NYC yay or nay?

[pinkginisamazing]

I've always wanted to go to NYC and thinking of booking next year. When's the best time to go? Thinking of December to experience the festivities.... if you've visited is it amazing or just a dirty city full of rude people rushing around as sadly I've read?

How long do you want to go there for?.

I would personally suggest late spring or sometime like in September (as its not baking hot there then). There is no low season in NYC these days in terms of visitor numbers and the city really does not sleep.

December, particularly in the weeks up to and including Christmas and the New Year, is a peak time for visitors from all over the world so prices rise accordingly, there are lines for attractions and said attractions are very busy indeed. It can also be bitterly cold there, far colder than here than in the UK at this time of year.

Fantastic city, loads to see and do and the people are not rude in my experience, far from it in fact. I've been in April and October and preferred October weather wise, as noted above prices peak in December.

You need to go twice, @pinkginisamazing - once in the summer (although not in June/July when it's boiling) and once in December. The weather makes a huge difference, it's like two different cities. Personally I loved early December - yes it's busy, but if you're clever about booking VIP and in advance, you can usually find a way to skip lines. The crisp, cold air, the spectacle of decorations etc. . . . it's lovely!

I love it. December is amazing, they go all out for the festivities. It's is crazy busy but as long as you plan your days and expect things to be busy it's fine. I've never experienced rude people and wouldn't say the city is particularly dirty.

There's a lot of attraction for every interest and just generally an interesting place to visit

Thanks all for your responses. I can imagine it would be very different in different seasons. Sounds amazing, I would love to experience the magic of the Christmas atmosphere so maybe early December would be ideal. Although we really love the sun too.

We were there in August for a week and it was amazing. Not as horrendous as everybody makes out. Some subway stations were v hot but ac everywhere and it had a lovely summer atmosphere. Street entertainment, hanging out in parks, boating, everybody keeping cool.... We walked loads and just kept topping up with drinks and ice creams. Was truly magical. We had an apartment with a massive fridge and ac which helped.

@Bl1nk34 Glad to read your post, sounds fab! We usually go to the USA in August, but your post has put me at ease for the NY weather. We are booked to go next August for four days before heading up to Niagra Falls.

Personally for me it works like a charm. I have a decent work, pretty good apratment and can even afford myself to rent a range rover sport from here realcar.nyc/rent-a-range-rover-sport on almost daily basis. All depends on your intentions and motivations.

B1 can you give me details of the apartment please? Booking for October!

Thank you.

We went this October. The weather was a bit mixed but warmer than it was here and the place was gearing up for Halloween. Not so noticeable in Manhattan but we stayed in an apartment in Brooklyn - the Americans really go to town when it comes to Halloween and it was great walking the streets of Brooklyn looking at all the decorations. I’ve been to NYC before in December and much preferred staying in Brooklyn - great brownstone streets, felt safe & family friendly and we did a bit of self catering which helped with food costs! After busy Manhattan, it felt a good place to come back to and was a straight forward 30 minutes on the subway. Another plus was that it was in a nicely decorated old building and substantially cheaper than some pretty grotty looking Manhattan hotels!

I really like NYC - first went in the early 90’s and it’s cleaned up it’s act since then. People aren’t any ruder than they are in London.

If you’re looking at an apartment let, be really careful over where you choose. Around 45% of AirBNB places aren’t legal. The law states that a legal less than 30 days let is one in a one or two family home where the owners currently live & are present - if it’s a multiple dwelling (3 or more families) it isn’t legal. We rented our apartment through HomeAway (who’s legal team I spoke to - I also contacted the owner in advance to check out the set up). The Mumsnetters who’ve gone the apartment route judging by postings haven’t had issues but just be aware you do need to check out what the set up is!