Cheap Stuff
Although New York is an expensive city, there are plenty of things you can do for free or cheap. The city is best seen on foot. In addition to the most current cheap options listed below, check out FreeNYC.
Among the free things to do are Central Park, Brooklyn Bridge, the Staten Island Ferry, most national park sites many of the museums, some guided tours, and all TV show tapings.
Fourth of July guide: fireworks, freebies, webcams
The 33rd Annual Macy’s 4th of July Fireworks this year moves to the Hudson River to mark the 400th anniversary of Henry Hudson’s first voyage there.
 The 26-minute SOUSA Firework shows will start at 9:20 p.m. with more than more than 40,000 shells fired from six barges in the river between 24th and 50th streets.
Tune your radio to 10101 Wins, which will broadcast the live music in sync with the fireworks. NBC will broadcast the fireworks show, along with the live performance, which will feature the New York Pops, Rob Thomas, Jewel, Karen Olivo and the cast of Broadway’s “West Side Story.”
See Macy’s suggested fireworks public viewing areas as well as the city’s street closures. The NYPD advisory notes “no large backpacks, coolers or alcoholic beverages will be allowed in the viewing area.”
Fireworks cruises
South Street Seaport’s Schooner Pioneer
World Yacht Fourth of July Dinner Cruise
Spirit of NY Fireworks Dinner Cruise
Manhattan by Sail cruise
NY Waterway - waitlist
Fireworks viewing locations
Chelsea Piers
Empire State Building
Top of the Rock
Circle Line’s Rooftop Party
Roof deck of Pier 66
Fireworks on the Hudson at Hudson Terrace
Extreme eating
Nathan’s International Hot Dog Eating Contest - July 4 noon at Coney Island
Special museum events
Declaration of Independence, in Thomas Jefferson’s hand, at the NY Public Library at Fifth and 42nd from 1 to 5 p.m.
Free admission at the New-York Historical Society if you wear red, white and blue
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July 3, 2009 11:39 AM Comments (0)
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Whitney Museum drops admission to $4 for 4th of July
 In honor of Independence Day, the Whitney Museum of American Art is dropping admission to $4 on the Fourth of July.
Regular adult admission is $15, though the museum has pay-what-you-wish admission on Friday evenings.
The museum is open from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturdays.It’s located on Madison Avenue at 75th Street.
Image credit: Jasper Johns, b. 1930, Three Flags, 1958, Encaustic on canvas, Overall: 30 7/8 × 45 1/2 × 5 in. (78.4 × 115.6 × 12.7 cm) Whitney Museum of American Art, New York; 50th Anniversary Gift of the Gilman Foundation, Inc., The Lauder Foundation, A. Alfred Taubman, Laura-Lee Whittier Woods, Art © Jasper Johns/Licensed by VAGA, New York, NY
July 2, 2009 12:17 PM Comments (0)
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Statue of Liberty crown tickets sold out until Labor Day
While the Statue of Liberty is on track to reopen her crown to the public on the Fourth of July, tickets to climb up her steps are already all-but sold out through the Labor Day weekend.
Tickets first went on sale June 13 and demand was so high that the website and telephone lines were difficult to access. (The website has been slow again this morning.)
 Only 30 people per hour will be allowed to take the stairs to the crown under escort from a National Park Service ranger.
It’s important to note that currently the plan is to keep the crown open for two years only. After that, it will close again for a project to make the interior safer to visitors and hopefully allow more people to visit each day.
The crown has been closed since Sept. 11, 2001, mainly for fire safety reasons, the National Park Service has long said. The torch has been closed to the public since 1916, when Liberty’s arm was damaged by a massive rail yard explosion in nearby New Jersey. There are no plans to ever reopen the torch to the public.
You can also follow the the Statue of Liberty on Twitter (it’s an official NPS account;) or flickr; or take an eTour.
What you need to know to get tickets to the Statue of Liberty’s crown:
Crown tickets can be reserved up to a year in advance through Statue Cruises, the only company licensed to ferry the public to Liberty and Ellis islands. The $3 crown fee will be on top of the regular ferry ticket, currently priced at $12 for adults, $10 for seniors and $5 for children. Tickets can be purchased online or by calling 877- LADY-TIX (877-523-9849) between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m., Eastern time.
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July 2, 2009 9:49 AM Comments (0)
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Water Taxi Beach Governors Island soft opens July 4
Water Taxi Beach Governors Island will make its unofficial debut this weekend, with the grand opening now set for July 11, a spokeswoman for the Harbor Experience Companies told NewYorkology.
The new Water Taxi Beach will be open this Saturday and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. “with very limited food and beverage service,” she said.
See the official Governors Island blog for the new beach awaiting its sand.
The Harbor Experience Companies already operates two other Water Taxi Beaches, in Long Island City and at the South Street Seaport, (pictured.)
The Governors Island beach fully opens July 11 with food, drink, volleyball, basketball and live music. The Beach at Governors Island concerts kick off July 11 with Grateful Dead-tribute band Dark Star Orchestra.
The full concert season:
July 12 - DJ khz at 4 p.m.(free show)
July 18 - Wheel Up! w/ DJs DRM (Bastard Jazz) + Erik The Red (Giant Step) at 2 p.m. (free show)
July 19 - Tragedy, all-metal tribute to the BeeGees at 2 p.m. (free show)
July 25 - The Beatards at 2 p.m.(free show)
July 26 - Turntables on the Hudson at 3 p.m. (free show)
Aug 4 - Erykah Badu at 8 p.m.
Aug 15 - Hip-Hop Karoke BBQ at 2 p.m. (free show)
Aug 18 - B52s at 8 p.m.
Aug 23 - Turntables on the Hudson at 3 p.m. (free show)
Sept. 6 - Turntables on the Hudson at 3 p.m. (free show)
Sept 12 - Mos Def at 9:30 p.m.
Sept. 26 - Buckethead at 8 p.m.
When there are evening concerts, New York Water Taxi will provide service during and after the shows to the Battery Maritime Building. Concert tickets include ferry transportation.
Picture credit: Amy Langfield/NewYorkology.
Earlier: New Water Taxi Beach location: Governors Island
July 1, 2009 12:20 PM Comments (0)
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In demand: free bike program at max on weekends
The wheels are hitting the road through Downtown Alliance’s free summer bikes program, which has found success this season, especially on weekends.
 Since Bike Around Downtown started May 13, the program has been at capacity for every weekend. A total of 2,454 reservations had been made through June 30, according to numbers provided to NewYorkology by Downtown Alliance.
The 30 free bikes are available seven days a week during three time slots: 9:30 a.m. to noon; 12:30 to 3 p.m.; and 3:30 to 6 p.m. The bicycles are provided through Bike and Roll, which also rents bikes and offers bike tours of New York.
Once you reserve online, free bikes can be picked up at the Bike and Roll’s kiosk at the South Street Seaport and returned at the same location, or at the Bike and Roll kiosks at Pier A in Battery Park, or 12th Avenue and 43rd Street, or on Governors Island when it’s open on Fridays, Saturdays or Sundays.
The bike share program runs through Sept. 30.
Governors Island also offers free one-hour rentals every Friday through Oct. 9
Picture credits: Amy Langfield/NewYorkology.
Earlier: Free bike rental opens downtown, May 13 to Sept. 30
July 1, 2009 7:16 AM Comments (0)
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Live web feed from Apollo's Michael Jackson tribute
 The transmission’s cutting in and out, but you’ll want to click over to catch the live webfeed from the Michael Jackson tribute at the Apollo Theater.
Yes, that’s Al Sharpton dancing.
The tribute continues into this evening. (Although the announcer on the stage just said the line extends up to 135th Street.)
On Wednesday night, Amateur Night will also be dedicated to Jackson.
(Link via NYC The Blog.)
Earlier: Free backstage tours at Apollo for 75th anniversary
Public invited to Apollo to say goodbye to James Brown
June 30, 2009 4:28 PM Comments (0)
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Jewish Museum cuts hours, adds 2-for-1 July admission
 Due to budget reasons, the Jewish Museum is changing its hours starting this week, closing its doors entirely on Wednesdays, and closing other galleries on some weekdays.
The museum will keep its free Saturdays policy (from 11 a.m. to 5:45 p.m.,) plus for July only is offering two-for-one admission - if you have the printable flyer.
It will also add hours on Friday. Previously the museum was closed on Friday, but starting this week it will remain open until 5:45 p.m. until Oct. 16. For two Fridays — Oct. 23 and Oct. 30 — it will close at 5 p.m. Then from Nov. 6 through March 13, the Friday closing time will drop to 4 p.m.
On Thursdays, the museums will close at 5:45 pm rather than 8 p.m. In addition, the galleries to the permanent collection will close on Tuesdays and Thursdays.
The change in the hours comes on top of a 10 percent staff cut through attrition and layoffs in March, which meant the loss of about 13 or 14 people, said Anne Scher, the director of communications for the museum. The recession, along with declines in the endowment and contributions, is the cause, but every effort is being made to limit the impact, Scher said.
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June 30, 2009 3:00 PM Comments (0)
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Rockaway Beach summer ferry service starts Saturday
 Weekend ferry service to Rockaway Beach starts this Saturday from Manhattan’s Pier 11 with one-way tickets priced at $6.
The trip takes 1 hour 15 minutes, with three departure daily from Pier 11 (near Wall Street on the East River.) The NY Water Taxi departs at 9:15 a.m., 11:45 a.m. and 3:45 p.m.
Return departures are scheduled for 2:30 and 5 p.m. Most trips also include a stop at Brooklyn Army Terminal.
The Water Taxi docks at the former U.S. Coast Guard Station just north of Marine Park Bridge at 169 Street, and offers nearby access to Fort Tilden and Jacob Riis Park, (which was the scene-of-the-crime beach in this week’s Law & Order Criminal Intent with Raul Esparza.)
The subsidized summer service is offered in partnership with Gateway National Recreation Area and the NYC Economic Development Corporation.
Picture credit: Amy Langfield/NewYorkology
June 30, 2009 1:09 PM Comments (0)
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Car-free Summer Streets to return Aug. 8, 15 and 22
Almost 7 miles of Manhattan roads will be closed to traffic again this summer as Summer Streets will return August 8, 15 and 22 from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m.
The 6.9-mile route will give way to bikers, skaters, walkers and others from the Brooklyn Bridge, up Lafayette/Centre Streets, along 4th Avenue and Park Avenue up to 72nd streets, map.
However, main cross-town streets will remain open to vehicles crossing the car-free zone.
“This is only its second year, but Summer Streets is already a New York tradition,” Department of Transportation Commissioner Janette Sadik-Khan said at the news conference announcing the dates.
In addition the city has creating 13 extra car-free street events in other neighborhoods in all five boroughs, ranging from one to seven blocks long. Here are the dates of the remaining dates for those events:
Image source: NYC Summer Streets website
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June 30, 2009 12:17 PM Comments (0)
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Summer restaurant week reservations open for July
 Le Cirque, Nobu, Del Posto, Telepan, 21 Club, The Modern, The Oak Room at The Plaza, Perry Street, Esca, Red Cat, Tabla, Gallagher’s, Shun Lee, Central Park Boathouse, Fives at The Peninsula, Le Colonial, Lure, Morimoto, Petrossian, David Burke Townhouse, Water Club and The River Café have all signed on for Summer Restaurant Week and reservations are now open.
The summer deal will run from July 12-31, excluding weekends although some restaurants will participate on Sundays.
Restaurants will offer three-course lunches for $24.07 and/or dinners for $35. Tax, tip and drinks cost extra.
Technically, reservations don’t open until Tuesday, but sponsoring group NYC & Co, released the list early on its @nycgo Twitter account.
Earlier: Restaurant Week to offer early reservations via Twitter
June 29, 2009 11:43 AM Comments (0)
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