# Planning a One-Week Stay in New York with my Daughters - Summer 2024 **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Tags:** vacation-travel\ **Created:** [November 6, 2023, 9:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/planning-a-one-week-stay-in-new-york-with-my-daughters-summer-2024/992683 "2023-11-06T09:16:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Spiderman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spiderman/32/230_2.png) [@Spiderman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spiderman)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2023, 2:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/planning-a-one-week-stay-in-new-york-with-my-daughters-summer-2024/992683/41 "2023-11-16T02:21:09Z")
I happened to be driving up 6th Ave in the 40ies late one night last week as I was working on a project / passing thru. At 11:41pm there was the typical midtown tourist shop still wide open & selling their wares. Going a few blocks further north, there was a _long line_ for the street food vendor on the corner opposite Radio City Music Hall. Coming home this weekend I _had_ to be in Times Square (saw Spamalot); every single person the street performers pulled out of the crowd was foreign. I know it was only a small sample but not a USAian was chosen. No, we didn’t stay & watch any longer There are tons of tourists; I wouldn’t worry about buying a typical tourist shirt that shows you’re a tourist. ---
**Author:** ![Moonrise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moonrise/32/14764_2.png) [@Moonrise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moonrise)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2023, 8:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/planning-a-one-week-stay-in-new-york-with-my-daughters-summer-2024/992683/42 "2023-11-29T08:57:03Z")
> [@Riemann](#): > > You should absolutely get a credit card. OK, I’ve got bad news. The bank refused to issue a credit card for me. I have asked for a meeting to talk about it after they vaguely hinted that it could be solved by someone with “overriding authority”. Frankly, I didn’t see that coming. I’ve worked non-stop for the past 26 years, held my current position for almost 20, have a regular income, enough money in my bank accounts to pay for that New York trip several times, no debt and no loan. In the meantime, they have suggested two solutions : 1. A prepaid card ; 2. A debit Mastercard. Would these be accepted in the US, and by that I mean everywhere and for absolutely any use (metro, hotel, museums, restaurants) ? ---
**Author:** ![FinsToTheLeft](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/finstotheleft/32/2930_2.png) [@FinsToTheLeft](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FinsToTheLeft)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2023, 11:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/planning-a-one-week-stay-in-new-york-with-my-daughters-summer-2024/992683/43 "2023-11-29T11:03:27Z")
> [@Moonrise](#): > > In the meantime, they have suggested two solutions : > > 1. A prepaid card ; > 2. A debit Mastercard. > > Would these be accepted in the US, and by that I mean everywhere and for absolutely any use (metro, hotel, museums, restaurants) ? Either one should work, especially if they do tap. My inclination would be the MC debit. Issues might arrive with things like hotels where they put a hold on our card as a deposit. You pay at check out, but the holds are sometimes not released for several days which impacts on your available balance. ---
**Author:** ![filmore](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/7993a0/32.png) [@filmore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/filmore)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2023, 1:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/planning-a-one-week-stay-in-new-york-with-my-daughters-summer-2024/992683/44 "2023-11-29T13:32:09Z")
The debit Mastercard will be better than the prepaid. Prepaid cards often have limits of $500 that you can put on it. And you can’t just take the money out of the card. Once it’s on the card, you have to use it to buy stuff to use up the money. The debit Mastercard should work virtually identical to a credit card. Lots of people in the US only have a debit card and use it everywhere that credit cards are accepted. Do you have a card that you use to get money out of your bank account now? Is it a non-Mastercard ATM card? ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2023, 1:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/planning-a-one-week-stay-in-new-york-with-my-daughters-summer-2024/992683/45 "2023-11-29T13:40:38Z")
> [@Moonrise](#): > > The bank refused to issue a credit card for me. In the US at least, _many_ banks issue credit cards, so if your bank is unwilling to issue one to you, perhaps another will? ---
**Author:** ![Moonrise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moonrise/32/14764_2.png) [@Moonrise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moonrise)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2023, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/planning-a-one-week-stay-in-new-york-with-my-daughters-summer-2024/992683/46 "2023-11-29T17:41:08Z")
Thanks a lot for your answers. I have a credit card but it seems that it’s only valid in Europe. I guess I could ask whether it can be upgraded to “global”. > [@filmore](#): > > Do you have a card that you use to get money out of your bank account now? Is it a non-Mastercard ATM card? I have a Maestro debit card issued by a European bank. Unfortunately these are slowly being phased out, which complicates matters. In any case, I doubt that it’d be valid in the US. I wouldn’t take the risk anyway. For the moment I’d rank the possible solutions like this : 1. Getting a credit card from my bank (might still be possible) ; 2. Upgrading my current credit card (if possible) ; 3. Getting a Mastercard debit card ; 4. A prepaid card. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2023, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/planning-a-one-week-stay-in-new-york-with-my-daughters-summer-2024/992683/47 "2023-11-29T17:42:14Z")
Yes, the simplest thing would probably be for you to ask your bank to extend the reach of your credit card to cover your trip to the US. And it seems weird that your credit card is limited solely to use in Europe, given how much international travel is common. And even without international travel, people are buying stuff on the internet from other countries. (I’ve done that in fact.) ---
**Author:** ![Moonrise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moonrise/32/14764_2.png) [@Moonrise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moonrise)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2023, 5:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/planning-a-one-week-stay-in-new-york-with-my-daughters-summer-2024/992683/48 "2023-11-29T17:43:26Z")
Well, that credit card (Visa) wasn’t issued by my bank, but by a very big local retailer. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2023, 5:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/planning-a-one-week-stay-in-new-york-with-my-daughters-summer-2024/992683/49 "2023-11-29T17:45:41Z")
In the US, decades ago, retailer specific credit/charge cards were common but could only be used at that retailer’s store. Now most retailers offer branded Mastercard or Visa cards. Usually there is some sort of cash back arrangement and the cards have retailer branding but otherwise can be used anywhere Mastercard or Visa is accepted. ---
**Author:** ![doreen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/858c86/32.png) [@doreen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doreen)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2023, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/planning-a-one-week-stay-in-new-york-with-my-daughters-summer-2024/992683/50 "2023-11-29T17:51:38Z")
Are you sure it was actually issued by that retailer? I have had various Visa/Mastercard credit cards that were branded with the name of a retailer, cruise line, sports team , etc - that provided me with some sort of extra benefit at that company . But every last one of them was actually issued by a bank. Usually not _my_ bank, but a bank. ---
**Author:** ![filmore](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/7993a0/32.png) [@filmore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/filmore)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2023, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/planning-a-one-week-stay-in-new-york-with-my-daughters-summer-2024/992683/51 "2023-11-29T18:25:05Z")
Yeah, having store-branded Visa and MasterCards are pretty common. If you have a Visa or MC logo on the card, then chances are it’s an actual credit card. You can test it by going to a website like Amazon and using it to buy something. Assuming it works like a CC, you’d want to contact them before you travel to let them know you’ll be using it overseas. Otherwise, they may think it’s fraud and lock it until you call. ---
**Author:** ![FinsToTheLeft](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/finstotheleft/32/2930_2.png) [@FinsToTheLeft](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FinsToTheLeft)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2023, 11:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/planning-a-one-week-stay-in-new-york-with-my-daughters-summer-2024/992683/52 "2023-12-01T23:40:36Z")
> [@doreen](#): > > Are you sure it was actually issued by that retailer? I have had various Visa/Mastercard credit cards that were branded with the name of a retailer, cruise line, sports team , etc - that provided me with some sort of extra benefit at that company . My wife has a Mastercard issued by the financial arm of Canadian Tire (a weird combo of automotive, hardware, and home goods) and Rogers (one of our big three telcos) also issues one. Most others are just white labeled with the merchant but backed by a bricks and mortar bank. ---
**Author:** ![JohnGalt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johngalt/32/184_2.png) [@JohnGalt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnGalt)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2023, 12:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/planning-a-one-week-stay-in-new-york-with-my-daughters-summer-2024/992683/53 "2023-12-02T00:38:03Z")
So many good suggestions here, several that we did on a week-long trip many years ago: Intrepid, library, Met and MOMA, Brooklyn Bridge, Broadway shows. Depending on your daughter’s interests, you might want to see the UN, Wall Street, St. John the Divine Cathedral (if you’re from Europe, you probably have enough others to see, but it’s large), Rockefeller Center (I liked the view from there better than Empire State). But mainly let me congratulate you on taking your daughters on such a trip. I did the same thing with my kids during their last year of high school, just the two of us, anywhere they wanted to go. We are from the Midwest US, and they chose Rome and Tokyo (we had already done most of the National Parks and London/Paris as a family). Lots of great memories and experiences, and I hope the trip is memorable for your family. ---
**Author:** ![Moonrise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moonrise/32/14764_2.png) [@Moonrise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moonrise)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2023, 9:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/planning-a-one-week-stay-in-new-york-with-my-daughters-summer-2024/992683/54 "2023-12-11T09:00:19Z")
I went to one of the retailer’s stores on Saturday and they confirmed that my Visa card issued through them is indeed valid worldwide. They just advised me to tell them I was going to use it overseas to avoid suspicions of fraud, just as @filmore wrote above. Problem solved, it seems. So, I’m now planning to take that Visa card, a MasterCard debit card and some cash, to have as many options open as possible. ---
**Author:** ![Moonrise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moonrise/32/14764_2.png) [@Moonrise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moonrise)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2024, 10:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/planning-a-one-week-stay-in-new-york-with-my-daughters-summer-2024/992683/55 "2024-01-08T10:23:23Z")
And the trip is booked ! The hotel will be fully paid before I get there which means that the reservations I had about my credit card are gone. The only possible issue is that I’ll have to pay taxes on arrival and only credit cards are accepted, no cash. I wonder whether a debit card would be OK. Anyway, as I wrote above both the retail store where I got my Visa card and the financial institution issuing it have confirmed that it is valid worldwide. I can now focus on the administrative aspects of the trip and after that, the day-to-day planning of the week we’ll spend there. ---
**Author:** ![adhemar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3da27b/32.png) [@adhemar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adhemar)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2024, 9:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/planning-a-one-week-stay-in-new-york-with-my-daughters-summer-2024/992683/56 "2024-01-09T21:46:44Z")
I went on a couple of tours your daughters might like. One was a shopping tour in Lower Manhatten. They went to a number of interesting venues that were not the big department stores. I took a couple of food tours that were fun, specialising in small out of the way places. I also took the Hop on Hop off tours around all of the routes. So I got to see a lot of touristy things, learned a lot of stuff. I bought a City card I dont remember the exact title) that gave me admission to museums, tourist sites, the buses as well as the Hop on Hop off bus, and a discount on shopping at stores like Macy’s. I added up the costs and it was well worth the price to me. I would visit the Met and the MOMA, the Cloisters, the Morgan Library, I really enjoyed the tentement museum. and several others. But i love museums. The Met was amazing and its size is breathtaking and walking by painting and scuptures you have only seen in picture books. MOMA has Starry Night and other cool stuff that I dont remember. The Morgan Library has an extensive collection of Medieval focused art inculding a number of Gutenberg bibles and the Crusader Bible. The Cloisters was more Medieval art. (if you take the subway there is a bus that goes from the subway terminal to the entrance of the museum otherwise you walk across Fort Tryon Park which while lovely was a hike) Central Park is huge and has tons of vendors selling everything. Does your daughter want to climb the Statue of Liberty or just see it? You can ride the Staten Island Ferry for free that goes by the Statue and has a spectacular view of it. Most hotels in the US as far as I know require a credit card/debit card to book a room and also to have “on file” for incidentals. I think the hassle of trying to find one would far out way getting one from your bank. Not to mention, flashing a wad of cash or even having it the hotel room is not secure. Replacing a card is a lot easier than replacing your cash. ---
**Author:** ![adhemar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3da27b/32.png) [@adhemar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adhemar)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2024, 9:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/planning-a-one-week-stay-in-new-york-with-my-daughters-summer-2024/992683/57 "2024-01-09T21:54:11Z")
I have a debit card and have used all over the US and now in Mexico without an problem. Just keep in mind the hotel will likely put a hold on a certain amount of money that wont be refunded until several days after you check out. As I recall, my hotel was $99.00 a day and they put $150.00 hold on my account which severly cut into my spending money. The rate was so low because the Ace hotel had just opened, those rooms are now twice that. ---
**Author:** ![TruCelt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/trucelt/32/523_2.png) [@TruCelt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TruCelt)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2024, 11:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/planning-a-one-week-stay-in-new-york-with-my-daughters-summer-2024/992683/58 "2024-01-09T23:09:49Z")
I would definitely take them on a tour of the UN. > **[In-Person Guided Tours | United Nations](https://www.un.org/en/visit/tour)** You should arrange all tours in advance. Especially UN and the Statue of Liberty. I also second the recommendation of The Cloisters. The trip to and from is a great view of NYC on the bus. Personally I loved going up the Empire State Building. I think it’s worth the money to pay a little extra and go all the way to the top. The other super-tall buildings I’ve been to don’t let you go outside. At ESB you can stand out on the deck and look down at the clouds. For the less obvious agenda items, have the girls surf around Atlas-Obscura’s guide to NYC and see what interests them. > **[753 Cool and Unusual Things to Do in New York City](https://www.atlasobscura.com/things-to-do/new-york)** > > Discover 753 hidden attractions, cool sights, and unusual things to do in New York City from Old City Hall Station to Mysterious Bookshop. ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2024, 2:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/planning-a-one-week-stay-in-new-york-with-my-daughters-summer-2024/992683/59 "2024-01-11T02:07:29Z")
Definitely the Cloisters. Great place not visited as often as the others. I believe you can no longer get into the UN without an advance reservation. It didn’t used to be that way. My father used to work in an office in the basement, and I could visit him by going through a door by the vending machines in the lower level of the lobby. People looked at me funny, but no one ever stopped me. A simpler time. This is just a place to rest, but check out [Paley Park](https://www.paleypark.org/) if your are in the neighborhood. When I worked on Park Avenue I used to eat lunch there every day. Very relaxing. ---
**Author:** ![APB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8e8cbc/32.png) [@APB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/APB)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2024, 9:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/planning-a-one-week-stay-in-new-york-with-my-daughters-summer-2024/992683/60 "2024-01-11T09:42:01Z")
> [@adhemar](#): > > The Cloisters was more Medieval art. (if you take the subway there is a bus that goes from the subway terminal to the entrance of the museum otherwise you walk across Fort Tryon Park which while lovely was a hike) The ‘hike’ (from 190 St) isn’t that far and is indeed lovely. But I was shocked that there seemed to be no attempt to signpost the route. It is almost as if they are actively trying to discourage anyone ever finding the museum. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/planning-a-one-week-stay-in-new-york-with-my-daughters-summer-2024/992683.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/planning-a-one-week-stay-in-new-york-with-my-daughters-summer-2024/992683.md?page=4)