New York | Brooklyn Bridge | DUMBO | Ellen’s Stardust Diner
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 10 ธ.ค. 2024
- Join us on our last full day in New York City as we travel on the Subway from Midtown to Brooklyn Bridge. We then walk across the bridge and spend some time in DUMBO, before wandering back for a chill before going to Ellen's Stardust Diner for our dinner. A great last full day!!
Ellen Stardust looked very good! He was a good singer and great on the eye 😂
Ha ha!! 🤣
Another fantastic video, I love the Brooklyn Bridge, and miss crossing it. I especially loved Stardust Restuarent, a restaurant I have not been to. It looks very good and well worth visiting. I look forward to your family next video.
Stardust was great fun, the food was pretty average! I’d go for breakfast there next time.
Glad you are enjoying your time in NY, hope your family is enjoying it as much as you. Went to school (univ) there, and having Manhattan as your playground is incredible. More recommendations for your trip to California next year:
[1] Reminder to book your Alcatraz tickets in advance, as no tickets will be available when you are here. Tickets go fast. I recommend a morning 10-ish depart time from the pier, leaves the rest of the day free for other activities. Plus, it can get very crowded as the day goes on. Dress in layers as it can get cold on the island and inside the bldgs.
[2] Hotel stays. In SF, I recommend either the Union Square area or Fisherman’s Wharf. In LA, I wouldn’t use the LAX area, Hollywood or downtown LA. Too much traffic for the first, lots of homeless in the area for the other two. Santa Monica and the West Hollywood/Beverly Grove areas are worth checking out, or ask others you know who have been there recently for their recommendations. It really depends what you plan to see, and where they are located, as LA is so spread out. For LA, when you are building your itinerary, you want to group things that are close together to minimize drive time. For Anaheim, there are plenty of hotels around Disneyland, all within walking distance. Do note most of the hotels in these three cities will charge guests for parking. It can be outrageous - up to $80/night. When you do your hotel search, see which ones might offer free parking, as well as what the price is for parking so there is no sticker shock after you arrive. You do not need a car in SF, unless you plan to do day trips out of the city.
[3] Don’t plan to use public transit in LA. It’s not geared for tourist use, and for locals, it sucks. In SF, you can get a visitor’s multi-day MUNI pass. The best place to get it is at the booth located next to the cable car turnaround at Market and Powell Sts. The pass is good for transit within SF and on MUNI only. This is SF’s public transportation system. Don’t get it confused with BART, which serves the Bay Area, and is basically to bring people from the suburbs into SF.
[4] There are two routes for the cable cars in SF. Don’t bother with the one that starts near the Ferry Building (Market St and Embarcadero, next to the Hyatt), as it is lame and a joke, and basically flat. The one you see in movies and on tv with the hills is the route that runs between the cable car turnaround at Market and Powell Sts and Fisherman’s Wharf. Don’t know if the visitor’s MUNI pass includes rides on the cable car, so best to ask at the time of purchase, as you might have to buy separate tickets. Best time to ride it is morning (around 9-ish) and evenings/nights. During the day, the line can get very long.
[5] I had mentioned the best way to see the Golden Gate Bridge is by bike. You can rent bikes at Fisherman’s Wharf. Dress in layers, as the bridge can get cold.
[6] If you fly out of LAX, give yourself more than the suggested time to get there. There always seems to be delays getting there. Speaking of which, the same practice should be used for LA in general, especially if you have timed tickets. I wouldn’t rely on what your gps tells you. Sometimes the travel gods will be on your side, but most of the time, you’ll encounter traffic, especially during rush hour.
[7] Don’t leave anything in your car. It doesn’t seem to be a problem anymore, but we were having months of high rates of car break-ins here in CA. Just don’t put yourself at risk. I’m sure a lot of these rules apply to London and other large UK cities.
[8] One thing tourists from all over have on their must-do list when visiting CA (and the west coast) is to eat at In-N-Out Burgers. (The fast food chain is located in only about ten states. When it recently opened its first location in a new state, people drove up to four hours to eat there, only to have to wait another eight hours in line when they got there to put in their orders. There’s a cult following around it. All the British YT Disney vloggers I’ve watched who trek to LA swear by it.). The menu is limited, but it has a ‘hidden menu’ that you can order off only if you know about it, so Google beforehand what is on the hidden menu. BTW, there’s a very popular British duo who do YT mukbang videos, mostly of American food. It claims Americans dip their fries into milkshakes. We don’t, unless you are maybe 2 or 3 yo. This rumor has since caught on with other foreigners. I think the rumor started on its In-N-Out Burger episode.
[9] When visiting SF, people want to go to Silicon Valley to see the large tech companies. You won’t see much other than large commercial buildings with their names on them and lots of traffic. Not worth your while.
[10] Consider doing the Hop On/Hop Off bus in SF. It’s a good way to get around and see the sites. SF is small - 7 miles x 7 miles. It’s the hills that make it difficult to get around on foot. It has stops at both the Union Square area (across from the Cheesecake Factory) and Fisherman’s wharf.
[11] You might consider taking in a baseball game while in LA or SF. If the latter, dress in layers, as it can get cold.
[12] Can’t remember if you are heading to Las Vegas. If you are, let me know, and I can share some tips. It’s one of those places you have to go to at least once. I see people touting these free online gaming sites where you earn points for free hotel stays, which includes the Bellagio, as well as chips for gambling.
[13] The American carriers and large hotel chains will have hotel offers that can be super cheap - they are often timeshare deals. Hilton Hotels, in conjunction with United Airlines - the carrier I use, constantly sends me these great offers for Vegas, NYC, Orlando and other tourist hotspots. For example, I can buy a 4d/3n stay at the Hilton in Vegas for only $129 ($700+ if I booked directly with Hilton). After attending the sales presentation, no commitments required, it’ll refund the entire amount paid. They have the same $129 offer for the other aforementioned cities. Look into this for future trips to the US. This is especially true if you are planning to visit Hawaii. The carriers to Hawaii often will have very cheap deals for flight/hotel; these aren’t timeshares either.
Thanks again Billy 👍🏻
@@FirmansDoFlorida if you need additional info on CA as your trip gets closer next year, just drop me a line. A few more things: [1] The Hollywood sign. There are various points to see it. You can either hike up to it, or look for a vantage point to see it at street level and take pictures. If you do a Google search, it will give you a variety of places for viewpoints. [2] A popular excursion from SF is to go to the wineries in Napa and Sonoma. If this is something that interests you, I’d plan a weekday visit, as they can get crowded on the weekends. [3] Sausalito is a nice side trip from SF; it’s a small, quaint, picturesque town just across the bay. It’s nice to go there for maybe a nice early dinner. You can take the commuter ferry from the Ferry Bldg - possibly from Fisherman’s Wharf as well, a bus from the Salesforce Transit station, or drive. The ferry is a nice way to get there, but it might have a more limited schedule, so a good choice would be to take the ferry out, then return by bus. Check the schedules online. Make a restaurant reservation in advance, as the restaurants are very popular. [4] SF MUNI includes the historical streetcars, which tourists like to ride. They’re fun, as they date back to the 1930s and 40s. If you get the MUNI pass to ride the buses, riding on the streetcars is included in the fare. Just ask about the cable cars, as I am almost positive you have to pay extra. Tourists tend to ride the streetcars from the Ferry Bldg stop to get to Fisherman’s Wharf. It gets extremely crowded at that stop, so you’ll likely have to wait a bit to board a car. My recommendation is to get on the streetcar at the Powell/Market stop to avoid the crowds. The Westfield Mall is on one side of the stop on Market Street, with the Powell/Market cable car turnaround on the other side of the street. The mall has two food courts in the lower level, which is an option for eating, with The Cheesecake Factory about three blocks away; The Cheesecake Factory is located inside Macy’s. (The Ferry Bldg is a nice place to stop off for restaurants, snacks, shops.). [4] Market St is the main st of SF. The Embarcadero is a nice place to walk, as it is flat, and is along the waterfront. [5] If you are looking for a nice sit down restaurant in SF, then try one on the Embarcadero, just a few blocks south of the Ferry Bldg. There are also some nice, small boutique hotels in that same area. There is a Hyatt across from the Ferry Bldg. These are hotels worth checking out as well. SF was hit very hard during the pandemic. So many retail shops and restaurants shut down, and the vacancy rate for office space is extremely high, like 50% -80%. The area around the Ferry Bldg was especially hit hard, and hasn’t recovered. Union Square and Fisherman’s Wharf have more foot traffic in the areas, and access to restaurants, Target stores, Walgreen’s, and other things you may want or need at any hour. The Embarcadero area is a great place to stay, but it goes quiet early, with the exception of the nice restaurants. That’s why I’m suggesting you consider either the Union Square area or Fisherman’s Wharf for your stay.
This is awesome Billy, Carly has made a note of all this for her planning! Thanks again 👍🏻
@@FirmansDoFlorida With your wife doing all the trip planning and logistics, instead of taking her to a nice meal like you did in NY, I suggest you surprise her by taking her on a shopping spree on Rodeo Drive instead while you make your way thru Beverly Hills. A little suggestion. Just notify your credit card company in advance! Again, as you plan your trip, and have questions on CA, just drop me a line.
She needs no encouragement to spend money Billy! 😂