Photograph Manhattan From the Boat News Crews Charter
An hour in New York Harbor on a working media boat, with twelve stops built around where the photographs are.
Chelsea Piers puts a lot of boats on the Hudson. This one spends its working week under photographers and news crews, and that is how the operator started back in 2012.
The sightseeing hour uses the same boat and the same water. The captain stops twelve times, and at each stop he positions the boat so every guest gets the shot. Between stops it runs up to 25 knots when the sea allows. That is how a single hour covers the Hudson, the East River and the Upper Bay and still comes back to the dock it left.
Departures leave from Chelsea Piers Marina at Pier 59 and return to the same dock. Dates, times and the current fare sit on the booking page.
Manhattan Adventure Sightseeing Boat Tour - from Chelsea PiersNew York Media Boat · 60 minutes from Chelsea Piers, Pier 59 · Up to 12 travelers per bookingwww.viator.comThe Boat Works for News Crews on Its Other Days
New York Media Boat started in 2012 as a vessel platform for photographers and news crews, and the operator says it still works with media clients daily. The sightseeing tour runs on what the operator calls a U.S. Navy designed boat, the same boat media agencies charter to cover breaking news. This one listing carries a 4.99 average from 725 traveler reviews.
The ride is calmer than the word adventure suggests. The operator says plainly that this is not a thrill ride where you have to hang on, and that the movement is closer to a car than to a sailboat. A U.S. Coast Guard licensed captain runs the boat and the narration, in English, and the safety briefing happens on the dock before anyone boards.
Twelve Stops, and the Statue Is Only One of Them
The hour runs south first. The boat leaves Pier 59, stops beside Little Island, then crosses to the New Jersey shore for the panoramic view of the whole skyline before coming back to Manhattan in front of the Financial District.
Rounding Battery Park it turns into the East River, past South Street Seaport, where helicopters take off and land, then under the Brooklyn Bridge and up to the Manhattan Bridge. The five minutes just north of the Brooklyn Bridge is the longest stop the itinerary puts a number on, and it is where the bridge and the skyline land in one frame. Then the Brooklyn waterfront, the Red Hook container terminal and Governors Island, once an Army base, then a Coast Guard station, now a large park.
Across the Upper Bay there are tugs, barges and the Staten Island Ferry, and then the Statue of Liberty. The boat holds just outside the security zone for an unobstructed view. On the way back north it passes Ellis Island and stops again in front of the Hudson Yards complex and The Vessel.
The Deck Is Open and the Wind Comes With It
Every guest is offered weather gear for warmth before boarding, and there are lifejackets aboard for all ages. It is colder on the water than on land once windchill is added, and on a windy day some spray blows across the deck.
- Flat, sturdy shoes only. The listing rules out high heels.
- Some of the boats use jockey-style seating, which the operator notes is not ideal for skirts.
- Sunglasses shield your eyes from the wind. A hat helps too, though baseball caps can fly off at speed.
- There is no restroom on board. The public ones are inside the Chelsea Piers complex at Pier 59.
- Phones handle the photography. For a camera with interchangeable lenses the operator suggests a 14mm and a 200mm.
Four Passengers Make It Sail
Tours run with a minimum of four passengers, and the operator will tell you the load on a given departure if you call ahead. One booking covers up to twelve travelers. Online booking closes two hours before departure.
Cancelling at least 24 hours ahead returns the full fare. If the operator cancels for unsafe weather you can reschedule or take a full refund. A no-show is not refunded, and neither is a late arrival that misses the boat.
Children are welcome aboard. The listing sets a minimum age of four and requires an adult with any minor, and the operator asks for a call before booking anyone under five, because not all of its boats suit small children. The listing also says the tour is not recommended for pregnant travelers or for travelers with spinal injuries.
Check in 15 minutes before departure at the dock booth on the left side of the golf center, at Chelsea Piers Marina on Pier 59. The marina entrance is on Eleventh Avenue, across from West 17th Street.
The boats leave on schedule. If you are running late, call the boat. With other passengers already aboard the crew can hold departure by no more than five minutes. There is always traffic in Manhattan, and a departure you miss is not refunded. You step off at the same dock an hour later, back at the Chelsea Piers complex on the Hudson.