The City at Its Most Inviting: Autumn in New York

BY IRVINA LEW

Trade towers that were destroyed on September 11, 2001. You can learn more about the legacy of the attacks at the nearby National September 11 Memorial & Museum. The memorial portion includes two reflecting pools with North America’s largest manmade waterfalls.

Further along the west side you’ll find a spot where community activists united to preserve a rotting freight railroad spur. Today, the exquisitely landscaped 1.45-mile-long elevated linear park known as the High Line links Gansevort and 34th Streets (with various elevator accesses and a ramp at 34th and 12th). Docents offer garden and art tours, volunteers help plant, and in the course of just a few short years this scenic route has become a public

living room and one of Manhattan’s most popular fair-weather places.

Up in midtown, The Top of the Rock observation decks, 850 feet above street level at 30 Rockefeller Plaza, offer fresh air and incomparable views from atop the Art Deco skyscraper. First opened in 1933, the original design evokes an ocean liner, complete with large, stack-like air vents. There are 360° views from Central Park to the Chrysler and Empire State buildings.

At street level you’ll find of the city’s most magical spots: The Rink at Rockefeller Center, a tradition that dates back 81 years. It officially reopened for the season on October 11th this year.

Wherever you choose to experience it, autumn in New York is a delight.

Statue Cruises is your connection to Lady Liberty, with stunning New York Harbor views all the way.

The lyrics of Vernon Duke’s Autumn in New York lead listeners from “canyons of steel” to “benches in Central Park,” providing a taste of how inviting the city really is in fall. On clear October days, the sophisticated city becomes

an outdoorsy nirvana where Great Lawns vie with High Line walkways, pocket parks, riverside promenades, and spectacular rooftop observation decks.

Waterway cruises circle it all.
Circle Line Sightseeing Cruises leaves from Midtown West and connects with some of the best views of the skyline— including unforgettable encounters with the city’s historic bridges and other landmarks. Brand new, state-of-the-art Empire Class ships have recently launched, providing quieter rides, better sound for the personable onboard guides, bigger windows, improved climate control, and more outdoor deck space.

Downtown you can access the Statue of Liberty, which celebrates its anniversary in October (the 28th). The statue, designed by French sculptor Frederick Bartholdi and framed by French architect Gustave Eiffel, was a gift from the people of France in 1886. Statue Cruises provides passenger access to Lady Liberty and Ellis Island from historic Castle Clinton in Battery Park.

West of the park, along the Hudson, lies the Battery Park Promenade,
which hosts the Museum of Jewish Heritage—A Living Memorial to the Holocaust, an institution that celebrates the lives and traditions of both those who survived and those who perished

in the Shoah. It’s beautifully sited along parkland and waterfront, capped by Andy Goldsworthy’s beautiful living memorial, Garden of Stones.

The nearby One World Trade Center offers an observatory located
on the top three floors (100, 101, and 102 to be exact) with stunning views
all around. The tallest building in the Western Hemisphere rises to 1,776 feet, a height that pays homage to the year the U.S. Declaration of Independence was signed. One World Trade Center was built on the site of the original World

City Guide NY
Cover Story by Irvina Lew