New York City offers some spectacular city views. So, if you have to choose which Manhattan peak to summit, where should you go? Should you shoot up to the Top of the Rock or swing by Kong’s hangout? I offer our experience.

The Empire State Building (ESB) is arguably New York’s most well-known landmark (it is the tallest building in the city right now, after all) and it certainly attracts a good amount of turistas. But does it deserve all of the attention?

The ESB’s lobby is kind of cool and I like it because it reeks (like tube socks) of another era. Consider it an Art Deco appetizer to the rest of the building. We passed through the the lobby and headed up an escalator into the winding lines (worse than any maze I’ve ever been in).

We went through security, purchased my sister a ticket (we bought ours online) and then were shuffled into miles of those elastic rope line-control thingies (Hey, wasn’t that the elevator we just passed?).

This is where our ESB experience quickly fell apart.

We were funneled into one room so they could take a crappy photo of us (and later try to sell it back to us for more than what it costs to eat for a week). Then, just when we thought we were on our way to the top, we were sent into another line in another room where they tried to hock $8 maps and audio guides.

“You’re going to get up there, walk around once, and then what are you going to do?”

Are you serious? Oh, they are very serious. Serious like county fair carnies.

“You have keys for your car. You’re going to need a map to know what you’re looking at.”

This mantra was blasted over a loudspeaker and we heard the same sell about 8 times while waiting in line for the elevator.

When we finally reached the elevator, it was a very short and fast ride to the top. The ESB offers some really amazing views in all directions and I think it definitely has The Rock beat in that regard. It’s pretty easy to take photos despite the safety grates (tripods are not allowed into the building) and be prepared for a good amount of people milling about.

It’s unfortunate the process is commercialized to such an extent. I give the ESB a C.

The GE Building at Rockefeller Center, on the other hand, was not crowded and we could’ve been in the elevator to the top in under 5 minutes. We decided to watch a few short films about the building and NBC.

The elevator ride to the top is a off the chain (not really). A person ushers you in and wishes you a pleasant ride to the top. Then the doors close and the space suddenly become dark, revealing a plexiglass ceiling and a clear view up the elevator.

Even cooler is the blue lights placed on each floor, so as you pick up speed, they start to blur and you fear you might just be making your own Willy Wonka exit into the skies of Manhattan. The only scarier ascent I’ve experienced is that of the Space Needle in Seattle, where the elevator offers a clear view to the outside.

Once we reached the top, there was plenty of space to roam around and look at the city, including two levels of outdoor viewing. There’s also Plexiglas barriers which are nice because they don’t obstruct the view, yet do a good job of shielding the wind.

There’s also a cool room at the top produced by Target that lights up in different colors when you move around. All in all, the Top of the Rock rocks. I give it an A and in this epic battle of buildings I declare 30 Rock the undisputed champion.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, January 22nd, 2008 at 8:47 pm and is filed under Manhattan, NYC Places. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.