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| Empire State
Building 350 Fifth Avenue (at
34th Street)
Manhattan
(212) 736-3100
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Summary: The
grand-daddy of all skyscrapers and now a
National Historic Landmark, the Empire
State Building, with its central
Manhattan location, offers the best views
of New York City. Try to go at night for
great views and fewer crowds.
Still one of the world's
tallest buildings, this New York icon was
completed in 1931 -- a time when horses
were still a major source of power on the
construction site. Its famous Art Deco
spire, visible throughout much of New
York, is immortalized in countless
movies, including King Kong and Sleepless
in Seattle.
The idea for the Empire
State Building was conceived during the
real estate boom of the 1920's, but by
the time the building was finished, the
developers had to struggle to find any
tenants at all, leading to the nickname
the "Empty State." Ownership of
this huge office building, with 102
floors and over 2 million square feet of
commercial space, recently passed to a
group including Donald Trump.
The building's colorful
history includes a 1945 crash by a B-25
bomber, which killed 14 people but did
little structural damage, even at the
point of contact on the 79th floor. For a
time, there were thoughts of turning the
skyscraper into a dirigible
"airport." Although the plan
for mooring blimps to the top was
eventually abandoned, evidence of this
scheme lives on in the observatory of the
86th floor (which was to hold the
customer lounges, ticket agencies and
baggage rooms) and the observation deck
on the 102nd story (which was to be the
mooring site).
Best Bets
The Empire State Building's
enduring popularity sometimes makes
visiting it difficult. At its worst, you
may encounter long lines to purchase
tickets in the concourse level and long
lines for the elevators to the 86th floor
(which is as high as you are now allowed
to go; the 102nd floor observatory is no
longer open to the public). To avoid
these hassles as much as possible, we
recommend a visit in the evening. Not
only will you be rewarded with less wait
time, but the beautiful views of the city
at night are truly awe-inspiring. On a
clear day, 80 mile visibility allows you
to see landmarks in all five boroughs, as
well as Long Island and New Jersey. NYC
attractions to look for include the New York Public
Library, Rockefeller Center, St. Patrick's
Cathedral, and Central Park to
the North; the Chrysler Building and
the United Nations buildings
to the East; the Statue of Liberty to
the South; and the Intrepid museum
to the West.
What to Avoid
We recently visited
the overpriced attraction called Skyride
(on the 2nd floor of the Empire State
Building). Although the introduction by
Scotty from "Star Trek" was
amusing, the ride itself is a weak
attempt to simulate a jet craft ride
through the city. And considering the
price, we felt the ride should have at
least lasted the promised 20 minutes,
which it did not. Our conclusion? Don't
waste your money on Skyride.
Seven Wonders of the
World
In 1955 the American Society of Civil
Engineers named the Empire State Building
one of the "Seven Modern Wonders of
the Western Hemisphere." The
building was also named the eighth wonder
of the modern world -- the only one built
in the 20th century. Perhaps to call
attention to its "wonder of the
world" status, the Empire State
Building unveiled a series of glass
paintings depicting the Seven Wonders of
the Ancient World, plus (of course) the
Empire State Building itself.
10 Fun Facts
- According to a study
done by the National Park
Service, the Empire State
Building is one of the top ten
destinations for U.S. travelers,
receiving in excess of 4.3
million visitors representing
every state in the U.S. and
almost every country in the world
each year.
- The Empire State
Building was built on the
original site of the
Waldorf-Astoria Hotel, which has
since moved over to Park Avenue.
- The building itself
contains more than 60 miles of
water pipe and 60,000 tons of
steel -- that's enough to build
double railroad tracks from NYC
to Baltimore.
- Amazingly, the
Empire State Building was built
with horse power rather than the
cranes, mixing trucks, and other
machines available today.
- At 1,454 feet, it
has the world's greatest TV
tower, reaching 8 million TV sets
in a four-state area.
- Despite its
world-class stature today, the
building had difficulty
attracting tenants when it was
first completed, and was often
ridiculed as the "Empty
State Building."
- The Empire State
Building has 73 elevators that
move through 7 miles of shafts.
- The top of the
building is occasionally left
dark on foggy or rainy nights in
the spring and fall to protect
the 80 or so species of migratory
birds that fly at lower altitudes
in bad weather and might
otherwise be attracted to the
floodlights that illuminate the
72nd to 102nd floors and rush
toward them like months to a
flame.
- This famous office
tower has more than 6,500
windows, which must be washed on
a continuing basis.
- The top 30 floors
are often bathed in colored
lights to celebrate
holidays throughout the year:
red, white and blue for the 4th
of July; green and red for
Christmas, and so forth.
Getting There
To reach the Empire State
Building by subway, take the B, D, F, Q,
N or R to 34th Street/Herald Square or
the #6 to 33rd Street.
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