To absolutely HATE New York

[GreetingsFromVenus]

Dreamed of going there for many years. Thought it would be amazing. Everyone seems to think it is.

Here now and I hate it. Extortionate prices, rude ignorant locals, so many aggressive beggars. mentally ill people shouting in the street. loads of homeless people. The subway stations are disgusting and feel very menacing compared to London.

I find it really depressing actually and feel that the way Hollywood has portrayed New York is all smoke and mirrors. It is nothing special at all IMO. In fact it has a LOT of social issues and it made me feel quite sick to be spending $100 just for a mid range meal for 2 (no dessert) while there were people asking for food outside.

Central Park - pffttt!

Cannot wait to get home next week and will never complain about London prices again!

Anyone else felt the same?

You're doing it all wrong.

Signed,
A Rude Ignorant Local

I went 10 years ago and I really didn’t see what the fuss was about. If you gave me a free plane ticket and hotel then I’d go and probably enjoy it but I wouldn’t go out my way to go back again.

We love NY and last went just before Christmas with the kids. I don’t recognise it from your description. We stay in Manhattan and tend to walk everywhere (unless ridiculously far) as there is so much to see on the way. We research restaurants in advance so great reviews and not too pricey, plus the kids love the cheap NY pizza. I don’t know how you think there is nothing to do…the rebuilt pyramid in the Met? Intrepid? MOMA? MOMath (probably only if you like maths to be fair ) but Broadway…what play have you booked to see? A game at Madison Square Garden? I could go on and on!! I will give you that it can be pricey and (like most cities) it is quite dirty but there is sooooooooooooooo much to do and see! (Although I agree with someone above that in a lot of ways Boston is better, greener and cleaner). I hope you start having fun soon 🤞🏻

I love New York! Been many times, but always in May. I cant imagine going in January. Central Park has tons to offer...in warm months. You really picked a lousy time to go.

My SIL lives in New York and has said that since the pandemic started, the whole place has turned to shit.
If you'd seen in a decade ago, I'm pretty sure you'd be having a totally difference experience!
I went in 2007 and loved it!

I could have written your post, last time I was there 20 years ago, vowed never to go back. The locals were rotters and the hands out for tips were like beggars. Never again.

@Houseofvelour, I can concur. I live in CT—lived in Manhattan for twelve years—and almost don’t recognize the place now. It’s grittier, but the creative and vibrant part that makes the city what it is, is currently lacking.

She should have just listened to you talk about it Nancy and not bother going - at least keep her dream alive lol

I was 22 the first time I went to New York, quite a few years ago now. We had been to Paris the year before and I remember thinking they were both very similar. I didn't like the underground in either place, felt a lot dirtier and more unsafe than London. Got hassled in Times Square a couple of times, same as in Paris. I remember feeling scared at night in both cities.
We went on a bus tour that took us around Harlem and The Bronx, it felt like another world, there seemed to be a large bin on fire on every street corner, with men huddled around it.
This was only a couple of years after Rudy Giuliani became mayor, after that it improved a great deal.
We stayed in a friends apartment in the centre of Manhattan and I really struggled to sleep most nights because of the constant sound of sirens outside.

I'd say as with any city, has its positives and negatives

I’m a Londoner and love New York. They are very different places and I don’t agree with PP who says London always follows where NY goes. They are distinctly different places, culturally and stylistically very different. Went over there about 12 years ago and loved it. Only went for 4 days and wished I could have stayed longer. DH and I said we’d move there for a year, never got around to it though.

Disagree the people are rude, they’re standoffish and wary of strangers speaking to them but once you start speaking to them they’re fine. Most city people are wary of talking to strangers at first as they’re on guard against beggars, con artists and crazy people.

Amazing place with a great buzz. I went in September pre-pandemic though. Can see how Jan during pandemic that it wouldn’t be at its best. Try again in a couple of years.

Go to some museums. I LOVE the Metropolitan Museum of Art, especially the costume part. Then go to La Duree for macarons. I also LOVE going for breakfast at Ess-a-Bagel.

But yes, this is the worst time of year, and in the middle of a pandemic which does rather take the shine off things.

Love NY. Dirty as hell, some very rude people, but I don’t know…it’s still one of the most exciting places I’ve ever been. I do think you either love it or hate it.
Oh, and never would I ever have thought I’d hear someone say Central Park is ‘meh’.
It’s a shame as I doubt you’ll go back op, but if you ever did, go in May

Just to add I’ve been to Florida (pre Covid) a few times and loved it. Great, reasonably priced food and the people were lovely.

There is a totally different vibe here.

Been a spate of stabbings on the subway too. When we got off at the Natural History Museum this morning, there was LOTS of blood all over the floor. Not cordoned off just right there as you walk across it. Completely shook adult DD up.

We came in Jan for DD’s and my birthdays. Well prepared and wrapped up but unprepared to be harassed literally on our way into the hotel by beggars. Have had it at least 3/4 times a day since. One this morning started violently hitting a shuttered shop front with a walking stick when we refused to give him money. Made us jump 10 feet in the air. It literally feels like a 3rd world country.

My friend naively went to NY well before the pandemic as she was a huge Sex and the City fan and thought it would be like the TV series.

Well no. She came back shocked at the demands for tips, rudeness and the lack of sophistication. I remember her telling me she went to one prestigious shop and just saw a massive pile of jumbled clothes dumped on a table for sale. She also told me at one restaurant she didn’t tip as the service was atrocious, only to be shouted at by the waiter who demanded she tip. He then shouted “No tippers coming through!” when she walked out.

I’ve only traveled through NY and can vouch for the immigration officials being quite odd there. One official shouted as I was standing in the queue “the line’s not straight! Not straight!! Stand here!!” (eg move 3 inches ). She was genuinely upset and shouting about a queue not being absolutely straight. The guy in front of me, just rolled his eyes and said “Welcome to America.”

Lived in New York and loved many things about it.
But, yes, there are serious problems there. One of the worst is indeed mentally ill people living on the streets. Terrifying and horrific for them and also bad for everyone else because they can be threatening. I understand from friends that it's only got worse (haven't been since 2016). It's very sad :(

If you want good food at reasonable prices, get out of Manhattan!! Hop on the 7 train and go to Jackson Heights - get some excellent Indian, TIbetan, Mexican whatever food there - and then continue on to Flushing for the best Chinese food in the real Chinatown! Queens Musum is pretty great too and worth a visit as is the Hall of Science. This is where the real New Yorkers live!!

New York is a gritty old school urban metropolis. It’s not shiny like the newer cities - say Dubai. Where are you staying? Manhattan? And which part? Again there are nice and not so nice parts of even a small area like Manhattan. If you are comparing with Florida, they are two different worlds. Maybe it’s a case of your expectations were not aligned.

Florida is...not my favourite. (Well, there are parts of Miami that are great, and Key West can be fun, but you have to drag me kicking and screaming to Orlando or Tampa. I've been to both. I hate both.)

New York is not sanitized. I absolutely agree that it's not showing to its best right now. As a PP said, it's sour and a bit angry at the moment. But if you can't love Central Park in the snow, I don't think we'd agree on much!

After seeing your update OP, I can see why you don’t have a good impression which is a shame. Hopefully the country sorts out its social care system as clearly there are a lot of desperate people left to fester. Maybe tourists refusing to come will force something to change. The city will bounce back and hopefully you can give it another shot.

I had friends who went to Barcelona and were mugged on Las Ramblas pretty much as soon as they got there and don’t have a good word to say about it. First impressions stick.

@Bellyups

Love NY. Dirty as hell, some very rude people, but I don’t know…it’s still one of the most exciting places I’ve ever been. I do think you either love it or hate it. Oh, and never would I ever have thought I’d hear someone say Central Park is ‘meh’. It’s a shame as I doubt you’ll go back op, but if you ever did, go in May

I agree, @Bellyups, there’s a buzz in NYC like no other. I love London and many other big cities, but NYC is unique.

I mean can you believe a city of 10 million people has beggars? And crime? And mean people?

You must be seriously sheltered to think New York is like a third world country. Or for that matter to think the term 'third world' is still used.

Jan is a terrible time to go
You’re also going round all the tourist things and being surprised it’s expensive?

Do some research, look for some small cafes and restaurants, art exhibitions, see some other things instead. Go shopping, or to a show. do whatever you fancy instead of what you feel you’re meant to do in NY. There’s so much to do it’s like saying ‘there’s nothing to interesting about london’

@GarlandsinGreece

You are visiting at a grim time. Really grim. The city has been hit hard with businesses shuttering and people leaving for other cities/the burbs. Broadway is up and down with show closures. Restaurants aren’t at their best. There’s a sour mood everywhere.

The city has definitely lost its spirit. But it’ll come back. New York always does.

This. In droves. Midtown empty too as most people working from home.

London is more populous than NYC @dreamingbohemian and in the 30 years I’ve lived on the outskirts I’ve never experienced anything like this. The US are supposed to be so much bigger and better than everyone else which is why I find it so shocking.

My DH comes from a very poverty stricken 3rd formerly world war torn country and it reminds me of there I have to say.

So sorry to hear this OP. How long have you got left, and what have you got planned? Do you want suggestions? Below there is more details but I recommend you go to the Tenement museum and Chelsea market. If you don't like either of those things, I'll concede defeat. If you do though, you might go home thinking NY was not that bad. Fingers crossed!

In case you do want suggestions, how about the Chelsea Market for lunch tomorrow, you will find heaps of small food vendors, excellent quality (try blacked bagel, or the deep fried cauliflower steak place, or Creamline American) or Korean or a Taco, really, everything I've had from there has been good. Then (or en route) walk the Highline -- it's free, amazing views, and not usually crowded because not on the typical tourist beat. When you encounter the homeless, if you can remember this, the faster and more purposefully you are walking the less they will hassle you (they go for tourists more than locals). Spare them a thought, it is very cold. At the risk of recommending too many food courts, do have a look at Grand Central station if you're around there - the architecture/scale is really worth it and you can get great fold over and walk pizza in there too (and coffee).

I agree the WTC is just a mall (albeit a really modern, high tech one!) and would suggest if you saw Central Park in the early summer when it's green, people are boating, the park and the walkers are something to see.

My favourite museum is the Tenement Museum NYC -- for people who find current immigration grueling, it sends you back. I particularly recommend the tour Tenement Women - you can reserve tickets online ahead of time.
www.tenement.org
Walking around the lower East side afterwards is also a really interesting thing to do. You can find both Jewish and Chinese restaurants close by that are really good.