Spending money in New York

[JasonTindallsTan]

Myself, DH and adult DD are going to NYC in September for 4 nights. We’d planned to buy attraction passes in advance (any recommendations?) so spending money should really just be needed for food, travel and tips 🤯

All I keep reading is how expensive NYC so what is realistic in terms of amount of money we’d need to expect to spend (we’re fully funding adult DD).

Maybe you’re thinking of the new Manhattan congestion charge that will be expensive for cars / trucks etc, but taxis will only pay $1.25.

In May my DH and I took our two adult DC to New York for nights.
We bought attraction passes.
We had breakfast in our hotel which made the holiday, we really enjoyed the big hotel breakfast and we didn’t think about food for hours.
Lunch was fast food, and a 7/11 store one day as it was near our boat trip. A decent fast food meal was about $13 each.
We had dinner in Irish pubs y to save a bit of money and one night a diner, costs varied from $135 to $190 dollars. We usually shared a big sharing starter and had a main each, one beer, one wine and a couple of cokes.
I didn’t find teas and coffees more expensive than here.
There were water fountains at every attraction so I didn’t buy any water.

We used a lot of Ubers, they weren’t too expensive especially as there were four of us.

@SabrinaThwaite I wasn’t recommending it. I was just surprised to see it. We went to a Broadway show (chosen by our friends years ago) and I did not feel it was great value for money. In the same way Hamilton was poor value for money in London and very difficult to hear and follow. I’ve much preferred Dear England and Lehman Brothers. I like a good musical but many of these are world wide entities now so doesn’t matter where you see them in some respects so I think it depends if something is a “must see” or just nice to do as to how much of your spending money you are prepared to fork out.

You have to buy Statue of Liberty tickets dirct from the national park service they are not on a pass. They are the biggest bargain in NYC- ferry and statue and Ellis Island for ~$26.

Tickets that let you climb right up inside to the crown are the same price - you get a different wrist band before you board the ferry for access- but are released in advanced and you need to know when and pounce. Join a FB group to get tips. I got us 4 crown tickets so it's totally achievable- and it's amazing.

We used google maps and chose bus to avoid subway, it was $1.90 pp and you got to see the city too, we walked where possible and when it wasn't very hot.

@TizerorFizz You could be equally surprised that a musical about a US founding father has become a worldwide hit.

My point was more that you can see SIX anywhere (it’s currently on tour in the UK). If I was going to pay Broadway prices then I’d either choose a big extravaganza or something I can’t see in the UK.

Agree with PPS on a few things:

Traffic in Manhattan can be insane. I've had it take 45 mins + to go 5 blocks (had my suitcase otherwise I'd have bailed). For that reason, Uber / Lyft over cabs - the cab meters tick up in traffic, Ubers do not. But I will usually walk if it is under 15 blocks, and use the subway if it is a lot further (rule of thumb is 1 block per minute walking).

The subway really isn't that bad. Yes, it isn't very clean (pack a mini hand sanitizer) and there are definitely some people you'll want to give a wide berth to, but it is quick, cheap and generally safe (there's police in many stations, you can choose to sit in the car with the conductor etc.) I don't use it after about 11pm though.

We found the subway similar to London - people working their way down carriages asking for money happens in both.

Great thread, thank you. Going in October for a week

Book tickets for going up to the crown of the Statue of Liberty. They sell out fast so book now. This is one of the few things that isn't that expensive.

As PPs have said, NYC is ridiculously expensive. I would say imagine what you would spend in London and double it.

We went in May and found the costs generally similar to London where we live. Get an eSIM as mobile phone charges using UK networks are ridiculous. Use the subway - there is an app called NYC Subway that's really helpful and it's also handy to have a paper map. You can use your contactless card to tap in (no tap out unlike London). Definitely don't bother with the yellow cab from the airport- it was cramped, expensive and took forever in the traffic. If you're in Hudson Yard then you will enjoy the High Line walk and leave at Chelsea for the food court and market. Then walk back along the Hudson River.
Divide your stay into zones to avoid criss crossing too much - it's much bigger than you think and the distances are greater than you think
Central Park is amazing- so many iconic and familiar views and much bigger than I imagined.
The Brooklyn Bridge at night (Dumbo) was worth the cost of the restaurant (Ceccionis) and really memorable- fabulous views and full of young people. We also booked happy hour jazz in a small Brooklyn club which was memorable and not expensive using Eventbrite.
There's so much to see and do - plan ahead but leave lots of gaps for general wandering and taking it all in.

There’s also Holland Tunnel Ventilation Shaft 2 (as recommended by Google Maps)

I’ve been up into the SoL crown before and from what I recall there were a LOT of steps. I went in January and there was a snowstorm. All the pictures I took could have been of anywhere as it was all just grey, absolutely no hint whatsoever of the iconic skyline 😂😂

Found the picture of it (back when you had to get a film developed 😂).

ICONIC 🤣🤣🤣

Very scenic

We went last December and it was the most perfect, crystal clear blue sky day. My photos are stunning. It's just down to luck isn't it, since you have to book so far in advance.

There was a lot of stairs for sure, from memory the website tells you exactly how many. I managed OK despite not being particularly fit. We did take the elevator as far as it would go, to the podium, that took out quite a few steps. The steps are quite narrow and windy but a Parks ranger at the site gave me the best tip, which was to go back down the steps backwards.

YYY to all of these recommendations.

Second not bothering with a cab to JFK unless you have massive bags . Just get the train or subway to Jamaica and change to the air rail and save youself some money. It is an easy journey.

I booked a transfer from the airport, it costs £100 that was for 4 adults and 4 big cases. I booked a mini van as wasn’t sure if all our cases would fit in a regular car and wanted to eliminate any stress.
I also booked one for the return journey.

Just a warning... we were in the passport queue for TWO HOURS when we landed! We left the airport just after midnight. It was horrendous!!

Should add that we are not price sensitive particularly but found it out of our expectations, partly due to adding tip and tax on top of already expensive prices, we travel to Scandinavia where prices are similar but tax is included and no tips in bars etc

This is my experience save that I think NYC is probably more expensive than Scandinavia!

I am on holiday to enjoy myself and therefore usually fairly blase about price but it was eye wateringly expensive to eat and drink.

That said it remains my favourite city in the world so I would still always recommend. You just need to be aware.

Really good recommends by @Emma8888 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼

I think NYC has always been pricey, we've just been insulated until recently because of the previously good exchange rate with the dollar.

@SabrinaThwaite Havimg seen Hamilton, it’s underwhelming! It’s also available in London and all over USA. So it’s not always easy to find a unique event in NY.

@Ginmonkeyagain £1 to $2 is almost a lifetime ago now. 2007. 2 years later it was $1.38. We’ve been nowhere near that for years!