Business Contacts
Mobile phone hire Cellular Express Phone Rentals Inc will deliver a phone to your hotel. On 800 320 7776 and cellularexpressphonerentals.com.

Car hire: Budget car rentals phone number 800 527 0700 or on www.budget.com. Office rental: Citi Habitats has several office locations in NYC and an extensive selection of temporary or long-term office rental space. Tel: 212 685 7777 and www.citihabitats.com.

Secretarial services: Dial-A-Secretary services have two locations in Manhattan on tel: 212 348 9575 and tel: 212 348 8982.

Excursions
Although the cost of a 30-minute flight is about the same as a hotel room for the night, Liberty Helicopter Tours www.libertyhelicopters.com) is the best way to see Manhattan.

The Staten Island Ferry is a river tour on the cheap – free actually – with great views of the Statue of Liberty, Financial District and the Brooklyn Bridge. www.siferry.com. NYC has its own private big red buses, and they often come with an out-of-work-actor tour guide. www.nydecker.com.

Local press
Time Out NY is the best guide to NYC's bars, restaurants, movies, clubs, music etc, for those who are unfamiliar with the city. Published on Thursdays, the magazine also includes topical articles on of-the-moment subjects.

The New York Times is the city's left-ofcentre daily newspaper – it's well written and one of the most well-respected newspapers in America, with an informative Arts section, but the local (Metro) section could be meatier.

The New York Post is NYC's animated, conservative daily tabloid, read by all 'real' New Yorkers, more blue-collar than the Times and well-known for its 'Page Six' gossip column.

The Village Voice is the city's liberal weekly newspaper, with a young, irreverent tone. Next to Time Out, it has the best local happenings and restaurant listings, and the added benefit of being free.