Things to know about New York City
Before I tell you about my itinerary, I would like to give you an idea about the things to know before visiting NYC...
Planning a trip to the USA and getting around NYC can be overwhelming considering its size. New York has a lot to offer and one can never experience it all in their first visit. There are many things to know about NYC like the culture, the seasons, the outfits people wear, the best time to land to avoid jet lag and many more such things. Many people post many things about NYC. I have tried to narrow down doubts which every first time visitor might have and I have provided the answers for the same. Things to know about New York City before planning your trip.
What is the best time to land in NYC?
If you want to avoid jet lag or if you are traveling from the extreme eastern time zone then post 3 pm is a good time to land in New York City. This worked for me as it helped me to freshen up the next day. It will take considerable amount of time in completing the immigration process, taking away your luggage.As a result, till the time you will reach your destination in the city (as the airports are far from Manhattan where you would be possibly staying), you will be really tired. All you would want to do is go and have dinner, maybe roam around in your area a bit and go off to sleep. It’s better when you have an idea about the important things to know before traveling to NYC.
Besides, it’s very important to rest if you want to be fresh and energetic the next day when you actually start your sightseeing or exploration of the city. Of course, you better be pumped up as NYC is a place where there is a lot to do and see, and you will always run out of time but will never be satisfied with the time you have in the city.
Which is the Best season to visit NYC?
Confused about which season should you visit NYC? During peak season, or off season, summer, fall, winter, spring? It all depends on you. NYC is always open to tourists and cater to different needs of the travelers! But no matter what you decide, there are a few things to know and understand about what you can experience in every season.
You can visit NYC during any season, but if you want to avoid the winters, it’s better to visit between May to Mid- September as it is summer season during those months. It is crowded during this time but you can enjoy your family time. Compared to the indian climate, NYC summer is still pleasant.
Whereas, if you want to enjoy the fall in NYC, you can visit in the month of October till first week of November.
On the contrary, if you want to see the snow-clad buildings,parks and roads, winter is the best time which is from November to February.
What clothes to wear in NYC?
Undoubtedly, NYC is one of the extravagant fashion capitals of the world. However, to roam around comfortably and for the entire day, you should definitely wear Comfortable shoes because trust me, you will be walking the whole day if you really want to see what NYC actually is.
During the summer season: You can wear short clothes and mainly cotton, but always carry a thin jacket or shirt around if you cannot bear Air conditioned rooms/ malls/ showrooms/ restaurants/ etc. It’s always a good idea to wear comfortable clothing. Choose comfort over trends. Sunglasses, sunscreens and scarves are a must during the summer to avoid tanning or sun burns.
Fall Season: Layer yourself during fall as the weather can be unpredictable, you can increase or decrease the layers according to your comfort.
Winter Season: You will have no choice but to wear overcoats and flaunt your winter collection with those boots you have! If you don’t have winter boots, then you can check out some of my personal favourite brands which fit my budget.
One can wear layers as the temperature indoors is controlled and you can take off a layer or two as per your choice.
And to be honest, it is NYC, you are free to wear whatever you want to, whichever color or pattern you want to, whatever style or trend you want to follow! You can apply a blue lipstick and chill.
How much Baggage to carry in NYC?
The lighter the baggage, the better. It helped us to avoid traveling by cab all the time, specially when we had to travel out of NYC and come back into the city .Always a good idea to travel by subway to make your journey cheaper. There are subways from Airports too, which can really help you to reduce your travel expenses.
Lighter baggage is great when traveling with family or senior citizens as well. Also, check by which flights are you going to travel by. Every flight has different rules and its better to be informed before.
In the US, if you are planning to take internal domestic flights, then you all the more need to travel lighter as it gets expensive and the charges are around $30 per check-in bag depending on the airline company.
Things to know about the Public Transport in NYC
Public transport is one of the important things to know before traveling to NYC. It is the best public transport in the USA I feel. The subway is the cheapest and economical and it helped me to save costs as I traveled with my parents.
NYC is known for its traffic. There are signals at every street or avenue, which are unavoidable. Hence, taking a cab for shorter distances doesn’t make much sense as it will take longer to reach and the meter will go on and on.
Walking or taking the Subway is the best public transport service in NYC. It just costs $ 2.75 per ride. All you have to do is purchase a metro card for $1 and refill it and use it as much as you want.
There are several plans available, you can choose which one you want according to your number of days of travel or the number of people traveling with you.
Swipe the metro card slowly because sometimes if you do it more quickly, chances are that it won’t work. Pamper the metro card.
Pro Tip: There is no point in using the BIG BUS tours in NYC.
For first timers, I would recommend Citimapper and you won’t have to worry about NYC travel, trust me! Even the locals use it!
IMPORTANT: When you land in New York City, please do take Lfyt/Uber/Yellow Cabs.I will recommend taking Yellow Cabs for longer routes as they have one fixed rate of around $53 from JFK airport to Manhattan, while Ola and Uber will cost around $80 to $110.
Related Post : Niagara Falls In-Depth Tour
Is it necessary to book tickets for particular sight-seeing spots in NYC?
Ohh yes, I would recommend, you pre-book tickets for popular attractions as it helps to avoid the long lines during the peak season. It saves a lot of time and energy. Particularly, for the Statue of Liberty or One world Observatory as there are long queues.
IMPORTANT:There are many passes available with different sightseeing options and discounts. Therefore, do proper research and think twice before purchasing them by considering the number of days you are visiting and how many spots you want to cover in those days. And make your plan or itinerary as realistic as you can. Don’t try to have it all as it can be really tiring but sometimes it’s fine as you don’t want to miss anything! But be practical.
Things to know before interacting with people in NYC
Do Not, I mean it, do not stop in the middle of the road and start clicking photographs. What you need to do is let the locals go head who are on their way to work. You should come to one side of the footpath and click photographs.
Not everyone is up for a small talk. But a general “Hello” ,”How are you?” ,”Good morning” ,”Good evening”, ” Thank you”, or keeping the door open for the person behind will definitely be polite!
If you want to ask about the directions to a local, ask them politely and they will definitely help you. Chances are that is most of them are always in hurry but it’s a myth that New Yorkers are rude. Most of them aren’t. When you understand some of the things to know before going to a particular city, it really helps you behave like a local.
I hope you got a fair idea about travel in New York. If you plan to go to New York, check out the PERFECT New York ITINERARY for you family! It is the Itinerary that I followed and I know it will work for you too!
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Manasi Bedekar
Namaste! I am Manasi Bedekar. Traveled to 21 countries before 25. Practicing Meditation since 2004. Living in the moment. Envisioning travels. Get quick tips and tricks for comfort travel around the globe!
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