New York City Travel Guide
Are you planning a trip to New York City soon? I have been lucky enough to visit NYC many times over the last 20 years with and without my kids. My parents live in New York, so occasionally we make it over to NYC during our visits. By occasionally I mean that every time we step foot in the state of New York we eventually end up in NYC.
I am certainly not an expert on NYC, but I do have various recommendations on where to stay, where to eat, and what to do while you are in New York City. I’ve included all of them in this New York City Travel Guide.
New York City Activities
All year long, visitors can enjoy the major landmarks and attractions here, like seeing the Statue of Liberty or visiting Times Square and Ground Zero.
A plus on any trip to New York City is the abundance of free things to do around the area. For example, during the summer kids can play free games like Kubb at Bryant Park while parents enjoy a drink at the cozy park bar and During the winter season, everyone can ice skate at Bryant for free. Bryant Park isn’t the only fabulous park you should go to. New York has the most playgrounds (per square root of population), 0.6645, so you can find a playground almost anywhere you go!
16 Free Things to do in NYC You can save a lot of money if you do one free activity a day.
9/11 Memorial If you’ve never seen it, I really think you should.
American Girl Doll Store – This is one of the most excessive things I’ve ever seen.
Bryant Park – I adore this park year-round. We go here every single time we are in the city.
Ellis Island – Finding your name on the wall is amazing.
Museum of Natural History – DINOSAURS
The Highline – The Highline is an old railroad that they turned into a pedestrian walkway.
Statue of Liberty – Another attraction that everyone must do at least once.
Spas – Best spas in NYC
Top of the Rock – This is a great place to catch sweeping views of the city, including Central Park.
20 Things to do in NYC with Teenagers
20 Things to Do in NYC with Toddlers
35 Things to do in NYC with Teens
The Ride – The Ride is a tour bus that sticks to mainly the area around Times Square. The tour guides are silly, sarcastic, and will keep teens and tweens super entertained.
NYC Shopping
Obviously, a major thing to do in NYC is shop. We love to go shopping when we are there. Here are some of our favorite shops to hit: Bloomingdales, H&M in Times Square, and Uniglo on Madison Ave.
New York City Hotels
Millennium on Broadway in Times Square
Residence Inn NYC Eastside – One of our favorites.
Row NYC – The most affordable place to stay near Times Square that we’ve found so far. Their penthouse is amazing too, and affordable.
Warwick – Good location, near the famous shops and central park. They have large rooms, good for families. I think all of their rooms have double beds. You have to pay for the Internet. We had zero view. The room and the bathroom were clean. The bathroom has a bathtub.
New York City Restaurants
New York has the most restaurants (per square root of population), 7.5828. With this in mind, be sure to indulge in some over the top dessert experiences in NYC, like ice cream creations at the famous Serendipity, crazy milkshakes at Buns Bar, and more massive milkshakes at Black Tap.
Black Tap – crazy milkshakes
Calle Dao a Cuban/Chinese fusion restaurant with an excellent happy hour.
Lucy’s Cantina – The best Mexican food I have had in NYC.
Malthouse – Near the 9/11 memorial. They have the best brunch with bottomless brunch cocktails on Sundays.
Tir Na Nog – Best Irish food in NYC and their Sunday brunch is so good.
Carmine’s in Little Italy (They also have a location near Times Square.)
Junior’s – The best hot chocolate in NYC!
Grimaldis – pizza
9 Top Breakfast Restaurants in NYC
11 Best Places to Eat in New York City
Best Places to Eat in the West Village, NYC
The Most Instagrammable Food in NYC
Best Outdoor Patio Bars in NYC
Broadway Shows
Harry Potter and the Cursed Child Lottery
New York City Holiday Sights
If at all possible, visit during the holiday season to see the Rockettes, Macy’s Christmas windows, Dyker Holiday Lights, and the famous Rockefeller Center Christmas tree. While you’re there, take a spin around the ice skating rink.
Dyker Heights Holiday Lights in Brooklyn
Ice Skating at Rockefeller Center – Not free. $25 admission per person, $13 for a skate rental. They offer military members 50% off admission.
Ice Skating at Bryant Park – free admission
10 Best Holiday Restaurants in NYC
New York City Winter Weekend Getaway
New York City Tips
15 Ways to Save Money in NYC – If you only implement a few of these ideas, you will save quite a bit of money in the city!
New York City Romantic Getaway
3 Day NYC Itinerary with Teens
NYC in a Weekend: Everything to Do
Mother-Daughter New York City Weekend Getaway
Discounted Tickets to NYC shows and attractions
How to Get Around NYC
NYC isn’t difficult to get around, because there are lots of options. If it’s nice outside and less than a 30-minute walk, we usually walk.
You can use my Lyft invite for a $18 credit! Also available in NYC and often cheaper is Via. You can use my Via referral code for a $10 credit: meagan7t8
I do not recommend renting a car. It will cost you big bucks to park it.
With the help of this blog post, we’ve discovered all that NYC has to offer from the beautiful attractions of Central Park to the unique restaurants of different cultures. Although a single visit is not enough time to experience New York City in its entirety, it is never too late to plan a vacation and have a great experience. For those who are planning on visiting, make sure to get your camera ready for some amazing photographs of New York! Keep in mind that there are plenty of things to do in the city, so research before venturing out and you’ll make some unforgettable memories. Get ready, set, go! Go explore everything that makes New York City the ‘City That Never Sleeps’. Make sure to leave with happy stories and heartwarming memories. And finally, don’t forget to bookmark your favorite photos and share them when you get back home! Bon voyages!
Brooklyn, New York Travel Guide
Jersey City: Your Budget-Friendly Gateway to New York City
Get Travel Insurance
Unfortunately, there are a lot of things that can go wrong on any trip. Be prepared for the worst with travel insurance. We use Travelex or Safety Wing (often cheaper).
Book Flights
I use Skyscanner to find flights. I use it so much, I wrote an entire guide to finding cheap flights with Skyscanner! Another option for finding deals is FlightHub.
Book a Place to Stay
I recommend using Expedia.com or Hotels.com for most hotel bookings. I prefer to book directly with Marriott when I stay there because of their excellent military discount.
If you prefer staying in a vacation rental instead, I recommend VRBO. If you are looking for a hostel, I use HostelWorld.
Choose Activities and Tours
To find great activities in any area I use Viator. If we are visiting a city with lots of popular attractions I always check CityPass, PogoPass, and GoCard to see if they have discount cards available. Groupon also tends to have a lot of local travel deals.
When I want to book a full-on multi-day tour I use TourRadar. They’ve got fantastic weekly deals. If going somewhere in Mexico or the Caribbean, I use Apple Vacations.
Rent a Car or Get a Lyft
More often than not, Lyft is cheaper than Uber. Use my Lyft link for an $18 credit! For a car rental in any country, I recommend Hertz or Discover Cars.
Save Money on Gas
Upside a free app gets you cash back on gas! Use promo code RV2Q2 to get an extra 15¢/gal bonus on your first purchase.
Get a Visa
I use iVisa to get all of my Visas.
Travel Printables
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