All About NYC///
One of my favorite places to take a trip and explore is New York City. There's something about the heartbeat of the city and the passion oozing from the people that just draws me in every time. Plus, there's never not anything to do. In the past 5 years I have taken 3 trips to the city and the more I go, the more I learn. With that being said, I get asked all the time for New York City tips. So here are 10 quick tips!!!
1. If you're going to the city for more than 48 hours I HIGHLY recommend buying the Unlimited 7 day Metro Pass. This pass includes access and travel around the city on both the Subway and the Bus. You get the 7 day pass for $32, otherwise your pay per ride rate is $2.75 each ride. You essential have to ride 11 times to break even. This allows room for error too in case you miss your stop or anything like that.
2. Download the app Transit. It'll make you look and feel like a natural NYC gal. You type in where you currently are (or plan to be) and type in the end location. It'll give you all the transit options, plus how long it'll take to walk, wait for the subway/bus, and turn by turn directions. It's saved me lots of times from feeling completely lost.
3. Plan before you leave!!! This is super important. Looking on a map sometimes point A doesn't seem super far from Point B, but you have to allow for transit time, delays, and people traffic. Planning before you go allows you to maximize what you want to do and so you're not jumping back and forth across town. I'd encourage you to make a list of what you want to do, color coat it and see what goes with like with like. Be a time saver, not a time killer! You'll want to make sure you do all what you want to do in that specific area before hoping onto a subway to a completely new area.
4. For all you Theater lovers. If you want to see a broadway show, most box offices do rush tickets that range from $10-$50. You will need to get to the box office early in the day to see what they have left for rush tickets. If you're going with a group of people, all your seats probably won't be together, but it's not like you should be talking during the show anyway. Another great option is the app Today Tix. Prices vary on there for sure. It's super easy and you can buy tickets a few days in advanced. Once you purchase your tickets for the show you will receive a reminder and instructions of what to do to get your tickets. The big infamous TKTS booth can be a hit or miss. On one of my trips I got rush tickets from the box office to see School of Rock and paid $49. The seats were in the orchestra but all the way off to the right side, so some of it was slightly obstructed, but it didn't bother me. The people who sat next to me went to the TKTS booth and paid $110 per ticket for the same view. They were quite upset when they found out how much I paid and were bummed they didn't do their research before. But I have gotten tickets from TKTS for like $80 and they were amazing and such a steal. It just all depends!!!
5. If you're going to any museums, make sure to bring your student ID, if that applies to you! Almost all the museums offer a discount rate to students. Some museums do discounted tickets on certain days, so be sure to do your research on that too! Also, there are a few museums that do a suggested price. So say you really want to go to The Met but you only have an hour but really want to cross it off of your New York Bucket list, don't feel like you have to pay the full admission, unless you want to give the other part as a donation to the museum foundations!!!
6. Food. You honestly can't really go wrong with food in the city. In my opinion, the best classic NYC pizza is Joe's Pizza. But one of my other favorite pizza places is Artichoke Basille. For dessert you can't go wrong with Levain Bakery or Magnolia Bakery (they have the best banana pudding in my book).
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| Pizza from Artichoke Basille Top: Pepperoni Slice Middle: Artichoke Slice Bottom: Staten Island Slice |
7. People don't realize just how much walking you do until you get to the city and start moving. So bring your comfy, fashionable shoes and your feet will thank you.
8. Another top question people ask me is if the Empire State Building is worth it. In my personal opinion, I'd recommend doing Top of the Rock instead. This way you get to actually look at the Empire State Building from way up.
9. One thing I ALWAYS make sure I hit up while I'm in NYC is the Chelsea Market and the Chelsea Highline. The Chelsea Market is where the old Nabisco factory once was and is now an indoor market with food, shops, and one of the biggest Anthropologie's around. The Chelsea Highline is now a walking trail that used to be railroad tracks. You can get some cool views of the city. Also, nearby is the Highline Hotel and there is an Intelligentsia in their lobby. It's a pretty neat old hotel to swing by and take a peak at, plus grab a quick cup of coffee.
10. P.S. New York City is called the city that never sleeps for a very good reason. You'll find out what that means quite quickly.
Happy Wandering!
XOXO
