Spending money for a week in New York?

[Feofjwonxoaks]

Well 6 days. My partner and I, no children. We'd like to book onto some tours etc. As well. Would need some sort of subway pass.
Want to try new places to eat but i don't think we'll be eating in restaurants for every meal, probably some quick takeaway stuff too.
Wondering if £300 each (obviously converted) would be enough?

Don't do it on a budget either... scrimping on £50 a day. Better to save and have the spending money, even if it means putting it off a year!

I think your DH is exaggerating! I was there this week and got pizza for $5, and a full meal out for $30 in Times Square!

I was in California in July. I would allow $150 per day each for food and sightseeing.

The museums in NY have free days/times. If you Google, you'll find a list of when each one is free.

If you want to climb up to the crown of the Statue of Liberty, book now. It's not that pricey. If there are no tickets for the date you want, keep logging on to look for cancellations.

NYC is crazy expensive. I would take £1000 and expect to need more on cards etc for 6 days

The USA is EXPENSIVE. I last went 25 years ago and got a nasty shock when we went this summer. It ruined the holiday tbh. I was worrying about money all the time and it was much worse in terms of homeless people than on my first trip. Never again afaic. And the tips! Daylight robbery.

He definitely wouldn’t be exaggerating but obviously would have ordered a few things for that cost, not just a sandwich! Pret isn’t a particularly cheap grab lunch place though even in the UK- I spent £13 the other day in there on a salad and a smoothie! Overall he said he was shocked at the cost of things though and we lived in Chicago until late 2020 so he’s not out of touch with stuff like US tipping or surprised by sales tax being added at the register.

I know Time Sq is mostly cheap chain places but still you did very well to manage a sit down meal including the sales tax (9%??) and 15-20-% tip for only $30! Was it any good? Care to share where it was so can note it down for my next visit?

For somebody who always travels with strict budget in mind, this is very interesting thread. If I waited to have some of the sums mentiones here, I would never go anywhere.

I have never been in New York but I plan to go, mabye next year. I have already planned that trip and in my world it is possible to visit New York on the budget.
I can't wait to visit Roosevelt Island (free with metrocard 33 dolars for a week) and have lunch on a bench looking at Manhattan with cherry blossoms above my head, have coffe and snack in a small park at Tudor City after I visit Grand Central Station, take a Staten Island Ferry and see Statue of Liberty, take a NYC Ferry around harbour (2,75 dolars), walk across the Brooklyn Bridge from DUMBO to Manhattan at sunset, take a free tour of New York City Library and see Winnie the Pooh, after that have picnic on the grass in Bryant Park, walk the High Line.

Yes, I would like to have enough money. In my fantasy world I would stay at Plaza, go to see Rockettes at Radio City Music Hall, go to a club after seeing Broadway play, have diiner in One if by Land, Two if by Sea (that place is stunning). But I can't. If that means taking my blanket out in Central Park and watch people passing while I have lunch with my husband after we have been walking and exploring every little street...

OP, I hope you'll have a wonderful time.

THIS 100%

The least I’ve spent just for myself was about £400 in 5 days, but I’d been before so didn’t have as many of the main touristy things to pay for, and anything I did do like that was booked before we went. So the £400 was mostly on food (and we didn’t really go to many proper restaurants, we tended to grab pizza or go to little delis), subway pass and a bit of shopping. Probably spent a couple hundred before we went paying for passes for things & basketball tickets.

I don’t know. I bought lunch in NYC in a museum restaurant 3 weeks ago - a water, a coffee, Caesar salad and an Alfredo pasta dish and with tax and tip it was $42.

You need 2k I reckon or you will struggle

It really depends on what you want to do. You can eat $1 pizza slices or splurge $300 on one meal for two.

we went (2 adults) 4 years ago and took £2k, we shopped, ate at some amazing places, shit load of sight seeing. We walked everywhere or took the subway occasionally. We purchased our tickets in advance.

there’s a great Facebook group called NYC the place to be, check it out.

have a great time, I can’t wait to go back!!

We paid for a city pass before we left, it's around $130 but it is cheaper to access some attractions. We used ours for Empire State, Liberty Island, 911 museum and a few more.

It's about $30 for a metro pass for the week each. Much cheaper than paying for individual journeys.

There were 5 of us, 3 adults 2 children. We went to Target & Walmart to buy drinks & snacks for breakfast and to take out with us.

Everything is really expensive. We went to a few restaurants, not fancy ones but paid over $150 plus tip. There was a $1dollar per slice pizza place next to the hotel which was useful!

We saved for the last year or so and asked for $ for birthdays etc. The children had $300 each, they came back with about $40 each. Most of it in souvenirs, presents and treats. We agreed to pay for meals, they had to pay for the random ice cream, Slushy etc.

One adult spent $600 ( again we paid for meals) they got trainers etc that you can't get in the UK.

The two of us spent £2500+ between us. To be honest we were having a once in a lifetime holiday so it wasn't an issue.

We took Chase cards as then you don't pay fees on transactions. You also get 1% cash back.

Remember if you are staying in a hotel they expect you to use a credit card to hold some money in case of damages. We got a 0% credit card just for this purpose. Ours was a hold of £50 per night. We went for 8 nights.

It’s easier to work out what’s expected against menu prices - even if it is annoying that it’s expected no matter how bad the service

What really baffles me is the expectation of tips in the toilet, or for housekeeping, or the hotel receptionist or in an AI hotel each time you get a drink

Sorry - wrong thread

You don't need the pass. There's enough to keep you occupied for free in NYC.

One dollar slices are still a thing. Breakfast takeaway and eat on the go from places like Dunkin Donuts or bacon, egg and cheese from a street vendor.

Find places with lunch deals before you go and make that your main meal. Dollar slice in the evening and a sharing bag of crisps . You can take snacks with you and coffee cups/coffee to make before you head out.

Get a 7 day subway pass each.

You don't need to do tours, just guide yourself. £300 is tight but it's doable if it's all you've got.

How are you getting to and from the airport because a taxi will cost you but the subway is easy.

Go to the museums when they are free. It just requires some planning

I was going to mention tipping too. It's not just for meals, it's anywhere you receive a service - drinks at a bar; the lady keeping the washroom tidy; chambermaids (daily if staying in a hotel. Also, not just the 10 per cent you might typically tip in the UK but more probably 20 per cent!
It's a few years since we went but there were plenty of places where you could get a takeaway lunch for not a great deal of money and depending on where you are staying a lot of things to do within walking distance and for free. We only used the subway a couple of times, I think to get to the Staten Island Ferry (free) and also for the Statue of Liberty.
We walked miles but planned what we wanted to see: Grand Central Terminus; 9/11 Memorial; Times Square; Brooklyn Bridge; The High Line; China Town; The Flatiron Building; The Chrysler Building; Central Park; Washington Square Park... Yes, you can pay to go into a lot of buildings but you don't have to. The architecture is very interesting anyway.
If getting a taxi from JFK, ensure you use an official yellow cab - they have a set fee.

Those additional tips like for drinks at a bar, hotel cleaning, bathroom attendant - what's a reasonable amount for each?

I'm planning a trip too and so stressed about this part. Don't want to spend more than I need to buy don't want to offend or cause a scene either!

I always do $5 per day for hotel cleaning, $1 per drink at the bar for a wine/beer and $2 if it’s fancy cocktail but if it’s table service then usual 15-20% applies. I don’t know that I’ve ever encountered a bathroom attendant, I don’t usually carry cash out with me so if I did then they’d be shit out of luck and I’d have to dry my hands on my tights!

I spent about 2k in five days and that was late 90s!
and no designer goods shopping.. NY was extortionate and that wasnt a bad exchange rate then! I never spent that sort of dosh in California where I went yearly...

I have been many times over the last 15 years. Came back a few weeks ago. I have never seen it as expensive as it is now. Having dollar slices, eating Burger King. Tbh - I would rather stay at home and go the following year to save more.

20% tip expected and one place on the bill suggested if the service was excellent 30% plus sales tax.

I'm planning a trip too and so stressed about this part. Don't want to spend more than I need to buy don't want to offend or cause a scene either!**
No need to stress about it. You could write it down beforehand so you don't panic when it comes to payment. IE drinks bill $x amount = $x amount tip. Dinner bill same.
You literally have to factor in the cost of tipping for hospitality into your daily budget.

Also I didn't go to any fancy restaurants or any shows!