7 Days in New York
 

So school is starting this fall and after this Summer it's time to crack down on school work. Since the beginning of the year I've been on a school hiatus, working and traveling a lot. After dozens of long road trips I have decided to end it with a bang. At the end of August my car insurance expires so I plan on parking it and leaving for the east coast, eventually ending up in Toronto with most my friends for the Toronto Board Meeting(skateboard event) and hopefully be back in Vancouver by mid September.

For the past week I've been strategically booking flights and buses and so far I have a one way ticket to New york for about $140CAD.
Vancouver > Seattle $10 Bolt Bus
Seattle > Boston $130 JetBlue
Boston > New York $1 Bolt Bus - Lucked out and snagged a $1 ticket
Ill be figuring my way to Toronto and back to Vancouver on the go.

Ill be in Seattle & Boston for 2 days, staying at friends and skating all those days. For New York however Ill be staying there for 7 days as I have to fill out some paper work for the company that is sponsoring my visa for an internship next year and I also want to get a little taste of what living in Brooklyn will be like.

I haven't had the slightest clue on what I will be doing in New York for those 7 days, I know most of it will be skating but there's tons of downtime for other things. I'll be trying to live as cheap as possible, thankfully I have friends for accommodation and sponsors for gear/transportation so I really only have to worry about food and entertainment

My friend will be taking me to some of her places but I have to pick the rest. No bars or clubs as she's under 21 and expensive attractions, I don't care about wax figures or being on top of a building. I'll be scavenging for cheaper bus tickets cities around NYC to Philadelphia, Washington or North Carolina as I have friends there too.

Also any tips on using public transportation? I'll probably just end up buying a 7 day pass but I'm also tempted to take my bike with me(probably wont because of the hassle).

Not sure if this will be different in Brooklyn.

In Manhattan, If you're going to use the subway, I recommend you get the day pass.

I thought their standard fares were unlimited use like here until it expired after 90 minutes or whatever. I was wrong, the standard fares are just for one use and invalid once you get passed the exit gate.

Staten Island Ferry (free) if you just want to get semi close to the Statue of Liberty. It doesn't stop on Ellis Island but if does sail close enough that you get a nice view of it.

Grand Central Station is kind of cool just to sit around in the Great Hall for a bit. Central Park is pretty iconic. MOMA has Free Friday from 4-8PM if you like art. Top of the Rock if you want a view of Manhattan but don't want to pay Empire State Building prices. Maybe catch a screening of SNL or Tonight Show if you're there long enough.

Pro-tip for MOMA on the Free Day - Line up early or else you'll be in line forever! :p

For sure. I happened to leave there around 2ish on a Friday and there was already a line up around the block for it.

If you have a student ID, bring it with you. I think discounted tickets are about half the price of regular admission.

The High Line - Free and interesting.

Halal Guys. Every night.

Just wanted to piggy back on this thread. I'm heading over to New York for September Long weekend and will be there for 5 days. Keep the idea and suggestions going. I'll make a list and OP can also share his plans :D


Edit:
I highly suggest getting a city-pass at costco. Its cheaper at 129$ per ticket

i just came back in July...

1. staten island ferry if you want a free view of the statue of liberty( not that close but its free!)
2. Halal guys for food. so cheap and so good!
3. 911 memorial ( prob my favorite thing in NY )
4. empire state building
5. rockefeller center
6. time square ( the tourist attractions that walk around are good stuff! )
7. woodbury outlet ( pretty far so you would need to bus there, they have those people all around the city that sell tickets )
8. financial district ( see the bull )
9. china town ( not much there but worth checking out i guess. they have a huge dim sum place )
10. SOHO shopping district

i stayed in NY for 4 days 3 nights and i thought it was plenty. i found the city to be very dirty and too busy for my liking.

I loved katz's deli.

If you like history, check out the New York Museum. The museum of natural history was a bit much for me, it was like a live tour of Encarta, if you remember microsoft's half interactive encylopedia. The bus tours are actually pretty good and they take you all over the city and it's one of those hop on hop off deal. Central park is huge. Honey roasted peanuts are amazing. I would check that out for sure.

Also, cheap pizza is just plain old cheese pizza. I paid 2.75 for what should have been a $1 slice of cheese pizza. It tasted the same as any other place that sold pizza for $1 a slice. Don't get fooled.

There is a ton of stuff in the 911 memorial. The symbolism of all the pieces they've collected in that small space is very emotional.

China town is right beside little italy and it's a good area for cheapish asian food. If you head west from chinatown you'll get to the hipster part of town with a lot of coffee shops if you're into that kind of thing.

Not looking to spend more than $60 on entertainment; don't care about buildings, shopping, boat tours or clubs, looking for more of authentic attractions. High Line was mentioned a few times. Pizza is definitely a yes.

Sept 10 - 20 is the San Gennaro festival in Little Italy. It's a great event that has lots of food and happenings.

We travelled by subway only. It got us to where we needed to be. It's faster than the bus, and cheaper than a taxi.