Our friends at Roomorama have offered some rather useful tips on how NOT to behave like a tourist in New York. Read on!
New Yorkers are a discerning brood –one hair out of place and we can spot them from a mile away. Tourists, that is. And it’s true that New Yorkers hold a particular level of contempt for all things touristy, particularly during the May through September months when it seems like every fanny-pack wearing, sneaker-clad crowd has plopped themselves directly in the middle of anywhere we need to be. Naturally, this makes us a little crazy –and since we’re not a shy bunch, we tend to get a bit vocal in our disdain. For you, reader, we’ve compiled a list of helpful tips on how to blend with the crowd –a prized ability, as any local will tell you- and make the most of your time in the self-christened Greatest City In The World.
Orienting Yourself In This Wonderful Town
The Bronx is up and the Battery’s down. You also have the Hudson River to your west and the East River to your…east. Crossing the East River will get you into Brooklyn from Downtown Manhattan or Queens from Midtown via the Brooklyn and Queensboro Bridges, respectively. (There’s also the Manhattan and the Williamsburg and the –well, baby steps for now). There are a few ways to get into New Jersey by crossing the Hudson, but you don’t need to know them because Step 1: you hate New Jersey.
The Grid
At its most simple, New York is a giant grid with streets running east and west and avenues running north and south. These are true directions too, so if your compass points north and you follow it, then hurrah! You’re walking uptown. The grid is split in half by Fifth Avenue. -everything to the west of 5th is the West Side and to the east is the East Side. Central Park starts at 59th Street and also marks the beginning of the Upper East Side (UES) from 5th Avenue to the East River and the Upper West Side (UWS) from Central Park West to the Hudson River. Another helpful tip: All streets in NYC are one-way, with few exceptions. The oddly numbered avenues run south, the evens run north. SO, if you’re standing at 7th Avenue at 14th St, and you want to walk north to 15th, simply walk against the traffic.
Getting Around Town
New York is a walking city, and we walk fast. Fun fact: parking yourself in the middle of the sidewalk to try and orient yourself is not a good idea. It will make people around you angry, and some of them (those not looking up from texting, ipading etc.), might just walk into you. To avoid that, step to the side when you’re slowing your pace. Letting others walk through will earn you a gold star and someone not yelling at you. Also, a map will not tell you anything a local won’t. We may seem scary, but we’re more willing to help than you’d think –especially if that removes you and your guidebook-clutching companions from the middle of the sidewalk.
Tourists left, locals right!
Using the subway (efficient, cheap, glorious) is the second most popular means of transportation, followed by bus (slow, but comprehensive). Both run around the clock, cost the same and accept the same form of payment (metrocard). A word to the wise: when entering a crowded subway or bus, walk away from the doors before settling in to avoid crowding at points of entry. New Yorkers will thank you (and maybe even think you’re one of them)!
Taxis, while more expensive, are still affordable and if it’s not rush hour (5-7 PM on weekdays, save Friday which is simply hellish at all times), will almost certainly deliver you to your destination more quickly than public transportation. I’m about to share with you an invaluable piece of information, which my friends will probably get mad at me for. This is how you know if a cab is available: Lights on in middle = available. Lights on sides only = occupied. All lights on = off duty, but sometimes you can negotiate with the driver if he’s headed in your direction anyway.
Finding A Place To Stay
New York has two particularly commercial zones; the downtown Financial District (no one actually calls it “FiDi”) and Midtown (west of 5th Avenue stretching through Times Square, roughly). Though this is changing, these are where the larger hotels tend to concentrate. Because of this, these two neighborhoods tend to not be very “New Yorkish” –or they epitomize New York, depending on how you look at it. One thing is for sure, the tourist traps in these two neighborhoods are unavoidable. But! If a double-decker bus tour, dinner at Bubba Gump Shrimp, and a pay-per-view movie is what you seek on your vacation, then look no further, you’ve reached your destination.
If, however, that description makes your want to gouge your eyes out as much as it does me mine, consider a short-term rental like those found at Roomorama. Unlike commercial chains and even boutique hotels, renting an apartment allows you to be in a strictly residential neighborhood, where the true locals live. This affords you the opportunity to develop the habits of a local –drink from their coffee shops and stop in their book stores, eat at their restaurants and drink at their bars. It’s an immersive experience and it’s one that happens to be less expensive than staying in a hotel-zoned area, where you are being charged an arm for both your miniscule space and various sub-par entertainment offerings. Not so great.
Now, get going!
We think that we’ve given you enough background knowledge to let you loose without fearing for your sanity. Go see! Do! Explore! Avoid at all costs The Statue Of Liberty, The Empire State Building and Times Square. Make sure you visit the Met or the Guggenheim. Walk along the Hudson, but not by the Intrepid. Visit Battery and Central Parks. Eat Italian food, but not in Little Italy. Gallery hop in Chelsea! Enjoy some reflexology in Chinatown. Shop the Lower East Side. Try a food truck or ten in Madison Square Park. Buy local at the delicious Union Square Greenmarket. Sample the Hester Street Fair! A final request, from me and everyone else: Leave your fanny pack behind. Please.
If you have any New York or Roomorama related questions, please feel free to email Lindsey Piscitell, the author of this post, at lindsey@roomorama.com.
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