Take a free tour of Wall Street courtesy of the downtown New York Alliance. This 90-minute guided tour will take you to the U.S. Custom House, historic Trinity Church, Wall Street, the New York Stock Exchange and other cultural and architectural sights. These tours begin on the front steps of the U.S. Custom House, at One Bowling Green, every Thursday and Saturday at noon. No reservations are required, but groups should call (212) 606-4064.
Check out tours provided by Patriot Tours, which focus on the historical significance of Lower Manhattan and the Financial District, particularly the neighborhood's pivotal role in the Revolutionary War. The 2½-hour tours all take place at about 1 p.m., and tickets must be reserved in advance at zerve.com. After you reserve, you'll receive information about a meeting place along with directions and a map.
Purchase an audio tour from Sounds for Sights, which provides audio walking tapes for travelers who don't want the hassle, expense or constraints of group tours. With their recorded guides for your MP3 player, you can sightsee on your own terms. The 49-minute audio tour takes you to the first Dutch-settled areas of Manhattan Island, a former secret meeting place where plans for the Revolutionary War were hatched and through the financial district and Wall Street. Tapes can be ordered online and cost $6.99.
Pay tribute to the victims of the September 11 World Trade Center attacks at the Tribute WTC Visitor Center, 120 Liberty St., a moving and place where visitors can take walking tours and see exhibits. The Visitor's Center was set up until the completion of the Memorial and Museum at the World Trade Center site in 2009. Walking tours around the perimeter of the WTC site are offered.
See where this country's major financial decisions are made, at the Federal Reserve, 33 Liberty St., between Nassau and William Streets. Tours of the Fed take place Monday through Friday at 9:30, 10:30 and 11:30 a.m., and at 1:30 and 2:30 p.m. Since all visitors are screened for security, it's wise to arrive about 20 minutes early. Tours are free, but only 30 visitors per tour are permitted. Reserve a spot online or by calling (212) 720-6130.
Visit Trinity Church and St. Paul's Chapel, two historic churches in lower Manhattan now best-known for being close to the World Trade Center and surviving the destruction. Both welcome visitors. Trinity, an Episcopal parish founded in 1697, conducts tours seven days a week at 2 p.m., and after the 11:15 a.m. mass every Sunday. It is on Broadway at Wall Street. The tiny St. Paul's Chapel permits self-guided tours during non-worship hours; St. Paul's is on Broadway and Fulton Street.
Send a day at Battery Park City, an oasis of green space, parks, playgrounds, sculpture gardens and museums at the very tip of Manhattan. Wander along the paths and walkways of Wagner Park, where you can eat lunch in one of its restaurants, view the Statue of Liberty from the roof deck or visit the Museum of Jewish Heritage.
See where George Washington bid an emotional farewell to his officers at the end of the Revolutionary war -- Fraunces Tavern, now a museum located at 54 Pearl Street, at Broad Street. The Museum, which was a tavern in the 1760s, houses two reconstructed period rooms including the Long Room, site of Washington's farewell to his officers, and the Clinton Dining Room, where Dewitt Clinton commemorated the British evacuation of North America. Admission is $2.50 for adults, $1 for students and seniors.
Spend quality time at the World Financial Center, in Battery Park City. This huge office building is a vibrant part of the lower Manhattan, offering shops, restaurants and a host of events year-round in its fabulous lobby space, the Winter Garden.
