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Northwest Airlines Flights from San Francisco (SFO) to Newark (EWR)
Orbitz is pleased to offer airline tickets on Northwest Airlines, which operates 2 regularly scheduled daily non-stop flights from San Francisco (SFO) to Newark (EWR), departing between 8:15am and 10:05pm. Usually a Boeing 757 or Boeing 757-300 is flown for this route. The average travel time from San Francisco, CA to Newark, NJ is 5 hours and 16 minutes.*
* Some flights must connect with additional service on this airline.
During your Newark vacation, don't miss these great establishments and attractions:
Empire State Building
It took 60,000 tons of steel, 10 million bricks, 2.5 million feet of electrical wire, 120 miles of pipe, and 7 million man-hours to build. King Kong climbed it in 1933. A plane slammed into it in 1945. The World Trade Center superseded it in 1970 as the island's tallest building. And in 1997, a gunman ascended it to stage a deadly shooting. On that horrific day of September 11, 2001, it once again regained its status as New York City's tallest building, after 31 years of taking second place. And through it all, the Empire State Building has remained one of the city's favorite landmarks, and its signature high-rise. Completed in 1931, the limestone-and-stainless steel streamline deco dazzler climbs 102 stories (1,454 ft.) and now harbors the offices of fashion firms, and, in its upper reaches, a jumble of high-tech broadcast equipment.Always a conversation piece, the Empire State Building glows every night, bathed in colored floodlights to commemorate events of significance -- red, white, and blue for Independence Day; green for St. Patrick's Day; red, black, and green for Martin Luther King Day; blue and white for Hanukkah; even lavender and white for Gay Pride Day (you can find a complete lighting schedule online). The familiar silver spire can be seen from all over the city.The best views, and what keeps the nearly 3 million visitors coming every year, are the ones from the 86th- and 102nd-floor observatories. The lower one is best -- you can walk out on a windy deck and look through coin-operated viewers (bring quarters!) over what, on a clear day, can be as much as an 80-mile visible radius. The citywide panorama is magnificent. One surprise is the flurry of rooftop activity, an aspect of city life that thrives unnoticed from our everyday sidewalk vantage point. The higher observation deck is glass-enclosed and cramped.Light fog can create an admirably moody effect, but it goes without saying that a clear day is best. Dusk brings the most remarkable views and the biggest crowds. Consider going in the morning, when the light is still low on the horizon, keeping glare to a minimum. Starry nights are pure magic.In your haste to go up, don't rush through the beautiful three-story-high marble lobby without pausing to admire its features, which include a wonderful streamline mural.Empire State Building Ticket-Buying--Lines can be horrible at the concourse-level ticket booth, so be prepared to wait -- or consider purchasing advance tickets online using a credit card at www.esbnyc.com. You'll pay slightly more -- tickets were priced $1 higher on the website at press time -- but it's well worth it, especially if you're visiting during busy seasons, when the line can be shockingly long. You're not required to choose a time or date for your tickets in advance; they can be used on any regular open day. However, order them well before you leave home, because only regular mail is free. Expect them to take 7 to 10 days to reach you (longer if you live out of the country). Overnight delivery adds $15 to your total order. With tickets in hand, you're allowed to proceed directly to the second floor -- past everyone who didn't plan as well as you did!Remember: Advance purchase of a CityPass, will also get you admission to the Empire State Building, plus five other major attractions.
Museum of Television & Radio
If you can resist the allure of this museum, I'd wager you've spent the last 70 years in a bubble. You can watch and hear all the great personalities of TV and radio -- from Uncle Miltie to Johnny Carson to Jerry Seinfeld -- at a private console (available for 2 hr.). You can also conduct computer searches to pick out the great moments of history, viewing almost anything that made its way onto the airwaves, from the Beatles' first appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show to the crumbling of the Berlin Wall (the collection consists of 75,000 programs and commercials). Selected programs are also presented in two theaters and two screening rooms, which can range from "Barbra Streisand: The Television Performances" to little-seen Monty Python episodes.
The Cloisters
If it weren't for this branch of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, many New Yorkers would never get to this northernmost point in Manhattan. This remote yet lovely spot is devoted to the art and architecture of medieval Europe. Atop a magnificent cliff overlooking the Hudson River, you'll find a 12th-century chapter house, parts of five cloisters from medieval monasteries, a Romanesque chapel, and a 12th-century Spanish apse brought intact from Europe. Surrounded by peaceful gardens, this is the one place on the island that can even approximate the kind of solitude suitable to such a collection. Inside you'll find extraordinary works that include the famed Unicorn tapestries, sculpture, illuminated manuscripts, stained glass, ivory, and precious metal work.Despite its remoteness, the Cloisters are extremely popular, especially in fine weather, so try to schedule your visit during the week rather than on a crowded weekend afternoon. A free guided Highlights Tour is offered Tuesday through Friday at 3pm and Sunday at noon; gallery talks are also a regular feature. Additionally, Garden Tours are offered Tuesday through Sunday at 1pm in May, June, September, and October; lectures and other special programming are always on Sunday from noon to 2pm; and medieval music concerts are regularly held in the stunning 12th-century Spanish chapel. For an extra-special experience, you may want to plan your visit around one.
Make your reservations for discount hotel rooms in the
Newark area, including:
The Benjamin
From the retro sign and clock on Lexington Avenue to the high-ceilinged marble lobby, when you enter The Benjamin, it's as if you've suddenly stepped into the jazz era of New York of the 1920s. But once you get to your spacious room and notice the numerous high-tech amenities, such as Bose Wave radios, Internet browsers and video games for the TVs, high-speed Internet access, fax machines, ergonomic chairs and moveable workstation, you will know you are most definitely in the 21st century. Many of the amenities are geared toward business travelers, but why should they be the only ones to experience all this comfort and luxury? All rooms are airy, but the deluxe studios and one-bedroom suites are extra large. There are even a few one-bedroom suites with terraces. How many hotels can claim a "sleep concierge" or guarantee a good night's sleep? And don't forget the pillow menu featuring 11 options, including buckwheat and Swedish Memory, in which foam designed by NASA reacts to your body temperature. I chose the standard down pillow and did not have to exercise the guarantee. If you are a light sleeper, however, book a room off Lexington Avenue, which can get very busy most weeknights and mornings. Bathrooms feature Frette robes, TV speakers, and water pressure from the shower head strong enough to make you think you've just experienced a deep-tissue massage. The hotel also features a good fitness center and the new Woodstock Spa and Wellness Center.In room: A/C, TV w/pay movies, video games, and Internet access, fax/copier/printer, dataport and high-speed connectivity, kitchenette, minibar, coffeemaker, laptop-size safe, microwave, china.
Excelsior Hotel
The recently renovated, newly elegant Excelsior almost gives the Lucerne a run for its money. Everything is fresh throughout the hotel, from the richly wood-paneled lobby to the supremely comfy guest rooms to the small but state-of-the-art exercise room. The chic residential location is across from the Museum of Natural History and just steps from Central Park. However, the staff doesn't quite live up to the Lucerne's impeccable example.Freshly done in an attractive traditional style, the guest rooms boast high-quality furnishings, commodious closets, two-line phones, thick terry bathrobes, a work desk, free bottled water, and full-length dressing mirrors (a nice touch). The pretty new bathrooms are most impressive. The two-bedded rooms are large enough to accommodate budget-minded families (a few even have two queens), and suites feature pullout sofas and pants presses. The sunny museum-facing rooms are only worth the extra dough if a park view is really important to you, as all rooms are relatively bright and quiet. Housekeeping is impeccable throughout the hotel. On the second floor is a gorgeous library-style lounge with working fireplace, books, games, gorgeous leather seating, writing desks, and a large flat-screen TV with VCR and DVD player. All in all, a good midprice choice.
The Library Hotel
New York is not Las Vegas, so I'm usually wary of the hotel as high concept, but in this case, the concept really works: a hotel located 1 block from the New York Public Library, each of whose 10 guest room floors is dedicated to 1 of the 10 major categories of the Dewey Decimal System. When I visited the hotel I was appropriately booked into a "Geography and Travel" room. There I was greeted with books such as Barcelona, by Robert Hughes, and Bella Tuscany, by Frances Mayes. The most disappointing thing about all those books is that I was only staying 1 night and didn't have the chance to read any of them. Still, there was something about having them by my bed; perhaps their soothing aura comforted me. Overall, the hotel has a pleasing, informal feel. Guest rooms, which come in three categories, petite (really small), deluxe, and junior suites, feature mahogany built-ins, generous desks, and immaculate marble bathrooms; all are extremely comfortable. The Library's public spaces -- a reading room where wine and cheese and a complimentary breakfast are served daily, a writer's den with a fireplace and flat-screen television, and a rooftop terrace -- all help make The Library a welcome refuge in the heart of the city.
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