Tourist Guide

Think you’ve seen it all and done it all in New York? Oh no – not by a long shot. Here are 10 attractions that no one should miss.

GLAMOROUS OLD GOTHAM
Gilded Age Splendor
Though best-known for its three Vermeers and equal number of Rembrandts, the Frick Museum at 1 East 70th Street is actually the preserved home of 19th century industrialist Henry Clay Frick. It’s one of the only surviving residences from the city’s gilded age, offering a rare chance to see how New York’s wealthy actually lived. Don’t miss the meticulously detailed Fragonard room, whose wall panels were commissioned by Madame DuBarry.

Cocktail Chic
Alongside sleek new bars, New York has retained a few of its classic, glamorous watering holes. One such is Bemelmans in the Carlyle Hotel at 35 East 76th Street, named for artist Ludwig Bemelmans, creator of the Madeline books as well as the delightfully whimsical murals adorning the bar’s walls. Also high on the glamour list is the King Cole Bar at the St. Regis Hotel, 2 East 55th Street, whose 39’ x 8’ Maxfield Parrish mural of the eponymous nursery rhyme holds court above the carved oak bar.

King Kong’s Favorite
Before heading to the top of the Empire State Building at 350 Fifth Avenue, many visitors are opting to spend time in the lobby. Following 2011’s $500 million restoration, the famous art deco space is once again an art deco masterpiece. Hand painted ceiling murals and wall panels in etched glass have been reproduced according to original design plans, and tiered chandeliers with ice cream soft curves make one wonder why such lines ever went out of style. One of the most welcome improvements is the marble panels, whose original mirror imaging arrangement was lost over the years as broken panels were replaced piecemeal. Newly installed matching panels have brought back the symmetry, along with the sense of majesty it inspires.

PUBLIC TRANSITS
Grand Central Terminal – East 42nd Street & Park Avenue
It’s a shame tourists no longer enter New York through this cavernous 1913 homage to Beaux Arts architecture, but visitors who take time to detour into the Main Concourse at East 42nd Street and Park Avenue will not be disappointed. Highlights of the vast space are the twin marble staircases sweeping up to the east and west balconies, modeled after the steps of the Paris Opera House. The jewel in the crown, of course, is the vaulted ceiling, painted with a section of the sky and zodiac. Had the late Jacqueline Onassis not led a fight to preserve Grand Central, this gem would have been torn down in the 1970s.

Brooklyn Bridge
With its motif of twin Gothic arches soaring above the East River, the Brooklyn Bridge is as majestic today as it was in 1883, when it connected Manhattan to Brooklyn for the first time. Yet one of its key attractions isn’t even visible from the ground. Suspended above the noise and the traffic is a pedestrian crossing that stretches like a sky-bound boardwalk, complete with bike lane, street lamps, and the occasional park bench. The pedestrian on-ramp begins at City Hall and the view at mid-bridge – of New York’s busy and spectacular harbor – is one of the city’s great vistas.

Roosevelt Island Tram
For the price of a subway ride, visitors can see Manhattan from a whole new angle. From the 59th Street and Second Avenue station, the tram skims the roofs of Manhattan, crosses the East River, and touches down on residential Roosevelt Island a few minutes later. Since there’s not much to see on the island, most visitors make the return trip immediately. Though the ride isn’t long, the views from 200 feet up are memorable and the price makes it a bargain.

HAVEN’T BEEN HERE YET?
Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum
More than a million people a year visit the Intrepid, the aircraft carrier, whose service from 1944 through 1974 made her one of the country’s longest-serving vessels. In addition to the ship itself – all of whose decks house exhibits – there are over 30 aircraft on the massive flight deck, numerous interactive exhibits, a flight simulator, XD Theater with 3D graphics, Russian Soyuz spacecraft and Growler submarine open to the public. Located at Pier 86 at West 46th Street, the museum will debut its newest star in 2014 – the Enterprise space shuttle.

Museum of Comic and Cartoon Art
This small but loaded-to-the gills fourth floor museum at 594 West Broadway makes its point well – cartoon art is indeed art and in the hands of talented satirists can wield quite a bit of power. The Museum’s holdings range from classic comics to Mad Magazine, political cartoons, magazine illustration, ad art and today’s anime. The exhibits are bright, fun, and likely to make visitors wonder why they ever stopped doodling.

Berlin Wall
For almost two generations the world heard about it, read about it, and admired the daring Germans who attempted to vault over it to freedom. Now five sections of the hated icon are on permanent display in a small outdoor park on East 53rd Street between Madison and Park Avenues. Also on view is a plaque with the names of the German bravehearts whose graffiti adorns one side. It’s ironic and fitting that their work should end up so deep in the heart of American capitalism, for all to admire.

The Other Little Italy
Only those who really know New York know the city harbors not one but two Little Italys. Located in the Bronx just east of the Zoo, the second Little Italy is less about tourism and more about food and authentic Italian ingredients. The Bronx’s Italy stretches along Arthur Avenue from 184th Street north, with the intersection of Arthur Avenue and 187th Street forming the main juncture. Bakeries, cheese mongers, stores laden with every kind of fresh and cured sausage line the streets, along with the famous Arthur Avenue Retail Market, a covered mart that hosts stalls and vendors from all over the neighborhood, along with nimble-fingered men turning out hand rolled cigars as customers watch.

Megan Gates is an active blogger who provides written work to the blogosphere pertaining to NYC Real Estate, Hamptons Homes, home improvement and the latest architecture, design, fashion and travel.  Follow her on twitter @MEGatesDesign.