Best things to do in New York City
The top 3 according to 2,074 votes from people: Central Park · Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island · The Metropolitan Museum of Art. (Updated Jul 29, 2022.)
The attractions that top TripAdvisor, Time Out and the big travel blogs for a first trip to NYC, from the classic landmarks to the parks and museums locals love too.
Top 20
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1
Central Park
843-acre park in the middle of Manhattan with Bethesda Terrace, Strawberry Fields and Bow Bridge.
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2
Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island
The 1886 gift from France, reached by ferry together with the immigration museum on Ellis Island.
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3
The Metropolitan Museum of Art
One of the world's largest art museums, with collections spanning 5,000 years, from the Temple of Dendur to Van Gogh.
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4
Empire State Building
Art Deco skyscraper from 1931 with open-air observation decks on the 86th floor.
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5
Times Square
The neon-lit crossroads of Broadway and Seventh Avenue, home of the New Year's Eve ball drop.
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6
Brooklyn Bridge
1883 suspension bridge whose elevated wooden walkway gives classic Manhattan skyline views.
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7
9/11 Memorial & Museum
Twin reflecting pools in the footprints of the Twin Towers and a museum on the September 11 attacks.
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8
The High Line
Elevated park built on a disused freight rail line on the West Side, running from Gansevoort Street to Hudson Yards.
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9
Top of the Rock
Observation decks atop 30 Rockefeller Plaza with a direct view of the Empire State Building and Central Park.
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10
Museum of Modern Art (MoMA)
Midtown museum with Van Gogh's The Starry Night, Picasso's Les Demoiselles d'Avignon and Warhol's soup cans.
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11
A Broadway show
The Theater District around Times Square has 41 Broadway theatres; TKTS booths sell same-day discounted tickets.
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12
Grand Central Terminal
Beaux-Arts station from 1913 with a celestial ceiling mural and the Whispering Gallery.
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13
American Museum of Natural History
Dinosaur halls, the 94-foot blue whale and the Hayden Planetarium on the Upper West Side.
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14
Rockefeller Center
Art Deco complex with the Christmas tree and ice rink in winter, Radio City Music Hall and NBC Studios.
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15
One World Observatory
Observation floors on levels 100–102 of One World Trade Center, the tallest building in the Western Hemisphere.
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16
DUMBO
Brooklyn waterfront neighbourhood with the famous Washington Street view of the Manhattan Bridge and Brooklyn Bridge Park.
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17
Greenwich Village
Bohemian downtown neighbourhood around Washington Square Park, with jazz clubs and comedy cellars.
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18
Chelsea Market
Food hall in the former Nabisco factory where the Oreo was invented, right by the High Line.
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19
Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum
Frank Lloyd Wright's spiral building on Fifth Avenue, opened in 1959, with modern and contemporary art.
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20
Staten Island Ferry
Free 25-minute ferry from Lower Manhattan that sails past the Statue of Liberty.
Candidates
They don't make it into the top 20… yet. Vote for them to move them up.
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21
Summit One Vanderbilt
Mirrored observation experience opened in 2021 at the top of One Vanderbilt, next to Grand Central.
How is this ranking ordered? By people's votes: each ▲ adds a point and each ▼ takes one away. Anyone can vote and add what is missing.
Is something missing?
Comments (27)
Fun fact: the ferry runs 24/7, the night ride with the skyline lit up is amazing.
Just got back from NYC. Did the Staten Island Ferry tip from this list and it was perfect at sunset, thanks!
Times Square in the top 10?? Every New Yorker I know avoids it like the plague lol
It's touristy but it's literally a list for first-timers. Everyone goes once.
Fair, but it should be like #20, not #7
Grand Central is so underrated. Go up to the balcony and look at the ceiling, and find the whispering gallery downstairs.
Going in December for the first time, is Rockefeller Center worth it for the tree or just a mess?
It's packed but worth seeing once. Go late at night, after 10pm it's way calmer.
AMNH with kids is a must, the blue whale room alone is worth it 🐋
The Met deserves its spot. Pay-what-you-wish still applies for NY residents, everyone else pays full price since 2018.
Summit One Vanderbilt is overpriced imo, the mirror rooms are cool for 10 min and that's it
DUMBO for the Manhattan Bridge photo on Washington Street, go early before the crowds.
Saved, thanks! Heading there in March.
Greenwich Village for dinner after the Washington Square Park performers 👌
Is the 9/11 Museum ok for kids? Mine are 9 and 11.
We took our 10 year old. The memorial pools are fine, inside the museum there are some rooms with warnings at the entrance so you can skip them.
Great list. I'd add a walk across the Williamsburg Bridge, way less crowded than the Brooklyn Bridge.
The Staten Island Ferry is free and you see the Statue of Liberty from the water. Best budget tip in the city.
Central Park at #1 is the right call. Rent a bike at Columbus Circle and do the full loop, it's about 6 miles.
This is the kind of list that's been copied from TripAdvisor a thousand times. Zero surprises.
It's a 'best things to do' list, it's supposed to have the classics. There are other lists for hidden gems.
No Coney Island? Nathan's hot dogs and the Cyclone in summer are peak NYC.
Top of the Rock > Empire State. You actually get the Empire State Building in your photos.
Agree 100%, and it's usually less crowded too.
I'd swap One World Observatory for the Edge at Hudson Yards, the glass floor is wild
Did the Broadway lottery on the TodayTix app and got Hamilton tickets for $10. Can't recommend it enough.
chelsea market + high line on the same afternoon, perfect combo