Tomi's Top 15 Picks

Here's a quick list of some of the places I'd love to visit during my trip to New York.

#15: Brooklyn Botanic Garden A lovely floral facility filled with over a dozen uniquely themed gardens. Personally, I think that a lewisite walk through a flower garden is a great way to relax, and with so many gardens to visit, I think that the Brooklyn Botanic Garden is a great place to go. The Brooklyn Botanic Garden even has a café and gift shop.

#14: The Empire State Building As one of New York's more notable sites, this skyscraper is New York's 3rd tallest building towering at 102 flights, or about 1,050 feet. With it's 1,872 steps the Empire State Building is absolutely breathtaking in every sense of the word!

#13: The Guggenheim Museum An art museum that focuses on contemporal impressionist art. Even it's own exterior is considered a wondrous piece of example of architecture and art, with it's interesting outer appearance being designed by Frank Lloyd Wright.

#12 Wave Hill Another botanical garden that, unlike Brooklyn Botanic, hosts many tours and projects that seek to promote the artistic value of gardens and botany. Their programs range from music festivals to meets with professional artists.

#11 The Museum of Modern Art Another great place to visit would be The Museum of Modern Art As it's name suggests, this museum showcases only contemporary artwork. The Museum is home to many famous works such as Vincent van Gogh's The Starry Night.

#10: The Statue of Liberty And how can someone even think about not visiting the Statue of Liberty? The world-famous monument is one of New York's iconic tourist attractions and I certainly don't want to miss out on my one and only chance to see either.

#9: The Metropolitan Museum of Art Yet another New York City must see! The Museum is said to house one of the largest collections of art in the world, so I'm sure that both my fellow cohorts and myself will be able stay entertained.

#8 The Museum of Arts and Design The Museum of Arts and Design, also known as MAD, specializes in featuring modern art that is handmade. I think the musuem's handcrafted creations will be able to provide a unique artistic experience.

#7: Staten Island Ferry A 30 minute ferry ride that runs along New York Bay, passing by many other attractions such as the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island. I've never been on a boat before--let alone a ferry! As one of my main goals during this trip is to experience new things, I hope to take a ride on the ferry some time this summer. Best of all, the ferry ride is completely free!

 #6: The Cooper-Hewitt Museum, National Design Museum This museum focuses on both contemporary and traditional design works--and is notable for being the only museum in the United States to house both modern and historical artworks. I think that a museum that could accomplish such a breakthrough definitely deserves a visit, don't you? 

#5: The American Museum of Natural History Yet another New York museum that I'd love to visit. With exhibits including the Milstein Hall of Ocean Life, Harry Frank Guggenheim Hall of Gems and Minerals, halls such dedicated to showcasing countless skeletal specimens and even a planetarium!

#4: Rockefeller Center Inside the building includes the Radio Music Center, rooftop garden called the GE Building, and an art center. The Rockefeller Center seems to combine all of the previous attractions' highlights into one place! It even has a nightclub and restaurant called the Rainbow Room! Though I'm way too young to be even thinking about entering the Rainbow Room, I hope to revisit the Center when I finally am.

#3: Central Park Central Park doubles as both a recreational park and a national landmark with popular sites including Central Park Zoo and Cleopatra's Needle. As for activities, visitors have many options to choose from including various sports such as rock climbing, strawberry picking, carriage and carousel rides, and many art performances that are open to the public for free. I think that a day at Central Park would be a fantastic experience, and a tad but overwhelming with all the things to see and do.

#2: Coney Island Coney Island is a wonderfully exciting place that is filled with countless tourist attractions including multiple theme parks, roller coasters, a Ferris Wheel, an aquarium, a beach, and even parades--including the Coney Island Mermaid Parade that is to be held this June. With so much to do, it seems like one can spend their entire summer vacation on the island!

#1: Times Square Times Square! The crossroad intersection is famous for it's jam-packed streets, illuminated by the many brightly colored neon signs that nearly completely cover every building. I've always wanted to visit the Square and see the beautiful, busy streets for myself, so I hope that my trip to New York will make this dream become a reality! 

Websites that I used to gather information about these sites include their official webpages--which are linked in the list itself--as well as New York Pass, NYC Go, and NYC Tourist.