Tourist Guide to Time Warner Center in New York

Located at the edge of Central Park at Columbus Circle, the Time Warner Center offers New York City tourists a unique mix of attractions.

New York City has a number of famous buildings that have become tourist attractions. Landmarks such as the Chrysler Building and the Flatiron Building are known for their unique architecture. The Empire State Building and Rockefeller Center attract tourists for the views from their skyscraper observation decks.

Perhaps no building in the city of New York offers as interesting a mix of cultural experiences, however, as the Time Warner Center.

The biggest tourist attraction at the building is Frederick P. Rose Hall, home of Jazz at Lincoln Center. Opened in 2004 after 17 years of performances up the street at Alice Tully Hall, Jazz at Lincoln Center continues its mission to promote the art form and growing audiences for jazz. The Rose Theater, and the more intimate Allen Room, provide an exquisite setting for experiencing America's true original music. Programs are offered year round.

Housed adjacent to Rose Hall, on the Time Warner Center's fifth floor, is the Nesuhi Ertegun Jazz Hall of Fame, celebrating legendary musical performers, many of whom performed here at what is affectionately called The House of Swing.

The Time Warner Center is the corporate home to the parent company of many of America's favorite TV channels, including HBO , TBS and TNT. The New York studios of worldwide new channel CNN are located in the Time Warner Center, and camera crews can often be seen on the street outside the building, interviewing passersby - local residents and tourists alike.

Kids will love the Cartoon Network location , open to the public on the building's third floor. Life-sized characters from shows like "Ben 10" and " Star Wars: Clone Wars " are on display, along with original cartoon artwork and interactive exhibits.

One floor up, the Time Warner Center features several outstanding restaurants. Tourists looking for the ultimate New York City culinary experience will want to have dinner at Per Se - consistently named the best restaurant in America by many "foodie" publications. Famed chef Thomas Keller has created a big-city version of his acclaimed California restaurant, The French Laundry and, by all accounts, surpassed the original.

The Time Warner Center is also a retail complex. The Shops at Columbus Circle features a variety of stores ranging from a Whole Foods Market below street level, to popular chains such as Borders books and Williams Sonoma, as well as upscale shopping at stores like Hugo Boss and Stuart Weitzman.

The retail area often features accessible art installations. In early 2011, an exhibition of Salvador Dali drawings and sculptures was open to the public across two floors of the complex. More permanent art includes two giant statues - one man and one woman - by Columbian artist Fernando Botero. The figures - particularly the man - are a common, easy-to-identify meeting place for New York City tourists.

There's something for almost every New York City tourist at the Time Warner Center, at 10 Columbus Circle, on Broadway between 59^th and 60^th Streets.