Biting into the Big Apple

Photo Credits: Filia Artis

Yep, that's right, we're heading out to New York City this weekend for a family function, so things will be a little quiet here at The Do-tique over the next few days. 

These are some (slightly unusual?) photos from our most recent trip in 2008.

A crazy car elevator parking lot - we don't have these in Toronto yet.

Waiting out a rainstorm with George W. at the NY Stock Exchange

The white building in the middle was my all-time favorite,
but has been closed to tourists now since 9/11.

Since in my family, the motto is "Live to Eat" and not eat to live, that day, we planned our trip around a theme of "walk and eat" trying out all the New York traditional foods. We started off with brunch in Brooklyn and moved on to what my cousins call "Dirty Water Dogs" - hot dogs from street vendors on Wall St. Then it was pizza and cannoli in Little Italy, spring rolls in Chinatown, ice cream near Central Park and Cajun food along the West River. Did we miss bagels? Probably not, but I don't remember! 

Hubby is a prairie boy, so the Big Apple was a bit big for him and we stuck to just walking around the city for his first visit. I'm not sure what our plan is this time, but we were both hoping to get inside a few galleries or sites this time. 

I LOVE Times Square, Hubby thought
it was a bit louder than Alberta

Lest I should end this without giving you the "how to," here is a great DIY Travel Agent tip...

One of the best websites out there for Canadians is Travelzoo. Unlike sites like Expedia or Travelocity, you don't actually book anything through this site. What it does is lists special prices and a discount code. You usually go right to the website for that hotel, airline, etc and when you book your travel either online or on the phone, you provide that code to get the Travelzoo price. It's fairly random in terms of what is going to be out there, but the deals are usually for specialty and boutique hotels that are trying to drum up business - so you get a great location, a deep discount and zero hassle - no need for an account and regular cancellation policies apply rather than the restrictive ones that come with other sites (ie. Priceline).

My strategy is to book a regular hotel and make sure that I can cancel up to the last minute. Then, I stay tuned to Travelzoo in case a better option comes up and make the switch over. That way I always know I have something, but can always upgrade. You can also subscribe to their weekly e-newsletter and get a list of the 20 best deals for that week. 

Overall, I've stayed at some amazing hotels at astounding prices and they also have a lot of deals with Broadway shows and other attractions too.

In the meanwhile, I'll leave you with this image, which perfectly resembles how we'll be sure to look after attending a rockin' family party on Long Island on Friday night. You can check out the rest of the cool images in The Book of Sleep.

Photo Credit: Square America

DIY Rating: 10

No one should go to their grave 

without visiting Manhattan at least once.

If you want to make it easy, be sure to try 

Travelzoo when you are booking your trip.

You can always nap later!