Tips for Travelers to NYC

Although not a native New Yorker, I have lived in NYC for decades. For travelers, it can be an intimidating place. It’s fast, dirty, energetic, and exciting. This article includes my tips for not pissing off New Yorkers, for getting by unscathed, and for making the most of your visit.

Walking the right way. Yes, in New York City, there’s a right way and a wrong way to walk. That’s because sidewalks can get quite crowded, and if someone who lives in the city is in a hurry to get to work or elsewhere, you’ll be on their bad side if you’re in the way. So PLEASE, if you’re in a group, don’t spread out on the sidewalk and stroll slowly. No more than two across, and best to stay on the right so that speeders can pass you on the left.

Pedestrian safety. (1) Don’t expect cars to wait for you to cross before they turn. Drivers do this elsewhere, but not always in our city. (2) Watch the bike lanes! Bikers should but don’t always follow the lights, and they’re going fast. If they hit you, they can do some damage. (3) Never follow someone crossing against a light without looking first. We sometimes time our crossings by the second. (4) We jaywalk in the city legally, and you can, too. But do it carefully!

Subway tips #1. You no longer need a Metrocard. You can just tap your credit card as you go into the subway or bus. But mind your subway etiquette – don’t stand in front of doors whether you’re entering or standing inside the subway car, and ALWAYS grab hold of something (same on buses). Our trains (yes, we call them trains) are fast, and you won’t be able to stand up. I don’t care how big you are. Plus, the bigger you are, the more it will hurt when you fall on somebody else. Oh, yeah: that empty subway car is probably empty for a reason, and you don’t want to know why.

Our subway system is called MTA, and unfortunately, even the MTA’s own app is inaccurate. I think this is because we have an antiquated signal system. The cost to upgrade would be astronomical, so we might be stuck with it for a long time. Just today, as I write this, the app told me a train had come and gone while I was standing on the platform, but the train didn’t actually arrive for another minute or two. So take the app’s notifications with a grain of salt.

Subway tips #2. Local trains generally make all the stops on the line, while express trains skip some of the local stops for a potentially faster ride. Your train’s sign will mention the last stop on the line, but don’t expect every train to always go to its last stop. Sometimes, they stop sooner, so always check. A train going toward Brooklyn will go downtown in Manhattan first because Brooklyn is south. A train going to the Bronx will go uptown in Manhattan first. Queens is mostly east of Manhattan.

Downtown and Uptown. Unlike many cities in the U.S., “downtown” in NYC doesn’t mean where the action is or where the businesses are. In that respect, pretty much all of Manhattan is a “downtown” because there are businesses and action everywhere (although some areas are decidedly more “neighborhoody” than others). But in Manhattan, downtown and uptown are meant literally. Downtown is the lower/southern part of the island, uptown is the upper/northern part of the island, and midtown is in the middle.

Travel time. Give yourself extra travel time, both underground and above ground. The trains also encounter traffic, as well as signal problems, sick passengers, and all sorts of other things that can delay a train. That said, the subway can be a very fast way to get around the city. But if you’re here just on a layover at the airport, you will need HOURS to come to the city. I mean a good half of the day to make it worth your while and ensure you get back to the airport in time for your flight. It can take a long time to get to and from the airports!

Mind your stuff. If you have a backpack, PLEASE take it down in the subway or bus, or at least be mindful of hitting the person behind you. Men, don’t keep your wallet or phone in your back pockets (and please don’t man-spread). Women, a crossbody bag is ideal with the zipper toward you in front. Never get on the subway with your bag behind you. A friend of mine did this, and someone unzipped it and grabbed her wallet just before the doors closed behind her, leaving her inside the subway and her thief outside the doors.

Enjoy the architecture. NYC has countless beautiful buildings. Even some tiny building on a side street can have gorgeous architectural flourishes. So be sure to look!

Don’t assume all New Yorkers are mean. I always try to be very courteous to tourists. I want you to walk away with a good impression of my city. Some people will be cross, but I have found that the majority of our citizens are helpful and nice. I have witnessed countless New Yorkers coming to the aid of strangers, so don’t hesitate to ask for help or directions, even if you have to ask more than one person to get an answer.

Wear comfortable clothes and shoes. Contrary to Sex and the City, New Yorkers don’t dress up that much. While fine dining might require something other than jeans or shorts, theater is even casual (sometimes a bit too casual, in my opinion). But NYC is a walking city, so you’ll need a good pair of comfortable shoes with excellent foot support. Our beat-up sidewalks will destroy your favorite Manolo Blahniks.

If all you see is Times Square, you haven’t seen New York. Times Square is a particular stretch in NYC of just a few blocks, and it’s unlike the rest of the city. So if you only see the Times Square area (named after The New York Times, by the way), you haven’t seen the REAL New York. PLEASE venture to at least other parts of Manhattan, and if possible, other boros like Brooklyn, the Bronx, and Queens. (And yes, we say “the” Bronx, but we don’t add “the” to the names of the other boros. Don’t ask me why.)

Please don’t just eat at chain restaurants. NYC is a restaurant mecca. Unless you absolutely have to placate kids, please take advantage of our great eateries. And if you MUST eat in the Times Square area, I recommend walking just a little bit farther west to Ninth Avenue, where you’ll find much better places than directly in Times Square.

Be careful of Airbnb. Most Airbnbs in the city are illegal, so you’re much better off staying at a hotel, expensive though they may be.

Avoid buying Broadway tickets from your hotel concierge. Unless it’s a show that’s impossible to get tickets for otherwise, buy directly from the box office or an app like TodayTix or Theatr. Otherwise, you’ll end up paying way too much. You can also check out the TKTS line in Times Square at West 47th Street.

Learn the grid. If you’re spending more than a weekend in the city and venturing beyond Times Square, do yourself a favor and learn the order of avenues. Fifth Avenue is the dividing point between the east side and the west side. From Fifth Avenue, the next avenue going east is Madison, followed by Park, then Lexington, then 3rd, 2nd, and 1st Avenues. There are other avenues farther east in some parts of Manhattan, but you probably won’t go there unless you’re going toward the East River or visiting a friend in one of those neighborhoods.

From Fifth Avenue going west, you’ll first find 6th Avenue (aka Avenue of the Americas), followed by 7th, 8th, 9th, 10th, 11th, and 12th. Again, there are some other streets on the western fringes in some parts of Manhattan. Obviously, it’s the east avenues that are the hardest to remember since many are named rather than numbered.

But what about Broadway, the street? It’s a bit of an anomaly because it snakes through the city and might be right next to Fifth Avenue in one place and right next to Seventh Avenue in another place. But if you learn the other avenues, you’ll be able to navigate well. That’s because through most of Manhattan, the streets going north to south are numbered. This is only not the case in the lower and upper parts of the island. If you venture into Soho and the East Village or Greenwich Village, for example, you’ll need your GPS because many streets are named rather than numbered. They also are often curved rather than in a straight north-south/east-west grid.

Please take advantage of all the city has to offer. Again, I urge you to venture beyond Times Square. Central Park is truly a wonder, and we have tons of historic locations that are important to our early American and revolutionary history (watch for my article coming soon about these spots throughout Manhattan – there’s more than just Alexander Hamilton’s gravesite), as well as other periods. And while you’re at it, check out our many museums and rooftop bars!