day trip to NYC...need help planning

Hi, I%26#39;m taking family into NY who have never been to the city. We%26#39;re taking the train in and want to visit the Statue of Liberty(thinking of just taking the water taxi past it), South Street Seaport, Times Square and The Empire State Bldg.(including the virtual tour ride(Skyride) they have there). We will probably eat dinner at Carmine%26#39;s. I see that there is an express water taxi that takes you downtown and past the Statue of Liberty and ends in Battery Park. If we go on the w/e we could use the water taxi hop on hop off from there but it doesn%26#39;t run during the week-so it looks like we would have to do the 1hr.Gateway to America audio water taxi tour that ends in South Street Seaport. Couple of questions..... Can we walk from the train station to W44th street(Pier 84) to catch the water taxi or is it too far? What is the best way to get back to midtown from the South Street Seaport during the week? If we go on the w/e and take the water taxi to East34th street, would it be too far of a walk to the Empire State Bldg. and Carmines for dinner? Any suggestions in planning our itinerary would be greatly appreciated...I don%26#39;t want the day to be chaotic. We will be a party of 9 with children ages 10, 13, and 17. Thanks so much.

day trip to NYC...need help planning

The NY Water Taxi is not the only boat you can use to see the Statue of Liberty. The Staten Island ferry is FREE and passes by it. With a party of 9, if the main priority is to see the Statue, that%26#39;s a good option.

As I read it, the 1 hr. Gateway to America Harbor Cruise done by NY Water Taxi leaves either from Battery Park or the South Street Seaport, not pier 84. Not sure what you%26#39;re reading. This is what I%26#39;m reading.

http://www.nywatertaxi.com/tours/gateway/

You could in theory walk from Penn station (assume that%26#39;s where you%26#39;d be training in) to pier 44, but it%26#39;s a long walk (and as I say, I don%26#39;t think you can get this tour from there).

Nywaterway.com also does a cruise (90 mins.) and leaves from 39 st. %26amp; the Hudson and that would be a shorter walk from Penn Station. Here%26#39;s their schedule

nywaterway.com/Home/鈥efault.aspx

NY Waterway had a free bus if you%26#39;re using their service but I can%26#39;t get that link to work on their website. It%26#39;s possible with the cost of gas, they may have discontinued this. If you decide you want to consider this tour (a good option imo if you go during the week, on a weekend, use the hop on/off water taxi) I would phone them.

To get an idea of distances, go to

maps.google.com

and map the various locations.

Some other thoughts:

%26gt;by all accounts, the sky ride is a total waste of time and money. Don%26#39;t do it.

%26gt;lines for the Empire State building are very long. Make sure you buy tickets online in advance so at least you avoid the ticket buyers line. Make sure you don%26#39;t qualify for some kind of group discount.

%26gt;many people prefer the experience of Top of the Rock, the observatory at Rockefeller Center. Lines are not nearly as long (but it%26#39;s also not as close to Penn station).

%26gt;Carmine%26#39;s will take a reservation for a party your size. Make one once you know when you%26#39;re going!

%26gt;the kids will like the indoor ferris wheel at Toys R Us in Times Square.

day trip to NYC...need help planning

Thank you so much for your response. I think I botched up the way I wrote the above. If we went on the w/e I was planning to take the Statue of Liberty Express from Pier 84 to Battery Park and then get on the Gateway to America Tour from there that would end up letting us off at the Seaport. I think your idea of the NY Waterway Tour is a better option for us...less of a walk from the train station and from what I understand it lets us back off at 38th street?

I%26#39;d like to show them as much of NY as I can in the little time we have without a tremendous amount of walking.

I guess I must have been living under a rock for a while now because until reading this forum yesterday I never knew about the Top of The Rock at Rockefeller center. So you think that would be better than the Empire State Bldg? We%26#39;re definitely not ones for long lines... thanks for the heads up about the SKYRIDE....the kids love the interactive rides at Disney and Great Adventure but we went to one in Baltimore that was a total waste of money.

I already planned on visiting Toys R Us....my kids have always visited it the few times they were in the city....love buying junk in Candy Land!

I want to make reservations for Carmines but I%26#39;m just not sure what time I should make them for....have to really try and figure out at what time we would be back in the Times Square area.

Thanks again so much. Any other input or ideas?