Things To Do Within NYC

Basics (Transportation, etc.)

1. Subway

2. Subway is the primary way to get around NYC. It’s cheap and fast in most cases, although to & from airport you might prefer Taxi/Uber. You pay for Subway & Buses with a MetroCard, which you can get at machines in each station. You should probably just pay-per-ride ($2.75 per ride) for a short visit, but if you plan to take the subway more than 12 times in 7 days, or 47 times in 30 days, you should get the 7 or 30 day unlimited card. NOTE this cannot be shared between people (there is an 18 minute delay), only one rider will be able to use it.

3. Touristy (First Time in NYC)

1. Central Park

2. One of the most amazing places to just be in. Walk around any part of it, south end is close to other sights and surrounded by huge skyscrapers now. Bring a blanket and relax on The Great Lawn or Sheep Meadow. Visit the Central Park Zoo, see a play for Shakespeare In The Park, or rent a boat at Loeb Boathouse. Play any number of sports (Central Park Tennis, etc.), in the winter Ice Skate on one of the rinks. Eat at Tavern on the Green (for the experience).

3. Museum of Modern Art (MoMA)

4. One of the most well known Fine Art museums in the world, always great exhibits and see classics like Starry Night.

5. Metropolitan Museum of Art

6. Another Fine Art museum, but more of an experience than MoMA. Absolutely massive, cool areas like the Egyptian Temple, etc.

7. Museum of Natural History

8. Another classic, probably the first museum you think of in NYC (thanks Night at the Museum). See the various dioramas, the big Blue Whale, and if you have time see something at the Hayden Planetarium.

9. Times Square

10. Prefer visiting at night for light show, must do once (but most of us avoid it the rest of our lives).

11. Statue of Liberty

12. There are 2 good options. You can take the official ferry from Battery Park (southern tip of Manhattan) and visit the actual island and go inside the statue (as well as Ellis Island) but you’ll want to book this way in advance and you’ll still be waiting a while. The frugal and possibly more enjoyable option is to take the free Staten Island Ferry on a quick roundtrip to and from Staten Island. You get a great view of the statue and the skyline at no cost and no wait. 

13. The Vessel

14. A new landmark in the newly built Hudson Yards, not much to it but definitely Instagrammable.

15. Weekend Plans

1. Sunset Park Industry City

2. Shop around Industry City (check their calendar for numerous events), eat at one of the many vendors, or try some authentic Japanese food at Japan Village (Onigiri, Udon, Ramen, Sushi Bar). Play some games at the Frying Pan Game Room ($5 for unlimited ping pong, DDR, etc.). 

3. Afterward, go bowling at Melody Lanes, walk around Greenwood Cemetery (check their calendar for night tours) or watch the sunset at Sunset Park.

4. Gowanus Backyards

5. Start with coffee/snacks at public records, play Shuffleboard and Board Games at Royal Palms, eat barbecue in the backyard of Pig Beach, and afterwards get a drink at Lavender Lake. 

6. Instead of Shuffleboard, you could also stop by the public Douglas and DeGraw Pool for a swim, try axe throwing at Kick Axe Throwing, or try archery at Gotham Archery.

7. Bronx Nature Day

8. Start early and get to the Bronx Zoo soon after it opens at 10AM (crowds get crazy on weekends). Be sure to get the Total Experience ticket to get access to Jungleworld, the Conga Gorilla Forest, etc. If you’re feeling adventurous, try the Treetop Adventure. 

9. Once you’re done at the Zoo, head next door to the New York Botanical Garden for a relaxing nature walk. Consider visiting in the spring during Cherry Blossom season, or near the winter holidays during the Holiday Train Show.

10. Now that you’ve worked up an appetite, head to Arthur Ave for truly authentic Italian food and stores. Eat at one of the restaurants or visit a few stores and pick up your own cheese, meat, bread, and dessert and eat in a park nearby. Here’s a good list of recommendations.

11. If the Yankees are playing that day, consider ending the day with a game at Yankee Stadium.

12. Coney Island Beach Day

13. Start the day early at Luna Park, the legendary beachside amusement park. Ride the iconic Cyclone wooden roller coaster, and try the more modern Thunderbolt.

14. Get a snack (hot dog, etc.) at the legendary Nathan’s Famous on the boardwalk (or try the standalone restaurant for more seating and shorter lines).

15. Visit the New York Aquarium, be sure to see the newly reopened Sharks exhibit.

16. There are plenty of places to eat & drink around Coney Island, but since you came this far, stop at L&B Spumoni Gardens on your way out for legendary pizza and spumoni.

Other/Unique

• Industry City (Sunset Park, Brooklyn)

1. Mix of Shopping (Restoration Hardware outlet, Design Within Reach, etc.), Art (MC Escher exhibit, etc.), and Food (Yaso Tangbao, Hometown BBQ (soon), Ice Cream, etc.), 

• Roosevelt Island Tram
• Coney Island (Luna Park, The Cyclone, Bumper Cars)
• Statue of Liberty & Ellis Island
• City Island

1. Old fishing island in The Bronx, has good crab shanties and cool history.

• Arthur Ave in The Bronx

1. Last “real” Italian neighborhood, authentic Italian food

• The High Bridge over the Harlem River
• The Earth Room

1. Apartment filled with dirt.

• Lift Floats (Sensory Deprivation Tank)
• Old City Hall Subway Station

1. Must be member of Transit Museum ($35+ a year) and buy tickets ($50) for occasional tours.

• Forts

1. Fort Tilden (Rockaways)
2. Fort Totten Park (Queens)
3. Fort Tryon (Washington Heights) +1

• Cat Cafes

1. Meow Parlour
2. Koneko
3. The Brooklyn Cat Cafe

Museums

• Museum of Modern Art (MoMa)
• The Metropolitan Museum of Art (The Met)
• The Met Breuer
• The Cloisters +1
• American Museum of Natural History +1
• The Guggenheim
• Whitney Museum +1
• The Intrepid Sea & Air Museum

1. On an aircraft carrier docked in the Hudson.

• MoMa PS1 (LIC, Queens)
• Madame Tussauds Wax Museum
• The Museum of Mathematics (MoMath)
• Tenement Museum
• New Museum
• The Cooper Hewitt Smithsonian
• New York Hall of Science
• Queens Museum
• Museum of the Moving Image
• New York Transit Museum
• Brooklyn Museum
• Building 92 in Brooklyn Navy Yards
• The City Reliquary Museum
• Dream House
• Mmuseumm
• The Waterfront Museum in Red Hook
• Museum of the American Gangster
• Federal Reserve Bank (Tours)
• The Earth Room
• Dia Art Foundation (Chelsea)
• The Houdini Museum
• Holographic Studios
• Museum of Reclaimed Urban Space (MoRUS)
• Merchant’s House Museum
• Museum of American Finance
• Museum Of Chinese In America
• International Center of Photography Museum
• Reggies lallapalooza festival at the garden
• Bartow-Pell Mansion Museum (Bronx)
• Morgan Library
• The Frick Collection
• Gulliver's Gate (Miniature models)
• Morris-Jumel Mansion (also visit Sylvan Terrace)
• Noguchi Museum
• SpyScape
• The Bushwick Collective Art Gallery (map)

Aquariums, Zoos, and Gardens

• Aquariums

1. New York Aquarium (at Coney Island)

• Zoos

1. Bronx Zoo
2. Central Park Zoo
3. Prospect Park Zoo
4. Queens Zoo
5. Staten Island Zoo

• Gardens

1. New York Botanical Garden

2. Brooklyn Botanic Garden

3. Free Fridays before noon.

4. Snug Harbor Cultural Center & Botanical Garden (Staten Island)

5. Wave Hill

Parks

• Central Park

1. Central Park Zoo
2. Wollman Ice Skating Rink
3. Umpire Rock
4. Tavern on the Green
5. Rumsey Playfield
6. Bethesda Terrace & Bethesda Fountain
7. John Lennon Memorial & Strawberry Fields
8. Pilgrim Hill (famous sledding hill)
9. The Loeb Boathouse
10. Belvedere Castle
11. Central Park Tennis Center
12. Conservatory Garden
13. The Great Hill
14. Block House No. 1

• Prospect Park

1. Prospect Park Zoo
2. Brooklyn Botanic Garden
3. Brooklyn Museum
4. Brooklyn Public Library
5. Smorgasburg (Sundays only)

• The High Line
• Irish Hunger Memorial +1
• Brooklyn Bridge Park
• Fort Greene Park
• Riverside Park
• Fort Tryon Park

1. The Cloisters

• Inwood Hill Park +1
• Socrates Sculpture Park

• Flushing Meadows-Corona Park

1. New York Hall of Science
2. Queens Zoo
3. Queens Museum
4. Arthur Ashe Tennis Stadium & National Tennis Center
5. Flushing Meadows Pitch & Putt/Golf Center/Mini Golf
6. Unisphere
7. New York State Pavilion

• McCarren Park
• Transmitter Park
• Franklin D. Roosevelt Four Freedoms Park & Smallpox Hospital Ruins
• Green-Wood Cemetery

• Governors Island

1. Hammock Grove
2. Outlook Hill

• Calvert Vaux Park (near Coney Island, can fly RC planes/drones here)
• Marine Park (near Coney Island, can fly RC planes/drones here)
• Little Island (Meatpacking District)

Sports-related

• Walking

1. Brooklyn Bridge

• Biking

1. Henry Hudson Drive (GW Bridge to Jersey)
2. Hudson River Greenway
3. Tour De Bronx
4. New York City Century
5. NYC Bike Jumble! - http://www.nybikejumble.com/
6. Five Boro Bike Tour - https://www.bike.nyc/events/td-five-boro-bike-tour/ 
7. Cranksgiving!! - http://www.cranksgiving.org/ 
8. Times Up Coop - https://times-up.org/bike-co-op
9. Mechanical Gardens Coop - http://bikecoop.nyc/ 
10. Bike to City Island
11. Bike to Floyd Bennett Field, Fort Tilden and Breezy Point Tip

• Rock Climbing

1. Indoor

2. Chelsea Piers

3. The Cliffs at LIC

4. The Cliffs at DUMBO (Outdoor Bouldering Gym on the water, open in the summer)

5. Brooklyn Boulders Queensbridge

6. Brooklyn Boulders Gowanus

7. Steep Rock Bouldering (UES)

8. GP81 (Greenpoint Bouldering Gym)

9. Outdoor        

10. Central Park Bouldering

11. https://www.mountainproject.com/area/106044536/central-park 

• Bowling

1. Bowlmor Chelsea Piers
2. Brooklyn Bowl
3. The Gutter
4. Shell Lanes (deep Brooklyn)
5. Melody Lanes Bowling Center (near Greenwood Cemetery)

• Golf

1. Pier 25 Mini Golf
2. The Golf Club at Chelsea Piers
3. Flushing Pitch & Putt, and Mini Golf
4. Shipwrecked Mini Golf (indoor)
5. Dyker Beach Golf Course
6. Forest Park Golf Course
7. Brooklyn Bazaar (indoor)

• Tennis

1. Central Park Tennis Center
2. Roosevelt Island Racquet Club
3. New York Health & Racquet Club (Racquetball, many locations in Manhattan)

• Ice Skating & Roller Skating

1. Wollman Rink in Central Park
2. Lasker Rink in Central Park
3. Rockefeller Center Rink
4. Bryant Park Rink
5. Sky Rink at Chelsea Piers (all year)
6. Pier 2 Roller Rink (Brooklyn)
7. City Ice Pavilion
8. LeFrak Center at Prospect Park
9. RollerJam (Staten Island)

• Kayaking

1. Long Island City Community Boathouse (Free up to 20 mins)
2. Manhattan Community Boathouse 
3. Brooklyn Bridge Park Boathouse
4. Thai Rock in the Rockaways

• Motorsport

1. Sea the City Jet Ski Tour (Circle Manhattan on Jet Ski)
2. Jetskiing at the Thai Rock in the Rockaways

• Other

1. The Royal Palms Shuffleboard Club (Gowanus, Brooklyn)
2. Gotham Archery (Gowanus, Brooklyn)
3. Kick Axe Throwing (Gowanus, Brooklyn) +1
4. SPIN Ping Pong Club
5. Yo Yoga! (Rooftop Yoga classes)
6. Indoor Extreme Sports (Paintball, in Long Island City) 
7. Fly High Trampoline Park (Staten Island)
8. Various charter fishing boats from Sheepshead Bay (Equipment included)

Shopping

• Brooklyn Flea +1
• Hester Street Fair
• Chelsea Market
• Evolution Nature Store
• Obscura Antiques & Oddities
• Tannen's Magic Store
• Queens Center/Queens Plaza (two giant malls side by side)
• Eataly

Entertainment

• Movie Theaters

1. Syndicated +1
2. Nitehawk Cinema
3. The Paley Center For Media (Museum of TV Shows, can watch many older TV shows here)
4. Alamo Drafthouse

• Arcades, Barcades, Board Games, and Pool Halls

1. Barcade
2. Full Circle Bar (Skee Ball)
3. Fat Cat (Ping Pong, Shuffleboard, Foosball, Chess, with live Jazz) +1
4. Chinatown Fair Family Fun Center
5. Ocean's 8 (Pool Hall, part of Brownstone Billiards)
6. Brooklyn Strategist (Board Game Cafe)
7. Modern Pinball NYC
8. Dave & Buster’s (Times Square)

• Escape The Room

1. Escape Games NYC 
2. Mission Escape Games

• Live Entertainment

1. Spoken Word/StorySLAM at Storyville Center for the Spoken Word (The Moth)
2. Lucky Cheng’s Dinner Show

• Live Comedy

1. Magnet Theater 
2. Upright Citizens Brigade (East Village & Hell’s Kitchen)
3. Gotham Comedy Club
4. Comedy Cellar
5. New York Comedy Club

• TV Shows

1. The Tonight Show
2. Saturday Night Live

Classes & Education

• Q.E.D. (Astoria, Queens, various assorted classes)
• La Mano Pottery (Pottery)
• Taro’s Origami Studio (Origami classes)
• Brooklyn Kitchen (Cooking Classes)
• Sur La Table (Cooking Classes)

Spas

• Great Jones Spa
• Faina European Day Spa
• Shibui Spa
• SoJo Spa Club (New Jersey, across river from UWS)
• Juvenex Spa (24 hours)
• Premier 57
• King Spa & Fitness (Palisades Park, NJ)
• Spa Castle (Queens)

Boats, Ferries, Cruises

• Governors Island Ferry
• East River Ferry (Greenpoint to DUMBO)
• Rockaway Ferry
• IKEA Ferry
• Staten Island Ferry (Free)

Music Venues

• Irving Plaza
• Webster Hall
• Highline Ballroom
• The Bowery Ballroom
• Music Hall of Williamsburg
• Rough Trade NYC
• Mercury Lounge
• Baby’s All Right
• Terminal 5
• Rockwood +1
• Brooklyn Steel
• Knitting Factory
• Brooklyn Mirage
• Apollo Theatre

Events (Annual, etc.)

• Music Festivals

1. Governors Ball
2. Panorama NYC
3. The Meadows
4. Afropunk
5. Celebrate Brooklyn (lots of free shows in Prospect Park!)
6. City Parks SummerStage (lots of free shows at lots of parks!)
7. Electric Zoo

• Other

1. Coney Island Polar Bear Plunge
2. Tour De Bronx (Bike Ride)
3. New York City Century (Bike Ride)
4. Big Apple Barbeque
5. Pickle Day

Food (Please only put your best of the best recommendations)

• Sushi & Japanese

1. Sushi Yasaka (72nd St, UWS)

2. Lunch specials are amazing deals.

3. Satsuki Sushi (Midtown West)

4. Pricey, but amazing - just won a Michelin star for 2018! They offer a curated omakase menu.

5. Ootoya (Chain, locations in Chelsea, Times Square, and Greenwich Village)

6. Amazing and authentic Japanese at a fair price. The menu has great and interesting options, Tonkatsu, Yakitori, Washu beef, Hot Pot, and even unique sushi offerings. (Also a non-tipping restaurant, but it seems built into the price).

7. Catch NYC

8. rooftop sushi

• Chinese

1. Xi’an Famous Foods (Chain, tons of locations)

2. Now an NYC chain, but still amazing hand pulled noodles. Can also go to the original in the basement of Flushing’s Golden Shopping Mall.        

3. Eim Khao Mun Kai  - Hainanese Chicken Rice (in Elmhurst)

4. The shop is operated by Thai I think, they have the most amazing Hainanese Chicken Rice. This small cash-only store has this dish and only serve this dish! They make one thing and make it really good! 

5. Lanting - Hotpot

6. hot pot buffet. You can eat whatever you want. Contains many amazing fresh foods and multiple different soups. 

7. Hot space

8. The shop serves crawfish in different styles. I suggest the iced crawfish. And the flavored soda is also worth a try. 

9. 99 Favor Taste Hotpot

10. Offers free meal for you on your birthday

11. Beef/Lamb slices are really great. Also would suggest a side of fish.

12. All you can eat!

• Mexican

1. Los Tacos No. 1 (Chelsea Market; Midtown)
2. Papatzul (Grand Street)
3. Casa Enrique (LIC) - https://henrinyc.com/casa-enrique/ 

• Indian

1. Bhatti Indian Grill (27th & Lex) 

2. Amazing North Indian cuisine. There's a $14 lunch buffet special on weekdays where they bring the dishes out to your table. Come hungry.

• Bagels

1. Russ & Daughters (Houston St, LES)

2. Pretty much the most famous bagel and salmon place in NYC. The bagels might not be the best in the city, but the amazing lox choices make up for it by far. Always very busy, the cafe version has seating and is good too.

3. Absolute Bagel (near Columbia University)

4. Always make “best of” lists; cash only

5. Brooklyn Bagel and Coffee

6. Best bagel I’ve had in NYC (and I’ve tried all the top places)

• Pizza

1. Calabria Pizza. Located in the Hasidic community of Brooklyn, these folks make the best Kosher Pizza. You must try the eggplant & garlic.
2. Di Fara Pizza. 5 dollar slices made by a 81 year old man. Usually a line out the door on weekends.

• Dessert & Snacking

1. Levain

2. Best cookies in NYC. 

3. Two E Tea at The Pierre

4. Fancy afternoon tea, with tea sandwiches and scones.

5. Chikalicious - 10th and 2nd, amazing desserts!

6. 3-course prix fixe menu that includes an amuse, dessert of your choice, and assorted petits fours. Optional wine pairings for additional cost.

7. Tipsy Scoop - alcoholic ice cream parlour - 26th and 3rd

8. Mango Mango Dessert - primarily mango-based desserts! Mango shaved ice, ice cream, cakes, and smoothies.

• Other

1. Burger & Lobster (19th St, Chelsea)

2. Dude. It’s burgers and lobsters.