Concierge Choice

Top Sights

• Cherry Blossom Season at The Brooklyn Botanic Garden
  1 - 29 April 2012
  Celebrate the canopy of blossoms as the Brooklyn Botanic Garden  comes to life this spring with the largest and most diverse collection of cherry trees outside of Japan. Cherry blossom viewing, known as Hanami, is a centuries-old Japanese custom, a springtime occasion for picnicking, merriment and the contemplation of life’s beauty and transience. Replicate this tradition in Brooklyn, where the Botanic Garden offers 42 flowering varieties for public enjoyment.
  
  Brooklyn Botanic Garden, 1000 Washington Avenue, between Crown and Montgomery Streets.
  Tel: (1-718) 623 7200
  
• 2012 New York International Auto Show
  6 - 15 April 2012
  The New York International Auto Show is the nation's most heavily attended auto exhibition with some of the hottest cars and trucks ever seen, all under one roof, with sneak peeks and brand-new 2012 and 2013 production models. The New York Auto Show always attracts a number of world and North American debuts.
  
  Jacob Javits Convention Center. Eleventh Avenue at 34th Street.
  Tel: (1-800) 282 3336
  
• Easter Parade and Bonnet Festival
  8 April 2012
  Every year hundreds of New Yorkers wind their way through the streets of the Big Apple to celebrate Easter. The traditional parade dates back to the Civil War period and features a host of colorful costumes and extravagant Easter bonnets.
  Fifth Avenue from 49th to 57th Street. Starting time is 10:00 am.
  
• Tribeca Film Festival
  18 - 29 April 2012
  The first annual Tribeca Film Festival was launched in 2002 by Jane Rosenthal and Robert De Niro, to celebrate New York City as a major filmmaking centre and to contribute to the long-term recovery of lower Manhattan. The Tribeca Film Festival showcases hundreds of films from around the world and features talk panels with actors, directors and producers.
  
  Tribeca neighborhood in lower Manhattan.
  Tel: (1-212) 941 2400
  
• Frieze Art Fair New York
  4 - 7 May 2012
  Like its London sister fair, Frieze New York will be housed in a bespoke structure and located in a unique setting – Randall’s Island Park overlooking the East River. The fair will feature approximately 170 galleries and will be designed by New York-based SO-IL architects. The exhibitors will comprise some of the most forward-thinking galleries from around the globe, bringing an international focus to the dynamic contemporary art scene in New York.
  
  Randall’s Island Park, Manhattan, NY
  Tel: (1-212) 463 7461
• American Ballet Theatre 2012 Spring Season
  14 May - 7 July 2012
  The American Ballet Theatre's world-class dancers return to the stage of the Metropolitan Opera House. Highlights include a new production of John Cranko's Onegin set to music by Tchaikovsky and the New York Premiere of Alexei Ratmansky's The Firebird, set to Stravinsky's score. The balance of the season features Christopher Wheeldon's Thirteen Diversions and six full-length ballets including Giselle, La Bayadere, Romeo and Juliet and Swan Lake.
  
  Lincoln Center is on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, between West 62nd and 65th Streets and Columbus and Amsterdam Avenues.
  (1-212) 362 6000
• The Frick Collection
  This is probably New York’s best private museum and its most proper. Children under 10 years old are not permitted within the walls of this gorgeous 19th Century building, the former home of steel and railway tycoon Henry Clay Frick. You’ll come to love this museum nestled in one of the city’s prettiest neighbourhoods, filled with the amazing collection of European masterpieces that Frick amassed .
  
  1 East 70th Street, Upper East Side
  Tel: (1-212) 288 0700
• Metropolitan Museum of Art
  From the Egyptian and Greek Wings to the American Wing to the Impressionist and Realist Galleries, this museum is a treasure. Have a glass of wine in the rooftop garden, easily one of New York’s most beautiful and peaceful secret destinations.
  
  1000 Fifth Avenue, Upper East Side
  Tel: (1-212) 535 7710
  
• The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA)
  After living in exile on Long Island, MoMA has returned to Manhattan. In the words of Japanese architect Yoshio Taniguchi, “It was designed to transform MoMA into a bold new museum while maintaining its historical, cultural, and social context.” The 630,000 square-foot Museum boasts almost the capacity of the former facility, including the new six-storey David and Peggy Rockefeller Gallery Building housing the main collection and temporary exhibition galleries, refurbished theatres for film and media presentations, the expanded Lobby, and more. Long-time visitors will also be relieved to find that Taniguchi has preserved certain original elements such as Philip Johnson’s original 1953 design, re-establishing the garden’s southern terrace to create an outdoor patio for The Modern, a new fine dining restaurant.
  
  11 West 53 Street, Midtown
  Tel: (1-212) 708 9400
• Neue Galerie
  Devoted to 20th century German and Austrian art, this compact museum is housed in a gorgeous 1914 mansion once occupied by a Vanderbilt and designed by Carrere & Hastings, the architects of the New York Public Library. The Galerie opened in November 2001 and, while not quite a hidden gem, it certainly has been under-appreciated and under-visited by locals and tourists alike.
  
  1048 Fifth Avenue at 86th Street, Upper East Side
  Tel: (1-212) 628 6200
• The Whitney Museum
  Largely recognized as the most comprehensive collection of 20th Century American art in the world, The Whitney was founded by Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney in 1930. Whether viewing the permanent collection that includes Hopper, Stella, Glackens, Demuth, de Kooning, Rothko, and O’Keeffe, or attending the important Whitney Biennial contemporary art showcase, a visit is a must.
  
  945 Madison Avenue, Upper East Side
  Tel: (1-212) 570 3676
• The Asia Society
  It is America’s premier gathering spot for people with an interest in the cultural, social and political life of their peers in the East. The Society’s permanent collection is excellent, and its programs well worth attending. The bookstore is also one of the best sources of information on Asia in Manhattan.
  
  725 Park Avenue, Upper East Side
  Tel: (1-212) 288 6400