New York Car Rentals and Empire State Building

Looking for something to do during your trip to New York? Why not visit the Empire State Building located at 350 Fifth Avenue in midtown Manhattan! Observatory hours are 9:30 AM to Midnight daily, with special holiday hours for Christmas and New Years. The Empire State building is open 365 days a year and has a large staff waiting to answer all of your questions. The Empire State building is located right in the center of Manhattan so why not drive on over in your New York rental car; it isn't everyday that you get to see one of the largest buildings in the world! Facts
  • The Empire State building is 1,453' 8 and 9/16" tall, from the ground floor all the way to the top of the lightning rod
  • There are 102 floors in the building housing office space, restaurants, banks and local retailers like Diamond's Hallmark and Walgreen's
  • The Empire State Building was built in 1930 and was completed one year later
  • The Empire State Building was engineered to "give". This means that during winds of 110 miles per hour the building will give approximately 1.48 inches, allowing the structure to retain its stability
  • There are 1,860 steps from street level to the 102nd floor, 6,500 windows, 73 elevators, and 70 miles of piping that delivers water throughout the building
You may notice when you drive past the Empire State Building in your New York rental car a splendid array of colored lights that decorate the top of the building. These lights are not just erected during the Christmas season; instead they are lit year round as a symbol for different events. For example, when all of the lights are gold on the top of the Empire State Building it is in honour of the Academy Awards and Oscar week in NYC. When the lights alternate blue, white, white it is for United Nations Day and the pattern of orange, blue, blue symbolizes the New York Knicks opening basketball game! These lights allow for quite a view from below in your New York rental car, and are even more spectacular when viewed from the neighboring buildings.

The Observatory

Driving through NYC in your New York rental car is one way of seeing the sights, but by far the best way to see New York is from the top of the Empire State Building. On floor 86 of the Empire State building lies the Observatory. This floor has spacious outdoors promenades on all four sides, creating a breathtaking panoramic view of the city. The Observatory also offers a heated and air conditioned glass-enclosed gallery (for those visitors who aren't exactly excited about heights!). The Observatory is handicap accessible and offers a snack bar along with souvenir counters.

High powered binoculars are available for visitors to use, at a minimal fee, which are perfect for scanning the horizons of New York City's skyscrapers. Please note that the Empire State building, for obvious reasons, enforces a variety of safety precautions within the building. Security checks are mandatory when entering the building and are described as being similar to those preformed at airports. Cameras and camcorders ARE definitely allowed during your tour of the Empire State Building, but please no glass bottles or large duffel bags.

The Empire State Building is such a charming and beautiful building that it has even appeared in some major motion pictures and documentaries over the years! Some of the most famous include: When Harry Met Sally, King Kong, Guys and Dolls, Sleepless in Seattle and of course, Independence Day. The Empire State Building has also had some famous visitors during its almost 75 year run. They include Queen Elizabeth in 1957, Fidel Castro in 1959, KISS in 1976 and even the soccer star Pele in 1975.

For more information on the Empire State Building or to order your advance tickets visit the buildings official site at www.esbnyc.com!