2023009 Gilded Age New York

Day 1

Upon your arrival meet your local guide for a Building America Full Day Tour. Explore the lives and dynamics of the titans of American Business; John Jacob Astor, Cornelius Vanderbilt, John D Rockefeller, Andrew Carnegie, J.P. Morgan and more. Discover their inspiring rise to great fortune and power, the dynamics of the empires they build, and the power struggles between them. On this tour, you will travel millionaire's row to see some of their lavish mansions, elite private social clubs and museums that house treasures of the self-made American royalty. Continue on to see how the wealthy worked at the original offices of J.P. Morgan and Rockefeller.

For this three day visit you will be staying at The Hotel Belleclaire Steeped in New York City architectural history and hospitality, Hotel Belleclaire on the Upper West Side neighborhood provides accessible luxury steps from Central Park. Housed in a landmark building that blends art nouveau and Beaux-Arts aesthetics, Hotel Belleclaire combines timeless elegance with modern comfort for a unique stay on Manhattan's upscale Upper West Side.

Tonight visit the famous Jazz Club, Birdland, for a delightful dinner and entertainment. Birdland Jazz Club: Ever since most of Chicago’s top musicians moved to New York in the mid-to-late 1920s, New York City has been the Jazz Mecca. Nearly every major jazz style of the past seventy years has been initiated in the Big Apple.

Day 2

Enjoy a light breakfast at the Mille-feuille Bakery with a voucher. Featuring freshly baked delicacies daily. Savor their patisseries free of mind; made with domestic organic flours, award-winning Vermont butter, Valrhona chocolate, and no additives or preservatives ever.

Begin your day visiting the home of J.P Morgan. The J.P. Morgan House (as available), a rare freestanding brownstone in Manhattan, is a New York City Landmark. The home was originally purchased by Pierpont Morgan in 1881.

Next visit Grand Central Station where in the 1850's, Cornelius Vanderbilt recognized the inefficiency of the fledgling railroad industry, a hodgepodge of competing companies. Shifting his sights from ships to trains, he bought up stock in local railroads, ultimately combining them into a vast transportation network and a powerful family empire that transformed New York's infrastructure and reshaped the region. New Yorkers, in the early 1900's, saw their city as the new cultural and commercial capital, deserving a majestic landmark. The vibrant city Beautiful movement, meanwhile, promoted architectural excellence. Grand Central satisfied both desires, invigorating midtown Manhattan, transforming regional transportation, and shaping the city we know today.

Up next is a visit to New York Public Library & Rockefeller Center. Another significant building is the New York Public Library. John Bigelow, a New York attorney for the estate of Samuel Tilden, devised a bold plan whereby the resources of the John Jacob Astor Library, the James Lenox Library and the Tilden Trust would be combined to form a new entity, to be known as the New York Public Library, Astor, Lenox and Tilden Foundations. Over 100 years ago, one of the titans, John D. Rockefeller Jr. had a vision to create a "city within a city", and the story of how Rockefeller Center came to be is a fascinating one.

Lunch today is included at The Players Club, an 1847 Gothic Revival-style mansion on Gramercy Park. A treasure of the Gilded Age, the clubhouse was named a National Historic Landmark in 1963. The Players is the oldest New York City membership club still in its original home. "The Players is a club of artists and arts lovers. Members are drawn from careers on the stage and screen, the visual arts, music and literature, as well as patrons of the arts from a wide range of professions. Together, we celebrate the richness of our creative communities with exclusive events and relaxed socializing

The rest of the afternoon and evening is free for you to explore The Big Apple.

Day 3

Enjoy a final breakfast with a pastry and coffee at the hotel before meeting your guide.

After breakfast, meet your local guide for another day of touring featuring the Heyday of High Society. This tour will include the Carnegie Mansion (as available) and the Plaza Hotel. Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum is housed in the former home of industrial magnate Andrew Carnegie. The 64-room mansion, built from 1899 to 1902, is an impressive testament to the desire of Carnegie and his wife, Louise Whitfield Carnegie, to build a spacious, comfortable, and light-filled home in which to raise their daughter, Margaret. The architectural firm of Babb, Cook Willard designed the mansion in the solidly comfortable style of an English Georgian country house. When Carnegie purchased the land for the house in 1898, he purposely bought property far north of where his peers were living. The relatively open space allowed him to build a large garden-one of the few private enclosed green space in Manhattan-that is still a beautiful oasis today.

Today also includes 5th Avenue, where you will see High Society's private clubs, mansions and the Plaza, where many took up residence.

Before lunch on your own enjoy a tour of the Metropolitan Museum of Art (as available). With nearly two million works of art spanning more than 5,000 years. A large collection from the gilded age was donated to the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The Metropolitan Museum of Art is one of the world's largest and finest museums, presenting the best of human creativity from around the globe. A world of great art awaits you at the MET, NYC's most visited attraction.

After lunch on your own this afternoon, depart for home with fond memories.

B=Breakfast, L=Lunch, D=Dinner