New York is such an incredible, vibrant city, and was the start and end place for my America Road trip. The two places that stood out the most for me were the iconic Central Park and Times Square.
Times Square was honestly breathtaking. I had never been to such a fast moving city before, and I had also never been to a place that had so many huge screens on the side of every building with different adverts passing over them. It’s almost like a sensory overload. Although they were adverts, this was the one time in my life I hadn’t been annoyed by them!
The only thing that I wasn’t a fan of was how busy the place was, but I wouldn’t expect anything less from such a famous spot.
Central Park was no where near as busy as Times Square (don’t get me wrong- it was still busy!) so if you’re like me, a person who isn’t the biggest fan of the fast moving city pace but you still want to visit the highlights of the Big Apple, I recommend you stay in Central Park as it’s much more relaxed it is there.
I’ll give you a complete overview of New York with tips and recommendations that I’ve taken from my own experience there .
Man-made things to do
There are so many things to do in New York! Firstly;
A Broadway show
Go and watch at least one Broadway musical, they’re on a whole other level of awesome!
Top tip – the price of your ticket will change drastically with where you choose to sit. For example a seat at the back to the side could cost 25 USD minimum less than a ticket at the front in the middle.
Go for a stroll on Brooklyn Bridge over to Dumbo.
This walk takes 30-40mins (depending on the rate that you walk at, or you can hire a bike!) and you’ll get to see stunning views, read information about the bridge that’s dotted around and you can take some awesome pictures. Dumbo has lots of cute and yummy places to eat, a Brooklyn bridge park (you should go to this, it has a lovely view of the bridge from sea level), incredible photo spots, funky markets, fun graffiti, cool art galleries and it apparently has some of New York’s best pizza on offer. So if you love food, art, picturesque scenes and friendly people; I highly recommend combine them in a day around Dumbo.
Have an unforgettable walk across the High line
An awesome abandoned railway. It’s raised up above ground level and the views of New York and the Hudson River are gorgeous from up there. It was once a working railway but it has now been transformed into a modern park with cool benches of different designs, some of which look more like day beds they are so large, and beautiful flowers. There are also buskers and little food stands set up there so you can have a little snack on route if you wish.
Visit Grand Central Station
Talking of railways the Grand Central Station is one of the most impressive places I have ever been to. It has a food court and some shops, but the thing that strikes you is it’s architecture – it’s astonishing beautiful and it is massive! Such a gorgeous building, with a beautiful painted celestial ceiling, it’s truly impressive.
Ripley’s Believe It Or Not
Ripley’s Believe It Or Not museum is full of fun facts that, believe it or not, make you question whether they are true (super random facts/ world records etc…) and it’s such an interesting place to go!
Madame Tussaud’s.
This place is full of exact wax replicas of famous people such as Rihanna; if you want to get a photo with a famous person, this is the best place to go as they look so real!
Take in the views at the Empire State Building
The Empire State Building is so gorgeous and has the best views of the New York skyline. It provides 3 stories of outside area at the top allowing you to see the view from different heights and they also provide telescopes (you have to pay, but it’s cheap) to properly zoom in on what’s going on.
The 9/11 Memorial
The 9/11 Memorial is a very sad but lovely place to visit. It’s very interesting and worth going to look at. Please do not take out or mess with any flowers or other peace offerings that have been given to the memorial.
Times Square
As mentioned above, this is just an incredible, bustling place with shops, restaurants, cafes and other fun things to do.
And of course the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island
Top tip – I wasn’t able to get onto Ellis island where the statue is located as it had maximum capacity. To avoid this, book a few days in advance.
Natural things to do
Honestly there isn’t a wide range of natural things to do in New York but it is of course home to the MASSIVE Central Park which to be honest is all you need as it’s packed full of things to do besides going around and seeing the beautiful plants and trees.
So what does central park have to offer? A lot is the answer! Here’s some of the highlights:
- A castle!
- Lots of fountains,
- Strawberry farm,
- A massive lake that you can hire a little row boat to go on,
- Ponds,
- History museum,
- Baseball and softball pitch,
- Iceskating rink,
- Information and gift centre,
- Lots of beautiful statues,
- Incredible photo locations,
- A pool,
- A performing arts building,
- A musical arena,
- Art museum,
- A recreation centre,
- A restaurant,
- Tennis courts,
- Nature observatory,
- A zoo,
- Different grades within the park itself (literally like parks within a park),
- And the list goes on… for what seems like forever!
If I were you, I would dedicate a whole day just to Central park.
Top tip – have a look at a plan of the park to choose what you want to do and how to get to each place to avoid absolute confusion and to not miss anything that may interest you!
Must-do
Central Park (some of it at least!), going up to the top of the Empire State building, Grand Central Station. walk over Brooklyn Bridge to Dumbo and spending the day there, watching a Broadway musical and having a walk around Times Square.
Dining experience
American diners are awesome wherever you go in America so I highly recommend that you visit at least one when you’re in New York. The staff are always lovely, American’s definitely excel at customer service, and the food is awesome. The pancakes that you get (everywhere in America) are a lot thicker compared to the ones that you get anywhere else in the world so why not give them a go?!
New York Italian restaurants are known for making a pizza just perfect, it’s totally worth visiting one whilst you’re there. A good place to go for this is Joe’s Pizza; there are a few of these dotted around in New York City, including one in Times Square.
Having a bite to eat somewhere in Central Station is just a cool experience overall. The food is quite fast but it’s super busy so you will be waiting in line for a while. The main reason I loved eating there was to soak up the atmosphere, and there are lots of different choices of food in the food court.
- Piccola Cucina does delicious Italian/ Mediterranean food which is presented in a lovely way, the staff are great and although the restaurant decoration itself isn’t anything special, it is cute.
- Spice Symphony is probably the best curry house that you will find in New York City! The food is amazing as is the presentation of it, again the inside isn’t anything special but the food really is!
- Gramercy Tavern – Amazing service, delicious drinks and food, gorgeous atmosphere and decoration. Head’s up – this place is a lot more on the expensive side.
- For my fellow vegetarians, there are loads of great vegetarian places to eat. I recommend going to BKLYN Wild – Time Out Market which is located in Dumbo right next to Brooklyn bridge. I love this place as it’s well suited for dietary restrictions and it mainly uses ingredients that come from Brooklyn itself! You will get a real taste of New York home grown food made and presented wonderfully.
New York has food suited for everyone with hundreds of places to eat. I guarantee that you will find places you’ll love.
Where to stay in New York City
Below budget
- The Local NYC (hostel)- roof terrace, computer lounge, shared guest spaces where you can meet fellow guests, cool Brooklyn style rooms, clean, great staff, perfect location, cool bar area, close to subway stations, separate female dorms if you choose- Price per night* PER PERSON (for mixed dorm room)- 55.39 USD/ £40.25/ 47.64 EUR
- HI NYC (hostel)- curtains around bed, clean, great value for money, shared kitchen, comfortable beds, awesome service, good location, locker to put your things, air-conditioned, free wifi, cool restaurant and bar, modern and well kept- Price per night* PER PERSON- 55 USD/ £39.97/ 47.30 EUR
- Nap York Central Park (hostel)- awesome and different set up of beds (they are like little pods), attention to detail, good quality, great location, super friendly staff, clean and minimalist hostel, free wifi, parking, great value for money, lovely privacy- Price per night* PER PERSON- 75 USD/ £54.49/ 64.50 EUR
Within budget
- MOXY NYC Times Square- free wifi, yummy restaurant, cool bar, room service, daily housekeeping, concierge, activities for kids, parking, airport shuttle, fitness centre, hairdresser, wheelchair accessible, meeting rooms/business centre, pets allowed, air-conditioning, incredible atmosphere and decoration, amazing staff great location, comfortable beds- Price per night* PER PERSON- 210 USD/ £152.63/ 180.67 EUR
- Ameritania at Times Square- Excellent staff, perfect location, good cleanliness, great value for money, comfortable rooms, cool decoration, air-conditioning, laundry severe, business centre, wheelchair accessible, yummy restaurant, free wifi, fitness centre- Price per night* PER PERSON- 262.58 USD/£191/ 226.09 EUR
- Riu Plaza Manhattan Times Square- ideal location, great decoration, lovely bar and restaurant, room service, daily housekeeping, helpful concierge, parking, airport shuttle, cool fitness centre, wheelchair accessible, air-conditioning, amazing comfy rooms- Price per night* PER PERSON- 209.38 USD/£153/ 181.11 EUR
No expense Spared
- Hilton Garden Inn Central Park South- Clean rooms, great staff members, good location, free wifi, laundry service, all-inclusive available, cool casino, activities for kids, helpful front desk and concierge, gift shop, pets allowed, quality fitness centre, air-conditioning, business and meeting rooms- Price per night* PER PERSON- 348.97 USD/£255/301.85 EUR
- Aliz Hotel Times Square- amazing rooftop bar/lounge with incredible views, perfect location, lovely professional staff, clean and comfortable rooms, gorgeous/modern, excellent food in restaurant, good value for money, great fitness centre, room service, air-conditioning- Price per night* PER PERSON- 428.34 USD/£313/ 370.50 EUR
- Royalton Park Avenue- friendly and helpful staff, incredible outdoor pool and chill out area, centrally located, beautiful decoration, amazing rooftop bar and restaurant, very clean, great rooms, wheelchair accessible, parking, business centre, air-conditioning, free wifi, great fitness centre with sauna, comfortable- Price per night* PER PERSON- 452.97 USD/£331/ 391.81 EUR
*All prices are based off of June 18th-19th 2022 and will differ depending on your room choice.
Transport
If you are planning on sticking to the city and central park area then I wouldn’t recommend hiring a car as it’s unnecessary. The drivers are also super crazy which I spoke a little bit about in my road trip blog!
I personally just walked around New York, getting a few taxis here and there as although it is a massive city, a lot of the places are within walking distance from each other.
I must warn you about the taxis in New York…Some of the taxi drivers are far from trustworthy. My dad and I got into a taxi, drove around for around an hour to get dropped from A to B which we then discovered (by walking) the next day that the places were literally one block away from each other. A taxi that should’ve costed a maximum of 7 dollars ended up costing 50 dollars.
To avoid this, I would have a look on the maps before you head out – you can take a screenshot if you don’t have internet – and if you notice that the taxi driver is going completely off track or is taking way too long, bring it up.
The quickest, easiest and probably cheapest way to travel around New York City has to be its subways. They are very clean and have regular trains, however as you can imagine the stations and trains themselves can get extremely crowded with the high number of people trying to get around. I would avoid these during early hours and late afternoon when people are coming from and going to work, however every other time should be fine.
I noticed a lot of people were going around on bikes which is very convenient as you can pick one up and go wherever, whenever. New York actually has Citibikes, which are bikes that you can rent out for a fee of $12 for a day pass or $24 for a 3 day pass (you can also get monthly or yearly subscriptions). You can collect these from dedicated stations and drop them off there too.
There are also numerous bike rental shops. Biking seems to be the quickest and most convenient way to travel around the city. Again, I must warn you that car drivers are crazy over there, so please watch out when riding bikes on the road!
Busses are also an inexpensive way to get around New York, they are clean however they have the same issue as the subway (very busy) and it may be difficult to find a space. There is a risk that you will have to wait for the next bus at peak times, although busses are just 15 mins apart from each other. You are also limited to where you can go in terms of bus stops, so you may still have to walk a while to get to your destination.
What to pack
Summer time suitcase:
- Light airy clothes,
- Comfortable shoes,
- Going out at night clothes,
- Hat,
- Sunglasses,
- Suncream,
- Swimwear (if your accommodation has a pool),
- A great camera,
- Outfits to suit the location if you are wanting instagram pictures,
- A light jacket for temperature drops at night,
- American adapter,
- Backpack,
- Zipped handbags (or not easy accessible),
- A battery pack,
- Lip balm.
Winter time suitcase:
- A beanie,
- A warm scarf,
- Very warm winter coat,
- Warm jumpers,
- Comfy water resistant shoes,
- Comfy boots,
- Gloves,
- Warm socks,
- Portable charger,
- Lip balm,
- Sunglasses (it may be cold but sun can still shine!),
- Low protection suncream,
- Battery pack,
- Camera,
- Warm going out clothes,
- American adapter,
- Backpack,
- Zipped handbags (or not easy accessible).
Need to know before you go
The biggest possible recommendation that I can give to you is that you should make a reservation in advance for absolutely everything that you want to do (restaurants, attractions) due to how extremely busy New York is. It’s the best way to avoid disappointment.
New York is suitable for all ages, however you must be careful of younger children and keep them close to you or never take your eyes off of them and it may be a bit frantic and too fast moving for some elderly.
This may be obvious to some people, however if you do stop to take a picture, please bare the moving people in mind. Stopping in the middle of the walkway to take a pic will annoy a lot of them moving busily about their day, so it’s best if you can find a place where there aren’t many people walking past (i.e instead of the middle of the sidewalk, go to the side of it).
When it comes to sightseeing, you don’t have to spend money on a tour. Not only are they overpriced, but the majority of the time you can also see the exact same things as they will show you by yourself, for free.
People tend to follow the sidewalk ‘rules’ where you have to walk on the right hand side at all times. A lot of tourists don’t follow this, therefore you might not notice it, however it will make moving around easier if you do.
You should allow a buffer of time around as there may be long waits for what you want to do or even just for the transport to get there. It’s never a good idea to pack your day tight with things to do on a strict timescale when you are in New York City.
Being an island girl, New York was just a world away from our slow paced, relaxed lifestyle. It’s a city that’s full of life with friendly people and a great vibe. If you’re thinking of visiting more than one city in America, read up on my experiences in Miami.
