Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Thanks all for the responses so far. I am actually not attending the U.S. Open and hope to avoid it but seeing that I do want to visit the Queens Museum on Sunday, I don't know if I am able to avoid the crowds entirely. The Queens Museum says they have two free parking lots, one on each side of the museum totaling about 100 spaces. That's not a lot of spaces at all. How early should I get there to secure a space? Or do you think they will have been taken up already by overnight US Open parkers? Would I have to resort to finding a neighborhood parking space and taking a long walk over or even parking elsewhere and crowding onto the #7 to get there by Metro? I've taken numerous weekend trips to NYC but never on Labor Day weekend which is why this experience is new to me. Any advice is much appreciated.
I don’t know the answers to your very specific questions but if it were me, I would budget extra time to find parking and get their early just in case their regular lots are not available. At worst, you’ll probably find street parking as the area by the Queens Museum is residential and people will be out and about.
FYI, the US Open day session starts around 11am with the gates opening up around 10 or so. I would probably aim to get to the area by 10 to not have to worry too much about traffic and parking.
Is there some reason that you don't want to take the 7 train and avoid driving all together? It's a doable walk from the trains station.
I have never visited the US Open but I have taken the 7 during those times. The train gets crowded but not as crowded as it does for Mets games.
Keep in mind that the West Indian Day parade and the associated festivities are also taking place during Labor day weekend. It may not affect you that much if you stay local in Flushing but there will be people out and about because of this.
Is there some reason that you don't want to take the 7 train and avoid driving all together? It's a doable walk from the trains station.
I have never visited the US Open but I have taken the 7 during those times. The train gets crowded but not as crowded as it does for Mets games.
Keep in mind that the West Indian Day parade and the associated festivities are also taking place during Labor day weekend. It may not affect you that much if you stay local in Flushing but there will be people out and about because of this.
I am personally a transit buff and when visiting New York alone or with friends, I could ride the MTA all day long and not get tired like the last time I was in the City. I've ridden the #7 many times, a few times even all the way to Flushing-Main Street from Manhattan and the only small gripe I have about the #7 is that the R-33/R-36 World's Fair Redbird cars are no longer running . The Redbirds were my favorite NYC subway cars and I was sad to see them go.
Having said that, my folks are coming with me this time around and they prefer traveling by automobile. I also don't want to tire them out with too much walking if that can be helped. We booked a hotel out in Westchester County and was hoping to drive back into the city in the morning of the second day and park right at the museum. Is that doable early Sunday morning?
Those parking lots next to the Museum will be taken up by NYPD and USTA. You may get lucky finding parking under the highway and walk. You may end up paying for parking if you must. The lot across from citifield will be the place to go to.
If you can, park your car under the 7 line, metered parking is free on Sundays. 61st in woodside would offer you 2 trains, LIRR or The 7 line.
I would check the times for the matches and squeeze my subway rides in DURING the bigger matches.
The only thing worth seeing is the famous PANORAMA, an immense model of the entire city. Impressive but kinda kitsch
The Metropolitan Museum of Art is by far the better experience, probably the best NYC has to offer IMHO. Skip the first and spend more time in the second.
I just completed the trip. Thanks everyone for all your help! The Queens Museum was actually closed for the entire two weeks of the US Open and so we didn't get to see it. I am very disappointed in the fact that they couldn't keep the venue open during this time . The panorama of New York was one of the reasons I wanted to visit the museum. I have visited the Met's main museum in the past and maybe I'll go back there next time.
Still I and my family had a very good time the rest of this short trip. We got to see the NY Botanical Garden (first time back in the Bronx in many years), the Cloisters, Fort Tryon Park, the rest of Flushing Meadows Park, and both Manhattan's Chinatown and Flushing's. Might I add that Flushing really has become a truly dynamic neighborhood that has clearly surpassed Manhattan's Chinatown as "Little China". The latter seems to be more and more geared toward's tourist business only each time I visit and it sure has lost much of its charm . Next time I think I'll check out Bensonhurst and the other satellite Chinatowns in Brooklyn as well as some other ethnic neighborhoods.
It's a shame that tennis no longer has any buzz about it. Twenty or more years ago the Open was a big deal but now nobody gets excited about it or really cares. It's not even on free tv anymore and I think that's part of it. Pat Summerall made it seem so dramatic on the Sunday of the men's final. Now I think they should skip the two weeks of matches and just put Serena Williams in the finals against someone whose name was drawn out of a hat. That's pretty much what happens anyway.
It's a shame that tennis no longer has any buzz about it. Twenty or more years ago the Open was a big deal but now nobody gets excited about it or really cares. It's not even on free tv anymore and I think that's part of it. Pat Summerall made it seem so dramatic on the Sunday of the men's final. Now I think they should skip the two weeks of matches and just put Serena Williams in the finals against someone whose name was drawn out of a hat. That's pretty much what happens anyway.
One reason may be the lack of good American players in recent years. No one on the level of Pete Sampras, Andre Agassi, etc. On the women’s side, Serena Williams has been dominating but there hasn’t been any real consistent competition which makes it kind of boring.
One reason may be the lack of good American players in recent years. No one on the level of Pete Sampras, Andre Agassi, etc. On the women’s side, Serena Williams has been dominating but there hasn’t been any real consistent competition which makes it kind of boring.
I think Serena has as many detractors as fans and she dominates like Martina Navratilova did for awhile in the 1980s. They both are/were too powerful for most of the other women. When another woman does beat her it's usually a one and done and you don't hear of that player again. There are no rivalries in women's tennis today.
On the men's side there are great players like Nadal and Federer and Djokovic but they don't have personality like Connors, Nastasi, McEnroe, Agassi, etc. I remember tennis from 1980 to about 1990 and it was a big deal. Also occasional stories of questionable betting patterns that hint at fixed matches doesn't help the sport.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.