Walking tours + nyc visitor centres

We%26#39;ll be in New York at the end of April for 6 days and am trying to plan an itinerary and I have a few questions.

1. I%26#39;ve looked on the offical nycvisit.com website and that redirects me to www.nycgo.com. Is it just a new name or is it a rival?

2. I%26#39;ve looked through the forums and whilst some walking tours are listed on www. nycgo.com many are not. Does nycgo.com have a policy of only listing those that pay a fee and if not, why are there aren%26#39;t there more on the list?

3. You seem to have to pre-book a lot of the tours but I%26#39;ve managed to get a BAG on the morning after we arrive so would I be best leaving it until after that, especially bearing in mind I left it to ';greeters choice';.

Many thanks

Walking tours + nyc visitor centres

I think you%26#39;ve replied to the wrong post TT!!

Walking tours + nyc visitor centres

Here is a walking tour of Lower East Side food establishments that I found posted by RGR at Chowhound.

LES Food Excursion

For the quintessential NYC deli experiences, no place beats Katz%26#39;s, on the corner of Houston (pronounced ';how-stun';) %26amp; Ludlow Sts. You%26#39;re there specifically for the pastrami sandwich. When you enter, you will be given a ticket. Instead of opting for table service, do what the ';natives'; do and get on line for counter service. When you reach the counter, put a $1 for each sandwich in the counterman%26#39;s tip cup – though not mandatory, it is a tradition -- and order pastrami on rye. He%26#39;ll give you a piece to taste. If you like it (the best pastrami is juicy and has some fat on it), tell him o.k., and he%26#39;ll make your sandwich, give you some sour pickles, and punch your ticket. Then, continue along the counter for sides – the cole slaw is good -- and drinks. Find seats at a table in the center of the room. (Tables along the wall have menus on them and are reserved for waiter service.) When you’re done, take your ticket to the cashier in front, where it’s cash only. To pay by credit card, go to the counter at the rear where the salamis are sold. Note: For the purposes of this tour, unless you have a gargantuan appetite, it would be best to share one sandwich in order to leave room for more tastings along the way.

When you exit Katz’s, turn left and continue along the same side of Houston St. You will come to Russ %26amp; Daughters, famous for all sorts of smoked fish and many other goodies. It%26#39;s not a restaurant, but they make sandwiches to go.

After leaving the Russes, continue west a couple of blocks until you reach Yonah Schimmel%26#39;s. Get a tasty potato knish, and make sure to ask them to heat it up.

Now it’s time for the quintessential NY drink – the egg cream. So, reverse yourself and head east on Houston until you come to Avenue A. (Note: Avenue A becomes Essex St. on the south side of Houston.) Turn left on A and head north until you get to the block between 7th St. and St. Mark’s Place. Look for a hole-in-the-wall candy shop, closer to 7th, with an overhead sign jutting into the street that says, “Belgian Fries.” (The place’s official name is Ray’s, but there is no signage to that effect.) One of the women behind the counter will make you a delicious chocolate egg cream.

When you’re finished licking your lips, go back to Houston St. and make a left (east) one block to Norfolk St. Turn right and walk down Norfolk until it ends at Grand St. Two places to look for at the corner of Grand and Norfolk: Kossar%26#39;s, for freshly baked bialys (another very NY food) and the Donut Plant (self-explanatory).

Next, walking west along Grand St., you will come to Orchard St. Turn right. At 87 Orchard, snack on a pickle from Gus%26#39;s World Famous Pickles.

Then, continue to 97 Orchard, b/t Broome %26amp; Delancey, where you will find the Tenement Museum. The tour will show you what life was like for immigrants to NYC at the beginning of the 20th century. ( http://www.tenement.org

)

Once you have finished the tour, Il Laboratorio del Gelato, right next door at 95 Orchard, is a must for some of the best gelato anywhere.

If your sweet tooth is still not completely satisfied, the final stop on this tour should do it. Continue ahead (north) on Orchard, crossing Delancey, then one more block to Rivington St. Make a right and you will find Economy Candy at 145 Rivington.

Note: It’s best not to take this tour on a Saturday since some of the spots are closed because of religious observance. Also, Donut Plant is closed on Mondays.

1. Yes, the NYC tourism office changed the name of its website from ';nycvisit'; to ';nycgo.'; Our tax dollars at work...

2. Since this is the third or fourth name change in 10 years, I%26#39;m sure many tour companies don%26#39;t know or don%26#39;t respect posting their info on nycgo.com

Since most people use google.com anyway (or forums like this) tour companies might figure, no great loss.

3. Congrats on getting a BAG, but walking tours are great and def worth considering.

Here are some websites and threads about the LES and walking tours:

http://www.lowereastsideny.com/

(Free tour!)

…blogspot.com/2009/01/lost-citys-guid-to-low…

www.eattoblog.com/lower-east-side-food-trip/

tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic-g60763-i5-k767971-…

http://nycjewishtours.org/

Forgot to mention: Big Onion tours do not all require rezzies, but they can be very crowded and popular, hence it%26#39;s hard to hear the guide:

http://www.bigonion.com/information/faq.html

Also, mp3 walking tours can be downloaded if you bring an iPod or something similar:

nytimes.com/ref/arts/tour-instructions.html

www.centralpark.com/pages/walking-tours.html

http://www.soundwalk.com/

You can also consider buying a set of CityWalk cards.

chroniclebooks.com/index/…

And, more walking tours info here:

tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic-g60763-i5-k2432204…