Any recommendations on bus tours?

Hi,

Since I%26#39;ve never been to NYC I think this would be a great starter. The Grayline Tours has less stops but a 48 hour pass that you can hop off the bus at any storp for as long as you like and catch another when you%26#39;re ready. They run every 15 min. I don%26#39;t think they narrate and their itinerary in significantly less.

New Your Party Shuttle tours is specifically 5 1/2 hours of narrated tour that covers the following stops (note the break in the list where the 2nd half of the list you ';see'; from another tour location. They stop at all of the locations on the 1st half of the list and give you time to take it in, especially S. Street Seaport where you eat, can buy broadway tickets 1/2 off and take the ferry out and back in to see Lady Liberty. If you want to step on the grounds for the Statue and Ellis Isle, you have to make a seperate trip.

So what do you think? For a first time trip to NY would this be a great way to get started? With the 2nd tour I%26#39;d take the other days we have (3) and dig in a little deeper.

TIMES SQUARE

WORLD TRADE CENTER (Memorial)

STATUE OF LIBERTY

NEW YORK STOCK EXCHANGE

WALL STREET

ST. PAUL%26#39;S CHAPEL

TKTS LINE-BROADWAY TIX

BROADWAY

TRINITY CHURCH

WORLD FINANCIAL CENTER

FEDERAL HALL

MADISON SQUARE PARK

FLATIRON BUILDING

SOUTH STREET SEAPORT

US CUSTOMS BUILDING

5TH AVENUE

ROCKEFELLER CENTER

ST. PATRICK%26#39;S CATHEDRAL

CENTRAL PARK

STRAWBERRY FIELDS

DAKOTA BUILDING

CANYON OF HEROES

EMPIRE STATE BUILDING

These locations you ';see'; from other sites, you don%26#39;t actually visit them.

BROOKLYN BRIDGE

VERRAZANO BRIDGE

HUDSON RIVER

EAST RIVER

FAO SCHWARZ

LINCOLN CENTER

CHRYSLER BUILDING

WOOLWORTH BUILDING

MET LIFE BUIDING

TRUMP TOWER

(From the Apprentice)

PLAZA HOTEL

CENTRAL PARK ZOO

CITY HALL

ELLIS ISLAND

(view from Staten Island Ferry)

WASHINGTON SQUARE PARK

NEW YORK PUBLIC LIBRARY

GREENWICH VILLAGE

SOHO/TRIBECA

MACY%26#39;S

HERALD SQUARE

TRUMP INTERNATIONAL

TIFFANY%26#39;S

I appreciate your thoughts!

Any recommendations on bus tours?

I did Grayline%26#39;s Harlem Gospel Tourlast fall and I thought it was awesome. You get to stop off at a Baptist Church for an hour or so and watch the choir sing. They take you around Harlem (obviously not the bad parts).

Anyway, it was an experience I wouldn%26#39;t have had, had I not gone on that bus tour. If you%26#39;re looking for something different, you might want to try the Gospel Tour.

I think it only runs Wednesdays and Saturdays maybe. There%26#39;s also an option to stop and have a Harlem lunch at Sylvia%26#39;s.

Any recommendations on bus tours?

I%26#39;ve done the GrayLine 48 hour pass tour and it was very good.It included a Brooklyn and Night Time tour(the night time was the only part that wasn%26#39;t hop on hop off). They were all narrated.

Other posters have done the Party Shuttle you mentioned and have been pleased with it.If you put Party Shuttle into the search box, quite a few links will come up with opinions.

I think the bus tours are a good way for 1st timers to get a good overall of NY. We were there last July and did all the hop on hop off bus tours [4 of them] and you sure see a lot. Then if any thing special interst you it is worth a return time. But I would not bother to buy the tickets on line like I did. There are people all over everywhere selling the tickets to the tours. Enjoy

I was just told that in high season the lines can get quite long for the grayline red bus tours and you have to wait. I%26#39;ll do the search suggested and read the other reviews. I%26#39;m just learning how to use this website and I LOVE IT!

Thanks!

Welcome to the forum!

With bus tours, you are at the mercy of crowds and traffic. However, even with those problems, I%26#39;ve never read a bad review of the Grayine bus, Marvelous Manhattan or Party Shuttle bus tours.

Here are 3 previous posts about bus tours.

tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic-g60763-i5-k547078-鈥?/a> _New_York_Party_Shuttle_

tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic-g60763-i5-k544696-鈥?/a> _The_Best_Tour_Company_Guide_of_NYC-

tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic-g60763-i5-k532748-鈥?/a> _Safety_in_New_York_Hop_on_Hop_off_Buses-

Thanks so much for all of the info! I%26#39;ll check out the walking tours before I choose either. I still haven%26#39;t chosen because I%26#39;m in no hurry to book up our time. I know that the things that are really important to see will be mentioned so I%26#39;m just going along for the ride day by day. Much less stressful than planning too much. I defnintely will get theater tickets.

Mainly I want the historic narative on a bus tour so if I chose one it would be the shuffle one because it%26#39;s not confusing itself w/being a taxi.

Love the boat tour info, was thinking about it but no one could be specific.

Thanks!

Carol

Hi Everyone,

It%26#39;s taken awhile for me to post my experience but here it is!

For us, the Manhatten Party Shuttle was DEFINITELY the way to go. We got up early Mon. AM, walked to Rockefeller Plaza and watched the Today Show. We finished early enough to take the early tour so I called and they happily moved us up.

We had a fabulous bus with alot of windows and AC. The view was always great and we spent 5 1/2 - 6 intense hours truly getting to know the city. We went EVERYWHERE! They stopped at all of the critical points like Strawberry Fields in Central Park, The Dakota, NY Stock Exchange, Ground Zero etc.

We took the Staten Island Ferry passed the Statue of Liberty %26amp; Ellis Island where we got a great pic%26#39;s. When I show our photo album to people they%26#39;re always amazed at how much we saw.

I think Grayline could be a problem because they were really full and had long lines waiting. Even then they had employees out in the streets hawking tickets to anyone who would listen. Sometimes the ';tourguide'; on Grayline is a recording and the buses aren%26#39;t temperature controlled.

Our tourguide had formed a personal relationship with our group and was easily available for any questions we had. Even the one%26#39;s you thought were dumb she gave added so much information you realize how much there is to learn.

We stayed at the Radio City Suites and it was a bargain for location and accomodations. Less that 2 blocks from Rockefeller Plaza and right in the Theatre District we walked alot and had fun. The lobby was beautiful and the staff EXTRA friendly and helpful.

I believe all rooms have some sort of kitchenette since they used to be apartments. Our bath was renovated and although small to me, I think it was big by NY standards. Our room was dowdy but I checked out a room at the front of the hotel overlooking the street and it was beautiful. I guess ours was partially renovated? It was very clean, maid service every day and I think we got very lucky. It was only $150 a night in season. The only comparable we found was at least $169-179 a night and the reviews on those were actually very dicey. This was a slam dunk for a great time. Quit too!

Thanks for sharing your trip review.

I stayed at RCA last year and have booked again for next year and certainly think that it is a real find in NYC. Reasonable price with a kitchen which helps with snacks, drinks and leftovers. Only problem is that it is becoming very popular!!!

Can I suggest that you cut and paste your report under a heading of ';Trip Report'; and more people will read and appreciate it.

Just a suggestion but sometimes when people open a topic and see an old date (April) they won%26#39;t read any further and I want as many people as possible to read your report.

Thanks again.

Helen in Aus

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Hi Helen,

Thanks for the tip . . . I%26#39;m fairly new here and like you, appreciate the help I get on planning trips and would like to return the favor.

I called for Radio City Suites for Feb. but like you said, they are already full. I%26#39;m going to book now for our next trip since they are becoming so popular. I hope this doesn%26#39;t raise their prices :-o !

Carol