New York City, the Big Apple if you will. Did you know it’s not known as the Big Apple because they grow a lot of apples?Apparently the nickname “Big Apple” was popularized because of horse racing in the 1920s… (even though they are the second biggest producer of apples after Washington… so the lots of apples thing would make sense). The more you know, right?
We decided to take a trip there after my friend exclaimed that she’d seen really cheap flights there at the end of 2017. We originally were supposed to be going with her and her boyfriend however sadly it didn’t work out for them – so it seems we stole their idea and went anyway (sorry Sarah!!). I’ve put together a collection of tips and things you’ll need to know if you’re planning on travelling to New York in the near future, and ways that you can make your trip super affordable!
Travel:
Getting out of JFK is a little bit confusing. There are so many options of transportation out of there.
On the way out of JFK into Queens, Google had told us to take the Airtrain (a $5 train just to get out of the grounds of the airport – sadly, unavoidable if you’re taking the train away from JFK), LIRR train, and then the subway.
The LIRR journey alone cost us $20 between the two of us. We didn’t know any better as this was the travel route Google had given us. I’m telling you right now that if you’re heading into anywhere with a subway system (so basically anywhere in NYC), you don’t need to take the LIRR train out. We discovered this on the way back to the airport when we were going home. There is a subway that takes you directly to the Airtrain that costs $2.75 each instead of $10.
As for travelling around the city, it is relatively easy. Though I will say that if you’ve travelled around Europe before, you will find their subway system rather frustrating. There are no signs in the subway station that list the stops that each subway has in each direction, you just kind of have to hope that you know the direction you’re traveling in and pray you end up on the right train.
It’s $2.75 a ride, and although there are signs that say if you get on another subway/bus within 2 hours of your last journey you won’t get charged… you will. So keep that in mind and plan your routes accordingly.
My biggest tip for saving time and money in regards to travel, would be to plan your routes in advance. Apple and Google maps have great features where they tell you which trains/subways/buses to take at what times and where to transfer if you give them a destination. If you’re without wifi/data, plan these routes before you go out for the day and screenshot them so you have them on hand. Another thing would be to plan your days out so that you’re staying in the same area throughout the day so your swipes on transit are limited. If your day is spent going from one side of NYC to the other and back, you’re going to be spending a lot of money on the subway. If you plan, for example, to stay in the more southern tip of the island for one day, and then do Times Square and it’s surrounding attractions another day it works well!
Free things to see/do:
New York doesn’t have to be an expensive trip if you don’t want it to be. Pretty much the only things we spent money on were food and travel, other than that we managed to see tons of the city for FREE!
Here are all the thing we saw/did for free/cheap around the city!
- Times Square
- See the Rockefeller ice-skating rink/building
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- To skate on the rink it is ~$30 per person
- There a bunch of shops around this area too so you can peruse those at your leisure
- Central Park
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- Strawberry Fields/The Dakota building
- Friends Fountain
- Gapstow Bridge
- Brooklyn Bridge – so beautiful on a sunny day!
- High Line
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- Is an elevated, linear park that was created out of an old rail line
- Flatiron Building
- Staten Island Ferry to see the Statue of Liberty
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- A free ferry that goes too and from Staten Island – which passes right by Lady Liberty! Make sure you stand on the right side of the boat when heading to Staten Island, and on the left when leaving SI for the best view!
- 9/11 memorial
- One World Trade Centre
- Little Italy
- Chinatown
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- If you come here around Chinese New Year (like we did), this place is bumping!
- Grand Central Station
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- You can also find the Talking Corners here as well (it’s just outside the Oyster Bar) – if you and your partner/travel buddy stand at opposite corners and talk into it, you’ll be able to hear each other – so cool!
- New York Stock Exchange – Wall St
And for a peak at all the restaurants we visited while we were in NYC – check out this blog post I did!
Seeing the City from up high:
This is so hard to do if you don’t want to spend a ton of money on getting up a tall, well known building.
We had heard that the view from the Rockefeller building was much better than that from the top of the Empire State building. It was a lovely, sunny day and the skies were blue so we decided that’s when we were going to venture up, only to discover that it was THIRTY SIX DOLLARS PER PERSON to get up to the top. I’m not being funny but no view is worth $36 US dollars (~$42 CAD) to see some buildings from up high, so we decided against going up. BUT apparently that’s the best view so if you have close to $100 burning a hole through your pocket then that’s the building you should spend it on!
On our last day we met with a friend who lives in NYC, and she suggested that we go to a rooftop bar and see the city from higher up that way. An expensive cocktail would still be a fraction of the cost of going up the Rockefeller! Unfortunately, as it was our last day, and we were leaving town at round 3pm we wouldn’t be around for any of the bars to be open (they usually open at 4pm). But, if you’re looking for a less expensive way to see the city from up high, this is a good option for you!
Other Tips
- Bring comfortable walking shoes – seriously, fashion is not something you should be too concerned about on a trip to NYC – you’re going to end up doing SO MUCH WALKING. Save yourself the hassle and foot pain and bring shoes that you know you can walk all day in without feeling like your feet are broken.
- If you’re going in winter, make sure you bring WARM CLOTHES! We went in mid February, and even though the weather said it was going to be 8-9 degrees (which for someone living in Canada, that is tropical), it felt far colder than that. The tall buildings block out a lot of the sun (and therefore warmth), so bring a good winter coat, mittens, and a scarf/hat to keep you toasty!
It really is so easy to make a trip to NYC affordable, without missing out on seeing all the things you want to see. Especially if you find some cheap flights, and an affordable Airbnb, it’s a totally inexpensive weekend away! I did a blog post a while back on finding the perfect Airbnb, so make sure you check that out too for your future travels!
Until next time
xx