Seven days in New York City is just enough time to taste the best and still have plenty of energy left to play hard in the city that never sleeps. Most people will agree that a trip here would not be complete without seeing the world famous empire State Building especially from the top. Superior views are available from another famous landmark, the Rockefeller Centre when the weather is good. Of course the Statue of Liberty is another favorite if you can handle the crowds which have grown even bigger since nine eleven but you can always stop at Ellis Island which was once the home to the immigration center.

Fortunately, the Staten Island ferry is still free and can provide great views of the Statue of Liberty; it is also worth walking around the terminal as well as there are many excellent street performers there. However, no seven day trip to New York would be complete now without a visit to where the World Trade Center Towers once stood not that long ago. Whilst there is a strange eeriness about the place that is larger than you expect at the same time it does not feel as if it needs to be photographed. The reason many people travel all the way to New York, even for a weekend, is for the stores and you can pop along to Tiffany’s or look for bargains around Broadway and Lower East Side.

Then there is Maceys, where there is always a sale so don’t forget to get your 11 per cent tourist discount card; and you can look but don’t touch at Bloomingdales. At the time of writing the Intrepid Sea, Air and Space Museum was closed for refurbishment but should be open by the fall of 2008; once the refurbishment is complete it will be worth visiting when it re-opens. There is a great deal there with the USS Intrepid taking center stage being a Second World War aircraft carrier but there is a Concorde and other underwater vessels there too. Although it is actually free to enter, the NY City Police Museum is funded by donations from visitors (five dollars is the recommended amount); especially for those people in love with the crime side of New York City!

The migrant period of New York is highlighted in an excellent exhibition at the Lower East Side Tenement Museum where scenes of what made America a great place to be are alongside of scenes America would like to forget. On Central Park is the fascinating Museum of the City of New York with millions of objects for researchers but for tourists, an ever-changing program of exhibitions showing the past, present and future of the Big Apple. More can be learned about the city’s past in this grand building and although once again admission is free, a donation of 9 dollars is advised. There is a huge amount to see and do in this city and if you are staying anything less than seven days in New York, you will hardly scratch the surface! p>