What to see in New York. The best things to do in the city that never sleeps
It is such a big city that counting everything there is to see in New York in a few lines is impossible. The city of skyscrapers is that city that we all want to visit thanks to its immensity, having seen it thousands of times in movies and because it attracts everyone.
There are many essential places to see in New York and here we are going to tell you about some of them. From there you can make a tour that best suits your tastes. You can also read our New York travel diary.
Do not miss our itineraries for days:
The essential places to see in New York
1.Times Square
If there is an essential place to visit in New York, it is Times Square, the epicenter of the city that never sleeps. The place where you will always want to go, both during the day and at night.
Times Square is the most touristic place in New York and you will not be able to stop admiring its billboards and neon lights. Its shops, restaurants and theaters will captivate you as well as the incessant atmosphere of tourists and New Yorkers.
Everything revolves around Times Square. It is the center of New York and you will always find people there. From here you can begin to visit the city and enjoy it like nowhere else.
2. Fifth Avenue
In Manhattan, almost every street has a point of interest. But there is one of them that must be highlighted above all the other streets to see in New York, Fifth Avenue.
From the beginning in Washington Square until you reach Central Park, Fifth Avenue is a succession of shops, skyscrapers and other points of interest that you should not miss. On this street you will find the Empire State Building, the Public Library, Bryant Park or the Flatiron Building.
And the most exclusive stores like the famous Tiffany’s, although it is not the only one you can find. Walking the streets from start to finish is one of the best things to do in New York.
3.Empire State Building
Although the Empire State Building is no longer the tallest building in New York, it is still the most famous and going up to one of its viewpoints is a must-do experience on your visit to the city. But it is also that everything in the building has a special charm from its entrance hall to the elevator.
It has two viewpoints, one located on the 86th floor and the other on the 102nd. Perhaps going up to the first is enough to have a great view of the New York skyline. To climb the Empire State Building we recommend doing it at sunset to first see the city during the day and then with everything illuminated.
There are usually quite a few queues to go up to the most famous skyscraper, so be patient. Or you can also buy the ticket here before you go and save them.
4. Top of the Rock
Although the most famous vantage point is at the top of the Empire State Building, we believe the best views are from the Top of the Rock, the vantage point at the famous Rockefeller Center.
For two reasons. The first is that you can see Central Park. And the second is that you can admire the Empire State Building, something that logically you will not be able to do from it. As in the previous one, we recommend going up to the Top of the Rock at sunset to have two completely different views of the New York sky.
Also do not miss Rockefeller Plaza, famous for having appeared in numerous films and also for the ice rink that is installed at Christmas
5. Statue of Liberty
Another of the emblems to see in New York is the Statue of Liberty. And it is possibly the most famous monument in the world and one of the most visited.
You can meet her in two ways. One is going to her, being at her feet and going up to her lookout. The other is free, take the Staten Island Ferry and enjoy it up close. Both are fully recommended and the best things to do in New York.
The visit is often combined with Ellis Island, the island where immigrants from Europe arrived in search of a better life. There you can visit the Immigration Museum.
There are many tours to visit the Statue of Liberty. We recommend this, Tour to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island
6.Central Park
There are many parks to visit in New York, but none like Central Park, one of the most famous parks in the world. It is a huge park so if you want to get to know it in depth, you still need more than one day.
In Central Park you have everything. From sports spaces to walks through dreamy bridges that cross its lake or even a castle. And even a zoo. And statues, like Alice in Wonderland.
In addition, on the sides of Central Park you will find several of the main museums to visit in New York, such as the Museum of Natural History or the Metropolitan Museum of Art
There is a very interesting guided tour of Central Park that we recommend.
7.Broadway
In Manhattan all the streets are perpendicular. But there is one that crosses practically the entire neighborhood from north to south obliquely. That’s Broadway Street, the only one that doesn’t follow the format.
Broadway is known as the street of musicals, although the truth is that it only has 2 theaters out of the dozens in Manhattan. What happens is that they are in its surroundings and that is why the street is famous.
Broadway cuts through Times Square, past the Flatiron Building, and ends at Battery Park.
8. Grand Central Terminal and Chrysler Building
In the heart of Manhattan is New York’s main railway station, Grand Central Terminal, opened in 1913 and very famous thanks to the movies, where it has been destroyed several times.
The Grand Central Terminal is without a doubt one of the most emblematic places you can visit in New York with a huge hall that will leave you speechless whose ceiling and its paintings will surprise you. Don’t miss the Gallery of Whispers either.
A few meters away is the Chrysler Building, another of the city ‘s emblematic skyscrapers, and for many the most beautiful.
9. Greenwich Village
Each of the neighborhoods in Manhattan have their charm. And not all of them are riddled with skyscrapers. As an example, we must name Greenwich Village, one of the most fashionable and glamorous neighborhoods to visit in New York.
The neighborhood of Greenwich Village is also a gay icon because it is the area where the Stonewall Inn is located, the pub where a riot took place in 1969 that gave rise to the gay liberation movement.
It is also very visited what was the house of Sarah Jessica Parker, the protagonist of Sex and the City, both in real life and in the series. And be sure to visit Magnolia Bakery, one of the most famous bakeries in New York.
10. Brooklyn Bridge
Each of the bridges that cross the Hudson River has its charm. But the most interesting, beautiful, famous and spectacular of all of them is the Brooklyn Bridge, which is a must-see and immortalized in our cameras.
It was at the time the most famous suspension bridge in the world and today it can be crossed by car, on foot or by bicycle in a unique experience that will make you see Manhattan from a very special place, in the neighborhood of Brooklyn.
The best views are from Brooklyn Bridge Park, located at the foot of the bridge. You can take the opportunity to visit the Brooklyn neighborhood, which also has its charm.
11. New York Museums
With so many skyscrapers, so many spectacular streets, so many shops and restaurants, so much life and so many places to visit, museums in New York seem to be in the background, but there are several that you should definitely visit.
The one that we liked the most was the MOMA. It is the most important museum of modern art in the world and in it you will find impressive paintings that will surprise you. There we must highlight Starry Night, by Van Gogh, and the famous painting by Picasso, The Ladies of Avignon.
Next to Central Park are the Natural History Museum, famous for the movie Night at the Museum, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, whose building is already a true work of art, or the famous Guggenheim Museum, the first to open in the Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation.
You can buy tickets in advance and skip the queues:
12.Wall Street
Did you think we were not going to talk about Wall Street, the financial center of New York? Well you were wrong. It is also part of our list with the best things to see in New York.
Wall Street is actually a small street in the district, but in its surroundings there are such important places as the New York Stock Exchange, Federal Hall, which was the first capitol in the United States, or the Federal Reserve building. Although the list of places is endless.
We recommend visiting this neighborhood during the week to see its intense activity.
13. One World Trade Center
In the Wall Street area we also find another of the main areas to see in New York, the New World Trade Center that is being built on the ruins left by the terrible 9/11 attacks.
There you can visit the 9/11 Memorial and other monuments that commemorate the date. But the main point of interest is the One World Trade Center, the new great skyscraper in New York, which has replaced the hole left by the Twin Towers.
It is possible to climb to the top of One World Trade Center and have other beautiful views of the New York skyline by completing the trio of viewpoints with the Top of the Rock and the Empire State Building. We recommend buying your ticket in advance to avoid queues.
You can find more information about what to see in New York on the official New York tourism page.
