After a red-eye flight from Seattle this Thursday night (yawn), I’ll have a full Friday to kill in Brooklyn before a 7:00pm event. This will be my first visit and I’ll be a little sleepy, so I’m expecting some disorientation…but could Dopers recommend places to see or things to do? I love to wander through lively neighborhoods, see interesting architecture & parks, eat in interesting ethnic restaurants (uh, I hear Brooklyn has a few of those), wander in bookshops, gaze out over water…oh, and a good photography exhibit is always welcome. I suppose I could wander over the Brooklyn Bridge into Manhattan, but I’d kind of like to give my day over to Brooklyn itself if I can.
All advice (including where to get a day pass for transit) is welcome and appreciated…
I’m a big fan of the transit museum, but I think it’s much more fun for New Yorkers, who are learning about a system they use all the time, than it would be for an out-of-towner.
I don’t spend enough time in Brooklyn to guide you to anything other than museums, which doesn’t sound like your primary objective. In what neighborhood do you need to end up by seven?
Since you need to be in Brooklyn Heights, that’s where the Promenade is. Superb view of The New York Harbor, the Lower Manhattan skyline and the Brooklyn Bridge. It’s especially inspiring after dark.
The Brooklyn Botanic Garden is the best I’ve ever been in.
Any trip to Brooklyn is incomplete without a stop at Junior’s, for their incomparable cheesecake.
Yeah, since you will be in the Heights anyway the Promenade makes tons of sense. On nearby Montague St you’ll find many restaurants.
The Bklyn Museum and Botanical garden (which are next door to one another) have the 2/3 right outside (“Eastern parkway - Brooklyn Museum”). You can take that to Nevins, Juniors is just a short walk from there. Get back on, and go two more stops to Borough Hall. From there its a few blocks walk to either the Transit Museum or the Promenade.
For the record though, Brooklyn does have a pretty fun minor league team, the Brooklyn Cyclones. But they are so far from where the OP needs to be, I don’t think taking in a game is realistic.
Yeah, make sure you take in the Brooklyn Heights Promenade, by going down Montague street. The Moonstruck House is nearby if you are interested in that sort of thing. Also nearby is Grimaldi’s pizza… you can report back to your friends on how average the world famous pizza tasted.
You can start at Prospect Park (visit the zoo and the carousel, they’re close to each other), take a trolley to the Brooklyn Museum (if it is the first Saturday of the month, the museum is free), although I was never able to figure out the trolley’s schedule. The Brooklyn Botanical Garden entrance is a few steps walk from the Museum. You can walk to the main branch ofThe Brooklyn Public Library at Grand Army Plaza from the Garden and take a stroll around the plaza. If it’s Saturday, there will be an open air market there. Hey, your back at the other end of Prospect Park right by The Long Meadow. Stroll around for a bit.
Time to make your way downtown. Take a bus or the train (or even walk, if you are into long walks) to Boro Hall were you can eat at a really nice restaurant on Montgomery St and you are now just a hop, skip and a jump away from the Promenade, The Transit Museum and are in Brooklyn Heights.
You may need to start at 5 am to get all of that in.
P.S. You can get a daily Fun Pass at any train station.
You know, I really should have given a shout-out to my old nabe and the place where I raised my children-- Park Slope. From Grand Army Plaza and/or Prospect Park, you can stroll down the slope and into a family-friendly, bohemian 'hood filled with good restaurants, friendly bars and funky shops.
Just checking in to thank everyone for the suggestions: I had a great day in Brooklyn! An old friend unexpectedly offered to play tour guide, which helped me find my way. We started in Prospect Park, took in the Public Library, Park Slope, Court/Smith streets, had lunch in a good Colombian joint, and eventually got to Brooklyn Heights and the Promenade…lovely. I hope to return soon.
