Top Travel Tips for New York

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If you follow me on Instagram, you’ll know I’ve been to New York. It’s been a dream bubbling away for about 15 years and for one reason or another, I just didn’t make it across to the Big Apple until recently. Well, better late than never, as the saying goes.

I know how useful some of you found my Paris and Barcelona travel tips so I’ve put together something similar for New York should any of you heading across the pond soon.

Don’t forget to register online for ESTA
If you have a readable passport, you do need to register for the visa waiver program before flying, or to put it another way, an Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) or Homeland Security won’t let you through. It’s amazing how many don’t know about this! You can do this a few weeks before you travel as confirmation is almost instant. It costs about £8 and is valid for 2 years. Don’t go through third-party links (which some airlines and sites like Expedia cheekily direct you to – erm, on commission, are we?) Not only does the process take longer (hey, it’s coming from a third party) but the cost is 4-5 times more. Now why would you want to do that?
Hotel or AirBnB?
AirBnB is a popular option and often better value but when we costed in the time it would take to travel into the city (as well as the subway and taxis), staying in the heart of New York was a better use of the 5 days we were there for plus Christmas is one of the most popular times to visit. We plumped for Park Central hotel, sandwiched between Times Square and Central Park. This meant we were able to walk to the main attractions. If you choose to stay in a hotel, be wary of the cheeky hotel taxes they may add on. I can’t speak for the others but our hotel slapped on $27 a night to cover the gym and internet access (the former which I did not use and I imagine a lot of people don’t).
Prepare to walk A LOT
Everything in New York is big and spaced out so even crossing the road is an epic stride. We must have walked 4-5 miles a day to the point that backs were breaking but it’s worth it when there’s so much to take in. It’s often quicker to get by on foot so wear comfortable shoes – I can’t stress that enough.
Book tickets for the top sites in advance
It’s wise to book your entry tickets in advance and online. Booking for Top of the Rock at the Rockafeller Center and the Empire State Building meant we could stroll past the queues. For Empire, we had an Express ticket so we fast-tracked to the front every time. One thing: don’t do the Empire/New York Skyride – it’s tacky as hell, poor picture quality, a total waste of money and Kevin Bacon provides the voice-over (long before the days of 4G adverts). It’s also badly out of date with the Twin Towers still showing. For such a major attraction, it’s baffling why the video has not been brought up to date.
Empire State Building or Rockefeller Center?
Do both! Visit the observation deck of the Empire State Building during the day time for a breathtaking panoramic view of New York City and leave the Top of the Rock from the Rockefeller Centre for the night – just the ride in the elevator will tell you why this is best. Make sure you pop into the State Bar & Grill on a side street adjacent to the Empire State Building as they serve the most delicious food. I recommend the French toast!
Don’t miss the Staten Island Ferry crossing
The highlight for me was a taking the Staten Island Ferry service from the New York City boroughs of Manhattan to Staten Island. It’s free and is used by New Yorkers 24 hours a day and 365 days a year to get one from side to the other. The ideal time to go is at sunset but if not, take the ferry at night. The view of the Manhattan skyline twinkling as the ferry sails away will blow you away!
Grimaldi Pizzeria
A few people (including a New Yorker) recommended I visit Grimaldi Pizzeria. The original one is under the Brooklyn Bridge. I suggest visiting the Statue of Liberty early in the morning, then walk from Battery Park in New York to Wall Street (say hi to the bull!) and continue to Brooklyn Bridge before settling down to a feast at Grimaldi’s. It’s cash only but it was probably the cheapest meal I had in New York. Between three people, it worked out at $12 per head including tax and tips. DON’T MISS THIS! The most delicious oven baked pizza I’ve had – the mozzarella cheese used is to die for.
See a Broadway show
You can’t come to New York and not see a show! There is an abundance of choices with some shows not even in London’s west end. Advance tickets are pricey so unless you’re fussy, rock up to a TKTS booth in the middle of Times Square for last-minute discounted deals. We saw a brilliant comedy musical called Something Rotten on a Saturday night.
Make-up
Shopping isn’t cheap unless you head out of town to the outlets. One thing where you will definitely pick up at a discounted rate compared to the UK is make-up such as Hourglass and Becca. Generally I go for brands not available here so put Kat Von D high up on your list. Be warned, her merchandise sells out fast. I went to 4 different branches of Sephora and failed to get hold of Vampira liquid lipstick. The Sephora on Fifth Avenue (pictured below) is rather fancy. Other places to check are Macy’s for some exclusive Anastasia Beverly Hills, the ‘drug stores’ like Duane Reade, Walgreens and CVS Pharmacy plus Ricky’s for NYX, L.A Girl, etc.
And finally…
New York is quite simply a huge movie set from the iconic yellow taxis to the tall skyscrapers. Don’t leave without seeing:
– New York Public Library (spectacular inside and it’s the location of Carrie Bradshaw’s wedding from the Sex & The City film…the one where she was jilted by Big)
– the Statue of Liberty
– Wall Street and New York Stock Exchange (don’t forget the bull!)
– Macy’s, Bloomingdale’s and Lord & Taylor department stores
– Grand Central Station
– Bryant Park (and spot the chess players)
– Central Park
– Brooklyn Bridge
– The High Line (a 1.45-mile-long New York City linear park built in Manhattan on an elevated section of a disused New York Central Railroad)
– Ground Zero and the 9/11 memorial and museum
P.S: The best time to go to New York is in December!

There is a very good chance I’ve forgotten to mention something else so if you have a question, do post it below. I also have a very special New York vlog going up on my YouTube channel so do subscribe if you want to catch that.

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