To think just over 1k for 5 days in NYC is too much

[Oolva]

Especially as I could go to london on the mega bus for a few quid and stay with friends for free. I kind of want to go on holiday with my friend but NYC seems just too expensive for a very low end holiday (flying economy and staying in very ordinary hotel). We could go somewhere in Italy , stay in much nicer hotels for 1/3 of the price.

Aibu cheap?

Wow, prices have gone up!

Went back in 2006 on a fairly last-minute deal. I think it was about £350 per person (my wife and I) and we got a reasonable hotel just a few minute's walk from Times Square (the rooms had their own bathrooms, which is pretty good for cheap hotels there), a helicopter flight, flights with Virgin, transfers to and from the hotel, 2 days sightseeing tours and Empire State Building tickets (this was in March as the weather was just starting to heat up from winter - great to see kids having snowball fights on the lake in Central Park when iced over, then getting warm the next day).

We will NEVER see a deal like that again.

£1350 for both, direct flights, 2 double bedded room in funky safe Manhattan hotel next to Subway for 6 nights end Nov.

I have relatives in NY and I think people are generally very polite, however the streets are very grubby compared to Europe, and the food is a bit tasteless unless you spend £££ at gourmet delicatessens.

My big love is SoulCycle, which is a spin class gym thing like doing fitness in a nightclub, and I also like Central Park, Top of the Rock for the views, and the West River ferry. My favourite coffee shop is Devocion in Williamsburg, which I would actually like to move into.

I don't 'get' all the buzz round NYC. I went once. Meh. Another big city. I like London because some friends are in it, but otherwise, it's just another big city. I don't like big cities. I'm a country girl myself, though.

But £1k? For 5 days? No, thanks.

BoffinMum - when we went, we asked one of the tour people for a restaurant recommendation and she told us about a small chinese place (can't remember its name) in Hell's Kitchen. Really nice place. I guess you may just need to ask in order to discover a few small gems you'd otherwise miss. It was really cheap too.

On our visit, we walk from Empire State to the place where the helicopter tour was. Afterwards, we planned on doing the Staten Island Ferry and asked how long it would take. "20 minutes walk" was the answer. It wasn't. More like 2 hours to get there. Still, we got to see a fair bit of the city.

£200 a day to go a fair way round the planet and stay in a big expensive city seems cheap to me. Short hops over long distances will be pricey.

don't like it? Don't go.

I agree about the food, it took us 5 days to find a vegetable!

Could you look to stay in a hostel? We did this when we went and had a private room and bathroom. It helped with the cost.

I think i spent about £400 including accommodation when i went in '09. But i didnt go crazy on the shopping and the exchange rate at the time was almost £1:$2

I went as part of a bigger trip (San Francisco - LA - Vegas - NY) my flights were £600 including the internal one.

I think I spent about 2.5k across the whole trip including flights, car hire, fuel & accommodation.

You can do it relatively cheap if you dont mind where you stay, but the exchange rate at the time really did help

I like New York, but I've visited much better places in the US and elsewhere, so I'm with you op...

Thanks for all the advice, I should of added that we want separate rooms. We need our own space that is probabably the killer.

£1000 to be transported to another continent in only 8 hours and stay in a hotel!

If you don't want to spend it, don't spend it, but it really is miraculously cheap for what it is.

(Still over DC moaning at how boring it was on the Eurostar and "are we nearly there yet?" We were on a bloody TRAIN from Kent to Paris, going under the sea and it only took 2½ sodding hours! Amazing! How can you moan about how long it takes???? Well he is only 8 I suppose . . .)

I love London but was ambivalent about NY. I only think I'd go back at Christmas, if at all. It's dirty, the people are rude, it's not 'the city that never sleeps' and it's expensive.

We're off to Vegas again next year and I suggested to DH that we might go to NY or LA on the way and he responded that I didn't like either so why go? It was more for him but I don't really care if I never go to either city again.

Oliversarmy - I was in NYC last week and I don't recognise the picture you are painting at all

1. No smell. There might be the occasional smells in particular places but every city is the same
2. The shops are not all exactly the same. Some are the same, some are different. With the shops that are the same (eg Zara - they are absolutely the same, same clothes, same window displays even. The Zara on 42nd and 5th had the same clothes in the window display as the Zara at terminal 3 Heathrow a couple of days before. I also saw no difference between the current stock in UO or H&M compared with the stores here - apart from the price which is cheaper in NY. I do agree that H&M have some hippy stuff at the moment but they do here too.
3. The only place I encountered rudeness from staff was JFK - this is standard. Everyone in shops, theatres, restaurants etc was lovely. Attentive to a fault. If anything, too chatty.
4. I saw several shows of varying quality while I was there. I saw stuff that was better than some of the current shows in London, and stuff that wasn't as good. In general though the standards between the west end and Broadway are comparable. I do prefer the west end, I think we do shows better and for me the best Broadway shows usually have some British cast members (eg cabaret last year was all about Alan Cumming - but he was better in the role of the MC on Broadway than he was 20 odd years ago when he did it at the Donmar). I've seen some amazing shows on Broadway and some tat. Same like in the west end. Prices are comparable at the top and bottom end. Mid prices more expensive on Broadway.
5. Tipping - I ate while I was there, in what were, to me, nice restaurants and tips were never added to my bill. Not once.

I didn't go up the Empire State (I tried once, a few years ago, and was so sick in the speedy lift that it nearly caused an international INCIDENT. Never again) and I didn't go see the Statue of Liberty or go on the circle line (the sick thing again). I think all those things are ridiculously highly priced. But there are loads of brilliant things to do in NYC that are cheap or free. And a few expensive things - like the met or the moma - that are worth the money. NYC is a great city, just like London, each have their plus and minus points.

TRAIN from Kent to Paris, going under the sea and it only took 2½ sodding hours! Amazing!
I'm with Balloonslayer! The world is incredibly good value. £1000, thats like a dyson vacuum cleaner. (in my mind)

I was therre a few years ago and everyobe was polite and chatty. Anytime we got our map out soneome would come up and help us with directions. We stayed in the upper west side across the road from a shop which was coming down with fruit and veg .
I like London too but NYC is nothing like it.

When we were there in '06 we found it a great place. A few chatty people (including one jogger who stopped and chatted to us as we had our HUGE walk from the Empire State Building to Staten Island Ferry), lots of variety in the city itself, and Times Square seemed perpetually open (loved exploring the Toys R Us there, which had its own ferris wheel inside).

By and large, the most popular American meals don't tend to include a lot of veg, and I always joke that when we come back from America we just eat all the veg we can. If you ask around then it's possible to find some good places to eat which do them.

We were in Philadelphia in '11 over Independence Day and nearly got the train to NYC - only decided against it as we were worried about getting back. Loved it and would definitely go again (if we could find good prices).

I like New York and have visited quite a few times, having said that every time bar one has been part of a longer trip visiting other parts of the US. I don't think it's worth going for a weekend, unless you really want to visit the city. I agree with pp, Europe has some amazing cities that would be great for a weekend trip. Vienna is one of my favourites, it's a really amazing place.

Try Airbnb for cheaper accommodation - more space, nicer places than the hotels.

I went there with my parents several centuries ago, again with DH for Millennium Eve, and then with DDs aged 7 and 9. Loved it every single time, we live in London, and it was a totally different vibe. Everyone was friendly, and everything was fun. Well worth the expense IMO. Love European cities too, but NY is definitely worth a visit.

I love New York, it's my favourite place in the world, and I'm a Londoner. Like London, you don't get the best out of it if you stick to the main areas like 5th avenue. We nip into Saks and a couple of the big stores but base ourselves usually around the East village and walk and potter. We love the meat packing district, the village, a bit if time in Central Park and I also like the Gramercy area.

The market at union square on a Saturday is unbelievable. Never seen so much fruit and veg!

As for eating in restaurants - well, I'm a vegan. So I ate in vegan restaurants (and occasionally pret. The presence of pret is for me a GOOD thing because I know they do vegan food and I know what it tastes like and they also do Diet Coke which the proper vegan restaurants don't. :( ). The vegan and veggie restaurants in NYC are amazing. Plenty of vegetables there (not so much fruit as you'd find in London though, I will admit). And pretty cheap too - cheaper than the vegan restaurant I frequent at home.

The galleries were appallingly bad last time I was there a couple of years ago. Really very little on show. Shame because I remember them as a major highlight of a trip in the mid 90s. That was the main reason I went back, and was so disappointed. Won't bother going back again unless for work or somesuch.

I've been New York a few times. For some reason, I've just never liked it. It's far too busy for me. I can understand why other people love it so much though. Personally, I prefer different parts of America.

I'm off tomorrow for five nights. Flying with Virgin and staying at a lovely 4star hotel on east 24th street has cost us £700 each and this is during school hols time here.

If prices are an issue and you need separate rooms then I'd say try hostels or air bnb.

New York is a wonderful city but I agree with the comments above. Don't stick to the main drag, make sure you get out and about and wander the city to find hidden gems. We've found some superb restaurants overe the years with very affordable prices.

I heart New York.

I think that we are also very spoilt in England and particularly in the major cities. Our restaurant scene is so innovative and there's so much good food here that we go to New York expecting great food and it's similar and often not better than you find in England. Having said that, we eat well there although not better than in London.