Translation from English

Saturday, August 17, 2013

Getting lost at Grand Central (LOL)-- Directory-- Transit Museum and Gift Shop(s)


Noticed some elevators and some passages where you were not supposed to go at Grand Central, that is the way you might get lost here...

There was a time homeless people knew how to get down to lower levels in winter

The following little video just shows how the hallways can get blocked off when you think you know where you are going (but an exit is never that far away)

 They would not let me take photos in the Museum part here...Big gift shop here is augmented by a little gift stand as you head out the North hallway to Lexington Avenue...



 Now, let's see if there are any reviews..they will tell us quite a lot if they are like all the others we have seen...

New York Transit Museum Gallery Annex & Store

3.5 star rating
23 reviews Rating Details
Grand Central Terminal
E 42nd St & Vanderbilt Ave

New York, NY 10017
(212) 878-0106
Nearest Transit Station:
Grand Central - 42 St. (S)
Grand Central - 42 St. (4, 5, 6, 6X)
Grand Central - 42 St. (7, 7X)
Hours:
Mon-Fri 8 am - 8 pm
Sat-Sun 10 am - 6 pm
Price Range:
$$$
Accepts Credit Cards:
Yes
Parking:
Street
Good for Kids:
Yes
0.6 Miles from New York Transit Museum Gallery Annex & Store
Mr. M. said: "Pamela was very helpful, patient and professional. She helped me surprise my mom with a stunning purple bouquet for her birthday! What a treat to find Alaric here…" read more »

Review Highlights   What's this?

  • "A nice trinket store if you're a fan of the MTA." In 10 reviews
  • "...Christmas tree with ornaments emblazoned with the subway line number." In 3 reviews
  • "It's easy to miss, but you shouldn't miss it." In 3 reviews
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23 reviews in English

  • Review from

    New York, NY
    7/22/2013
    The museum in Brooklyn - including the gift shop - is certainly my favorite, but this locale is much more convenient for most people and especially for tourists.  I've bought lots of cute gifts here, and I don't mind admitting that I've bought a few things for myself.  In particular, I love the items with artwork by Sophie Blackall.  This store has a good selection of books (public transit photo books happen to be one of my semi-obsessions) and other items.  The staff have always been pleasant, although not what I'd call effusively-friendly.
  • Review from

    • 47 friends
    • 160 reviews
    Brooklyn, NY
    6/5/2013
    If you are passing through grand central with kids during the holidays when they have the model train set up this is a great place to spend twenty or thirty minutes with kids, so make time for it.  as a place to kill time in a depot this is five star without a doubt.   Kids love to come and watch the toy train make its loop.    

    But the rest of the year its just ho-hum, not kid friendly, mostly retail shop and the staff are always seeming pretty annoyed by anyone who isnt just buying something and leaving.    Still my son loves to drag me in here whenever we have time to kill before boarding metro north trains.

    You can find some of the cool centennial celebration posters right now, and random transit themed useless overpriced things like subway map mouse pads and soon to be trashed umbrellas.
  • Review from

    • 103 friends
    • 247 reviews
    New York, NY
    5/31/2012 2 check-ins here
    Come here for the store and maybe the sliver of a museum if you want to kill time. I've been to the London Transport Museum which is enormous and immensely thorough, probably the best museum I've ever been to, but this is like a pinhead of that place.

    Instead, half of it is the store. It has a bunch of cool MTA merchandise, but honestly could have way more and most of the good stuff is on the website. Plus it's very overpriced, but there are some good merch you can get for affordable prices if you need a souvenir.

    As one yelper said, it is the touristy store really designed for non-tourists. People who buy stuff there often relate to the items because they use public transportation every day. Favorite subway line? Get it on a magnet! Coaster! Tshirt!

    They have a surprisingly large selection of London Underground stuff, but if you really want those types of items I'd go to the London Transport Museum online shop! http://www.ltmuseumshop.…

    Anyways, this is a cool place to check out as a New Yorker; and I've purchased several Metro Card shot glasses here. Word of advice, do not run those through the dish washer (yikes).

    Check it out! Extremely easy to miss if you aren't in that area of Grand Central, but it's worth finding!
  • Review from

    • 697 friends
    • 1857 reviews
    San Francisco, CA
    2/11/2012
    It's about as simultaneously awesome and underwhelming as the San Francisco Railway Museum & Gift Shop.  But this is New York, so I expect more than amazingly meek at times San Francisco.

    I do like the fact that the few people involved in setting up the panels put a lot of effort into it.  But it doesn't have a community feel.  I would have spent much more time perusing if we hadn't planned to do 783 things that day.

    It's easy to miss, but you shouldn't miss it.  Kind of like some boring art museums, except it's only boring if you're not a dork like me.
  • Review from

    Hingham, MA
    10/19/2011
    I love this NY transit museum store.  It's filled with all kinds of fun things for those lovers and haters alike of the New York City MTA.

    It's well worth a visit to this charming store but you can also peruse and purchase things on-line.
    I recently sent an old NYC school chum of mine, now living in Oregon, some subway map cocktail napkins.

    If you have a favorite train you can decorate your Christmas tree with ornaments emblazoned with the subway line number.  How about some boxer shorts with the subway map on them?  Or some now historical tokens?  MTA cards or stationery, anyone?
    There is also a selection of children's toys, books and clothing with train and bus motifs.

    There's nothing here that you can't live without but sometimes little gift reminders of home can be cool for native NYers living elsewhere.
    Absence, after all, does make the heart grow fonder, even with mass transit.

    When I think about my days as a NYC strap-hanger, I'm mostly glad they're behind me but that doesn't stop me from whipping out my NYC subway map umbrella on a rainy day like today.  I'm nostalgic like that.
  • Review from

    New York, NY
    4/29/2012
    Half the space is merchandise, the other half is themed exhibits. Come to buy a gift, come to kill time before your train, come because your bathroom would really benefit from an MTA map shower curtain (mine does!).

    The free exhibits are always unusual and well thought-out. The current one, about London Underground posters, is a little less interesting than most (probably an Olympic tie-in), but still worth checking out for graphic design nuts.

    The merchandise is pretty comprehensive, with T-shirts, books, shoulder bags, kids'  stuff, and (actually quite good) jewelry.

    The small items are worth it, even for locals. I bought a new Metrocard holder for less than $3, and the otherwise gruff staffers got into an impassioned discussion of when an old design might be coming back into circulation.

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