The crisp fall days of October make for an invigorating weekend of activities. Here’s how to shout back:
Hours: Rockefeller Ride
A couple kisses high above the city on the new Skylift at Rockefeller Center’s Top of the Rock Observation Deck. Credit: AP/Diane Bondarev
Will Rockefeller Center become an amusement park? First, there was The Beam, which strapped tourists to steel girders and lifted them several feet above the building’s observation deck, giving them an unparalleled view. This photo is a reasonable reproduction of the famous “lunch on top of a skyscraper” photo taken at that time, while still entertaining tourists. The lock had been built in 1932.
The Skylift is a round rotating boat that slowly rises three stories from the rooftop, ending up looking like a wedding cake floating above a 70-story building. As with The Beam, the views are unparalleled and the rush is one of a kind and definitely a terrifying experience for those with a fear of heights.
Back at sea level, The Rock’s seasonal ice skating rink is open again and Santa is ready for his December return. There are also two new restaurants worth dining at. 5 Acres, which serves upscale burgers and comfort classics, and Jupiter, which serves Italian cuisine in its restaurant. Attractive surroundings including an outdoor rink side terrace.
A full day: Try a new (or old) sport in Brooklyn
Head over to Padel House and challenge your friends to a game of padel. Credit: APLM Studio
Pickleball may be all the rage in this country, but many other countries around the world use racquetball-sized racquets and tennis-sized balls, with squash-like enclosed courts with clean walls. Padel is a sport played in game. Padel House is the only club of its kind in New York City, with three locations in Brooklyn (Williamsburg, Domino Point, and Dumbo) and another in Greenpoint. Padel House is a fun, fast-paced club. , anyone can participate.
Those in a more laid-back mood might head to the Royal Palms Shuffleboard Club instead. A 10-court walk-in facility near the Gowanus Canal, it’s especially beginner-friendly to the shuffle and offers free five-minute lessons with club pros. The website has plenty of shuffleboard slang to keep you up to date (are discs called biscuits?) and great cocktails to keep the mood light.
Get tutorials on how to throw real and digital axes at Kick Ax Throwing in Brooklyn. Credit: Kick Ax Throwing LLC
And while people have been throwing axes with surprising frequency for years, nowhere is it taken more seriously than kick ax throwing. There, you start with a tutorial on how to throw (and more importantly, how not to throw). We’ll teach you how to hyper ax (throwing a real ax at a digital target, aka the future of ax throwing) and give you directions to the bar for snacks and drinks.
Weekend: Poconos
Take a train tour along the Lehigh Gorge Scenic Railway. Credit: PoconoMountains.com
Yes, we rolled our eyes when we saw commercials about Pennsylvania having deeper fall than other states, but it’s definitely a beautiful place in the fall. Especially in the Poconos, countless trains offer fall foliage tours this month with two trains, one departing from the town of Jim Thorpe and the other from Honesdale. This week is also the weekend of the Black Bear Film Festival. A great excuse to visit Milford. It is one of the cutest villages in the area and has many inns, many of which include top restaurants such as the Bar. Louis and Delmonico Room at Hotel Faucher and Dimmick’s Steakhouse, where the inn has been since 1828.
Consider a trip to Skytop Lodge’s Treetop Adventure Course. Credit: Skytop Lodge
Want to end your trip with some active recreation? Consider a trip to Kalahari Resort at Pocono Manor, which has an impressive indoor water park. Climb the ladders and bridges of Skytop Lodge’s Treetop Adventure Course or go snow-free snow tubing in East Stroudsburg, the only Poconos event. A round facility.
Newsday writer and restaurant critic Scott Vogel tries to capture Long Island’s food scene in a refreshing, gimlet-like light, often sipping on a refreshing gimlet.
