Day 1: Lloret de Mar - Barcelona Airport - New York
4 am. The alarm sounds and with him our trip to New York begins in Holy Week, one of those destinations that we really wanted but always, for one thing or another he ended up resisting. In this case we will start it in the best way, arriving at the Big Apple in a few hours and enjoying a NBA match in New York, as we did a few years ago in Los Angeles, when we were touring the West Coast of the United States.
It's 5:30 in the morning when we load our bags in the car and get on our way to the Prat airport, from where at 9 in the morning our direct flight from Barcelona to New York, with American Airlines, which we bought a few months ago, thanks to one of the offers we published in Best Flight, which we could not resist. And what is it, who can resist a direct flight to New York for 450 euros in the middle of Holy Week?
We arrived at the airport in just over an hour, you can tell a lot about the difference of making this transfer during the day to do it at this time of the morning and, as usual, we already have our friends from Aparca & Vola waiting for us on T1, where after To give them the keys of our car to take care of it these days, we enter Terminal 1 approaching the check-in counters of American Airlines to leave our bags and try to change our seats, since when we did the online check-in they assigned us those of medium position, in the final intermediate of 4 seats.
T1 from Barcelona airport
After trying, but not getting it, since the flight is full, we leave our bags and pass the security checks, with that tickle that as always, reminds us that we are traveling again, how much we enjoy it and above all, what lucky we are being able to do it.
With these thoughts we pass the controls, quite empty at this time, despite being in full operation out of Holy Week and we go straight to the boarding gate, where first of all, we have to drink that coffee that keeps us awake and it is not We only have a 7-hour flight ahead of us, but on our arrival, which will be 1 noon in New York, there is a 6-hour time difference, we have to move to our hotel in Manhattan, the Holiday Inn Times Square, then go to Madison Square Garden, where we will see a NBA match in New York of the Knicks against the Chicago Bulls.
And it is that a month ago, Roger said that he would be excited to have the experience of vizier NBA match and being in New York, how could we miss it? So after going several times through several websites, we ended up buying them on Ticketnetwork, the website that after the comparisons we saw was more economical and above all it also offered us e-tickets and medium seats in conditions for the price that we had more or less in Mind spend us.
The big surprise came when yesterday we talked to a friend who lives in New York to set up an agenda and to see one of the days we are in the Big Apple and she told us that we were meeting tonight at the NBA match in New York! So, without thinking, we already have a night plan for tonight in the city that never sleeps after the game.
We embark on time at 8:30 in the morning, bringing us a pleasant surprise and that is that the plane is practically new, with a lot of space between seats, large individual screens and a good variety of extras that we did not plan to find. After getting settled, leaving the computer in our lap, and that is that with American Airlines we have wifi on board, something that you can not imagine as it is appreciated in this type of daytime flights, in which to be able to intermingle the reading with some work. And although it is not free, 15 dollars the entire flight, in our case it is not difficult to pay for it and thus spend the most entertaining flight and especially taking advantage of those hours to advance work.
Taking the opportunity to work for a while on the flight to New York of American Airlines
And between one thing and another, almost without realizing it we are landing at 12:30, almost an hour earlier than expected, in the JFK, just as we did a few months ago, although it was only to make an airport change in the Travel to Guatemala and Honduras.
As soon as we leave the plane, we will pass the passport control directly, where we find ourselves with less queue than we expected and that is, normally, if you read the forums, most travelers comment that the queues in these procedures are quite tedious.
How to get THIS New York
ESTA (Electronic System for Travel Authorization) is an electronic form that needs to be filled in to travel to New York or any destination in the United States.
The best way to manage it, as well as the fastest and most economical one, is through the official website, where after choosing the "Spanish" language, if necessary, you only have to click on "New Application" and Follow the steps indicated.
This procedure has a cost of $ 14 per person and is valid for two years. You have to take into account the cost, since lately there have been several companies that manage it, at much higher prices, when this process can be done online and personally for only $ 14 as we mentioned.
In general, the application will be approved immediately and can be paid directly by credit card. Remember to bring a hard copy for passport control. Although they don't ask for it, it doesn't hurt to take her just in case.
If it is not accepted at the moment, we have the option to "Verify the status of my application", where you can enter the number (do not forget to write it down) and verify the status of the application.
In our case we had ESTA for our trip to Guatemala and Honduras a few months ago since we were stopping in New York and it was also necessary. When being transit we indicated it in the form and now, although they told us, both in the Embassy and in the number of information that we called that this option could be modified so that the request went from “transit” to “stay”, We do not get it done.
After a couple more calls, they told us that we would not have any problems and in case they asked us, we would explain what happened to the agent and we would not have any problems. Indeed, we had no problem and we were able to start our trip to New York No problem.
Once in passport control we find two options to pass it. The first is valid if you have never been to the United States. Here you will have to pass a check of questions before a customs agent, type "what are you going to do in the city?", "Do you have money to stay these days?", "Do you bring weapons?" ... etc, where then you pass the passport and You already pass directly to the baggage claim room.
The second option is only valid if you have already been in the United States in the last year, as is our case and you have the ESTA. Here you go directly through some machines where you make the registration process in the country yourself and directly a ticket comes out as the process is accepted. With this you have to go through the passport machines and once there they give you the conformity and directly go to the baggage claim.
It does not take more than half an hour to do the whole process and after having our luggage we follow the green signs that indicate Air Train, the train that takes you directly from any JFK Terminal to Jamaica Station, from where you can connect with the subway from New York. But before, we take the opportunity to get some money at an ATM and it is that in New York you can pay practically everything with a credit card, thus paying at the exchange of the day. Of course, better ask before in your bank, since they usually charge a% of the purchase.
You have to be especially careful because according to the Air Train you take you will arrive at one of these three stations: Howard Beach Station, Jamaica Station or Le Flores Boulevard Station. Depending on where you arrive you will have a connection with one or another subway line. You have to look at the one that matches your destination, look at the screens to see if the one that is going to happen is the one that takes you to that station and if you don't wait for the one that will take you to the station from which you will connect with the subway line that you need
How to go from JFK to New York
- Air Train + Metro: The cheapest option to go from JFK airport to downtown New York. The price is $ 7.75 that is paid once you are at the subway station, before entering the line you must take. If you go to Midtown (Times Square) you must go to Jamaica Station and then take the line that leaves you closer to the accommodation.
We recommend that you download the application "MTA New York Subway Map and Road Plan"for mobile where you can put the station of origin and destination and it tells you exactly the line you must take.
If you have an internet connection you can do the search directly on Google Maps, of origin and destination and it marks exactly the subway lines that you have nearby and which ones you can take.
- Taxi: Perhaps the most comfortable option. The price is 52 dollars plus tolls and tips, so more or less the trip will be about 75 dollars. If you are 4 people it is an option to value.
- Private transport service: The most comfortable of all. There are several companies that manage the JFK transfer to New York. They will wait for you at the airport gate and leave you directly at the address you say. The price is about 100 dollars approximately. You can book it here.
Here you do not have to buy a ticket or pay anywhere, once at the station and before entering the subway line, you will already pay for both services.
Once we are in Jamaica Station we have to go through the machines to buy the Metrocard. In our case as we will be 9 full days, we buy one that includes Air Train plus subway for $ 7.75, which we recharge with 10 dollars more each for these days since until Monday we will not buy the seven-day Metrocard, which Includes unlimited trips.
Metrocard New York
The Metrocard is a rechargeable card that allows access to public transportation in New York such as buses and the subway.
There are several options:
- Simple Metrocard: Card (costs 1 dollar) that you top up with as much balance as you want. This balance will be deducted from your account as you get on the subway or bus. 1 single metro ticket costs $ 2.95.
- Metrocard 7 days: Card for 7 days with unlimited tickets, both metro and bus for 30 dollars + 1 dollar per card
- Monthly Metrocard: One month card with unlimited tickets, both for metro and bus for 116 dollars + 1 dollar per card.
In the subway it is not possible to pay in cash, so the Metrocard is essential in New York if you want to use this means of transport
You can buy it at any subway station.
How to have internet in New York?
If you want to have internet in New York, something very necessary today, especially considering the amount of applications we use in our trips and the need to be in contact with our family and friends, you can choose several options:
- Buy a SIM card at the airport or at a phone shop in the city.
- Buy one Holafly SIM card, with which you will have internet from the moment you land, saving you all the time of the negotiations and making the whole process to have internet in the United States much more comfortable, fast and easy.
In this case, with the Holafly SIM you will have several Gb to surf the Internet (depending on the option you choose), they will send it to you for free at home, you will keep your WhatsApp number and you will have assistance service in Spanish. You can buy your Holafly prepaid SIM card here with a 5% discount for being our reader.
More information on the Holafly post, the best prepaid SIM card for travel
Recommended travel cardsRemember that in order not to pay commissions and always have the current change we recommend you use the N26 card to pay and the Bnext and Revolut cards to get money at the ATMs. They are the ones we use, They are free and will save you a lot.
You can find more information in this article about the best cards to travel without commissions.
Already in Jamaica Station and with the Metrocard in hand we take the line E that will leave us after 35 minutes in Penny Station, just in front of the Holiday Inn Times Square, which will be our accommodation for the next 10 nights.
The journey from JFK to New York it's about an hour in total, counting Air Train plus Metro, so in the end we reach our destination when it's almost three in the afternoon.
We leave the subway without paying much attention to everything around us, although we can say that the sounds of traffic and a background ambulance, together with skyscrapers, seem to give us a "slap", going into the scene of a movie at once and it is that there will be no day in which we do not feel that way and it is that New York is one of those cities in which to feel like in a movie.
Newcomers to the streets of New York
Upon arriving at the hotel we realize that we have not been wrong at all in our choice and that is that we are a few meters from Times Square, the heart of New York. What we still did not know is something we discovered at the moment we opened the door of our room on the 32nd floor: we have stunning views of the Empire State Building, but not only from the door of the room, but also directly from the bed, where we can do nothing but lie down for a few minutes, unable to take our eyes off one of the New York symbols, which we will have for ourselves alone every night for the next 10 days.
Stunning views of the Empire State from our room
After taking a shower, we only take one camera to spend these remaining hours and that is that within two and a half hours we have the NBA match in New York: The Knicks against the Chicago Bulls at Madison Square Garden, a classic we are looking forward to living.
The idea is to spend these 2-3 hours walking around the Broadway and Times Square area, without doing any explicit visit, if not taking these hours only as recognition of what is this area of the city.
It's a little after 3:30 in the afternoon when we go out the door of the hotel, located at 585 8th Avenue, between 38 and 39, to start our trip to New York during Easter. We will not lie to you if we tell you that as soon as we go out, we feel that television slap, taking us again, in a matter of seconds to the stage of any movie you can think of.
Empire State in front of our accommodation
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The New York Times, right next to our hotel
Details of the streets of New York
We went down the 42, meeting the New Amsterdam Theater, where we will see Aladdin within a week, another of the things that must be booked in New York before coming, to ensure good prices and good seats. Almost without realizing it, we meet at the famous Broadway, that place famous in the city for its neon lights and especially for its acclaimed musicals, which at this time of the afternoon still seems to be waking up and that is that Broadway totally changes to nightfall and show your face more wild Y peliculera.
Broadway
After touring a minimum part of this New York symbol We arrived at Times Square, another of the icons of the Big Apple and surely one of the most viewed images of the city and above all more emblematic.
Times Square
Here, after taking a couple of turns, without much apparent sense, since we do not know where to go and it is that we are totally overwhelmed by the images, the sounds and we have the senses to the surface, so we decided to take it easy and more knowing that we still have many days ahead, in which we will surely pass by and sit at one of the red tables, also so symbolic, more than half an hour just to enjoy the moment and we cannot forget that we are finally In New York!!!!
Times Square
Dumbfounded with the lights, the sounds and all the images that pass in front of us, like a movie, we remember that we are next to another of the most visited places in New York, the red stairs of Times Square, in which below, just at the crossroads of Broadway with 47th Street, we can find a TKTS office, the place where we can find those last minute tickets to shows, much cheaper.
Times Square from the stairs of TKTS
We will not deny that after almost 24 hours awake, with a somewhat mismatched pace of food and especially with more need than you win, we decided that the time has come to go find something to eat, so we look at our New York itinerary through neighborhoods and we decided to stop at the Shake Shack in Times Square, where we ordered two Shake burgers, one double and one normal, plus kicks with cheese, lemonade and coke for $ 26 that we tasted standing, since sitting at this time is impossible for not having room.
Burgers in Shake Shack
You will probably find a queue, but not one or two people, at least you will have 20-30 people, but do not panic, they go quite fast, so surely in about 10-15 minutes you will be tasting your hamburger.
Without a doubt, totally deserved the fame they have! Very good !!
In this type of premises we recommend that one of you be asked at the bar and the other person will take a table, since if you wait to have the tray in your hand, you probably have to be with her in your hands for a good while Hoping to find a place.
From here and looking for a place to have a coffee that gives us energy to continue with the day and especially to see the NBA match in New York waiting for us in a while, we take direction to Madison Square Garden where we arrive after 20 minutes touring the city center and although it is only 6 in the afternoon and the game starts at 7:30, there is already a queue that leaves of the enclosure, so we sacrifice that last-minute coffee and put ourselves like two nails in the queue to pass the security checks and enter the most famous covered stadium in the world.
Entrance to Madison Square Garden
Once past the security controls we have to queue again, this time to enter Madison Square Garden and there we will wait for our turn to enter. If you have tickets for a NBA match in New York, think that quite a queue is formed, so it is not too much to come an hour before, to pass the controls and also to be able to walk around the enclosure.
We pass the ticket control and go straight to section 200, row 4, seats 11 and 12 and the truth is that although we thought it would look further, it is great, as you can see in the photos. Although we really have to say that it looks closer than it seems. As we mentioned previously we bought them on the Ticketnetwork website, in which after comparing it with several more we saw that it was not only cheaper but also offered us e-tickets, something essential if you do not want to pay a good extra for the shipping home and a few seats pretty good, for the price we had more or less in mind to spend that in the end were 79 dollars per person.
NBA match in New York. Madison Square Garden
NBA match in New York
Coming to the Big Apple and not watching an NBA game in New York, one could almost say it is a sin. Despite what it may seem, it is not an excessive case, especially if you book in advance and through a website like Ticketnetwork, where they have adjusted prices and offer the e-ticket option.
We booked tickets for the Knicks against the Chicago Bulls a month or so in advance for $ 79 per person in section 200, row 4, seats 11 and 12 and the truth is that although we thought it would look further, It was great. Moreover, even higher, they were much cheaper, we would have been equally well.
NBA match [/ caption]
Although the initial idea was to enjoy the game with some hot dogs, as tradition dictates, after Shake Shack's burgers and counting the hours we have been awake, even if I don't hit anything at all, we cannot accompany the game with something else other than a couple of coffees for $ 10. And luck of that, because if we do not yet know if we had been able to hold awake despite the show and animation.
Knicks-bulls
Punctual the game begins and with him, how could the show be otherwise, is that an NBA game in New York is an essential visit, not only for the sport itself, but for everything that surrounds it and is that we are not going to deceive you, in this case the game was quite discouraged, compared to the one we saw in Los Angeles of the Lakers when they were at their best, but only for the show that surrounds it, is worth every dollar we have paid .
Show in the NBA game in New York
It's 11:30 at night when the game ends, count more or less 2 and a half hours, between game, breaks and half part and after a unique experience, totally recommended even if you don't like basketball, we go to the 33 with the eighth and we have stayed here with a friend who lives in New York and coincidentally today also came to the game, so what better way to end this day than catching up after a few months without seeing us?
Thus we ended this first day in New York, moving away from Madison Square Garden, scene of the NBA match in New York, with the best company. As in these cases what matters least is the place and what is really important is the company, we stay in a bar near our hotel where we spend the next two hours catching up and receiving recommendations about the city, later when they are almost 1 in the morning and we, considering that we have been sleeping for almost 26 hours, decided that the time has come to end our first day in New York.
More practical information to prepare your trip to New York
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We return to the Holiday Inn Times Square and as soon as we enter our room we realize how impressive it is to have the Empire State at this time of night in front of us, slender and bright, showing us its most beautiful face. And is that New York at night, dresses up.
We fall asleep with the murmur of the city, which despite having double glazing, just slips into the room, leaving us one last sensation before closing our eyes in which sirens and cars are present. We are in New York and we have just discovered that New York is very special.
Day 2: New York: Hearst Tower, Columbus Circle, Central Park, Museum of Natural History in New York, St. Patrick's Cathedral, Rockefeller Center
