Hi there,

We are going to be spending our honeymoon in NY in June 2010. Other than the usual touristy things, can you suggest some different places we can visit? Good restaurants, nice walks etc.

Thanks,
Claire.

Claire
We are getting married in NY this summer and spending 5 days there. I'll send you our itinerary and comments on how it turned out afterwards. I think the main thing is to have a clear itinerary so you don't waste time once you're there! One tip we've picked up is to get a New York/City Pass to visit a range of sights.
I look forward to hearing others' suggestions!

I would go to Harlem.

I would start with [www.harlemheritage.com]

My short list of 'romantic' out-of-the-way places.

The Cloisters, esp the gardens, and lunch at the New Leaf Cafe in Fort Tryon.
A free Staten Island ferry ride and a walk to Snug Harbor, OR the sunset cruise on the Circle Line - hokey and silly, but glorious views at sunset. Be sure to bring your own gourmet picnic as the food is terrible. Get a $3 off coupon at the tourist office.
The Noguchi museum in Queens. Take the gondola to Roosevelt Island and walk over the little bridge. Peaceful and quirky.
Dinner or sunday brunch in the lovely back garden at Gavroche [www.gavroche-ny.com] on 14th street. By the fountain.
Take the ferry to Brooklyn (or the subway to Borough Hall), have lunch on the promenade, and walk back over the bridge and have dinner at Les Halles on John Street.
Just walk Central Park. I often walk from Morningside Park (start behind the Cathedral of St. John the Divine, after having a nice coffee at the Hungarian Pastry Shop) and walk down to Central Park, around Harlem Meer and through the Conservatory Garden, across the street to the Museum of the City of New York, then back in the park, down to the Met Museum for coffee - pay what you can - or the Guggenheim, etc., then through the park all the way down to the Plaza (E) OR the Time Warner Center (W) for the view from the mezzanine. Or sometimes I walk north, around the reservoir and up through the Northern Woods and the Pool - stunningly beautiful, and much less crowded than the lower park. Try Carl Schurtz Park too, up by Gracie Mansion. Or walk the Hudson River park from Battery Park to Chelsea Piers. Or Riverside Park, up by Columbia.
Or walk Broadway from Central Park to Soho, stopping by Madison Park and Union Square and then popping over to Washington Square park. The Forbes Galleries (forbesgalleries.com) at 12th and 5th aren't as big (since they sold the Faberges) but still fun and FREE and have great washrooms! At the bottom of Broadway, the Customs House at Battery Park is free, has good washrooms, and has traveling exhibits from the National Museum of the American Indian, now in Wash. [www.americanindian.si.edu] -whoops! no more space! Cheers --

If you or your hubby care for a historic, one-of-a-kind drinking establishment, go to McSorley's Old Ale House - survived Prohibition, serves only two things, their stock ale which comes only as Light or Dark, and can be said to have hosted the likes of everyone from John Lennon to Abraham Lincoln. Go on a weekday and during the early to mid-afternoon for a relaxed atmosphere; weekends and nights are relentlessly packed and the line outside getting in can be long.

Spend time on Google Map to get the lay of the city; and getting to know the subway system may help you out with expenses - cabs are not as cost-effective in the long-term and the subway can get you where you want to go faster than above ground, where streets are often jammed with traffic.