NEW YORK - 2016

The Big Apple has always been on my bucket list, so Mrs H and I took the opportunity to take two of our oldest grandsons (aged 14 and 16) with us for a whirlwind tour of the city that never sleeps. The young H's were very excited and I'd highly recommend NYC as a great destination for teenagers.

We flew into JFK. I'd pre-organised transfers but it is easy to grab a big yellow taxi straight into Manhattan which is approximately 60 minutes away, depending on traffic.

Having booked many trips for customers to NYC, I knew exactly the right kind of hotels to match our needs and budget. We wanted to be right in the very heart of it so we opted for The Crowne Plaza in Times Square. Like most city centres across the world, unless you are paying top prices, the bedrooms tend to be on the small side but the location was unbeatable.

We crammed an unbelievable amount in to our four night trip. An open top bus tour is a great idea in order to get a quick grasp of where you are in relation to the sights and they are very flexible as you can hop on/hop off as often as you like. Times Square was awesome both through the day and at night once the dazzling lights are on. And with Broadway just around the corner we had millions of entertainment and dining options right on our doorstep. Central Park was a particular highlight and unbelievably huge with lots to do including ice skating, horse and carriage rides and Strawberry Fields (The John Lennon Memorial) which Mrs H especially enjoyed.

We caught the free ferry to Staten Island to visit the Statue of Liberty. Here's a top tip: stand on the right on the way out and the left on the way back in for the best views and photo opportunities. We also visited The Rockefeller Center, the 9/11 Museum and The Empire State Building. Plus, the young H's wanted to get some shopping in too. The Apple Store is huge and they loved exploring this as well as stocking up on a few designer labels from Macy's, Bloomingdale's and Century 21. We also managed to squeeze in a Broadway show, an American Football game and some great steak restaurants.

There was no way we could do everything in our short trip, but we gave it a good go!

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