DAY 1 MONDAY, DECEMBER 8 NEW YORK CITY (D)

Today, we will make our way to the airport for our flight to New York City! Upon arrival, we’ll meet our guide and coach to visit the Grand Central Terminal to marvel at its stunning architecture and explore its festive Christmas Market. Our exploration of Midtown Manhattan continues with a guided tour, including Times Square, Rockefeller Center, and Fifth Avenue. We will then check into the RIU Hotel. Dinner tonight is at Café 123, a lively and fun French-influenced restaurant. It’s the perfect way for everyone to get to know one another, and no one will leave hungry!

DAY 2 TUESDAY, DECEMBER 9 NEW YORK CITY (B)

After breakfast at our hotel, we’ll meet our guide and coach to do more sightseeing in Midtown Manhattan. We will have time to sit and talk to a performer from one of Broadway’s current shows at a rehearsal studio in the Theater District. This session will include personal success stories, career moments, and insight into their life as a performer. A backstage tour awaits us next
at Radio City Music Hall, the iconic theater with a long, rich history and beautiful architecture. Next, we will head to Top of the Rock for admission to the 70th-floor indoor/outdoor observation deck above Rockefeller Center. Enjoy a self-guided tour of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in the afternoon, adorned with holiday magic. The majestic Medieval Sculpture Hall showcases a 20-foot Christmas tree decorated with Neapolitan Baroque nativity figures, while the museum also features a magnificent nineteenth-century silver Menorah. Dinner tonight is on your own before we enjoy another New York tradition – the Radio City Music Hall Christmas Spectacular! Orchestra seating awaits this warm and unforgettable spectacle featuring the Rockettes. After the show, time will be available to stroll to the nearby Rockefeller Center, where the Christmas tree is ablaze with thousands of lights.

DAY 3 WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 10 NEW YORK CITY (B, D)

Enjoy breakfast this morning before meeting our guide and motorcoach for sightseeing in Lower Manhattan, including Little Italy, Greenwich Village, Chinatown, the World Trade Center, and the Lower East Side. We will also have time at the National 9/11 Memorial for reflection. Our guide will lead us around the area, describing the renaissance of the area from before, during, and after 9/11. We’ll then visit the National 9/11 Museum, a moving and powerful testament
to survival and rebirth. Next is a food tour in Greenwich Village that will have us sampling the wonderful foods at family-owned eateries. Then it’s time for the High Line, a public park built on a historic freight rail elevated above Manhattan’s West Side streets. Saved from demolition
by neighborhood residents and the city, the High Line opened in 2009 as a hybrid public space where visitors experience nature, art, and design. Dinner this evening will be enjoyed at a lovely restaurant near our hotel, followed by orchestra seating at a hit Broadway show.

DAY 4 THURSDAY, DECEMBER 11 NEW YORK CITY (B, D)

Following breakfast at the hotel, the day is yours to explore this magnificent city alone. There are endless possibilities, including shopping or hopping on a double-decker bus for more sightseeing. Later this afternoon, we are off to Brooklyn, a borough with a colorful history! It is home to nearly every nationality and by itself would be the USA’s fourth-largest city. Dinner will be served at a fun restaurant in the very Italian neighborhood of Bensonhurst. Then it’s on to Dkyer Heights. To say this neighborhood is well-known for its Christmas decorations is an understatement. It is loaded with elegant and tacky decorations and is a definite must-see. Walk through some streets with our guide for the whole experience or enjoy the spectacle aboard the motorcoach.

DAY 5 FRIDAY, DECEMBER 12 NEW YORK CITY (B)

Our day begins with breakfast before we board the ferry to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island, two of the most famous symbols of American freedom. From the ferry, we can take in the up-close views of the Lady in the Harbor. Then, we will explore Ellis Island to discover the moving stories of the many immigrants who came here to pursue a better life. We will then transfer to the airport for our flight home.