Washington, Boston, NYC holiday advice.

In My Humble Opinion
1

I’m coming to America!!!

I’m spending 3 weeks on the East Coast of America in August and I have some questions for east-coast dopers.

We’re (I’m going with my fiancee and two friends) spending our first 4 nights in Washington so:

  1. How do i get tickets to see the white house and what else is there to do?

Then we’re off to New York City.

  1. Any hotel recommendations?
  2. How do I get tickets for Letterman?
  3. How do I get tickets for the Mets?

After that we are thinking off going up to Cape Cod for a couple of days?
Should we?
Any recommendations?

Lastly we’re spending about 5 or 6 days in Boston.

  1. Any hotel recommendations?
  2. How do I get tickets for the Red Sox?
  3. What sights to people recommend?

Also, we are thinking about getting the amtrak train to get from place to place.
Is this recommended?

Any input from denizens of those cities or anybody that has visited them would be much appreciated.
Thanks

ps - we are well aware it will be hot and clammy but we like that.

2

I’m not sure if they have re-opened the White House for tours yet. I think they closed it after 9/11. :frowning:

Anyhoo, to get tickets for Letterman you can write via their web site. Note that tickets are booked for the next three months, but you may get lucky if there’s a cancellation.

For Mets tickets, take the 7 train to Shea Stadium and stand in line.

Other necessary New York tourist stuff:
Empire State Building
Statue of Liberty
Ellis Island
Metropolitan Museum of Art
Museum of Modern Art
Museum of Natural History
Hayden Planetarium
The Chrysler Building
Walk accross the Brooklyn Bridge
Times Square and Broadway Shows. (Get tickets as far in advance as possible. Otherwise try the red and white TKTS booth in Times Square).

Taking the Amtrak up the coast is indeed a lot of fun. Like everything else, get your tickets in advance. You can do so via their website. The Acela Express goes up the coast from DC to Philly to NYC to Boston.

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You can get Letterman tix on standby - you just have to show up at the Ed Sullivan theater (which is on B’way and like 52nd St.) early and be prepared to stand on line a very long time.

4

The Red Sox always sell out, so your best bet, assuming you know when you’ll be here, is to buy your tix online when they go on sale.

http://boston.redsox.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/bos/ticketing/singlegame.jsp

This page says single-game tickets for the rest of the season go on sale in February.

I believe there is also some sort of standing-in-line method with less than fabulous chances (and standing room only tickets?). I’m really not sure, I’m not a baseball person. I’m sure some other Bostonian will know, though.

Things to do here:

Museum of Fine Arts (www.mfa.org)
Even if you can’t get Red Sox tickets you can always take a tour
Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum (www.gardnermuseum.org)
Take a Duck Tour!

That’s by no means an exhaustive list.

Any cheap hotel you find is going to be way out of town. I would suggest the Back Bay area as the best place to stay for connections to the T, etc. But any downtown Boston hotel should be ok.

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I do know when I’ll be in Boston and there are games on so next month I’ll book my tickets.
Thanks for the info on this and the other info you gave.

** friedo **
Thanks for your info.
I do want to book a broadway show.
It’s my fiancees birthday when we’re in NYC so I want to take her to a see a musical.

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Rather than pay full price for a Broadway show, go to the TKTS (“ticks”) Booth in Times Square for half-off. There will be something you want to see there. And you get to stand on line and talk with the locals.

Another must is seeing Ground Zero.

7

I think the White House is able to be toured, although I haven’t found specific directions on seeing it.

White House tours through the WH web site makes it sound as if you just show up.

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Actually, I have to correct myself. From here

9

Really?
I know people that are going to NYC having been before and it’s high up on their to do list.

Since I’ve not been to NYC before will the whole “before and after” effect not be lost on me?

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David Letterman

My office is just down the street from where the show is taped.

I frequently see people out offering free Letterman tickets. They really ‘overbook’ the house because they have to have a full house. So you could get the tickets and then just stand in line. I see the ticket people in the area between Time Square proper and The Ed Sullivan Theatre on Broadway and lately I’ve seen people trying to give away tickets to Tough Crowd as well.

Don’t forget that Conan O’Brian and The Daily Show also tape here in NYC.

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Thanks for the info Zebra

I am not a fan of Conan O’Brian so unfortunately that’s a no go for me.
I have no idea what the Daily Show is, don’t think we show that on any of the British tv channels.

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The Daily Show is a comedy-news show that IMHO is one of the best shows on television. Yes it parodies the news but it frequently is very insightful.

They won awards for thier coverage of the the elections in 2000. They called their coverage ‘Indecision 2000’.

Here is their website.

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I’m in the NYC area, but I’ll offer you some advice on Washington, D.C., which is one of my favorite places to visit.

I don’t know how much you know about DC, but a lot of the stuff you want to see is all together in one place. It’s called “The Mall.” It’s pretty big, so bring your walking shoes, but it has a ton of great things to see and most (all?) of them are free! It’s a long, grassy area with the Lincoln Memorial on one end the Capitol on the other, and the Washington Monument in the middle. (You’ve seen the mall many times in news footage. For example, Martin Luther King, Jr. made his “I have a Dream” speech on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial to a crowd assembled all down the mall.) Here is a handy map. There is a Metro stop right on the mall.

Here are some highlights going from west to east:
–The Lincoln Memorial: Go up into it and look at the big Lincoln. Marvel at how many movies have scenes set on the steps!
–The Vietnam Veterans Memorial. IMHO, the most moving memorial there is.
–The Washington Monument. Not much to see, but it’s the big landmark. You can go up it and look out, but I think you have to wait on a really long line.
–The Holocaust Museum. I haven’t seen it, but it’s supposed to be incredible. You may have to call ahead for a ticket.
–Smithsonian American History Museum. My favorite. It has tons of cool stuff in it. This is where they keep Dorothy’s ruby slippers, etc.
–Smithsonian Natural History.
–Hirshorn Museum. It has a wonderful sculpture garden.
–National Gallery (East and West). East has more modern art.
–Air & Space Museum. Perhaps the most popular of the Smithsonian museums–with good reason!
–The Capitol.

You could easily do the mall in a single day. If you start with the Lincoln Memorial, then go to the Vietnam memorial, walk by the Washington Monument, and then wander in and out of any of the museums that interest you, I’d say you will have done a good job of sightseeing. Do that on one of the early days, so you can go spend more time in the museums if you want. There is a phenomenal amount of other things to see and do in D.C., too! A Capitol tour or a tour of the Supreme Court might be nice if you’re interested in American politics or law. It might be worth seeing if there’s a 1/2 day bus tour that will take you to more far-flung sights, like Arlington National Cemetery and the Jefferson Memorial.

There is a lot to see in addition to the typical sightseeing stuff. It’s a great town.

FWIW, I did a whitewater kayaking clinic on the Potomac with this Danish guy. He insisted that he hated cities, and had no desire to see anything in DC. He claimed that nothing in a city could possibly interest him or impress him. We had a 1/2 day off, and I dragged him to the mall and made him do a little sightseeing. He had to admit that he was very impressed and enjoyed it very much. :slight_smile:

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Hotels in NYC are quite expensive. I’ll assume for a moment you’re on a budget and mention that there’s a well-located Howard Johnson’s on Houston St. (which is the dividing line between the neighborhood known as the “Lower East Side” and the one known as the “East Village.”) Both neighborhoods are grubby/trendy with an increasing number of hipster bars, boutiques and eclectic art galleries. You’ll also be a couple blocks away from Katz’s, the deli made famous by “When Harry Met Sally”'s faking-an-orgasm scene.

There’s also a Holiday Inn on Lafayette St. which is in Chinatown.

My personal opinion of Ground Zero is that it’s a gravesite and it makes me feel wierd to see tourists snapping pictures like they’re looking at the Grand Canyon or something. It doesn’t look like much other than a construction site anyway. If you don’t think it would have a lot of resonance to you personally I’d just stay away. IMHO, of course.

15

I am from France but I have been living in Boston for a few years now.
It’s a very nice city. Lots of things to see and it’s actually quite small.

I am not big on museums so I am not gonna go there. However, the Museum of Science is really cool but it deserves a full day.

You got to go walk around in the Boston Common and the Public Garden, it’s very nice.
Check out the chic street of Newburry street, the lovely Beacon Hill (all right in the center) and go on top of the Hacock tower for a nice view.
Faneuil Hall and the North end (Italian quarter) are very nice as well.
You can check out the Constitution and another 2 WW boat in Charlestown (right next to Boston).
You can also check out Harvard (MIT is close to but there is not anything to see really!).
The aquarium is worth a visit if you enjoy those types of things.

Very unorganized list I gave you! I just listed the type of things my family has visited when coming by.

If you have a car and want to go away from the “big” city, go up to the North shore to Gloucester, Newberryport and Rockport, it’s simply beautiful.

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The Boston Symphony has rush tickets for most Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday afternoon concerts. Or just buy tickets.

www.bso.org

Also, there’ll be a lot of student recitals and concerts, all free w/no tickets required, at the New England Conservatory. The exception is the opera, La Calista, which requires tickets in advance.

www.newenglandconservatory.edu

Other good musical groups are the Handel and Haydn Society, Boston Philharmonic, and the Boston Modern Orchestra project. There maybe other orchestras from around the world at Symphony Hall.

The Isabella Stuart Gardner Museum and Museum of Fine Arts are both good.

One not-so-good thing about Boston: It’ll probably be cold, and it’ll feel colder on wider main streets like Huntington Avenue because of the wind. 20 or 30 mph gusts aren’t really unusual there. Dress warmly, and if you’re in a nice area with people around, that’s well lit if it’s night time, take back streets. There’s usually less wind there than in areas where you’re likely to find tourists.

Also, the question tourists ask me the most:

I just got off the Amtrak train at Back Bay Station. The conductor said I could get on the Green Line outbound here but there’s no Green Line at the station. How do I get there?

Upon exiting the Back Bay Station, turn right on Dartmouth St. Follow it a hundred yards or so to Copley Square. Can’t miss that; big green thing with a church and the Hancock Building to the right and the library on the left. Cross the square. The outbound T stop is in front of the church that’s across the STREET from the library. That’s NOT the church across the SQUARE from the library.

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Green Bean did a good job on DC & is right about Air and Space Museum being the most visted one. There is a free shuttle bus from there out to Dulles Air and Space Annex where you can see the shuttle Enterprise, the Enola Gay and other planes.
Here’s the link.
http://www.nasm.si.edu/museum/udvarhazy/

It is going to take .75 of one of your days in DC though, if you like like planes or can get into the History it is a must see, if you could care less - due to the time involved in getting out there and touring the huge complex - it is a must miss.

Miscl.
Here is a link to the Capitol Tour
http://www.house.gov/house/tour_services.html

Alot of the Smithsonian’s (4sure History and Air & Space) offer IMAX films – catch one if you can – it really isn’t a usual experience.

Young person fun places to go on a summer night include Dupont Circle, Adams Morgan & Georgetown

re AMTRAK: I reccomend it highly to travel between NYC-DC-Boston and almost would never reccomend it for anything else - at any time. I have heard good things about Express buses between NYC and DC but have only hearsay to go on.

Buy any tickets you know you want to and are able to now – hot humid Washington is awash in Tourists

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Seeing the Boston Pops is another suggestion. Their information is on the Boston Symphony Orchestra page, linked above. While you’re in the city, you might want to see Shear Madness at the Charles Playhouse. And I might want to attend. :wink: I love that play. (It also plays in Washington, D.C.) Is any trip to Boston complete without going to the top of the Prudential building? :slight_smile:

Not in Boston proper, but east of Boston is the Concord museum, along with other places like Walden Pond and Ralph Waldo Emerson’s home. Additionally not in Boston but maybe worth a trip is Plimoth Plantation. I really enjoy it.

My friend is a high school teacher in Ohio, and every year he brings his sophomore honors English class to the Boston area on a field trip. We see most of the above sites. Additionally, we vist the Salem Witch Museum (give this a pass) and the House of Seven Gables (interesting) while in Salem.

Can’t give any hotel recommendations, unfortunately. Everything is pretty expensive. The most important thing is to stay close to the T stations, our local public transportation system. It is very good, I think.

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East of Boston. Heh. West of Boston is Concord. East of Boston is the Atlantic.

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I agree about Faneuil Hall - take a good appetite when you go. You might also want to take a walking tour of Boston while you’re there. There are some nice eateries right across from the Commons with a great view.

If you’re going to Cape Cod, I would like to suggest that you visit Mattapoinsett. It might be a good idea to stay at one of the nice inns or bed & breakfast places in Mattapoinsett and then drive to Cape Cod for a day. Be sure to stop in Marion and see the Buzzard’s Bay Yacht Club.