The areas of this route are characterized by very different personalities. Tourist and crowded Midtown West and Theater District, residential and much quieter the West Side.
Summary sheet
Places to Visit
Midtown West is a very commercial area and in particular the Theater District is filled with theaters, while the West Side is basically a residential area. In the theater district there is Times Square with its thousand lights and the headquarters of the NASDAQ, part of the American stock exchange where the main technological titles are traded.
Culture
A culturally rich and lively area with many theaters in the Theater District, including Radio City Music Hall, Carnegie Hall and the concert halls of Lincoln Center. Major museums include the prestigious American Museum of Natural History, the Intrepid Sea-Air Space Museum, the Museum of American Folk Art, the New York Historical Society, and the Children's Museum of Manhattan. In this area there is also the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center, the exhibition center of New York.
Food & shopping
Very commercial is the Theater District, a little less the West Side and right on the border between the two areas the Time Warner Center. There are restaurants, the View Restaurant & Lounge, which rests on a turntable, and the Tavern on the Green, which is located inside Central Park.
Length and Visit Time (without visits)
5 km - 1h30’-2h00’
Map
Map created with Google Maps
Itinerary
Subway: 1, 2, 3, 7, N, Q, R, S, W (Times Sq./42nd St.)
We depart from the subway station at Times Sq./42nd St. to go and discover the theater area by walking north on Broadway. The stretch between 42nd St. and 47th St. is the famous and crowded
Times Square. On the right side at the corner with 43rd St. is the
NASDAQ and on the right side on 45th St. is the
Lyceum Theater operating since 1903. Follow Broadway north to 54th St., here on the right and then left on 7th Ave. to 57th St. where on the right is
Carnegie Hall. Now left over 57th St. to 8th Ave., at this intersection in the southwest corner is
Hearst Tower. Right on 8th Ave. to
Columbus Circle where there is one of the entrances to Central Park, as well as the
Time Warner Center and the
Museum of Arts and Design. From this point on, a predominantly residential area begins.
Follow Broadway north where in the stretch between 62nd St. and 65th St. on the left side there is the large
Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts. Continuing on Broadway you will find between 65th St. and 66th St. the
Museum of American Folk Art, then right on 66th St. where there is the headquarters of the ABC (American Broadcasting Company) and opposite a building that looks like an old castle. A little further on is Central Park West, at number 55, just to the right, the building where they shot the final scenes of Ghostbusters movie. Here in Central Park is the famous restaurant
Tavern on the Green.
Follow Central Park West walking north to 72nd St. to meet the
Dakota Apartments sadly known as the place where John Lennon was killed right on the front door. Here in Central Park, opposite 72nd St., is
Strawberry Fields, the memorial created in memory of the singer. A few more blocks north to reach one of the city's largest museums, the
American Museum of Natural History. If you decide to go to the museum you must consider a minimum of two or three hours for the visit. You can then continue on 77th St. to Broadway, then left to reach 72nd St. where there is the subway station.
Subway: 1, 2, 3 (72nd St.)