Sunday morning at the race track where some unbelievable bargains are to be had.
After all the racing around, just chill out in central park with a coffee and a pretzel. I'd recommend apple and cinnamon.
New York is a fantastic place. Great people, unforgettable city.
Travel Guide: New York
Manhattan's highlights on a shoestring
As a first timer to New York on a tight budget and long weekend the idea was to take a big bite of the apple as cheaply and quickly as possible.
Fortunately the city's most obvious attraction arrives even before we do.
The descent across Long Island into JFK Airport gives a tantalising glimpse of the Manhattan skyline, summoning to mind hundreds of blockbusters and sitcom credits. From here a 45-minute yellow cab ride takes us up through Queens to our hotel in the Midtown district.
Our accommodation — the Chelsea Star Hotel — is very reasonably priced and, tucked into the heart on the city at West 30th Street, is just a two-minute walk to Madison Square Garden and 10 minutes to the Empire State Building.
The preference is definitely on walking everywhere. Navigating Manhattan's street grid system is easy as long as you remember to keep your eyes focused at street level and not at the buildings in the sky.
On our first afternoon we pitched down into Madison Square park for a deli lunch opposite the cheese-wedged shaped Flatiron building before heading up Broadway into Times Square.
Times Square offers a neon panorama of dazzling lights advertising everything from Bubba Gump shrimps to Spider-Man 2, spiralling forever upwards. This, combined with the sunlight reflecting off skyscrapers gives Manhattan a psychedelic edge over older cities around the world.
So luminously captivating are the lights we are propelled to return at 4am again, only to find it almost as packed as it was at 4pm. Sleep deprivation, craned necks and sore feet are an inescapable part of New York for beginners.
But nature is close at hand though as a half-hour walk later, past a dozen pretzel stands and Carnegie Hall and up 7th Avenue, Central Park awaits.
The perfect way to unwind, Central Park is home to baseball games, endless rollerbladers and John Lennon fans at Strawberry Fields. It's only May but the city's humidity takes temperatures to the high 80 degrees Fahrenheit.
The park is definitely a safe, bustling place in daylight, and on several occasions, unprompted, native joggers approach us to enquire whether we we're ok, if we're lost and whether we need help.
A brief nap later and we wander back down through the shopping Mecca of 5th Avenue taking advantage of the current great exchange rate, before getting ready for the night life.
Travel Guide: New York
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| | | | A city of villages
There is no graffiti, no litter and the subway station is spotless. The sheer pride of the city shines out of its Art Deco friezes.
And, above all, there is the overwhelming sense that for all its apparent chaos, New York as a city actually works: events such as the tragedy on the Staten Island Ferry are mercifully rare.
The subway is also remarkably efficient and safe these days. If you travel on it, there is a risk - not that you will be mugged, but that you will get lost.
The buses, which ply up and down the avenues from north to south, are simpler to use. Taxis are plentiful and cheap, but useless.
Do not count on the driver to be able to take you to your destination unless you know its number and the nearest cross street. 'Empire State Building, 5th Avenue' is just not good enough. Who do they think they are? Professional drivers?
And therein lies the city's great paradox. For all its global importance, New York is probably the most insular city in the world. The locals, including the taxi drivers, know only their own little bit of it.
As Woody Allen put it: 'There is no question there is an unseen world; the question is, how far is it from Midtown, and how late is it open?'
It's a cliche, but New York is a city of villages: Hispanic, Russian, Irish, Italian and Afro-Caribbean neighbourhoods.
But you are unlikely to see them on a fleeting visit as they are no longer found in Manhattan - increasingly a ghetto for the affluent - but beyond, in Brooklyn, the Bronx and Queens.
The Lower East Side, traditionally the first port of call for immigrants, still has a small Jewish population and a tiny Italian one - about all that's left of the melting pot, though Chinatown, a few blocks north, continues to expand.
These old neighbourhoods are rapidly becoming gentrified while many public spaces have undergone a transformation.
The lovingly refurbished Grand Central Station shows what can be achieved when civic leaders put their mind to it.
The bums and panhandlers have gone, leaving a building that looks more like a set for the opera Aida than a working railway station.
And Central Park, once a forbidding and dangerous, has been landscaped, cleaned up and purged of its dodgy reputation. Take a walk across the park, a huge green lung that dominates upper Manhattan.
To the east, you are faced with the discreet charm of the Upper East Side: handy for ' Museum Mile' - the Guggenheim, the Metropolitan Museum of Art - and one of the world's most stately residential districts.
The death of the cowboy
In the great days of the U.S. railroads, these Art Deco buildings sprang up to delight passengers (and locals) with their wonderful food, exotic gardens and pretty, respectable waitresses, known as 'Harvey Girls'.
It is hard to imagine the excitement now as the tracks spread west from their commercial starting point of Boston, bringing with them such 19th-century wonders as Pullman coaches - like grand hotels - and standard time zones to replace the 53 that existed before timetables really mattered.
They also brought settlers to populate the West, train robbers, and the death of the cowboy.
It just wasn't the same dropping the herd off at the Santa Fe railhead for the journey to the slaughterhouses of Chicago: the legendary cattle drives became a thing of the past.
A century and a half later, our Superliner is nosing through New Mexico, every so often sending out a lonely moan to bounce off the red flat-top hills and black lava flows of one of the biggest native American reservations in the country.
In the lounge car, a Zuni guide is explaining the landscape in the flat English of someone speaking his second language.
He points out the place where 20 tribes gather each August for a pow-wow, and plays haunting music on his Indian flute.
Over breakfast the next day, an Amtrak engineer explains the rails are 56 inches wide because that was the width of pioneer wagons. We are, literally, on the Santa Fe Trail.
We are also notching up the miles (more than 1,000 so far): coast, mountains, plains. The great flatlands of Kansas; the mighty Missouri and Mississippi rivers; and the first hints of a brisker tempo as we near Chicago.
All cha-a-a-nge! And we do. The double-decker trains which ride the rails in the South-West can't fit under the bridges in the more cramped North-East, and the train metamorphoses into a modern, single-decker Viewliner.
Spectacle of constant activity
Saturday night began very stylishly with cocktails and dinner in a smart little boutique-hotel, the W. It was downhill after that, though. Our downfall included a country and western bar and from here I think I'd better plead the Fifth Amendment!
Sunday was the big game day. New York Jets were playing the Kansas City Chiefs and we were advised to get there really early. The stadium is at Meadowlands, just across the Hudson River in New Jersey.
We splashed out on a limo and driver but it's only a 30-minute, $7 bus ride from the Port Authority (Route 351) or take a taxi but arrange your return trip in advance.
Even three hours before kick-off an amazing party was in full swing. The huge car park was packed with families 'tailgating' - picnicking, barbecuing and watching TV.
Marquees with food, drink, live bands and sports personalities are all open to everyone so it's no problem if you're car-less. We certainly didn't go hungry or thirsty.
The same applies during the match. There are food stalls and bars everywhere, and people stocked up with enough snacks to last them through a siege. I've never seen so much pizza in one place. Alcohol is on sale but, refreshingly, it's not a huge feature of the day.
Inside the stadium things are very intense with an 80,000 crowd and stands very close to the pitch. Video screens 60ft wide and a sound system of 65,000 watts blasting through 1,500 speakers make sure you don't miss much.
Commentators and referees talk to the crowd so I had a rough idea of what was going on even though I'm not too clear on the rules of play.
A game lasts three hours and it's a great spectacle of constant activity, completely different from rugby.
While rugby is more about endurance, American football is very quick with some huge impacts. Even when there's a score, the action doesn't stop. Helmets clash like cymbals and there are so many high fives it could be basketball.
There's always something to watch. There are 16 coaches and 60 players in each squad, all highly specialised and I think they all came on at some stage even if only to take one crucial kick.
Rackety, Blackpool-ish feel
The grey marble and glass lobby was certainly seething with visitors when I arrived. Whereas the WTC had a severe, corporate atmosphere, the public parts of the Empire State have a slightly rackety, Blackpool-ish feel, with their souvenir stalls and hot dog stands.
The crowd resolved itself into lines of people waiting to pass through metal detectors. Before September 11, anyone wanting to go to the viewing deck at the 86th floor had to go through a metal detector; now everyone who wants to enter the building at all must pass through one, hence the tailbacks.
Most of those in the lobby were heading up to the 86th floor, but my first stop was the 32nd floor, where I met Lydia Ruth, director of publicity. I showed her a British newspaper cutting about bad business at the Empire State, and she sighed. '2001 was a bad year for a lot of things,' she said.
'There were a lot of dotcom failures, and we had 240,000 vacant square feet. 2001 was a rotten year for tourism generally, but we had good figures over the Christmas holiday.'
'But aren't people scared of ascending the building?' I wondered.
Thus provoked, Lydia Ruth broached a subject I'll bet was taboo before September 11.
'Remember,' she said, 'that we actually were hit by a plane, and we survived . . .'
On July 28, 1945, a B25 bomber flying over New York in the fog smashed into the 79th floor. One of its engines plunged into the lift shaft, sending the lift attendant 1,000 feet down into a cellar. She suffered a broken back, but survived.
The pilot and his one passenger died, along with 10 people in the building. Two floors were set on fire, and the building swayed back and forth in a two-foot arc. But that was all it did.
'Of course,' adds Lydia, 'it wasn't as big as the planes that hit the World Trade Centre, but even if planes like those hit this building, it would not fall.'
Menu of 61 Martinis
Anyway, if it's a hip Martini you're after, New Yorkers say you should head to West Chelsea, to Lot 61, a converted truck garage, which has a menu of 61 Martinis.
With such an array, it seems churlish to opt for the classic. What about the Orange Hazel 'tini, the Chocolate Strawberry or the Big Banana 'tini?
Bar bores recommend the Ginger, others the Dirty Martini, mixed with olive brine. It's just too confusing, and although Lot 61 claims the largest selection in New York, it is not alone in its vulgarity.
The bars of the city are groaning under the weight of revolting Martinis. I was told of a Mars Bar 'tini, a syrupy swirl of dark chocolate liqueur, white chocolate liqueur, amaretto and Frangelico, served in a glass whose rim has been dusted in chocolate flecks.
There was talk of a Martini called the Snowman: Finlandia vodka, white chocolate liqueur and a garnish of three miniature marshmallows.
And if sickly sweet isn't to your taste, what of the oyster Martini served at Shaffer City Oyster Bar and Grill? 'As you drink, the oyster gradually releases its brine,' a bartender told me. 'It's like stepping farther out into the ocean. And in the end, you get to eat the oyster.'
I'd rather not, frankly. For almost a century, the Martini has held sway by virtue of its purity. It has but two ingredients, gin and vermouth; at a pinch the gin can be substituted for flavourless vodka.
How has this cocktail come to exert such a hold on America and so much of the rest of the world? And where did it come from?
Well, some say it was born in San Francisco, others credit it to a bartender, Martini di Arma di Taggia, at New York's Knickerbocker Hotel in 1912.
I enjoyed gazing up at the Empire State with a cocktail glass in hand from the roof of my hotel, the Metro, on 35th Street. But perhaps my most memorable Martini was in Grand Central Station at the bar of Michael Jordan's steakhouse.
As I drank, I spotted him - the epitome of the three-Martini luncher, a businessman, perspiring forehead, shirt buttons straining like missiles ready to fly over a bulging stomach.
'Martini, three olives, straight up,' he said for the third time. As the bartender began his ritual, Mr Three-Martinis once again scrutinised his every move.
TRAVEL DETAILS:
Martini dash: Martini bars (prices vary from $10-16 (£6.53-£10.46): Algonquin Hotel at 59 West 44th Street; Royalton Hotel at 44 West 44th Street; Lot 61 at 550 W 21st St (10th & 11th Avenues), Chelsea; Shaffer City Oyster Bar and Grill at West 21st Street; Rainbow Room, 30 Rockefeller Plaza.
For breaks at the Metro Hotel call British Airways Holidays on 0870 442 3828.
Christmas shopping season
These days, however, Thanksgiving is more widely regarded as the official start of the Christmas shopping season.
Thanksgiving Day for New Yorkers is the annual Thursday parade with its giant helium-filled figures, marching bands and 27 big floats - with the final float bearing Santa on his sleigh.
More than 2.5 million New Yorkers turn out to watch the parade while around 63 million throughout the States tune in on live TV.
The next day is known in the retail trade as Black Friday - usually the busiest shopping day of the year.
Next on the seasonal calendar comes the switching on of the 30,000 lights on the 76ft Christmas tree at the Rockefeller Centre, beneath which is the skating rink where you might find yourself sharing the ice with a skating Santa.
Another key part of the festivities is the Radio City Christmas Spectacular held at the Radio City Music Hall.
Other traditional Christmas offerings include a giant Madison Square Garden production of Charles Dickens's A Christmas Carol (this year F. Murray Abraham plays Scrooge) and New York City Ballet's Nutcracker at the New York State Theatre.
The build-up to Christmas this year has had an added zest to it - and more than a little poignancy - because last year's celebrations followed hard on September 11 and New York was still deep in mourning.
Last December a New York commentator wrote: 'There is something just a little off this year about saying to anyone in New York, "Have a Merry Christmas". Perhaps "Have a Christmas" might be a more appropriate greeting.'
A year on, New York has emerged from this gloom. Take a trip down to Ground Zero and you will discover that not only has the site of the World Trade Centre been transformed - it is now noisy with construction workers - but so have people's attitudes.
The mass of personal memorials, collages and tributes to victims and emergency workers that have clung to the railings of St Paul's Chapel for more than a year are now being removed.
The sky's the limit
Since the Wall Street boom - the biggest explosion of financial affluence in New York history - the flats and houses which teachers or librarians could afford when I was living on 19th Street and Second Avenue in the Fifties have become places for the exceedingly well-heeled.
A basic 15ft-square studio apartment in a moderately decent area like Murray Hill in the East 30s now costs a minimum of $2,000 - about £1,350 - a month.
A three to four-bedroom place in a family area like the Upper West Side will be around £3,300. Once questionable areas like the East Village, which in my schooldays was a serious no-go area, especially after dark, are fashionable addresses.
With the renovated townhouses - the 'brownstones' - and new condominiums, have come the smart cafes. Because it is a truth universally recognised that a neighbourhood's housing prices are linked to the accessibility of a cappuccino and a rocket-and-parmesan salad.
A bird's eye view of the city
Greenwich Village and East Village were for us the best places to shake a leg. A cab trip downtown finds the skyscrapers and department stores replaced by chic boutiques, cool bars and funky clubs.
Bleecker Street in particular proves a popular hive as we bounce through the doors of numerous bars and clubs, in a land where bouncers smile and are courteous.
But the city that never sleeps also now never smokes in public venues — so don't light up inside, and take ID if you seek alcohol, whatever your age.
A chance to see a gig at the Bowery Ballroom in Delancey Street also proved priceless, especially as we casually encountered the band in the bar upstairs after the show.
A visit to the Empire State Building observation lounge is obligatory for any newcomer to New York.
But pick your time carefully - a Sunday morning was ideal for us after we snacked on pancakes in a nearby diner before queuing an hour to zoom to the 86th floor.
The view here is overwhelming, reducing Manhattan to the size of Legoland. Sites such as the Chrysler building and Brooklyn Bridge jostle for attention, and even after just three days you can get a sense of where you've been and where you want to go to next.
On our final afternoon, as we head downtown towards Battery Park, it is evident Manhattan is glittered with the Stars and Stripes flag.
Never is this more so than strolling through the financial district, passing a surprisingly narrow Wall Street to spend a few sober moments at Ground Zero. Almost three years on from 9/11 tourists still pack the site, but thankfully a bylaw has seen the macabre sale of souvenirs associated with the terror attacks banned.
Four days in New York barely gives you time to explore outside Manhattan, although we did manage to squeeze in a trip into Brooklyn. However it is possible to walk and see many of the island's main attractions both at street level and bird's eye level during that time.
A 15-minute helicopter trip along the Hudson river costs $100 (about £66) through Liberty Helicopters, but fills in the gaps of places we've missed such as Liberty and Ellis Island.
But flying out of JFK, we are already planning what to do on a return trip.
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| | | | Overwhelming selfconfidence
Across the park, the Upper West Side has a different feel altogether: bohemian, Jewish, intellectual and European. But still monied and primarily residential.
It's difficult to find somewhere to stay here, but Columbus Avenue is worth a visit, offering a snapshot of a New York that first-time visitors tend not to take home.
Visit the memorial to John Lennon, Central Park close to the Dakota Building where he was shot in 1980. Throughout the city are reminders of more recent sadnesses.
In Greenwich Village, there's an empty car park covered in small ceramic tiles, some of them painted by schoolchildren, commemorating those who died on September 11.
Equally moving is an exhibition at St Paul's, a small Episcopalian church used as a base by rescue and construction workers in the aftermath of the attacks.
Birthday cards to spouses and parents who never came home that day are placed on a table near the door.
Ground Zero itself is a symbol of New York's overwhelming desire to be seen to bounce back. It is a surprisingly small patch of land hemmed in by neighbouring skyscrapers.
The wrangling over its precise future continues but it seems likely that an office block - and probably a big one - will once again stand there.
Few New Yorkers, with their overwhelming selfconfidence, are in no doubt that Ground Zero, along with the city itself, will rise up again.
Getting there: British Airways (0870 850 9850) has ten flights a day to NewYork.
Where to stay:
Upper East Side: The Mark. Book through ITC Classics, tel: 01244 35552.
Midtown: The Edison 228 W47th Street.Tel: (212) 840 5000.
Lower Manhattan: Washington Square Hotel, 103 Waverly Place. Tel: (212) 777-9515.
Restaurants:
Midtown: 21, 21 West 52nd Street New York, NY 1001. Expensive, but a fascinating glimpse of the city's power brokers.Tel: (212) 582-7200
The Oyster Bar at Grand Central Station, 42nd Street. Superb seafood. Tel: (212) 490 6650.
Flatiron District: Blue Water Grill, 31 Union Square West. Modern and relaxed.Tel: (212) 675 9500.
Sightseeing:
The Circle Line: a classic boat trip around Manhattan. www.circlelinetours.com
Gourmet Tours: The Enthusiastic Gourmet, tel: (646) 209 4724.
Bars:
Upper East Side: Elaine's, 1703 Second Ave, East 88th and East 89th Street. Tel: (212) 534 8103.
Upper West Side: Ouest, 2315 Broadway, near 84th Street.Tel: (212) 580 8700. Downtown: East Tenth Street Lounge, E 10th Street.Tel: (212) 473-5252.
I love my cabin
The easy-going crew and passengers of the Chieftain are replaced by busier types: many are on business, dissuaded from flying by September 11.
Even the cabins have changed. There are bigger seats, video screens, folding sinks and - in each one - a lavatory with no door, right next to the bed. (Needless to say I don't use mine.)
Otherwise I love my cabin.
I pull the curtains across and sit watching the landscape unroll: heavy industry and casinos around the lake from Chicago; white clapboard houses and porch railings in upstate New York, Canada Geese grazing on the tilled soil as we turned south into the Hudson Valley.
We pass West Point Academy, a hydro-electric station.
We run through rock cuttings and into a meaner, more industrial landscape.
Instead of arriving in Manhattan across a bridge, as I had imagined, we dive into a dark tunnel and emerge in Penn Station 15 minutes later. No bells, no whistles, surprisingly little fanfare.
But who needs it? We have just crossed the U.S.! Welcome to New York!
TRAVEL DETAILS:
British Airways Holidays (www.britishairways.com tel: 0870 442 3808) offers scheduled flights into LA and out of New York. During peak season (June 1-Sept 4), an Amtrak ticket from LA to New York via Chicago costs $177-$336 (£121-£229) per adult Coach class, depending on how far in advance you book (the earlier, the cheaper). Standard Sleeper class costs $700- $850 (£478-£580).
For further details, contact UK agents Leisurail (0870 750 0222) or www.amtrak.com.
Excitement and the atmosphere
Our game was a real cliff-hanger with plenty of touchdowns in every quarter. The Jets were hard on the scent of their first victory in four games but the Chiefs grabbed a thrilling last-minute touchdown to win 29-25.
The crowd was fantastic, good-natured, lots of kids and 100 per cent home supporters. The stands were a sea of green Jets kit and if you felt out of it there were plenty of places to buy the right shirt.
Concerted chants for their own team build the excitement and the atmosphere like no other game I can think of. It must be great for the players.
The big match is a glorious all-day institution across America and well worth attending even for a non sports fan. We felt privileged to be there because tickets are vastly over-subscribed and it makes a great change from watching rugby.
If, however, you're travelling with a real 'sportsphobe', the city has enough to entertain them for a day or they could take a day excursion to Woodbury Common, the world's largest fashion outlet centre, an hour from the Port Authority.
It's hard to be in New York without recalling September 11. The city has recovered most of its usual bustle, but we did go to Ground Zero to pay our respects.
There's never time enough to do everything in a city like New York. Things I missed? The Metropolitan Museum, Madison Square Garden, a Broadway show, Central Park, the Statue of Liberty, music in Greenwich Village, the United Nations Building and a Circle Line cruise around Manhattan.
Ah well, next time - but before that I've still more catching up to do. I could get to a game in San Francisco or Miami, combine my ski trip with a Denver Broncos match or aim for the ultimate game - the Super Bowl in California.
At that rate I shall soon be as well travelled as many of today's teenagers.
*Ben Clarke won 40 caps playing Rugby Union for England and was flanker for Bath until he retired last year.
He now coaches youngsters through Innogy and npower's community programmes.
TRAVEL DETAILS:
Indigo Sports Tours (www.indigoholidays.com/sport tel: 08701 121212).
Life goes on
Perhaps it's dangerous to talk like that, but many would agree: in order to maximise office space, much of the load-bearing of the WTC was at the exterior.
The Empire State has a stronger steel core. The lifts rattle and shake as you climb to the 86th floor, and you seem to be blown towards the observation deck on a roaring updraught.
But it's worth it, though, to have New York at your feet, with even the birds below you. I, for one, have never seen a view that comes close.
The crowd was mainly on one side of the viewing deck - the southern side, of course, the one facing Ground Zero. You cannot see the actual hole from there; you pay your respects to the enormous American flag draped over a skyscraper nearby.
I walked across to a woman who was staring in that direction. She was from Oswego in New York State.
'I didn't want to go to Ground Zero as a tourist,' she said, 'but I wanted to come here and face it.'
I then spoke to Trish from Massachusetts. 'If you start getting scared of doing things like this,' she said, 'you might as well jump.'
She turned and pointed over the side of the skyscraper, before turning to her kids, who were yelling and whooping on the other side of the deck.
Even at the Empire State Building, the closest relation of the Twin Towers, life goes on.
TRAVEL DETAILS:
Andrew Martin stayed at the Sheraton Russell Hotel at 45 Park Avenue, NY. Details from Kirker Holidays (020 7231 3333).
First store Santa
The church, so close to the World Trade Centre that it seems genuinely miraculous that the place was untouched, is where emergency workers took rest breaks and grabbed a meal in the aftermath of the tragedy.
Inside the church itself, there is a fascinating exhibition about September 11 called Out Of The Dust which tells the story of the tragedy and the key role that St Paul's played.
A helper in the church said that taking down the tributes from outside had been a difficult decision, adding: 'But, you know, there comes a time when you have to move on - it's painful.'
Next to the newly cleared railings, stallholders have appeared selling September 11 souvenirs - postcards, booklets and snow globes showing the Twin Towers. Shake the globe and bizarrely the scene is covered in sparkly stars.
Commerce is still the driving force of Manhattan. Who organises the annual Thanksgiving Day parade? The Mayor? A city charity? The parade is the preserve of Macy's department store which ran the first one in 1924.
The store seems to have played a key role in the shaping of our Christmas. Macy's popularised the idea of the store Santa when it introduced the concept to New York in 1862.
Macy's was also the first store to have its shop windows showing Christmas scenes rather than displaying products.
The commercial element has had its yuletide effect elsewhere in the States.
Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, who made his debut in 1939, was the creation of advertising copywriter Robert L. May who worked for Chicago-based Montgomery Ward, the world's first mail order company and later a department store chain.
The firm instructed May to devise a story for a colouring book to be presented as a gift from Santa to children visiting their stores at Christmas.
Montgomery Ward executives initially rejected May's poem about a reindeer with a glowing red nose who is shunned by other reindeers.
Crunchy Big Apple mellowed
Running parallel to New York's economic prosperity has been the authoritarian era of Rudy Giuliani. Whatever one's feelings about the man, the city's once-terrifying murder rate (more than 2,000 homicides a year) has been cut by more than 60 per cent and some of the meaner streets are no longer redolent of a Scorsese movie.
Consider 42nd Street.
During my youth, this infamous neon strip was dominated by movie palaces where the price of admission was always 99 cents, where the films ran 24 hours a day and the balconies were notorious pick-up spots for hustlers of both sexes.
Nowadays, the area resembles an open-air, family-orientated shopping mall, brimming with that species of individual most hated by native New Yorkers - the out-of-towner.
Giuliani's strict rule means riding the subway is no longer considered a life-threatening activity and even Central Park can be negotiated at night without ending at the nearest ER (though, native that I am, I still consider that expansive stretch of green to be off-limits after sunset).
'At the rate Manhattan's going,' an old friend of mine told me over a couple of beers at The Half King, on West 23rd Street and 10th Avenue (an area once deserted after dark but now the centre of a major art gallery scene), 'there'll be no one but the rich on this damn island. Personally, I miss the sleaze. It gave the place character.'
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| | | | Glowing red noses
Glowing red noses suggested inebriation, not a Christmas characteristic they were keen to celebrate.
But May eventually persuaded them and his book was a hit. More than six million copies had been produced by 1946, but the success was of little practical benefit to May as Montgomery Ward held the copyright to Rudolph.
His wife had recently died after a long illness and he was faced with crippling medical bills. He asked his department store bosses if they would be kind enough to sign the copyright over to him.
They generously agreed, although they may have regretted this philanthropy. May's brother-in-law, songwriter Johnny Marks, who subsequently wrote Brenda Lee's execrable Rockin' Around The Christmas Tree, turned the reindeer story into a song.
In 1949 the song was recorded by 'Singing Cowboy' Gene Autry and became an instant hit.
It eventually sold more than 30 million copies, making it the second biggest-selling American record of all time after White Christmas.
From department store to record store, Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer proved to be a veritable goldmine.
This year Macy's celebrates 100 years of business on its Herald Square site. It caused a sensation in 1892 when the new store opened on 34th Street covering an entire city block between Broadway and Seventh Avenue.
And, as they have done every year since, the crowds throng here in the run-up to Christmas when Macy's temporarily displaces the Statue of Liberty as the city's second-biggest tourist attraction after the Empire State Building.
For those with children, Macy's main draw is Santaland, the eighth-floor Christmas village where you will need a heart of stone to decline the chance to buy the photograph of your little darlings sitting on Santa's knee.
Nostalgia at the core
Of course, it's easy to sentimentalise the past. In reality, just two decades ago Manhattan was considered a burnt-out case. The city was on the verge of bankruptcy, the infrastructure was crumbling, property prices had collapsed, and the tough-guy denizens bragged about the high murder rate.
Now, every time I return, I find myself wondering: when did the Swiss move in?
Though Manhattan will never lose its brash bravado - its massive belief that it is the centre of everything - the raffish, unkempt, economically diverse, down-and-dirty city of my youth has been yuppified, deodorised, disinfected.
But then something happens which makes me realise that despite the haut bourgeoisation of Manhattan, the old side-of-the-mouth spirit of the place hasn't died.
On my last recent afternoon there, on a crosstown bus I noticed two visitors from Japan having difficulty with the exact change for the fare.
The driver - an overweight guy with a scowl - started giving them a hard time. 'Like can't you read English or what?' he said loudly. 'It says a buck-fifty. Surely they teach you how to count in Japan.'
The Japanese looked like they wanted to commit hara-kiri on the spot - until an elegantly dressed woman in her late 60s seated opposite the door-came to their defence. Out of nowhere, she turned to the driver and said: 'Hey asshole, be polite.'
And I instantly thought: 'I'm home.'
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| | | | Very saucy ensembles
Like its parade, Macy's Santa took on legendary status with the 1947 film, Miracle On 34th Street. In the film Kris Kringle, played by Edmund Gwenn who won an Oscar for the role, is recruited as Macy's Santa.
He manages to persuade a sceptical Macy's executive, played by Maureen O'Hara, and her daughter, played by a very young Natalie Wood, to believe in Father Christmas.
But when he presses his claim to be the real Father Christmas, Kringle ends up being committed to an asylum for the insane from which it takes something of a court miracle to secure his release on Christmas Eve.
Macy's now seems set to remain a 34th Street fixture for another 100 years. Unlike UK department stores which have undergone intensive programmes of modernisation, Macy's remains largely the original article.
Creaky old escalators plod their way up to the likes of women's fashions and soft furnishings where sales assistants - looking surprisingly like Mrs Slocombe from Are You Being Served? - seem more than happy to chat among themselves.
The one jarring hint of modernisation can be found in the Macy's Christmas window displays.
Christmas is generally taken very soberly by the big stores. Only stylish Barneys, on Madison Avenue and 61st Street, has opted for tongue-in-cheek displays, like London store Harvey Nichols.
This Christmas, Barneys has devoted its windows to the career of Cher, which supplies the cue for witty window word play: 'Cher and share alike...the season for Cher-ing and caring.'
Macy's windows, however, are a curious mix. Some recreate scenes from the film Miracle On 34th Street with animated figures, while others charmingly show Kermit the Frog in New York settings - taking a carriage ride in Central Park, for example.
But sitting alongside these innocent creations are some very saucy ensembles of young ladies wearing very little. It says something of the enigmatic New York character that no one seems to mind.
In fact, sex has played a robust part in America's Christmas traditions. Jingle Bells is one of those songs that have been around for so long that you might have assumed it was a recast Tyrolean folk melody.
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| | | | A jarring black hole
In fact it was written by James Lord Pierpont in the 1850s. But unlike 'Twas The Night Before Christmas, Jingle Bells has absolutely nothing to do with Santa Claus.
It was inspired by the sleigh races that were run every year in the Boston area between Medford and Malden Square.
Analysis of the full lyrics reveals that Jingle Bells is actually about trying to pick up girls by taking them for a ride in your sporty one-horse open sleigh - a concept which pre-dates by about 100 years similar Chuck Berry sentiments in songs like No Particular Place To Go.
After my Macy's pilgrimage, I crossed the road and took the highspeed elevator to the top of the Empire State Building.
In the gathering gloom, from the observation deck, I look down to lower Manhattan where the Twin Towers stood. Their absence leaves a jarring black hole on the skyline.
But while there is temporarily blackness here, all around the foot of the Empire State Building Christmas lights are sparkling.
It would have been impossible to imagine a year ago, but New York is back in the festive mood. It feels like a modern miracle on 34th Street.
TRAVEL DETAILS:
British Airways (www.ba.com tel: 0845 773 3377) offers return flights from Heathrow and Manchester to New York. The Carlyle hotel is the perfect New York base - comfortable rooms and ultra-friendly staff - and its annual pre-Christmas performances in the Cafe Carlyle by pianist-entertainer Bobby Short have become a Manhattan tradition. You can book direct by calling 001 212 744 1600 or through Rosewood Hotels (0207 745 7205). For further information visit www.thecarlyle.com
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| | Destination Guide : New York |
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| | | The Big Apple |  | Why go on holiday to New York?
New York City is the epitome of the urban metropolis: fast, exciting, overcrowded, brash, electric, alive. The city wraps visitors in a whirlwind of energy — so much to see, so much to explore, so much to do.
Few fail to be seduced by the tempo of life here; expect to return home elated but exhausted, muttering the local mantra - "New York, New York: a city so good, they named it twice".
How much does it cost?
With airlines vying for supremacy on the key London to New York route, bargains are plentiful. City breaks costs from about £300 for two nights.
Flights are often available from under £200, but you'll be lucky if you find a hotel room in Manhattan for less than £70 a night unless you're staying in a hostel.
When should I go?
July and August are so hot, humid, sticky (up to 30C/84F) and crowded with tourists, that the locals leave town every weekend.
Come in May or June instead, when you can still take advantage of the city's outdoor entertainment but the temperatures are a cooler 15-25C (59-77F), the days bright and breezy.
Early autumn has similar temperatures and the madness of the city's Hallowe'en Parade; pre-Christmas can be cold, around freezing, but is wonderful for a festive shopping spree.
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| | | Lots to see |  | What should I do when I'm there?
It would take a lifetime and then some to experience everything New York has to offer.
Most first-time visitors start with a spot of shopping, trips to the Empire State Building, a Broadway play near the neon dazzle of Times Square, then a few well-earned drinks in one of the city's many clubs and bars.
One of the best sightseeing tours is free: on foot. It starts whenever, and is called "wandering around until you spot something interesting" - which in Manhattan takes about a minute.
The second-best tour is on the roundtrip ferry to Staten Island, complete with spectacular views of Ellis Island, the Statue of Liberty and the New York skyline.
Specatacular views can also be enjoyed from the Top of the Rock Observation Deck on the 70th floor of the Rockefeller Centre, the city's newest attraction. Tickets cost around £8 for adults and £5 for kids.
What museums should I visit?
Museums and art galleries are thick on the ground. The most popular are the Museum of Natural History, the MOMA (Museum of Modern Art), the Met (Metropolitan Museum of Art), the Whitney Museum of American Art, and the architecturally splendid Guggenheim.
A lovely alternative is The Cloisters, a monastery-like building perched on a hill at the very northern tip of Manhattan, which houses the Met's collection of medieval frescoes, tapestries and paintings.
Where can I get away from it all?
It's hard to escape the bustle of the city, even in the huge rambling woods, meadows and gardens of Central Park.
Packed with joggers, rollerbladers, musicians and sunbathers, the park is great for people-watching and free summer evening concerts.
Quieter options include the enchanting Brooklyn Botanic Garden and New York Botanical Garden, while the path along the Hudson River below 14th Street is filled with dog walkers and seekers of cool breezes at all hours on hot summer nights.
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| | | A shopping bonanza | | Where's good for nightlife?
Where to start? Any evening might find national and international ballet, opera, jazz and classical music at Lincoln Center; and theatre both on and off-Broadway.
You'll find funky bars in the East Village; fashionista bars around SoHo; mega-clubs around the old meatpacking district; gay clubs in Chelsea and the West Village; and cigar lounges on the Upper East Side.
Megaplex cinemas are on the Upper West Side and in Times Square.
But that's a mere taster; your best bet is to buy Time Out or pick up the free New York Press or Village Voice for citywide listings.
What's the food like?
There's something to eat here on every block, catering to every ethnic taste. The only reason that the city can support such a huge number and variety of restaurants, cafes and street stalls is that New Yorkers seldom eat at home.
Consequently the supermarkets are pretty dire, though speciality delis selling pre-cooked meals, exotic fruit, breads and cheese are wonderful.
Brunch is the way most New Yorkers like to spend their Sunday afternoons. Tips: buy bagels for breakfast from the street vendors, just like the locals. Don't go to Little Italy for Italian food; these days it's just for tourists.
What should I buy?
Of the department stores, Macy's is the largest, Barney's the most exclusive and Bloomingdale's a New York institution.
Upper Madison is where to find high fashion and upmarket boutiques; sportswear, streetwear and sneakers dominate Lafayette and Broadway just north and south of Houston.
SoHo is now rather posh, with NoLITa to the east more likely to be home to up-and-coming designers. The flea market on Sixth Avenue and the crowded streets of Chinatown are great for browsing.
What is there for children to do?
Kids can make their own masterpieces at the Children's Museum of the Arts, or develop green thumbs without paint at the Children's Adventure Garden in the New York Botanical Garden or the Children's Garden in Brooklyn.
Sony Wonder lures mini-consumers with a hands-on Technology Lab, while the famous FAO Schwarz toy store will make grown-ups either feel like kids themselves, or exhausted.
Tire them out at Chelsea Piers, a giant sports centre with outdoor skating rink, golf, gymnasium - even a mini-rock climbing wall designed with children in mind.
Tourist office
New York Convention and Visitors Bureau, Nottcutt House, 36 Southwark Bridge Road, London SE1 9EU. Tel 020 7202 6368.
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| | Fact File : New York |
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| | | New York | | Did you know?
New York was originally named New Amsterdam by its Dutch settlers.
Language
English
Visas
All British passport holders, including children, travelling to the USA under the visa waiver programme will need their own machine-readable passports (MRP). Anyone without an MRP, including children who are currently on a parent's passport, will need a visa to travel to the USA.
Getting there
There are many scheduled flights from the UK to New York. Most international flights land at JFK International or at Newark, just across the Hudson river in New Jersey. The other airport is La Guardia.
Flying time from London
7-8 hours
Getting around
There's no point in renting a car in New York as parking is a nightmare; besides, the best way to see compact Manhattan is on foot. The MTA buses and subways are cheap and have the city well-covered 24 hours a day; note you need exact change, a Metrocard or a token for the bus. Taxis are reasonably priced and part of the city's landscape.
Currency
US dollars
Costs
Bottle of beer £1 from a bodega (corner shop), £2-£3 in a bar; roll of film £3-£4; moderate meal £10-£15 per head; litre of petrol 30p; four-mile taxi ride £6. But these prices can only provide a rough guide and things can vary considerably.
Weather
New York has very distinct seasons. Winter can be bitterly cold, with lows in January of -3C, that's 26F, seeming colder with windchill. Snow from December-March is common. July and August are hot and often unbearably humid, with highs of 30C (84F). Late spring and early fall (autumn) are usually lovely, between 15-23C (59-73F).
Time difference
Five hours behind GMT
International dialling code from the UK
00 1, then Manhattan 212 or 646; or Brooklyn, The Bronx and Queens 718.
Voltage
110-115V, 60Hz AC. Outlets may be suited to flat two or three-pin plugs; transformers and plug adaptors are necessary for European appliances
Opening hours
New York is a true 24-hour city. Banks open from 9am-3:30pm but shop hours really depend on the day and neighbourhood; large bookshops, video stores and boutiques may be open until midnight, especially around the East Village. Many restaurants only come into their own at 2 or 3am; bars don't shut until 4am; and clubs often run on into morning.
Health - Before you go
No jabs necessary. Take out comprehensive travel insurance as healthcare costs are huge.
Health - When you are there
New York University Medical Center is an urgent-care clinic for minor injury and illness; 24-hour accident and emergency units can be found at Bellevue Medical Center, Lenox Hill Hospital and New York Hospital. Take your credit card as you may need to pay up-front.
Warnings
Despite the frightening scare stories, New York is a far safer place than it was 10 years ago. Though there are still plenty of loonies and drug dealers, the streets are so busy 24 hours a day you're unlikely to be at risk. Take the same precautions you would in any city, and don't go to Central Park alone at night or in the early morning.
Emergency
The emergency number is 911. British Consulate: 845 Third Avenue, Manhattan, NY10022, Tel. (212) 745-0202
Customs
In New York you can enter the smartest restaurants in the scruffiest clothes and they will seat you in the misguided belief that you're a rock star, video director or new media millionaire. If you want to fit in, black is de rigueur, coffee in the morning mandatory, and disdain for everywhere else almost an entry requirement.
Pets
You can take your pets to the US under the PETS travel scheme but it's not really suited to short breaks. It takes substantial organisation and several months to approve. Talk to your vet for further details.
Tipping
Absolutely, and on everything. The average is 15%-20%; if you forget, they'll remind you. Remember to tip the bar staff too.
Tourist office
New York Convention and Visitors Bureau, Nottcutt House, 36 Southwark Bridge Road, London SE1 9EU. Tel 020 7202 6368
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