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Lower Manhattan skyline seen across the harbour from Liberty Island

No. 6 Top 100 City Destinations 2025

New York

United States

Five boroughs, world-class museums and a skyline that needs no introduction.

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Photo: Percival Kestreltail, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Overview

New York City is No. 6 in Euromonitor International's Top 100 City Destinations Index 2025 and is the highest-ranked city in the Americas. The city is made up of five boroughs: Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, the Bronx and Staten Island. Manhattan, the narrow island between the Hudson and East rivers, is where most first-time visitors spend their time.

Few cities pack in as much: Broadway theatres, the museums of Museum Mile, the Art Deco towers of Midtown and the financial district of Lower Manhattan. Beyond Manhattan, Brooklyn's brownstone neighbourhoods and waterfront parks, and the food scenes of Queens, reward anyone with an extra day.

Bow Bridge over the Lake in Central Park
Bow Bridge over the Lake in Central Park. Photo: Jakub Hałun, CC BY 4.0, source

Best time to go

Late spring (May and early June) and autumn (September to early November) have the most comfortable weather for walking. Central Park is at its best when the trees are in blossom or turning colour.

Summer is hot and humid, and winter can be very cold, with occasional snow. December is busy with holiday lights, shop windows and the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree; January and February are the quietest and often the cheapest months for hotels.

Top sights

  • 1

    Central Park

    Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux designed the 843-acre park in the 1850s. Walk from the Mall and Bethesda Terrace to Bow Bridge and the Reservoir, or rent a bike or a rowing boat.

  • 2

    The Metropolitan Museum of Art In our Top 100 Museums

    The Met's Fifth Avenue building on the edge of Central Park covers 5,000 years of art, from the Egyptian Temple of Dendur to European old masters and American art.

  • 3

    Empire State Building In our Top Landmarks

    The 1931 Art Deco skyscraper has open-air and indoor observation decks on the 86th floor and a higher deck on the 102nd floor.

  • 4

    Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island

    The statue, a gift from France, was dedicated in 1886. Official ferries leave from Battery Park in Manhattan and Liberty State Park in New Jersey and also stop at the Ellis Island National Museum of Immigration.

  • 5

    Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) In our Top 100 Museums

    MoMA in Midtown holds landmark works such as Van Gogh's The Starry Night and Picasso's Les Demoiselles d'Avignon.

  • 6

    Brooklyn Bridge

    Opened in 1883, the bridge has a raised pedestrian promenade with views of Lower Manhattan. Walk towards Manhattan from the Brooklyn side for the best skyline views, then explore DUMBO and Brooklyn Bridge Park.

  • 7

    The High Line and Hudson Yards

    An elevated freight railway on the West Side has been turned into a planted linear park that runs from the Meatpacking District to Hudson Yards.

  • 8

    9/11 Memorial & Museum

    Two reflecting pools mark the footprints of the Twin Towers at the World Trade Center. The museum beneath tells the story of the 2001 attacks.

Getting there

Three major airports serve the city. From John F. Kennedy (JFK) in Queens, the AirTrain links to the subway and Long Island Rail Road at Jamaica. From Newark Liberty (EWR) in New Jersey, the AirTrain connects to NJ Transit and Amtrak trains to Penn Station. LaGuardia (LGA), the closest to Manhattan, is served by buses, including the free Q70 LaGuardia Link to the subway.

Amtrak trains from Boston, Philadelphia, Washington DC and beyond arrive at Penn Station. Metro-North commuter trains use Grand Central Terminal.

Getting around

The subway runs 24 hours a day. Tap a contactless card or phone at the OMNY readers to pay the fare on the subway and local buses. Yellow cabs, app-based rides and the Citi Bike bike-share scheme fill in the gaps.

Manhattan's street grid makes it easy to navigate on foot: avenues run north–south and numbered streets run east–west.

Practical tips

Currency
US dollar (USD). Cards and phone payments are accepted almost everywhere. Tipping is customary: around 18–20% in sit-down restaurants and a dollar or two per drink in bars.
Language
English. New York is one of the most linguistically diverse cities in the world.
Safety
New York is generally safe for visitors. Use the usual big-city care with bags and phones in crowds and on the subway. The emergency number is 911.
Visa & entry
Citizens of Visa Waiver Program countries (including the UK, most EU countries, Australia and Japan) need an approved ESTA before they travel; most other visitors need a visa. Canadian citizens generally need neither for a short visit. Apply only on the official site esta.cbp.dhs.gov and check travel.state.gov for the current rules.
Power
120 V, 60 Hz; plug types A and B.

Official information: NYC Tourism + Conventions (official guide). Check opening hours, prices and entry rules there before you go.

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