Spirit _ Enough time to visit ESB after embarkation ?

[Ladycrusoe]

Hi,

 

We are on the Spirit on January 19th (can't wait), we leave the port at 4pm.

 

We transferdirectly from LGA to the Pier..I think we will arrive at the pier around 12h.. We would like to drop our luggage and have a short visit to Empire State Building.

 

Do'es anyone know if we have enough time to do so ? :rolleyes:

 

Thank's !

[smeyer418]

If you get to the pier at 12, You should be settled in your room around 1. Lunch is open at that time. While its about 20 minutes each way(with a good taxi driver and limited traffic) You may not want to cut it that close since you should be back on the ship by 3(if its leaving at 4). Also unless you arranged your own transport and not through NCL, you may wait until the bus fills up.

 

The piers are at 50th street and 12 th Ave. ESB is at 34th street and 5th avenue(macy's is at sixth avenue and 34th Street. Its about 2 miles as the crow flies...you should have no trouble catching a cab there as long as the people getting off are long gone. Coming back up up twelveth ave and get off opposite the ship on the uptown side and walk over.

 

This will be a rush. If the weather is foggy forget about it until next trip.

[Majj]

I realize it was holiday time, but the security line at the ESB last week (12/27) was over 3 hours --- even if tickets were purchased online in advance.

[intrepid_guy]

Ladycrusoe,

I went to the ESB at the end of November and it was not particularly busy (unlike 2 days earlier when the wait was nearly 4 hours just to get to the top) and even on that day, it was nearly an hour before we got to the top. This does not count making the 14 dollars worth it by looking around (or 24 dollars if you want to go to the 102nd floor). Honestly, while it is a great view and everyone wants to go there, you may be best served to just wait till the next time you can make it to NYC.

 

I hope the image shows up below - this is a shot I took of the SPIRIT from the top of the ESB.

 

~Intrepid

[Ladycrusoe]

Thank You everyone :p

I wonder how i would managed without Cruise Critic!

It is simply the best discovery i made so far on the net !

 

.. I am not interested in waiting in lines for hours.. so ESB will be for next time...

 

So i Guess... i will be forced to relax :cool: ,,, poor me...

 

2 weeks to go....

[EPFudbutter]

Intrepid's shot of the Spirit at Pier 90 deserves some sort of award!

 

Must have been some zoom lens to get that picture from the Empire State Building ...

[Hflors]

DH and I are looking at this cruise for next Jan 07 (our 35th wedding ann) Does the Spirit go right by the statue of Liberty???? Can you see it from the deck? Does anyone know where to stay if we get to NY the day before and where we can park while we are on the cruise?

 

 

ANy info will be helpful. We live outside of Baltimore by the time we drive to the airport go throught security and check in we just might as well drive to NY! So that is our plan for now. If we can find a place to park

 

Thanks again...

[electricron]

Yes it does sail right by the Statue of Liberty. There's some photos posted of the Spirit leaving New York City on this earlier thread. Surf to the following and enjoy.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=267874&highlight=statue+liberty

 

You can park at the pier where the Spirit docks. There's many hotels to choose from on Manhatten in New York City.

If you have a favorite hotel brand, it's probably nearby.

[smeyer418]

DH and I are looking at this cruise for next Jan 07 (our 35th wedding ann) Does the Spirit go right by the statue of Liberty???? Can you see it from the deck? Does anyone know where to stay if we get to NY the day before and where we can park while we are on the cruise?

 

 

ANy info will be helpful. We live outside of Baltimore by the time we drive to the airport go throught security and check in we just might as well drive to NY! So that is our plan for now. If we can find a place to park

 

Thanks again...

 

As long as they are using the NY Passenger ship terminal you will go right by the statue starboard out post home. Of course you can see it from the Deck!

 

The only places that have leave you car for free is by Newark or Kennedy---neither of which I recommend. You are from MD its relatively short drive(3-4 hours) So I would leave early and air to get to the pier around 11:30 am. I would park at the pier its a maximum of $180.00 or $22.00 per day. Parking in NYC is expensive but so are the hotels even without parking. If you want to stay a day before to do sightseeing perhaps you should take amtrak and stay in the Holiday Inn or Comfort ins on the west side near the piers and cab around and from Penn Station

[intrepid_guy]

Hflors,

 

Here is a suggestion... we are from Baltimore too. We are going on the SPIRIT in just over 3 weeks, and a friend is going to drop us off. But to come home we are taking a Peter Pan/Greyhound bus. One way it is only 53.00 for both of us, I think only 94.00 RT for two. There are several buses a day from Downtown Baltimore or the Baltimore Travel Center (just off I-95). The buses drop off and pick up at the Port Authority in NYC which is just a few minute ride by taxi to and from the ship. There are buses every 90-120 mins or so. It may not be glamorous, but it beats paying 180.00 to park at the pier. Check out peterpanbus.com and you can order your tix online.

 

Good luck.

 

~Intrepid

[Hflors]

Hay thanks for all the good feed back

Intrepidguy - Thanks for the info on the bus. That sounds like a good idea.

 

Electricron - GREAT pics

 

Now I'm excited about this trip.

[ron46936]

We were on the Spirit Nov 27. We stayed the two nights before in NJ and saved a lot on the hotel. I just saw an article that said the avg NY City hotel is almost $250. We got the Parsippany Hilton for $70. The day before we took the train into Penn Station for sightweeing. On departure day the Pier was easy to get to via the Lincoln Tunnel and parking was $180 at the pier. Another couple we talked to found a hotel in NJ that allowed them to leave their car parked for free. They took a car service to the ship.

 

Also the sailing was delayed until after dark due to a delay in refueling so the photos we got of the Statue weren't great at departure. BUT when we came back into NY it was after dawn so I was able to get some great shots then.

[skywalkervadar]

Getting back to the question about getting on board the ship and then going to the Empire State Building before sail away ....

 

We were on the Dec 18 sailing and had planned to board and then get off to see the Intrepid: Space, Sea and Air Museum which is just down at the end of the pier from where the Spirit docks.

 

However, after going through the Embarkation process (only 15 to 20 minutes) and noticing how everything and everybody involved with the ship is geared toward that one purpose (getting everyone on board), we decided it might be a bit of a hassle for us and for them to try and get off of the ship and then back on again for sightseeing.

 

Maybe it wouldn't have been but even still, trying to get to the ESB, up, down and back again in 2 to 3 hours is probably way too tight.

 

Plus, once we got on board any thoughts of leaving just melted away. We were content to expore the ship and grab some food at Raffles.

 

Major Hint: For sailaway, get up to the Galaxy of the Stars early and get a seat at the front by the windows. It's a great view of the city as you leave and it will fill up quickly once everyone else figures this out.

 

Enjoy your cruise.