TOP 10 Not to be missed!

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TOP 10

Not to be missed! Our TOP 10 hits – from the absolute No. 1 to No. 10 – help you plan your tour of the most important sights.

EMPIRE STATE BUILDING P114 There are good reasons why the art deco skyscraper has been ­immortalized in many films, books and romantic memories. The view from the observation deck of New York’s landmark is beautiful.

STATUE OF LIBERTY & ­ELLIS ISLAND P140

the think of New York without this artificial oasis. Just relax and go with the flow!

METROPOLITAN MUSEUM OF ART P89 With over three million works of art, you can easily spend a week in this museum. A visit to the Temple of Dendur is a must.

For immigrants, the Statue of Liberty (pictured left) was a ­symbol of freedom but they were soon confronted with the sobering reality on Ellis Island.

9/11 MEMORIAL & 1 WTC P143

TIMES SQUARE P54

GUGGENHEIM ­MUSEUM P94

Lights flashing and flickering ­wherever you look – now that the square is a pedestrian p ­ recinct, you can enjoy the flashing ­billboards more than ever before and it is also much safer.

FIFTH AVENUE P56 Stroll past Tiffany’s like Audrey Hepburn once did and be dazzled by the shop windows of the ex­ pensive designer boutiques (P26). And, don’t forget to make a stop at the Rockefeller Center (P60)!

CENTRAL PARK P84 It is the city’s green lung and it would be absolutely impossible to

The most tragic chapter in the city’s history and a new beginning full of hop.

The exterior is an artwork in itself and the exhibitions shown in the rotunda are all well worth seeing.

GRAND CENTRAL ­TERMINAL P57  on’t be distracted by all the D ­bustling activity at the station – take your time and admire the ­starry sky painted on the ceiling.

SOHO P145 Art, shopping, good food and ­beautiful architecture – on ­ a fine day a stroll past the cast-iron facades is a real pleasure.

The Magazine

Sky H gh

The race to be number one

The Magazine Company’s tower. Its 182ft (55.5m) spire was secretly made ​​inside the building’s heating shaft and then hoisted into place at the very end, ­resulting in a final height of 1,046ft (319m). However, this success was short-lived when the Empire State Building set a new height record.

High, Higher, the Highest

“While New York may not have the oldest skyscrapers in the USA, it certainly has the most beautiful”

For most of the 20th century, one Manhattan building or another reigned as the world’s highest. How much did the record matter to real-estate ­titans? Enough that the actual heights of buildings were concealed during construction and that plans were redrawn and redrawn again when d ­ evelopers got wind of rivals’ taller designs. In the late 1920s, last-minute trickery vaulted the Chrysler Building past the Bank of the Manhattan

After its invention at the end of the 19th century, the skyscraper soon became a symbol of American entrepreneurship and optimism. This development was made possible through two significant technical innovations: steel frame construction and greatly improved safety in elevators. The first high-rise buildings constructed were of stone and needed especially thick load-bearing walls but the grid design of steel frame construction made it possible to hang the facade (like a kind of “curtain”) from the supporting structure. With this lightweight and stable form of ­construction, it was possible to construct buildings at heights ­previously unattainable. The use of reinforced concrete shortly after the turn of the

The Chrysler Building

The MetLife Building

The race to build the world’s tallest building preoccupied US developers and architects for more than 100 years, and New Yorkers, always a competitive bunch, ranked among the fiercest contestants.

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The Empire State Building

The Woolworth Building

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Midtown Manhattan

The Perfect Day

The Perfect Day If you’re not quite sure where to begin your travels, this itinerary recommends a practical and enjoyable day out in Midtown Manhattan, taking in some of the best places to see. For more ­information see the main entries (P54–71).

D9:00am Catch the end of the rush hour at )Grand Central Terminal (left, the Main Concourse, P57). As ­commuters streak madly by, you’ll feel glad you’re on vacation. Explore the ­terminal and then cross Lexington Avenue to the .Chrysler Building (P65). Walk up Lexington to 46th Street, make a left, and continue west to 5th Avenue.

D10:00am Check out the art deco Fred F French Building at 45th Street and $5th Avenue (P56). To get the full-length view of the exterior, cross to the west side of 5th Avenue. Then walk north on 5th Avenue to 50th Street. Atlas, or to be more ­precise a sculpture of him, bears the weight of the world on his shoulders at +Rockefeller Center (P60). Across the street is /St. Patrick’s Cathedral (P65).

D4:30pm Head east on 42nd Street to 4Bryant Park (P69) to relax, then continue east on 42nd Street to the 5New York Public Library (below, P70), one of the most important libraries in the world with nearly 50 million archival documents.

D5:30pm Walk east one block to Madison Avenue, turn left, walk up to 52nd Street and turn right. Inside the Seagram Building (P68), have a cocktail prior to your fixed-price, pre-theater dinner at The Pool Room, one of the ­dining rooms at the haute-modernist Four Seasons Restaurant. Consider stopping for a drink even if you don’t stay for dinner.

D8:00pm Live on Broadway: It’s show time!

D11:30am

Stroll along $5th Avenue (P56) between 50th and 59th streets, resting your feet in the lobby of the 3Plaza Hotel (P69) before exiting on Central Park South (59th Street, along the north side of the hotel) and heading west (left). At 7th Avenue make a left.

D12:30pm For a pricey lunch in elegant surroundings, make a reservation at the French restaurant Petrossian (182 West 58th Street at 7th Avenue; tel: 212/245-2214) in the Alwyn Court apartment building – a cornucopia of terracotta detailing. Caviar is among the house specialties. For a more downscale but no less atmospheric repast, continue south on 7th Avenue past Carnegie Hall (at 57th Street) to the raucous Carnegie Deli (P73).

D2:00pm From either restaurant, head south to 53rd Street and, to the left, the ,Museum of Modern Art (P63). Walk west from the museum on 53rd Street to Broadway and turn left. That brash, noisy district to the south is #Times Square (P54). 52

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