Panicking about New York spends!!

[VielBier]

I'm taking my daughter to New York in January for 5 nights. I've saved up and I have 1800 dollars and have bought an attraction pass that will get us in to all the attractions we want to go to. Will this be enough? I was hoping to have around 3000 dollars but unexpected costs have hit this year. I don't have credit cards as I was stupid with them as a teenager. I'm terrified about running out of money while I'm there or having to really scrimp (think I get money anxiety!). Plus when speaking to people they reckoned they'd spent nearly £1000 a day... is it really that expensive there?

If your 9 year old isnt overly tall she will probably be able to ride the subway for free as well. My DS was 9 and only just average height and the guy in the ticket office said he didnt need a ticket and should just duck under the barrier. We were a bit concerned but he did this for the whole week we were there even in front of subway staff and no one minded.

There's a fantastic Facebook group called "NYC the place to be" with up-to-date advice from people who are there or have just come back. It's a mine of information.

@VielBier apart from the money , are tou excited! What are you going to see?

I am going to see:
Statue of Liberty
Staten island
Empire state building
911 memorial
Central park
Dakota building ( I just read a book about John Lennon - I want to see where he lived)
Alot of the free museums

Ahhh, she's 5,3" bunny, I'm cursing her height now 😂 Brill, thanks @NoraEphronsneck - shall join that group now

£1000 per day? That's ridiculous.

We have been many times - a family of 4.

We probably spend 300-400 per day if that (not including accommodation obvs).

Yeah just because people overspend in new york , doesn't mean that you have to!

I would know that spending 1000 pounds a day is not normal anywhere.

It would be normal if I wanted to- eat all three meals in a fancy restaurant,
Go to loads of attractions in one day
Do loads of shopping one day.

But that is not the norm

Staten Island - go over on ferry, come straight back on next ferry!

Dakota Building - not much to see but v near Strawberry Fields memorial in Central Park which you might like.

I wouldn't take a 9 year old in the 911 museum but the memorial itself is very bleak and moving.

Came back 2 weeks ago - not including entrance fees for 5 nights we spent about £800 in total. To be fair we had an apartment in Brooklyn and did a bit of self catering. Food with the added tax and tip isn’t cheap but it’s not Scandinavian ouch either and there are cheapish options - a super large pizza is easily enough for 2 people. There are vending carts everywhere in Manhattan and you can pick decent street food up for under $10 each - the Halal Guy trucks which you’ll see everywhere do a good range. Food portions are huge as well.

As others have said, take subways or walk - we bought MetroCards at the subway and topped up as needed. If you do a Broadway show, skip the bar ( one beer, one wine, a Diet Coke & some M&Ms cost $56 + 15% tip.)

You’re going to be absolutely fine! If I could pass on one tip, it’s plan your day carefully - there is a lot of queuing and time wasting! EG for Top of the Rock, we’d bought tickets in advance for the day online, went early to the Rockefeller Centre (about 9.30) and were given a time slot of 2 hours ahead. We killed 2 hours in Central Park & shop browsing but as we’d done both the previous afternoon it felt like dead time!

Another quick tip (while I’m on a roll!) - if you want to do a show, book in advance on the TodayTix app which has discounted tickets (download the app, switch the location to NY , they meet you outside the theatre with the tickets). There are discounted ticket booths in Manhattan but judging by the one in Times Square, you’d have to queue a while! Using TodayTix we got orchestra (stall) tickets for $69

Each that is!

@SJane48S if you were out in Brooklyn the unlimited 7 day pass on the subway surely was better? If you are going to make 13 trips or more on the subway then it's always cheaper to buy the pass.

Yes to planning your days hour by hour, aimlessly wandering around is not much fun with a 9 year old.

Group all of your activities together and divide them up that way so as to minimise travel. Have a list of places to eat in each area ready

It could have been yes (and to be honest I could have researched this better!) but we pretty much walked everywhere (doing on average about 15-20,000 steps a day) and only used the subway getting in and out of Brooklyn. Made me feel better about the huge amount of fat and carbs we consumed!

Yes! Definitely a good thing clocking up the miles to burn off pretzels and bagels. I'd definitely get the 7 day pass in op's situation though.

We made good use of the subway and still clocked up 28000 steps one day. With a 5 year old! He had to be carried the last 10 minutes!

im budgetting $100 a day excluding pre booked attractions (only statue of liberty and a show will be prebooked) and know i wont spend close to that most days

if you can eat cheap and do a lot of free stuff then you will be fine

Just don't buy drinks at the show @chipsandpeas ! As above we were completely ripped off!

The High Line (which is free) was great & you'll see quite a lot of art along the way. Go on a good weather day. Walk the Brooklyn Bridge (also free). If you are very familiar with the Natural History museum in London, skip the NY one. Our DD (11) has been to the London one lots of times and while it's a nice building & there is a new dino exhibition, it wasn't as good as London (in our opinions) and the queues were really long. Top of the Rock is cheaper than the Empire State (although there is the faff of buying a ticket, getting a wait time) - I guess one of the other may be included in the Attraction pass the OP has got. The Ellis Island/Liberty trip isn't hugely expensive but we were told by a guide that end to end it would take 3+ hours and I think a boat change (so we opted for the free Staten Island ferry instead to see the Statue of Liberty). The ice rink in Central Park is now open. Times Square I found a bit grim when I went many years ago but this time walking through it at night, it had something very Blade Runner about it. Don't bother going to see the Friends building (DD currently on season 3 and wanted to see it) - I was expecting cute coffee places and boho shops, in reality we passed hostels, gimp shops and huge posters for squirt.com - very disappointing (although I'm sure the real estate is very expensive in complete contrast!)

It really depends on how much shopping you want to do because eating out there is cheap (about the same as Birmingham or London). A lot of people save money on proper shopping by hitting the outlets or Costco (your UK card will work in the US). If you are staying in down town Manhattan it’s also possible to walk everywhere in central NY as it’s about half the size of central London.

Another thing I’d suggest is to go to an Israeli travel website (the budget kind aimed at ex-army kids doing their gap year before uni; there are loads of them) for low cost food recommendations. Doing this saved us so much money on lunches and dinners as the kids didn’t really enjoy the upscale restaurants that were recommended by the hotel.

If you want to buy some clothes go to the kids department at Maceys they always have sales on. Plus at the till tell them you a foreign tourist and ask if they can give you the international discount. I bought Ralph Lauren and Tommy Hilfiger t-shirts for my sons there - cost around GBP 10 each.

SJane48S I know I think I was ripped off for a bottle of water last time I was there but no other option since can’t take my own in with me

Please keep in mind that a) tips are a lot more than in the UK, think 15-20% and this is expected and b) there is a tax on all purchases you make which is NOT shown on the price tag.

Op you’ll be fine but not sure about )$600 for 2 weeks. You will need a credit card though. We had a pre loaded card and had problems with the strip which wasn’t recognised in some places. Had to use a back up credit card.

NYC is extortionate at the moment, we were there three months ago. We had an apartment in upper East side and even with frugal self catering was shocked at how expensive it now is with the exchange rate.

No idea how you’d do it on $40 a day. There is the subway, housekeeping tips and 3x food before you do anything. The Met isn’t free anymore, think only National History Museum is pay what you want. MOMA isn’t. There is a great new museum on Liberty Island which is well worth the trip and a breeze. Take the earliest ferry you can though. I woukdnt have wanted to miss it or Ellis. It’s v expensive though and you’ll need to book now. Wouldn’t want to miss Katz Deli which is pricey but you can save on a tip if you queue up. Get a subway pass as soon as you get there. You can choose for how long but it saves loads. You could prob get the sky train and save on taxi if you pack light. High Line is our fave and free. The Tenament Building is fab but you might not get tickets now. Pricey anyway. Top of the Rock fab( get tickets as sun goes down) but v pricey. Your dd will want to go to Dylan’s Candy Bar,$$$$ but worth saving a bit of cash for. Dunkin good for cheap breakfast.

The thing about NYC is you walk a lot and need pit stops to sit down which cost. NYC supermarkets aren’t cheap.

Enjoy, it’s our favourite place. Pining already.

I would actually give the Statue of Liberty a miss; you'd be better off seeing it from the Staten Island Ferry which is free. It can take an awful long time to reach the ferry boat because there is airport style security at Battery Park prior to boarding the ferry (there is only one company that operate out to both Liberty Island and Ellis Island). In January the weather in NYC can be bitterly cold and therefore long lines are not great.

I wouldn’t think you’ll be walking that much ..... it will likely be bitterly cold. The wind can be icy even if there isn’t snow - be very practical about your warm layers.

Early ferries security v quick and tickets are timed. Up to you but Liberty Island different experience to Staten Island ferry. The new SofL museum is fab and Ellis is very interesting. We’ve been up the pedestal which was worth doing.

Not sure how you wouldnt walk lots round New York unless your’re planning on paying a lot for taxis. Walking and drinking it in is half the fun.

The 2 previous times I’ve been to NY (Dec & Jan) it was snowing both times & I walked everywhere (but to be fair, I like walking and the first time i had $10 a day spending money!). I think it depends on the individual but completely agree on the layering and being clothing practical. There was no security before getting on the Staten Island ferry 3 weeks ago so I’m guessing you’re referring to the Ellis/Ststue of Liberty trip @AttilaTheMeerkat?

"There was no security before getting on the Staten Island ferry 3 weeks ago so I’m guessing you’re referring to the Ellis/Ststue of Liberty trip @AttilaTheMeerkat?"

Yes. The company who run the ferries from Battery park are a right shower.