Holiday Destinations

holidaydestinations

New York Through a Kiwi’s Eyes

If visiting New York isn’t on your bucket list, your bucket list needs updating. New York is a busy, bustling city that is full of life and constantly thriving. It has a captivating energy and a new sight to see at every turn, which makes it a fascinating place to be for a tourist. The sights I saw whilst exploring this brilliant city were barely a fraction of what New York has to offer. The Empire State Building, Liberty Island, Times Square, Brooklyn Bridge, Grand Central Station and Central Park are some of the many famed New York attractions. From personal experience, I can tell you that each of these locations is most definitely worth seeing.

The Empire State Building, as the fourth tallest building, provides a breathtaking view of the city. From a height of 1,250 feet (381 m, excluding the antennae), the island of Manhattan can be seen, along with the Hudson River, the East River, Brooklyn Bridge, Central Park, Brooklyn, New Jersey, The Bronx, One World Trade Centre, and much more.

Another classic tourist attraction is Liberty Island, the small island containing the renowned Statue of Liberty. Visiting the island itself allows you to not only view and examine the statue, but to learn about its history and significance, as well as view a new perspective of the city skyline. Not far from Liberty Island, there is another attraction with great historical significance; Ellis Island. Once the United States’ busiest immigrant inspection station, it has incredible history and cultural significance.

Brooklyn Bridge, as a National Historic Landmark and an icon of New York City, is a must-see landmark and an engineering masterpiece, completed in 1883. Our next stop is Grand Central Station, a stunning piece of architecture presented as a main line and subway station and adorned with many eye-catching details and intricate designs that, combined with the astrological mural on the roof, make it a stunning tourist attraction.

Times Square, nicknamed the ‘crossroads of the world’, is a major commercial intersection, entertainment centre and tourist attraction in Midtown Manhattan, filled with people, light, and the digital screens and billboards that adorn the buildings and help make Times Square so recognisable. Central Park is another iconic attraction in Manhattan, spanning 3.41km2 (approximately 1.3 square miles) and containing many tourist attractions within itself, including Belvedere Castle, the Strawberry Fields, and Balto.

Despite only writing about these particular attractions, I have visited and fully recommend many others in New York City, including Radio City Music Hall, Top of the Rock, Madame Tussauds, the 9/11 Memorial, and many more. I strongly hope that, after reading this article, you have made the decision to one day visit the Big Apple and its many attractions.