This legendary cruise line offers many different rides around Manhattan, including dinner and lunch cruises. But its classic cruise is a two-hour semi-circle around the tip of Manhattan, taking you down the Hudson, past the Statue of Liberty, up the East River, and under three different bridges. If you go in good weather, the views will be breathtaking and you'll see Lady Liberty up close. Bring a camera. The cruise is offered three times a day in March and April, and twice a day from late April through early September.
Circle Line Sightseeng Cruises
Pier 83, West 42nd St.
New York, NY 10036
212-563-3200
circleline42.com
NY Waterway Tours, a fleet of former ferries, offers a 90-minute Skyline Cruise that includes narration by a licensed tour guide, with an emphasis on sights like the Brooklyn Bridge, the United Nations, the Statue of Liberty and the Empire State Building. The Skyline Cruise also provides passengers with "an inside look" at the "Miracle on the Hudson" rescue of 143 passengers from US Airways flight 1549, which includes a brief video. You can purchase snacks and drinks on board the Skyline Cruise.
NY Waterway Tours
Pier 78
W. 38th St. at 12th Ave.
New York, NY 10018
800-533-3779
nywaterway.com
If you'd like to take an evening cruise, this beautiful glass barge offers dinner, music and gorgeous views of the nighttime Manhattan skyline. The Bateaux is a European-inspired boat that is a sister ship of the Bateaux in London and Paris. The three-hour evening cruise will take you past the Empire State Building, Battery Park City, South Street Seaport, the Brooklyn Bridge, the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island. The evening cruise departs at 7 p.m. Sunday through Thursday from April through December.
Bateaux New York
Pier 62, Chelsea Piers
Suite 200
West 23rd St.
New York, NY 10011
866-817-3463
bateauxnewyork.com
