Monthly Archives: November 2014

The Radio City Christmas Spectacular

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With Thanksgiving and its festivities coming to a close this week, everyone is moving their attention to the coming holiday season. Throughout New York City, stores are putting up holiday window displays, soon Rockefeller Center will have its annual Christmas Tree lighting ceremony, and Bryant Park is opening its ice rink.

But nothing really brings in the holiday spirit quite like the Radio City Christmas Spectacular, starring the Rockettes.

The Radio City Christmas Spectacular takes place in the beautiful Radio City Music Hall at 6th Avenue and 50th Street. The building was constructed in 1929 with funding support from John D. Rockefeller, Jr. and the Radio Corporation of America. After construction was completed, S.L. “Roxy” Rothafel was brought on as impresario of the Music Hall.  Roxy developed a reputation as a theatrical genius by combining vaudeville, movies, and razzle-dazzle décor to revive struggling theaters in the wake of the stock market crash.

The legend of the Rockettes began in 1925 with a group called the “Missouri Rockets”.  They had been tapping and making high kicks since 1925 under the direction of Russell Markert. The Missouri Rockets were invited by Roxy Rothafel to perform at Radio City’s opening night on December 27th, 1932, using the name the “Roxyettes.” They were one of 17 diverse acts including the Flying Wallendas, Ray Bolger, and Martha Graham.  Despite the competition, they were invited back the following year to headline and were renamed the “Rockettes.” In the 80 years since then, the Radio City Christmas Spectacular has become the #1 holiday production in America. It has toured 74 different cities outside of New York, such as Nashville, Chicago, Dallas, and St. Louis. However, its home will always be the Radio City Music Hall.

So come into the city and see the show that truly celebrates the holiday season in style. Performances run throughout the month of December. And when you plan your trip to see this spectacular show, make sure to book with ParkJockey so you don’t find yourself missing everything because you can’t find parking. We have locations all over New York City, from Midtown, to the Upper East Side, to SoHo, and the financial district. Wherever your travels take you, ParkJockey’s got you covered.

Book now using the promo code “ROCKETTES” and get a discount off your next booking.

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After Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade: Black Friday

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Since we visited the history of the Thanksgiving Day Parade last week, it is only fitting that we give the history of the second scariest day of the year (just below Halloween): Black Friday. The Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade and Black Friday are intrinsically linked. According to blackfriday.com, ever since the first Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade in 1924, “the Friday after Thanksgiving has been known as the unofficial start to a bustling holiday shopping season.”

There is some disagreement as to the origin of the term, “Black Friday.” The term was most likely first coined in the 1960s by police officers in Philadelphia to describe the mess associated with congested streets filled with heavy pedestrian and vehicle traffic. According to Ben Zimmer’s article “The Origins of ‘Black Friday,’” Philadelphia merchants initially detested the label because of its association with the stock market crisis of 1869. Merchants were worried that customers would have been scared off by the ominous title, preferring to call it “Big Friday.” However, the name “Black Friday” also had another meaning, and that is referring to stores moving from the “red” to the “black.” When accounting records were kept by hand, red indicated a loss, and black indicated a profit. So, despite objections, because of the alternate association, and continued use of the term by the press, the name remained.

In recent years, it has developed more of a negative connotation, with people aggressively waiting hours in lines to be the first to get the specials. But that does not change the fact that everyone agrees Black Friday is the best time to get your Christmas shopping done. You get the best deals you will be able to find all year, and you have all day to visit the stores and find the deals right for you. So brave the crowds and make sure you get out and grab some special deals!

But don’t get stuck in the traffic with no place to park! Book with ParkJockey now and reserve a spot close to your favorite shopping locations, be it in SoHo, Midtown, along 5th Avenue, or anywhere in the New York City area. And, of course, be safe this “Black Friday” and happy shopping!

Book now using the promo code “FRIDAYDEAL” and, in the spirit of Black Friday, get a great discount on your next booking!

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ParkJockey Presentation at IGNITE Conference – London

Our Global Head of Marketing, Igal Aciman, took the stage as one of guest speakers at Nimbus Ninety’s annual IGNITE conference at The Worx, London.

As a technology-focused business association, Nimbus Ninety brings together over 400 business leaders over two days of keynote speeches, breakout sessions, networking events and an awards ceremony. The great line-up of speakers besides Igal included business leaders from Tesla Motors, Virgin, BBC Worldwide, and many others.

Igal’s breakout session talk was titled “Customer-centric digital disruption in a traditional industry,” in which he elaborated on the lessons from ParkJockey’s experience with digital disruption that are applicable to large companies. Check out the full recording below!

In addition to the talk, you can also review the case study on ParkJockey that Nimbus Ninety published on October 10, featuring an interview with Igal Aciman and our Head of Operations – UK, Kamal Rajput.

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ParkJockeyUK now in partnership with KweekWeek

ParkJockey is proud to announce it’s new working partnership with KweekWeek.

KweekWeek is a holistic events platform (Mobile App & Website) that connects event organisers and consumers in a single space comprising of promotion, ticketing, updates and recommendations for a variety of events in London.

Next time you are looking for something fun to do, use KweekWeek & enjoy £5 off KweekWeek’s redeemable events by entering the code: KWEEKPARKING. Register now at www.kweekweek.com or download the app!

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The partnership will also allow users and followers of KweekWeek to enjoy £5 parking credit into their ParkJockey account – providing people with hassle-free parking for any occasion!

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Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade

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This Thanksgiving marks the 88th annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. It is the second oldest Thanksgiving Day parade in the United States (just 4 years younger than the Dunkin’ Donuts Thanksgiving Day Parade in Philadelphia). According to the book Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade by Robert M. Grippo and Christopher Hoskins, the “Parade started out as a Christmas pageant [led by] a company of immigrants who were thankful for the opportunities that America and New York City gave them.” Incorporating traditions of their native land, Macy’s created an event that newspapers described as having an “Americanized modern slant.”

As the parade increased in popularity, more employees got involved, reaching over 300 in 1926. The following year, in 1927, the Parade took a leap forward with the inauguration of their first ever giant character balloon, Felix the Cat.  But things didn’t really start to heat u until 1947, when the parade became a nationally televised event.  It has, since 1979, been awarded an 12 Emmy awards for outstanding Achievement.  By 1996, even the Giant Balloon Inflation became a must-see event, bringing thousands to the Upper West Side to see the inflatable giants take shape.

The parade kicks off at 77th and Central Park West at 9:00am on Thanksgiving Day, with the character balloons being blown up at that location the night before. The parade moves south on Central Park West, following the Park east until 6th Avenue. The Parade makes its final destination the Macy’s at Herald Square. According to the Parade website, some of the character balloons to be seen at this year’s event include Hello Kitty, Spongebob Squarepants, and Spiderman.

With over 3.5 million people lining the streets, parking will be almost entirely impossible. That is, of course, unless you book early with ParkJockey and get your spot reserved for the fantastic day.  With locations on the Upper West Side and in Herald Square, we have your parking covered.  After all, the holiday season is about enjoying yourself, not stressing out over parking.

Book now using the promo code “TURKEYDAY” and get 10% off your booking cost!

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ParkJockey – The Metaphorical 5th Wheel

A car has four wheels, these 4 wheels get you from A to B. They get you to your restaurant, to your basketball game, to your date.

In the 1950s, the cars did the same, but they also got you out of a tight parallel parking spot. A fifth wheel in the ‘trunk’ of the car would lower almost hermit crab-like, perpendicular to the other wheels, and allow you to pivot out of the space to thus reverse out hassle-free. Yes, this really happened back then – Check it out below!

This really didn’t catch on, even though the thought a full 360 degree turn from your driveway, into your garage sounds pretty awesome. Now in the 21st century, digital disruption is at the forefront of everything we do, especially in traditional industries. We have these applications that make your travel logistics easier and more efficient for example the likes of CityMapper and Uber. With CityMapper you are wheel-less. With Uber, you are wheeled around.

With ParkJockey, you have a 5th wheel. Once those 4 wheels have got you from A, the metaphorical 5th wheel will help you find you a space to park your car, before you get to B. We are that lesser known but vital middle-man.

So, download ParkJockey’s brand new app now, available on the App Store and Google Play

Enjoy your 5th wheel!   😉

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A Veterans Day to Remember

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On Tuesday, November 11th, the 95th annual New York City Veterans Day Parade, aptly titled “America’s Parade,” will be honoring the men and women who have served and protected our country by marching up 5th Avenue from 26th to 52nd street.  Veterans Today describes this Parade as “the largest Veterans Day Event in the nation”.  This year, the parade’s theme will be “’Land of the Free/Home of the Brave,’ in honor of the 200th Anniversary of the writing of the Star Spangled Banner.  The Featured Service Branch will be the U.S. Marine Corps.

The Parade first started in 1919 after Woodrow Wilson declared Armistice Day a national holiday on Nov. 11.  Over the years, Armistice Day became Veterans Day and started to get the  serious attention and support that it gets today (over 20,000 participants each year) when the United War Veterans Council formed, taking on the responsibility of organizing the Veteran’s Day Parades in 1945 shortly after World War II.

America’s Parade has become a long standing tradition of honoring our men and women in uniform.  However, if you are unable to make the trip into New York City for the Parade, the New York City Veterans Community is organizing the third annual “Veterans Week NYC.” According to Veterans Today, the Week consists of activities like the “Patriots Tour”, which visits war monuments throughout the 5 boroughs, the “Veterans Mass” at St. Patrick’s Cathedral on November 9th, and the “Band of Pride” concert in Times Square on November 10th. Make sure to come into the city to check these events out and support our troops.

Now comes the tricky part. With thousands of people coming into the city to attend these events, finding parking will be very difficult.  You can make your trip easier by booking your parking ahead of time with ParkJockey. We have parking in NOMAD by the Parade’s starting point as well as parking in Midtown, Flatiron, and all throughout New York City.

Book now using promo code “VETERANS” and get 10% off your booking.

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ParkJockey: An App for Urban Living

ParkJockey was recently featured in the business section of the  Miami Herald as one of eight thriving apps set to enhance urban living. Aside from the individual convenience of the app, the Miami Herald makes the point that, “An estimated 30 percent of traffic is actually looking for a parking place, allowing ParkJockey to make a difference in  reducing carbon emissions and city traffic congestion”.

Read the full article  here.

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The interface of the ParkJockey app is customizable pertaining to the users location. 

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ParkJockey Provides Convenient Parking for the HeatNation

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ParkJockey Miami is proud to be featured in the Culture section of  The Miami New Times  as the official parking partner of the  Miami HEAT. The home opener for Miami was last Tuesday, October 30th, 2014, and marked a great start for this year’s NBA season. ParkJockey Miami has already begun to  reduce the stress of parking for the  HeatNation and proud to be a partner of the Miami HEAT!

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Scott Rosen, General Manager for Miami, was interviewed by  Miami New Times to give more insight into ParkJockey’s presence in the city, “We probably have about 100 locations with access to 15,000 spaces. We have lots from as far south as Coconut Grove to as far north as Port Canaveral”. Scott continued, “it’s very simple — you open up the app or website and search. We have location and event-based search. So you could search for American Airlines Arena or Wynwood or III Points, then the app will pull up the closest locations in the area at the best rates. It’s one touch parking”.

Read the full Miami New Times article  here.

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