New York is Booming.

New York is Booming

The weather may have been foul in New York last week and air travelers suffered enormous delays but that will not take away the fact that in terms of air travel "Big Apple" is booming. True as far as international passengers are concerned JFK and Newark have a long way to go before they begin to challenge the mighty hubs of Europe, Heathrow, Frankfurt and Paris but the numbers are creeping up. With the advent of the Airbus A340-600 and Boeing 777 ER/LR those coming and going to the cities of the Middle East and Asia are bypassing the European centers and making New York nonstop. This does not mean that Heathrow for instance is set for a decline, far from it, but the airport operators of Europe do need the watch what is going on the other side of the Atlantic.

Figures just published show that New York can claim to be the busiest air center in the US moving nearly 100m passengers, admittedly with three major airports. JFK led the way with nearly 41m passengers last year, whilst Newark handled about 33m and LaGuardia Airport served approximately 26m, all domestic passengers. All three airports are operated by The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey who anticipates continued growth in passenger traffic in 2006, with the agency's airport analysts projecting a total of more than 102.5m passengers this year.

Together with the tenant airlines the Porth Authority of NY & NY has spent considerable sums of money over the last decade in upgrading firstly Newark and latterly Kennedy to true international standards. Both are now bright and modern and both have AirTrain links between the various terminals and excellent railway connections to downtown Manhattan. JFK has been the subject of an excellent well illustrated book by the British journalist Mark Blacklock which takes you through the history of the airport and its marvelous transformation. The airport authorities allowed him to launch the book in Terminal 4 where also the Virgin Clubhouse is located. The work is still not finished in its entirety and will not be completed until 2009 with the completion of the Jet Blue terminal.

Unlike London, New York, or rather Manhattan, is restricted in its area, with the Hudson and the East River on either side, stretching from Battery Park to Spuyten Duyvil Creek bordering The Bronx, from south to north. It is a true walking city, flat, and now pretty safe. If you are visiting New York for the first time commit yourself to a Gray Line bus tour as the first initiative. From Times Square you can take the ride via Harlem or Wall Street, or better still both. However, and it's somewhat more expensive and considerably shorter, we would recommend a helicopter trip down to Ellis Island by Liberty Helicopters whose heliport is but a short distance from both the main ferry terminal and Intrepid museum and memorial ship, which now includes Concorde.

One of the great delights when visiting New York is to see a Broadway show. Sometimes you can even get in at a discount from the booth in Times Square, but that is not the case with Spamalot, a quintessential British show that is playing to packed houses. If you are going to New York this summer visit the web site, book ahead, and you will be amazed. Try and figure out how Americans can understand British humor. Spamalot is loosely based on the 1975 film Monty Python and the Holy Grail. It is a kind of mock medieval romp featuring a crazy King Arthur and some idiot knights. Somewhere along the vague story line the show ridicules the Finns, French, Germans, British (in the New York version at least), but not Moslems. It has won a Tony award for best musical and is taking a million dollars a week at the box office. Making a "guest" appearance is John Cleese but not the real John Cleese, only his recorded voice "This is God speaking". Alternatively it is arriving at the Palace Theatre in London in October. Book early.

Perhaps the most economical way of seeing New York is to purchase a City Pass which includes the Empire State Building, American Museum of Natural History, Intrepid, the Guggenheim Museum and a Circle Line Harbor Cruise. Price is $53 for a nine-day pass with youngsters charged $41 and those under six free.

One question always asked is just where to stay. New York hotels have improved immensely over the years and range from the ultimate luxury to very basic but clean accommodation more suitable for the younger set. Your editor stayed at the Helmsley, by Grand Central Station, on his latest visit to the Big Apple, a hotel popular with the airlines. It's nicely appointed with friendly staff and a five-minute walk from Times Square. The pricing is reasonable too.

For more information:

http://www.nycvisit.com

http://www.panynj.gov

http://www.montypythonsspamalot.com