I'm Jen your local New York City guide
and this is the ultimate guide to the
top 101 things you need to know before
visiting New York I'm gonna break it
down into seven categories geography
transportation cost weather where to
stay best food to eat Broadway tips okay
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enjoyed this video and check out the
blog post linked down below for even
more information let's go eight million
people live here over sixty million
people visit each year there are five
boroughs Manhattan is the smallest
borough but often steals the show I may
be biased toward Brooklyn but did you
know that if Brooklyn was still a city
and not a borough it would be the fourth
largest city in America I recommend
going outside of Manhattan to other
boroughs for local neighborhood
experiences like Brooklyn the Bronx
Staten Island and queens or at least
take the Staten Island Ferry for great
views of the city and the Statue of
Liberty New York City is a great system
of mostly
three short blocks between streets
equals the same distance as one block
between avenues
it usually takes one minute to walk one
short block between streets and five
minutes to walk one block between
avenues 20 short blocks between streets
is a mile most of Manhattan has streets
that run from east to west from first
all the way to two hundred and twentieth
uptown avenues run from south to north
from the east side to the west side v ab
divides Manhattan's east side from its
website Broadway Criss presses against
the grid from Columbus Circle through
Times Square all the way down to Union
Square we talk about the city in
Direction uptown or downtown East Side
or website when asking for directions
don't say a specific hotel name it is
likely the New Yorkers don't really know
that so just say fostering New Yorkers
walk with purpose and confidence here
they do not tolerate slow walking so try
not to stand in the way keep the pace of
traffic moving if not stand of way on
the side 99% of New York City is not
dangerous just don't these dumb with
your stuff keep it always on you and
keep your eye on it the easiest way to
piss off a New Yorker is just and right
in the middle of the sidewalk - stop
right there - take photos don't get in
their way
it may be an island but it doesn't have
great beaches you have to travel to
Rockaway Beach Coney Island the Hamptons
or the Jersey Shore it's also Helston
not Huston Street okay got it
if possible avoid traveling during rush
hour when people are rushing to work
Monday through Friday
yellow taxis are a great form of
sightseeing above ground if you have to
get somewhere really quick those drivers
that know how to get there and if you
can't get there easily accessible by
train the trick to knowing when to hail
a cab is to look at the numbers on top
if it is lit up it is empty if it is not
lit up it is taken to hail a cab stand
on a prominent corner with your hand up
and if you're going a certain direction
and there are a lot of one-ways make
sure that you're on the one way in the
right direction for cheaper share drives
try lyft or uber you can borrow a city
bike for 30 minute intervals as long as
you predock it every 30 minutes the
subway is usually the fastest and
cheapest way to get around stairs or
escalators stand on the right path on
the left have your MetroCard ready
before you step up to the game to avoid
a human traffic jam one of MetroCard
Swit currently costs about 275 you only
need a couple of swipes you can
customize the exact amount slaves by
adding on a certain amount of money if
you are here for a week and want to
swipe your card over 13 times and get
the weekly unlimited there are also
monthly passes if you move here ask your
employer about tax-free MetroCard
if you're not from the US and you pay
with credit card put your zip code as
nine nine nine nine nine that's five
nine some entrances are Direction
specific so if you are going uptown
and this sign says downtown only do not
go there that means there is no
underpass to cross over to the other
side however if you are you know you
accidentally swipe it and you have an
unlimited you have to know that you have
to wait 18 minutes before swiping it
again so just be careful check the signs
ahead of time
there are both local and Express trains
local stops are marked with a black dot
and Express trains are marked with a
white gonna allow passengers to exit the
train do not stand right in front of the
doors and block them from exiting if you
see a train card that is empty and the
other train pairs around it are crowded
there is probably a reason it probably
smells or has broken air-conditioning
just go to the next car subway stations
are not air conditioned or heated in the
summer or winter only the actual subway
cars are for the price of one metro card
swipe you can ride the Roosevelt Island
tram across to the island I highly
recommend this in the spring when the
cherry blossoms are blooming this was
these trans were featured in spider-man
and offer an amazing view of the
Manhattan skyline if you dare to eat on
the train avoid smelly and messy foods
just bring a granola bar you'll probably
lose service below ground don't lean on
the pole
don't listen to music without headphones
take off your backpack
don't take up more than one seat listen
to announcements if you can hear them in
case the train takes another route New
York City is expensive but some things
can be super affordable for example you
can find visa for five dollars a slice
that's really good or you can find
pretty decent pizza for only a dollar if
I bring cash some food markets and
trucks only accept cash
most places will have a credit card
minimum of five or ten dollars it will
usually be marked on the cash register
or you can ask if you're purchasing
something for under ten dollars with a
credit card lunch can easily be ten to
twenty dollars dinner can be fifteen to
thirty five dollars depending on where
places with views or rooftops or even
beautiful Gardens like this are a little
bit more expensive but so worth it sales
tax is not usually included on
restaurant and retail price tags sits
about eight point eight percent so just
keep that in mind
the recommended tip amount is fifteen to
twenty percent for bartenders waiters
and taxi drivers the best weather to
visit is spring and fall I highly
recommend visiting in Springs when all
the flowers and Terry blossom trees are
in bloom summer is the hottest most
crowded time but there are so many free
activities the second most popular time
is winter to see the holiday decorations
it can be really cold and there can be
blizzards though in winter wear extra
layers a big jacket and comfy boots wear
comfortable shoes in any season because
New York City is a walking City if it
rains you can buy a five-dollar cheap
umbrella anywhere but don't expect it to
last very long avoid big puddles
especially when it's not raining you do
not want to walk in whatever that if you
are only here for a few days in the
central
is near Times Square in winter time
Square is a must-see but it is a lot so
you probably only want to spend a
certain amount of time here some cartoon
characters will ask you for money and
some other characters might even pop
into your photos and ask you for more
money so just be careful if you have
more time stay in Brooklyn or downtown
where you can get to most places in
about 20 minutes
I love Airbnb especially if you are
staying in a group is a very affordable
option I have a link down below for $40
off your first day there is nothing like
a New York City bagel that is attempt we
love Mexican food one of my favorite
spots is ELO's tacos in numero uno Pizza
is a staple in a New Yorkers diet some
top spots are best pizza Roberta's
John's on Bleecker Street and prints
food and drinks come in large portions
so check the cup and what you're about
to get beforehand just ask people people
are always there to answer your
questions and if you have too much food
you can always take it to go it is hard
to find public restrooms but some great
ones are Bryant Park Grand Central and
any hotel lobbies the corner bodega has
everything you need from basic groceries
to sandwiches for an affordable meal go
to the grocery store which often has a
hot buffet cold sandwiches or salads if
you see a B or C outside of a restaurant
instead of an A then that means that
they have over 14 violations and you
probably don't want to eat there brunch
and boozy brunch can be an expensive and
busy affair so get there early and make
reservations
speakeasies are hidden cocktail bars
often leftover from pro
go out on the weekdays like a Thursday
night to enjoy the best happy hour
prices and the least crowd enjoy
affordable meals and expensive
restaurants during the restaurant week
there's also a Broadway week if you
can't afford that try getting cheaper
tickets to the off-broadway week for
cheap tickets try a ticket lottery or
the TKTS booth if you have a specific
show in mind it is best to get tickets
as far ahead as possible to guaranteed
my favorite Broadway show is wicked I've
seen it three times a great family
friendly show that's a total classic to
the line make sure to print out your
tickets before hits if you are picking
up tickets at the box office go earlier
in the day to avoid lines Broadway is a
guaranteed greet show but some of the
best shows are for free in the New York
City Subway museums often have a free
night or pay as you like pricing visit a
few museums together along these am
miles central park is huge so you have
to dedicate at least half a day to
really explore all of it and not even
all of it there's still more but most of
it if you want to blend in wear black
if you want to stand out wear color
don't buy postcards and souvenirs at
expensive spots like the Empire State
Building that's super touristy and
therefore the price tag is way higher
instead buy them for a much more
affordable price at tween lead or in
chinatown
or even better support locals by
purchasing your goods at markets like
artisan sleep you cannot see it also
keep your list of things that you're
going to try and do manageable and
realistic to the amount of time you have
and don't forget to build in free time
last tip seriously check out my blog
post for all the details on this and a
printable list that you can check off
thank you so much for watching if you
enjoyed this video please click the like
button subscribe and share it with
friends I have a blog post linked down
below with all of the details as always
say you have to do adventures and
see you next time night
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