Guttenberg, NJ Outdoor Activities

NY Waterway's tours are the prime way to see NYC, whether you see it every day or woke up in Manhattan yesterday with no idea of how you got there. The knowledgeable tour guides make the cruises engaging by dredging up historical details and sharing fascinating facts while dodging mermen and beached JumboTrons. NY Waterway makes it easy to reach the watery way with free shuttle buses that run along popular city routes. At the wave of a hand, the red, white, and blue buses will pick you up and take you straight to Pier 78, where the boats depart. After your tour, the shuttle will be waiting to take you back inland.

Statue Cruises enthralls sightseers of all types with spectacular views of New York's skyline and Ellis Island during decadent sunset cocktail cruises. Aboard the luxurious yacht, tour-goers spy on city life from a distance while washing down the harbor's historical eye candy with complimentary snacks. Cruisers can hop aboard the New York–style gondola in Liberty Landing or Battery Park, and she'll set out to sea, graciously aiding passengers' aquatic appearances with two hours of fresh summer breezes and flirtatious compliments from loggerhead turtles. To finalize reservations before the Internet goes out of business, patrons must book their excursions before July 31, 2011.

Besides having the chance to sample the finest specialty coffees and teas from all over the world, you'll also get to partake in seminars that are just as eye-opening as anything you happen to imbibe. Tea specialist Yoon Hee Kim will take you on a world tour of teas in "From Garden to Cup: Tea 101". Marcela Zuchovicki, owner of Jalima Coffee, will lead an interactive discussion of the art of cupping and tasting coffee, while Chef Melody McGinley Whitelaw teaches you how to use both breeds of brew to prepare the decadent desserts in "Think Outside the Cup: Creating Coffee- and Tea-Infused Desserts". During the festival, you can also engage in chocolate tastings and Korean tea ceremonies, and learn how to both brew and find the best coffee in New York.

Climbers of all ages and skill levels scamper across roughly 22,000 square feet of climbable space inside Brooklyn Boulders's rock-climbing gym. A dedicated route-setting staff organizes color-coded problems on craggy, angled top-rope walls as well as bouldering walls that reach up to 15 feet, on which climbers scramble as nimbly as mountain goats or fall from safely onto 12-inch pads. To help visitors master these walls, seasoned instructors train them in three basic types of climbing: bouldering, top-rope climbing, or lead climbing—and also test them for a mandatory lead-climbing certification. They teach these skills through classes such as the peak-performance program, which combines seven courses in lead climbing, bouldering, and cross-training to accelerate students' learning. To ease stressed muscles and promote calm reflection, staffers also lead all-ages yoga lessons and monthly yoga workshops.

Brooklyn Boulders also injects creativity into its special events, which encourage visitors to climb in costume around Halloween and take part in competitions during which they pretend the floor has turned to lava. Staffers also invite local graffiti artists to display their murals inside, work to preserve regional climbing areas by partnering with Access Fund, and coordinate programs through its BKB Foundation—a nonprofit that introduces rock climbing to kids and adults.

S3 Leagues scoops up locals and arranges them into kickball, softball, and bowling teams according to their age and neighborhood, giving them the opportunity to enjoy team sports while meeting new people. In the summer 2010 season alone, more than 4,000 players took to the fields at McCarren Park for competitive kickball and softball competition followed by friendly postgame carousing at a nearby bar. After each game, teams receive two complimentary pitchers of beer to facilitate boisterous discussions about how many ounces are in a liter. This postgame partying perpetuates team solidarity, as does wearing matching team shirts, cashing in on food and drink specials together, and mingling at the end-of-season party.

The cycling guides at Central Park Bike Tours shepherd customers through the Big Apple’s lively core during informative tours and rent out bikes so explorers can discover the city at their own pace. Multilingual guides ferry tourists past Manhattan's and Brooklyn’s storied sights, such as Central Park, Times Square, Greenwich Village, Little Italy, and the location where former mayor Ed Koch was famously encased in ice. A photo tour focuses on scenic locales as shutterbugs artistically document their surroundings.