Seeking things to do in Brooklyn & the Bronx

In My Humble Opinion
1

Two years ago I won a trip to New York City, and since the hotel (paid for by the contest’s sponsor) was in Manhattan, my husband and I spent the entire week in Manhattan (which was incredible).

I’ve now won another NYC trip. We’ll be staying 2 nights in Brooklyn (starting June 26) and then 5 nights in the Bronx. We definitely intend to visit the Bronx Zoo and the Botanical Gardens, but we have no other definite plans. We will not have a car, so we’ll rely on public transportation.

We’re a 65-year-old woman and a 60-year-old man, not stodgy old farts, very much into technology. We like most kinds of music, art, and theater, are not interested in sports events or strip clubs, and are on a modest budget.

I’d appreciate any suggestions from those who are in the know. A couple of aging nerds from Oklahoma can probably have a great time in Brooklyn and the Bronx if we just know where the great times are to be found!

2

Brooklyn Museum comes to mind. I like things like Lefferts House but I haven’t been there specifically in a while.

Can’t tell you much about the Bronx, but I’ve heard good things about Arthur Avenue for Italian food.

Time Out actually does a decent job covering BK/BX; they don’t buy into the notion espoused (by lesser minds than yours) among tourists that Manhattan is the only part of the city worth acknowledging.

3

The Bronx’s Little Italy is pretty cool. If you can, bring one of those Grandma carts so you can load up on various foodie things to take home. And stop by Full Moon Pizza for a slice. Almost everything’s closed by 8 pm (the central market on Belmont Ave. closes at 6), so make sure you go during the day.

When I lived in the Bronx, I always wanted to ride The Bronx Trolley but never did. If you go, let me know how it is!

How far up did you go in Manhattan? A lot of people never make it to the Washington Heights and Inwood neighborhoods, on that small spit of land right at the top of the island. If you haven’t been to the Cloisters, Fort Tryon Park, and Inwood Park, you may want to take a quick trip over from the Bronx to check them out.

And the last week of June would be a great time to do it, too, while the Uptown Arts Stroll is going on.

There’s a stretch along the 5 train, in the South Bronx, that will let you see some great graffiti. (Or, at least, it did back in 2008. Maybe another Doper can give you a more recent update.) Take that train at least once, on a clear day.

In Brooklyn–since you’re into the arts, see what’s going on at BAM.

I also strongly recommend The Transit Museum. You’ll never see the design of mundane stuff–like turnstiles or train doors–the same way again.

Stroll around Grand Army Plaza, especially on a Saturday, when they have the Farmer’s Market. The Prospect Park Zoo, Brooklyn Museum, Brooklyn Botanical Garden, and the Brooklyn Library are all nearby.

4

I’m a Bronx native. The Bronx Zoo and Botanical Gardens of course are high points. For true nerds, the originalHall of Fame may be of interest (although I’ve never been there). Also Poe Cottage. Besides the Bronx Botanical Garden there is also Wave Hill.

There’s a freeBronx Culture Trolley on the first Wednesday evening of each month that takes you to various sites, including the Bronx Museum of the Arts. Even if your trip doesn’t coincide with the Trolley’s run, the other stops may also be of interest.

One of the most interesting neighborhoods is City Island,which is like a small New England fishing village in the middle of the city. Lots of good restaurants (although the bigger ones tend to be overpriced tourist traps.) You can get there by bus. Belmont around Arthur Avenue is a classic Bronx Italian neighborhood, but with lots of different kinds of restaurants.

5

I’ve done it, and it was a lot of fun. The program is actually run by a friend of mine that I went to high school with.

6

I’ll have to ride the trolley this summer, then! And very cool about your friend.

Just a small note on the Belmont (The Bronx’s Little Italy)–some of it would be more aptly termed the Bronx’s Little Armenia. If you’ve never had Armenian food, Belmont is the place to try it.

7

There’s the Bartow Pell Manion in the Bronx, which you can get to by public transportation. You can check their calendar of events, although their summer events tend to be the first week of the month so I think you might miss those.

This sitelists several walking tours, but I can’t vouch for how up-to-date it is.

Already mentioned, City Island is my favorite place to take people. The Black Whale is my favorite City Island restaurant. We usually skip dessert and get ice cream down the street at Lickety Split – there’s only one main street on the island so you really can’t miss anything. We also like to wander around Pelham Cemetery, which has great views of the water. There is a Nautical Museum, located in an old schoolhouse that is quick, cute, and free.

If you are going to the Bronx Zoo, go ON A WEEK DAY. It will still be crowded because school is out, but somewhat less so than on a weekend.

There is a Maritime History Museum located in Fort Schuyler, which is part of the campus of Maritime College. The museum itself is a little geeky, but it’s a nice destination if you have a sunny day - you can cruise through the museum, and check out the grounds of the 19th century fort which is quite scenic. Bring a picnic lunch. It’s one of those free museums that has limited hours that seem to change all the time, so be sure to check before you go. This is NEVER crowded, so might be a good option for a low-key Saturday morning when other tourist destinations are busy. You can get there via the BX40 city bus.

Depending on where you are staying in the Bronx, it will probably be easy to hop a subway into Manhattan so that would expand your options for things to do. Even though you spent a week there previously, I’m sure there are still more things to do. :slight_smile: If you want to PM me the location of your hotel, I can give you some suggestions for things that would be an easy subway ride.

In general, if you didn’t last year, download the hopstop app to your phone, it gives clear and easy subway and bus directions to anywhere in the city.

8

The Brooklyn Museum is very underrated. Great place and not as crowded as the usual Manhattan museums.

The Brooklyn Public Library (at the north end of Prospect Park) also has some interesting exhibits at times. That’s also right at the point where Prospect Park, Grand Army Plaza and Flatbush Ave all come together.

Speaking of which, Prospect Park is beautiful this time of year.

The Brooklyn Promenade is a great sightseeing spot. You can walk from there to the Brooklyn Bridge and go across to Manhattan.

If you like sports or concerts there’s always something going on at the Barclays Center.

There’s Coney Island, but it’s kinda overrated. The Cyclone is cool, though. Speaking of Cyclones, if you like baseball, check out Brooklyn’s minor league team at Keyspan Park.

9

Many thanks, all. We should have a memorable trip!

10

Or the Yankees – Yankee Stadium is in the Bronx (they built the new one across the street from the previous one).

11

Yankees suck.

12

Hey come on now, for the edification of all, the correct Yankee Stadium pregame bleacher chant is performed as follows : “Yankee Baseball! Mets Suck! Boston Sucks! Box Seats Suck! Everything Sucks!” (I didn’t say it was exactly the Canterbury tales or anything)
Preferably after properly lubing up across the street at Stan’s. One has to be a little tipsy to really appreciate and embrace deep and true sentiment of it! :smiley:

13

Steinbrenner can eat it.

14

All real Americans hate the Yankees.

15

Northern tip of Manhattan but check out Fort Tryon Park and The Cloisters. They’re having a pretty cool exhibit on unicorns in art and history until mid-August.

16

heh heh, truer words were never spoken! (& I believe that’s spelled ‘merkins ;))
After the Mets swept the Yankees this year, I got nothin’ to say!

See Op? You’re getting some of the local flavor! :slight_smile: