How to Visit the Upper West Side of New York City

The Upper West Side of Manhattan is one of New York City's most distinctive neighborhoods, home to many of the city's cultural elite and grandest apartment buildings. It extends from 59th Street on the south to 125th Street on the north and is bordered by Central Park on the east and the Hudson River on the west. Some of the city's most popular attractions and points of interest are located in the neighborhood, including the Museum of Natural History, the Time-Warner Center, Lincoln Center, Zabars, Columbia University, Riverside Park and Grant's Tomb.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

1. Visit the Time-Warner Center. This upscale shopping mall on Columbus Circle at the edge of Central Park opened in 2003. The complex includes boutiques, restaurants, bars and a Whole Foods supermarket. Two of the city's most acclaimed restaurants, Per Se and Masa, are located here. The views of Columbus Circle and Central Park from the third floor observation area are magnificent.

2. Visit Lincoln Center, one of the world's leading performing arts centers. The Center is home to The Metropolitan Opera, New York City Ballet, New York City Opera and the New York Philharmonic. Thousands of performances, educational programs and other arts events are presented each year in 22 separate performance venues on the Lincoln Center campus. The fountain in the Lincoln Center courtyard is one of the Upper West Side's iconic locations.

3. 
   Dakota Apartments

   Visit the Dakota Apartments. Located at 72nd Street and Central Park West, the Dakota is a grand, 19th century apartment building. The building is most famous as the home of John Lennon and Yoko Ono and the site of his assassination. It is also renowned for its appearance in the movie "Rosemary's Baby". Strawberry Fields, a garden endowed by Yoko Ono in memory of John Lennon, is just across the street in Central Park.

4. Visit the Museum of Natural History. Located at 79th Street and Central Park West, the museum houses the most important collection of dinosaur bones and fossils in the United States. There are 45 exhibition halls in total. Among the most popular are the hall of fossils, the hall of gems, the hall of meteorites, the hall of ocean life and the hall of reptiles and amphibians. The museum is open daily from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.

5. 
   Zabars

   Visit Zabars. An Upper West Side institution, this epicurean emporium on 80th Street and Broadway is part old-fashioned Jewish deli and part gourmet paradise. The sliced meat and smoked fish departments are legendary. There are prepared entrees like roasted chickens and ducks and appetizers of all kinds. The bakery and cheese departments are immense. There's also a fabulous housewares and kitchen equipment department. Best of all, prices are remarkably reasonable, given the quality, and there are always free samples to taste. After 7:00 p.m., a half-hour before closing time, many prepared food products are marked down for fast sale.

6. 
   Filene's Basement

   Shop on Broadway. A mecca for shoppers, Broadway above 72nd Street features an array of national retailers like Urban Outfitters, Victoria's Secret and the Gap, discount designer shops like Filene's Basement and Loehmann's and many one-of-a-kind specialty boutiques.

7. 
   Riverside Park

   Visit Riverside Park. Another one of Frederick Law Olmsted's magnificent natural creations, Riverside Park is the Upper West Side's backyard, stretching from 72nd Street all the way to 155th street along the Hudson River. There are wide paths for walking, jogging and biking, lawns and gardens for picnicking, children's playgrounds, dog parks, sports courts and facilities, monuments and historic sites, all with beautiful views of the Hudson River.

8. 
   St. Michael's Church

   Visit St. Michaels Episcopal Church. St. Michaels at 99th Street and Amsterdam Ave. features beautiful Tiffany stained glass windows in its main sanctuary. The only time to view them from the inside is during religious services, although they can be clearly seen and appreciated from the exterior as well.

9. 
   Cathedral of St. John the Divine

   Visit the Cathedral of St. John the Divine. Located at 112th Street and Amsterdam Ave., this structure is the largest Anglican Cathedral and the third largest church in the world. It is designed in the classic Gothic style and was begun in 1892, yet it remains uncompleted and still under construction to this day. Visitors are welcome from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m., seven days a week.

10. 
    Tom's Restaurant

    Visit Tom's Restaurant. Located at 112th Street and Broadway, Tom's is the model for the diner on the Seinfeld television show and the exterior neon sign was shown in practically every episode. During Seinfeld's first season, the fictional diner was also known as Tom's but it was changed to Monk's during the second season so the producers wouldn't have to pay the owner any fair-use fees.

11. 
    Columbia University

    Visit Columbia University. New York's Ivy League university and one of the top institutions of higher learning in the world, Columbia is located at 116th street and Broadway. Its ivy-covered brick buildings, many designed by New York's most prominent architects, surround an open quad and represent the ideal of what a college campus should look like.

12. 
    Grant's Tomb

    Visit Grant's Tomb. The final resting place of the eighteenth U.S. President, Ulysses S. Grant, Grant's Tomb at 122nd Street and Riverside Drive is the largest mausoleum in the world. Modeled after Napoleon's Tomb in Paris, it is a tribute to the leader who attempted to heal the wounds of the Civil War. His famous admonition, "Let us have peace," is carved in the pediment above the front door. It's free of charge to enter the serene marble interior.

Resources

• Guide to the Upper West Side