New York
ABOUT
The history of New York begins around 10,000 B.C. when the first people arrived. By 1100 A.D. two main cultures had become dominant as the Iroquoian and Algonquian developed. European discovery of New York was led by the Italian Giovanni da Verrazzano in 1524 followed by the first land claim in 1609 by the Dutch.
The settlement was named New Amsterdam in 1626 and was chartered as a city in 1653. The city came under English control in 1664 and was renamed New York after King Charles II granted the lands to his brother, the Duke of York.
Until 1898, New York was made up of only Manhattan. Later, the districts of Brooklyn, Queens, The Bronx and Staten Island became part of the city. This was made possible thanks to the construction of many of its famous bridges and Subway.
During the twentieth century, New York grew immensely. The Statue of Libert observed the arrival of millions of immigrants and New York became the hub of European, Asian and Latin-American immigration.
The Population of New York in 2023 was approximately 19,500,000
Currency is the US Dollar.
THINGS TO DO
It would be impossible to include everything that you can do in New York. The scope is so wide.
Whether your interests lie in history (modern or ancient), the arts, the theatre or shopping it is all there for you to see.
A few examples of sites to visit: Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island, Empire State Building, Central Park, 9/11 Memorial and Museum, One World Observatory, sightseeing tours, river tours, Staten Island (and Ferry), helicopter tours.
For many a particular highlight will be taking a taxi through Time Square and along Broadway. Then perhaps to dinner and to see one of the many Broadway Shows.
New York is very different through the year. The colours in Central Park will change with the seasons. Of course in the winter it is likely to have snowfall giving it a fairytale and festive look.
OUR FAVOURITE THINGS TO DO
We have cruised in to New York on two occasions.
The first time was in 2003 on P&O Oriana when she sailed in rather later than we should have done. An early morning alarm call to see the ship sail in, found us temporarily anchored outside of the harbour. We finally docked at around mid-day and quite a few plans had to be re-arranged. Sail out however, was later and enabled us, and a very tired crew, to see New York illuminated.
In 2022 we again visited as part of our USA/Canada cruise, this time on Sky Princess. Hurricane season disrupted the arrival at some of our ports and this time we were to arrive in New York a day early.
This review gives an impression of what we have done on both trips.
The Harbour
Whichever way you first see New York, the view, the skyline, the ambiance is all iconic. Seeing it from the water is very special especially as the ship glides along The Hudson River.
There are iconic views wherever you look. Whether it is passing the Statue of Liberty or sailing under the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge. There are magnificent views of the high-rise buildings of Manhattan before arriving at the docks. The life of the river itself is full of shuttles and boats taking people to their destinations and of course the ever-popular Staten Island Ferry.
When New York is referred to as the City that Never Sleeps – it really is!
Empire State Building
The skyline of Manhattan is recogniseable to most, whether that is from the water, from the sky or from some of the buildings – such as the Empire State Building.
We visited the latter on our first trip to the city. It was certainly an interesting visit and the ride in the elevator was surprisingly quick climbing so many stories. The view from the top, even for someone who really doesn’t like heights, was unmissable.
Central Park
Central Park is an urban park between the Upper West Side and Upper East Side neighbourhoods of Manhattan.
The park’s first areas were opened to the public in late 1858. Additional land at the northern end of Central Park was purchased in 1859, and the park was completed in 1876. It overs 843 acres (341 ha), and is the most visited urban park in the United States, with an estimated 42 million visitors annually.
Central Park includes a zoo, reservoir, sheep meadow, nature sanctuary and so much more. It is used for many recreational activities which include carriage-horse and bicycle tours, bicycling, sports facilities, and concerts and performance events.
Our visit in 2003 was all too brief but we managed to see some of the New Yorkers doing what New Yorkers do – including of course a hot dog!
Statue of Liberty & Ellis Island
We cannot speak about New York without making reference to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island. We visited both on our latest trip to New York. We chose to do them independently and found that booking trips were easy and quite inexpensive.
The Statue of Liberty is a colossal neoclassical sculpture on Liberty Island in New York Harbour in New York. The copper statue, a gift from the people of France, was designed by French sculptor Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi and its metal framework was built by Gustave Eiffel. It is a magnificent structure yet is not intimidating. You can walk around the outside of the park and the museum without having to enter the structure itself and the self guided tour is extremely good. It also gives you ample opportunity to photograph that iconic New York skyline – weather permitting.
The ferry service can then take you direct to Ellis Island – and to be honest if you do one of these historical features you really need to do the other.
From 1892 to 1924, Ellis Island was America’s largest and most active immigration station, where over 12 million immigrants were processed. On average, the inspection process took approximately 3-7 hours. During both World War I and World War II, its facilities were also used by the US military to detain prisoners of war.
During the forty years it operated, Ellis Island saw more than 12 million immigrants pass through its gates, at a rate of up to 5,000 people a day. Approximately 2% of the migrants were denied entry to the USA usually due to disease or disability.
It is now known as the Ellis Island National Museum of Immigration. We found the building, the tour, the emotive stories and pictures absolutely engrossing. For those wishing to research family history, there are vast records to be explored there.
Brooklyn Bridge
Brooklyn Bridge is yet another landmark that is widely visited and photographed.
The Brooklyn Bridge is a hybrid cable-stayed/suspension bridge in New York City, spanning the East River between the boroughs of Manhattan and Brooklyn. Opened on May 24, 1883, the Brooklyn Bridge was the first fixed crossing of the East River.
Considered a brilliant feat of 19th-century engineering, the Brooklyn Bridge was a bridge of many firsts. It was the first suspension bridge to use steel for its cable wire. It was the first bridge to use explosives in a dangerous underwater device called a caisson.
It is known by a number of names but was officially named Brooklyn Bridge in 1915 after Brooklyn became a part of New York City.
We arrived in New York earlier than expected during our last visit there due to adverse weather conditions elsewhere. So our first day was somewhat unplanned. We took the opportunity to walk from the ship to the Brooklyn Bridge and the DUMBO area. As you can see from our photo above, the weather was somewhat inclement – in fact it poured! Whilst we didn’t head over the bridge itself, the park below it was a nice area to look around and before our walk back along the river. It also afforded us some different angles to photograph the bridge.
The High Line
The High Line is a 1.45-mile-long elevated linear park, greenway, and rail trail created on a former New York Central Railroad spur on the west side of Manhattan in New York City.
It is more than a park. It’s a public space where you can view art, walk through gardens, experience a performance, savour delicious food, or just connect with friends and neighbours—while enjoying a unique perspective of the city.
Built on a historic, elevated freight line, the High Line has become a world-renowned inspiration for how cities can transform industrial infrastructure into beautiful, hybrid public space.
It was opened to the public in 2009.
The High Line was an area that we were keen to explore and found that we had time on our last visit. It was an interesting day with journeys to and from the site on the local New York ferries and then quite a walk to arrive at one end of the High Line. We were perhaps expecting a little more. Although the walk was nice, the weather was good and there were plenty of things to see – somehow we felt something was missing. But we did manage to get some photographs.
You Cannot do it all
There is so much that could be said about our trips to New York. There is so much that we did not touch on during our times there. We have yet to do a Broadway Show, take an evening trip to see the city over a dinner, Grand Central Station, the hidden underground architecture, see New York in the winter and even shopping. The list is endless.
But all that is perhaps for a future trip. For now we will leave you with a few more images that caught our eye on our most recent one.
To check out our experiences in New York just click the video below – and if you enjoy the content simply ‘Like’ and ‘Subscribe’ to see more (subscription is free).