Located about 360 kilometers away from NYC, Washington has many things to see and a day in it can be a very good option. The questions we ask ourselves at the time of deciding are several, we will try to clear up some of them here.

Visit for the day or stay there?

In other posts we talked about optimizing our time in New York by using a tourist pass or not. If you haven’t seen it, here it is: Tourist passes in NYC, yes or no?, comparison. And in the same post we told you that if you get one, you might still have free days without a pass to be able to do other activities, well one of them could be visiting Washington for the day.

Of course, another option could be to spend one or two nights in the city, in which case we would only need transportation to and from the city with our luggage and a hotel reservation.

Which option is worth it? Both. If you have already traveled enough around NYC and have a couple of days left, going to Washington is a good plan. If, on the other hand, you only want to spend one day in New York, a day trip is also a good idea. Of course, you will see everything more quickly, but it is worth the visit.

FIND YOUR HOTEL IN WASHINGTON DC↓

Washington tour from New York or self-guided visit?

Let’s look at the options we have for visiting Washington from New York, and we’ll choose.

As always when we evaluate options for a trip, the price can tip the balance, as well as the traveler’s style. If you like to have everything already planned, have someone pick you up at the hotel, not worry and just enjoy, a planned tour from New York is a very good idea.

Organized tour

There are several options, the price is around US$ 100, which includes transportation and a visit to the main monuments of the capital. You have a Spanish-speaking guide so you can tour the places with the necessary information.

You will leave early in the morning by bus from Manhattan, and you will visit Arlington Cemetery, the National Mall, the Lincoln Memorial, the Obelisk, the Korean War Memorial, the Vietnam War Memorial, and the Capitol, among other things.

They are a good quality/price option, although, at least most of them, do not include entry to the Capitol, keep this in mind if entering it is important to you.

►TOUR TO WASHINGTON FROM NYC

We will see later that if we add the costs of going on our own, we may exceed the cost of the tour, and the transfers between attractions to visit will be faster, so the day will be more productive than if we did it on our own. So, we need to carefully evaluate what we want.

Self-guided tour

We will now look at the options to do it on your own. We have several means of transport to make the trip from New York to Washington, we will detail each one of them.

Bus

The first one we will study will be by bus. It is the option that will be cheaper. The journey will take about four hours, the bus will drop them off at Union Station, relatively close to the Capitol. Some of the best known companies that make this route are Flixbus, Peter Pan, Greyhound and Megabus, but there are many, the latter, Megabus we have used on one occasion. Prices vary quite a bit but can range from $1 (if you get it) to about $40 each way.

The criticism of the users of the service of these companies or others is not good, but as I was saying we use them, and although we left later due to the breakage of the bathroom then it complied normally with the service.

The recommendation is to leave in one of the cars that leaves early, remember that you have about four hours of travel, so you can take advantage of the day.

Train

You may be wondering why we left the train option in second place, and it is simply because of the price, in general it tends to be expensive.

Amtrak trains cover the route, the time it will take you to make the trip is only slightly less than by bus, about three and a half hours, and prices range from $60 to $100 each way, so it is quite expensive and you will not save time.

►Search for information on Amtrak

Plane

The other option is by plane, although the journey will only take you a little over an hour, including the journeys to and from the corresponding airports, plus the delay in the journeys will take you much longer. Prices vary a lot, so I advise you to search with your corresponding dates.

►Search flight route

Car

The other option is to rent a car for the day, which will help you make the round trips and move around Washington. As we always say, it has the disadvantage that you will have to be very careful about where to park it, paying for parking, and driving on the road, as well as paying tolls and fuel. But if you are traveling with children, it can be an option to make the trip from New York to Washington with a little more freedom.

TIP: Look for the options in the search engine that I leave you below, in it you will put the dates and it will give you three tabs with the options for that journey by train, bus, and plane. That way it will be easier to compare price and duration of the trip . ►SEARCH TRAVEL COMPARISON

How to Get Around in Washington

Before planning your itinerary in the city, do some research on the ways you can get around the city so you can make the most of your day there.

You have the metro network, the Metrorail, it is efficient and you can move quickly in the city. METRORAIL Pricing & Timetable Information

You also have the bus line, the Metrobus, the schedule is extensive and you have a travel pass to make the transfers more comfortable. METROBUS price and timetable information

And finally the Dc Circulator, a tourist bus of the city, with 6 different routes with several stops to be able to do several routes in the city. The price is per way and is around $1. Price information and DC CIRCULATOR timetables

If we want to travel on a tourist bus but with commentary in Spanish to get to know the city as we go, the traditional red tourist buses that we find in other cities can be a good option. HOP-ON HOP-OFF BUS TOUR

.

Itinerary in the city

When planning the tour of the city, we will ask ourselves two questions: What to see in Washington? and.. What reservations to make in advance?

PLACES TO VISIT:

Major points to visit: The National Mall, the Capitol, the Library of Congress, the Air and Space Museum, the White House, the Washington Monument (the great obelisk), the Jefferson Memorial, the Martin Luther King Memorial, the Lincoln Memorial, the Korean and Vietnam War Veterans Memorials, and Arlington Cemetery.

If you are going to Washington for a day trip from New York, these are perhaps the most significant things to see. If you are going for more than one day, add Ford’s Theatre, Washington Cathedral, a visit to Chinatown, and the Spy Museum or Madame Tussaud’s are also good ideas.

But if there is something I wouldn’t miss if I were to spend the night, it is the Georgetown neighborhood, full of shops, colorful and with a special personality.

WHAT RESERVATIONS TO MAKE?

The entrance to the Capitol, if it is something that interests you, is what you should book in advance to go with the peace of mind that you will have your ticket. Here is the official site to make the reservation: visitthecapitol.gov

Summary of how to visit Washington from New York and video:

In short, if we talk about costs, it is possible that the already organized tour ends up costing you the same or even less than doing it on your own and do not complicate your organization, they will pick you up and take you back to the hotel when the day is over.

On the other hand, if you want to organize your time and choose what to see and how much time to spend on each thing, doing it on your own is the option. Weigh both options of visiting Washington from New York with their pros and cons so you can choose.

NOTE: The information in this article is based on our own experience, being totally objective. This article contains affiliate links

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La entrada Visiting Washington D.C. from New York se publicó primero en Europa acompañada.

If you are planning your visit to New York, and even more so if this is your first visit to the Big Apple, you may be wondering whether to get a tourist pass to visit the attractions, and if so, which one to choose from all the ones available?

If you are looking for a quick answer, whether it works or not, leave the article here because we are going to evaluate different trips and travelers, and in each case the options will vary, so there is no single answer.

Let’s get started, ready?

First question: pass yes or pass no?

New York tourist pass ► yes or no?

It’s your first time in New York and you want to go up to all the viewpoints, enter the museums, visit the island of the Statue of Liberty, in short, you want to do everything you can ► Pass yes!

It’s your second time in the city, or your first but you want more than anything, to tour the neighborhoods, walk through Central Park, and maybe choose a viewpoint to go up. You will not make the pass profitable, they are expensive, and if you buy it it is to use it, a priori I would tell you ► Pass no. But….. There is a pass option that may suit your travel style, we see it later and tell me.

How do I know if I will get the most out of my New York tourist passes?

Each of us will have a planned itinerary of things to visit and a specific number of days in which we want to carry out these visits. The first thing to do is to add up what we would spend visiting each of these places with regular admission, without a pass.

Suppose we have this list of attractions to visit:

And let’s also assume that you’re going to spend two or three days doing these tours. We’ll then see the price of New York tourist passes:

►Two days ► between US$149 and US$179

►Three days ► between US$159 and US$219*

►6-attraction pass ► between US$136 and US$164

Savings in this case: from $34 to $77!!, *there is only one option in which this is not the case and therefore we will discard it.

You will be saving in almost all cases, sometimes more, sometimes a little less, but it is a saving.

All of this is illustrative, you should already have an itinerary with what you want to see and how many days you will be in the city and then you will do your calculations with the updated prices.

►Be careful!, first, plan your possible itinerary and then do the math. It is very common to think that we can see everything in a few days and we are tempted by a pass that we will later use very little due to lack of time.

Now you’ve made up your mind: yes, yes! But… how many are there? Several. How do I choose the best one for my travel style? I told you it wasn’t a quick decision, so let’s continue!

How to choose my best NYC sightseeing pass option?

Here is a list of the most famous passes: ↓

You’ve probably come this far with all the enthusiasm, but you feel very lost to know how to choose the best one for you. The first thing you should think about is that nobody knows themselves like you do, and you know very well what kind of traveler you are. When I describe them you’ll say: that’s me!!

Let’s divide them into two groups: ► Time passes and ► Attraction passes

Time Passes

TYPE OF TRAVELER ► You are going to New York for 5 to 10 days and you want to see as much as you can, you are restless and tireless and you want to go up to all the viewpoints, visit the museums, rent bicycles, go to the Statue of Liberty, etc. Then a time pass is perhaps the best option↓

In what we call time passes, you get a pass for the number of days you choose, usually from 2 to 10 days, and during those consecutive days you can visit all the attractions included in the pass, which are more than 100.

As we told you, the days range from 2 to 10 and the 2022 prices range between US$129 and US$339 depending on the number of days chosen, as well as the pass.

In this type we find the two best known: New York Pass and Sightseeing Pass .

In both cases you have more than 100 attractions to choose from, including the four observation decks in the city (which are currently being included), a visit to the Statue of Liberty Island, Madame Tussauds, the Intrepid See, the 9/11 memorial, hop-on hop-off bus rides, a bus to the outlet, etc. Always check the information about the attractions on the official website because they are constantly changing.

TIP: Try to leave free days without a pass, for example, if you are going for 5 days, don’t get a 5-day pass, get a 3-day pass, because you will surely want to make visits that don’t require a ticket, such as visiting the Highline, Chelsea Market, Little Italy, Chinatown, and many more places.

►Please note that the days of use in both cases must be CONSECUTIVE DAYS, and the attractions can be visited only once each.

Do you plan to do the Contrasts tour?, see our post about it

Attraction Passes

TYPE OF TRAVELER ► You are going to New York for several days, either because you have been there before, or because you like it that way, you want to go around in a leisurely manner, distributing the visits over several days so that you have time to walk a lot around the city, go shopping, etc. Then an attractions pass is perhaps the best option↓

In what we call attraction passes, you get a pass for a certain number of tourist attractions in New York, from 2 to 10, to visit within a certain number of days, ranging from 9 to 60 depending on the pass chosen.

Among the most outstanding are the CityPass, the Explorer Pass, and the Sightseeing Flex.

In the case of the CityPass you have 3 or 5 attractions to choose from among some options, but they give you 9 days to use them, although the prices are not that high, think about whether it is what you are looking for. The 2022 prices range from US$ 87 to US$ 129.

The Explorer Pass also gives you options to choose from, but in this case from 2 to 10 attractions, with several options in between. You have 30 days from activation to use it, which is good because if you go for several days you can distribute the visits well. Prices for 2022 range from $73 to $229.

The Sightseeing Flex is the brother of the Sightseeing Pass, in this case it gives you the choice of visiting 2 to 12 attractions, with several options in between, and it gives you a period of 60 days to use it after activation. You have many options to choose from and, as you can see, several days to use it. Prices for 2022 range from US$74 to US$264.

In these three previous cases, the days of use do not have to be consecutive. You can visit the chosen attractions any day within the period of use given to you, and each attraction can be visited only once.

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Conclusion

As you can see, there are many options and it takes a little time to decide on one. As I said at the beginning, a previous itinerary, a previous decision of what to visit, and then, yes, look at which one best suits what we want to do.

Have you already chosen which area of New York to stay in? Don’t miss our article with the best areas to stay in New York.

Extra: video

NOTE: The information in this article is based on our own experience, being totally objective. This article contains affiliate links.

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La entrada New York City Sightseeing Passes – Which One to Use? se publicó primero en Europa acompañada.

Tips for staying in New York

We must say from the start that accommodation is not cheap at all in    New York City, and in addition, for the high price you pay, the size of the rooms is not that big, and breakfast is generally not included.

Something to keep in mind  is that taxes are broken down separately and you see the total price only at the time  to pay. Look carefully at the page where you are making the reservation for the details of the   taxes, so as not to get a surprise at the end.

The other thing I advise you is to always  have free cancellation, because in these times of constant change we can, if we need to  , cancel the room at no cost.

Map of New York

After these tips, the first  thing we are going to do is visualize the map of New York, and in it the five boroughs: Manhattan,  Brooklyn, Bronx, Queens and Staten Island, to  locate ourselves well in the city.

The vast majority, although not all, of the things we are going to visit in New York will be in Manhattan, so if you look closely at the map you will notice that we are not going to look at the entire map, but rather in certain areas.

To visit all the districts you have the famous Contrasts tour, see our article to find out how to do the tour ►Contrasts Tour of New York

In this other map,  I detailed the areas in which we are going to look well in search of accommodation, those that are closest to the attractions we are going to visit,  another thing that we have to take into account,   is that we always try to look for a subway station nearby.

Have you already prepared your transfer from the airport to the city?, check out our post ►From JFK to Mahattan.

Ready, let’s start the search!

Midtown, Times Square

We will start with the search in the first place we will surely think of, Midtown Manhattan.
In this area the prices are not very affordable, but you are very close without a doubt to the things you are going to visit, and the places you have seen in the movies.

We are talking here about hotels in the blocks, approximately, between 40th and 59th Street.

Encontraremos acá el emblemático Times Square, la Quinta Avenida, y la Catedral de San Patricio. 

We also find Rockefeller Center with its Top of Rock observation deck,  Grand Central Station,   the Chrysler Building, Intrepid See, Bryant Park, the Public Library,  MOMA, Radio City Music Hall, and the theater district, the famous Broadway.

Midtown Hotel Options

►Radio City Apartments

Hampton Inn Times Square Central

►Riu Plaza New York Times Square

Club Quarters Hotel Midtown

►DoubleTree by Hilton Times Square

Our experience in Times Square

I tell you about our experience here in Times Square, for two consecutive times we stayed at the Hotel St. James which is on 45th street, between 6th and 7th avenue.
The experience was good, but as I said at the beginning, the room was simple, no breakfast, but a preferential location.
Next door, right next door, you have a cafeteria very good for breakfast.

It will depend a lot on the date you travel, but you will notice that you can get better  prices in some hotels, remember to add  taxes. There are many hotels near  this location, so do a thorough search for price, you will  find it for sure.

It has the added bonus of going out to the theater at night and being very close, just a few blocks from it, and of   going to dinner while walking with all the lights of the   city, seeing Times Square is unmatched.  

A tip if you want a place to dine near Times Square, on 43rd Street, Tony’s di Napoli, the plates are for two people, they are huge, and it’s good for sharing, you have to wait a bit for the  table, but it’s worth it.

A place with very good pizzas on the eighth and 47th: Carve, and you also have nearby, not to mention that they are a must-see, the Shake Shack burgers , which are on the eighth and 44th.

Midtown South

We continue in Midtown Manhattan looking for a place to stay in New York, we will now look a little further down, between 40th street and 14th street.

Here we find the Empire State Building, another of the iconic viewing points. Penn Station and Madison Square Garden are other places of interest in the city, as well as the Flatiron and the Eataly market, which is worth a visit and where you can buy Italian products.

As you can see, the area is still very central and highly sought after by tourists, so prices will remain high.

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South Midtown Hotel Options

►The New Yorker

Four Points by Sheraton Manhattan Midtown West

►Hilton Garden Inn New York Midtown Park

Executive hotel Le Soleil

►W New York Union Square

Chelsea and Meatpacking

We will also look in the Chelsea neighborhood and Meatpacking, very interesting areas to stay.

The Chelsea and Meatpacking districts are   other options for staying in New York. Here we will find the Hudson Yard, The Vessel,   el High Line el parque que está elevado, muy interesante recorrido, también el Chelsea Market, una visita que no debería faltarte, y el edificio de Google, entre otras cosas.  

Search hotels in this area ↓

Before continuing to look further south, we will go a little north, near Central Park, and visit the Upper East Side, and the Upper West Side.

Upper West Side and Upper East Side

Es una zona diferente, acá estamos tal cual como decíamos cerca del  Central Park, y también de la milla de los museos.

The Upper West Side, is a quiet and residential area, with attractions apart from  Central Park, such as Lincoln Center, or the Museum of Natural History, has a good quality-price comparison in accommodation.

On the other hand, the Upper East Side is a more exclusive area, so accommodation will be more expensive.
Central Park, and the museum mile with museums such as the  MET, or the Guggenheim, are some of the attractions in the area.

Accommodation Options in Upper West Side

►West Side YMCA

La Quinta by Wyndham Central Park

►Fairfield Inn & suites by Marriot Central Park

Accommodation Options in Upper East Side

►Courtyard New York Manhattan

Voco The Franklin

►Gardens Suites Hotel by Affinia

Harlem

If we look a little further up, further north, we go to Harlem, a neighborhood with a lot of personality.  

In this neighborhood we find its typical houses, the Cotton Club,  or the Apollo Theater, among other attractions.  

We have here some accommodation options that are not so  away from the attractions to visit, but always remember to have the metro nearby. Looking for accommodation in Harlem is a good plan.

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Harlem Hotel Options

►Aloft Harlem

Harlem Lodge

Greenwich Village

Going back further south we will now move to some neighborhoods. The  first one we will visit will be Greenwich Village.
Its streets are very quiet, the buildings are very beautiful, it is very nice to take a walk through this area.
It is a charming and lively neighborhood where we will find the apartment of Friends, and the house of Carrie Bradshow in Sex and the city.

If you want to experience typical neighborhood life, Greenwich Village is a good option to stay in New York.

Greewnwich Village Hotel Options

►Walker Hotel Greenwich Village

Incentra Village Hotel

Lower East Side

We go further east to the Lower East Side. The Lower East Side is a very lively area, and very close to Soho,  Little Italy, and Chinatown,  so it is a good plan to look for accommodation here.

Lower East Side Hotel Options 

►citizenM New York Bowery

Holiday Inn Lower East Side

Soho, Chinatown and Little Italy

Soho,  Little Italy, and Chinatown  are places that you will surely visit, and where you may have thought about looking for accommodation.  

In places like Chinatown you can find  cheap hotels, but watch out for the rating  that they have, pay a lot of attention to all those kinds of details. Below are two good options.

What is certain is that any of the areas mentioned above are very interesting and have many things to see, from the elegant and commercial Soho, through the picturesque Little Italy and the captivating Chinatown.

Accommodation Options in Chinatown

►Wyndham Garden Chinatown

Hotel 50 Bowery part of JdV by Hyatt

Dowtown, Financial District

In a further southerly transfer we arrive at the Financial District. It has a lot of movement during the day, but it is a business area, and at night it becomes too quiet. The latter makes it perhaps not the best place to stay in New York if you want a lively nightlife.

We find here Wall Street, One World and its viewpoint, the ferries  to go to the Statue of Liberty, among other things to visit.

Hotel Options in the Financial District

►AC Hotel by Marriot Dowtown

World Center Hotel

Brooklyn

If we’re looking to save, we’ll move away from Manhattan and head to Brooklyn. It is a good alternative for sleeping.
Areas such as Dumbo, Brooklyn Heights, or Williamsburg are good options, but  remember that the transfer to the areas to visit will take you a little longer.

Brooklyn Hotel Options

►Holiday Inn Brooklyn Dowtown

The Williamsburg Hotel

►Hampton Inn Brooklyn Dowtown

Pod Brooklyn

►Hotel Le Bleu

You will see that deciding on an area is not an easy task, surely the price of accommodation will end up deciding us, since as we are seeing,  we have an infinite number of things to do in each of them, so we will move a lot by metro, I repeat having a metro station nearby is very important.

This was a brief tour of the different areas where you can stay in New York on a tourist visit. They will draw the conclusions, they are all beautiful areas, we have things in all of them   To see, calculate the distance, have the metro nearby (it is important to manage the times of the day), look for a price on them, and book with free cancellation. Now yes, have a good trip to New York travel companions !!

 ►Check out our post about the visit to the Statue of Liberty and the ascent to the crown

EXTRA: Video

NOTE: The information in this article is based on our own experience, being totally objective. This article contains affiliate links

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La entrada Where to stay in New York se publicó primero en Europa acompañada.

What is the New York Contrasts Tour?

This is the most famous tour in the city and it takes you into the cultural diversity that exists there, which is undoubtedly very interesting. After hearing a lot about it in videos and blogs, we decided to try it for ourselves.

The tour visits four of the five boroughs that make up New York City, covering Manhattan, the Bronx, Queens and Brooklyn.

How to do it?

There are several companies that do it, all of them have more or less the same route, the same duration (about four hours), and the same price (around US$50/60).

We chose the standard bus tour ►book the Contrasts Tour, and it turned out very well.

You also have a minibus tour, which picks you up at  the hotel ►book the VIP Contrasts Tour, there is little difference in price with the standard, and if you want to be more comfortable it is a good option.

Are you arriving at JFK airport and want to make the subway transfer to your accommodation in Manhattan?, check out this detailed post on how to do it ► subway transfer from JFK to Manhattan

Start of the Contrasts Tour tour

The tour starts in Manhattan and runs from the west to the north. During the journey, by bus or minibus, we will pass by places such as Fifth Avenue while the guide will tell you about the lifestyle of the inhabitants of this area of ​​Manhattan.

Harlem

The first stop will be in Harlem, a neighborhood with an African-American tradition and emblematic places such as the Apollo Theater, where Michael Jackson took his first steps, among others, or the Cotton Club, where artists such as Louis Armstrong performed.

We will see the typical buildings that Harlem houses show. After a bus tour through its streets, we stopped at these houses, where a re-housing plan is being carried out so that they can be inhabited again after a very favorable restructuring years ago in this neighborhood.

►A very interesting option to do in Harlem is to go to a Gospel mass, celebrations that welcome the African-American population of New York.

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Bronx

The first stop in the Bronx will be at Yankee Stadium. We will be able to see it from the outside while the guide tells us about its history. This new stadium has been in operation since 2009, replacing the old one.

►If you want to come back another time, you can take a guided tour inside the museum. This activity is included with the New York Pass.

Or you can enjoy watching a baseball game ► New York Yankees tickets

The second stop in the Bronx is the police station where Fort Apache was filmed in the 1980s, starring Paul Newman. The guide constantly gives you information about the neighborhoods, in this case, about the insecurity that existed years ago, and how it has been reversed, although it still exists today.

The tour then begins through some of the Bronx’s graffiti. The first graffiti visited is that of Big Pun, dedicated to the rapper who died in 2000.

Moving a few blocks, we find the characteristic I love Bronx.

Graffiti marked the areas and territories of the gangs within the neighborhood. For years, as a measure to end the gang areas, the penalties for painting them were made much harsher. Today, the graffiti we see mostly serve as artistic expression.

After leaving the Bronx behind, we head to the Queens neighborhood.

Queens

We arrive in Queens and the stop is at Flushing Meadows Corona Park.

Here we find the famous Unisphere, built for the 1964 World Fair. The globe is made of stainless steel and measures 37 meters in diameter.

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The towers of the New York pavilion also remained from the fair, the same ones we saw in the film Men in black.

Williamsburg, Brooklyn

We continue our journey to Williamsburg, in Brooklyn, where we see the lifestyle of a community of Hasidic Jews, a community with deep-rooted traditions.

We stopped there, went into a bakery, and took the opportunity to see the lifestyle of this community in just a few blocks.

Upon arriving at Dumbo, in Brooklyn, the tour ended. In our case, we could choose to get off here or cross back to Manhattan, and here we stayed.

Please note that this was our itinerary, the order of visits or stops may vary slightly.

A walking tour of the area, eating pizza at Grimaldi’s, or walking across the bridge can be a nice end to the day.

But now comes the question: is the contrasts tour worth it? Without a doubt: yes!

Have you seen our post about the Statue of Liberty’s ascent to the crown?

Do you come to the United States from far away like us and having internet all the time is a problem? Holafly’s data Sims and eSims for travelers are a very good option. In the link you will find all the information as well as a discount for followers from Europe accompanied by the following code: EUROPAACOMPAÑADA5.↓

Bonus: video of the Contrasts Tour

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NOTE: The information in this article is based on our own experience, being totally objective. This article contains affiliate links

La entrada Contrasts tour in New York se publicó primero en Europa acompañada.

Let’s say we’ve just arrived in New York, we’re at JFK, and now we’re going to go to Manhattan on the subway, and we want to pay for the trip and the rest of the trips we’ll make during our stay with the same metrocard. How do we do it? Let’s explain it in simple steps.

Step 1– Take the Airtrain inside the airport

We’re going to take the Airtrain and then connect to the subway.

We arrived at JFK, and among all the options we chose to take the subway to Manhattan since it is the cheapest way. Following the signs there is no way to get lost, it is clearly marked: AirTrain. So follow the signs from whichever terminal you are in.

When taking the Airtrain you have two options: to Howard Station (if we are going towards Brooklyn or downtown) or to Jamaica Station (if we are going towards Manhattan from the middle up). In our case we were going towards Time Square so we took the airtrain towards Jamaica Station.

Here is the airport’s page to complement terminal information.

You do not pay anything when you get on it, the payment will be made once you are down.

Step 2: Arrival at Jamaica Station and obtaining the metrocard

Once at Jamaica Station, before the turnstiles you will find the Airtrain ticket machines. At the Airtrain machine, you have two options: AirTrain Ride for $8 plus $1, or MetroCard + load money, choose the MetroCard option and load the money.

In that metrocard obtained we will charge the money to pay for the airtrain trip we have made (u$s 8).

Why? Because this way, you can then load an unlimited week of travel onto that same metrocard and travel by metro during your stay in New York. It is not necessary to get a card for the airtrain and another for the metro, so when it comes to choosing the metrocard, pay attention and load money.

You cannot buy a one-week unlimited metro pass from these machines.

Step 3: Once inside the station, load the metrocard with unlimited trips

Now we passed through the turnstile with our metrocard, and the airtrain trip was deducted from it. We headed to the subway area to take the line that would take us to our accommodation.

Once we are in the Jamaica Station metro area, there we will find the machine where we can load, to the metrocard we have already obtained, the unlimited week of metro trips.

It is worth clarifying that you can also load only money onto the metrocard and the trips will be deducted from there. In our case, since we were going for several days, we loaded a week of unlimited trips at US$33. ►More Information

►The metrocard for the subway cannot be shared, it is one per passenger.

And now that we saw how to get from JFK Manhattan airport by subway, use the New York subway app, and choose the line and station where to get off and start enjoying New York!

►Have you thought about visiting the Statue of Liberty?, visit our post How to climb the Statue of Liberty.

Do you come to the United States from far away like us and having internet all the time is a problem? Holafly’s data Sims and eSims for travelers are a very good option. In the link you will find all the information as well as a discount for followers from Europe accompanied by the following code: EUROPAACOMPAÑADA5.↓

Extra: video

NOTE: The information in this article is based on our own experience, being totally objective. This article contains affiliate links

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La entrada How to get from JFK to Manhattan by subway se publicó primero en Europa acompañada.

Surely if you are thinking of traveling to New York, or if you have already done so, at some point you asked yourself the question: to climb or not to climb the crown of the Statue of Liberty?

Is it worth it or not? It depends on the point of view from which you look at it. If you do it for the views to get from the crown, I tell you no, the same or better you get from the pedestal. But if you think about it from the side of living the experience of being inside the icon of New York, and there if you….es something different.

If you have already thought about it and have already decided to climb the crown, then stay that we start with the steps to follow to make this route.

► Did you think about a free tour to take the first contact with the city, it’s always a good idea.

• Get tickets online to climb the crown  of the Statue of Liberty.

The tickets to climb the crown of the Statue of Liberty sell out quickly, so as soon as we have decided the trip, and the day that would suit us to make the tour to Liberty Island, we will have to start looking at the official website to book our tickets.

What we have to know first of all is that there is only one boat company that takes us to the island. Statue Cruises, the official company, is the one that allows us to buy tickets. The rest of the other Hudson River tour companies will only take us too close to the statue to take pictures, but not more than that.

The same is true if we have one of the tourist passes such as the New York Pass, o Sightseeing Passin both cases they include the visit to the island, but not the not the climb to the pedestal or the crown. Anyway we are fans of sightseeing passes in NY, we think they are a great help to save if you plan to visit many things. But we have a full post►Is it worth buying a tourist pass?

So the first thing to do is to enter their official website, in advance of the trip as I told you, and then start with the reservation.

Once in it, a drop-down menu will appear with the different options, in this case we are going to choose the crown reservation ticket.

And on the next screen you will see two departure options: from New Jersey or from Manhattan (Battery Park), usually the latter is the one that fits well if you are staying in both Manhattan and Brooklyn, it is the departure option we took.

The prices for adults, children or reduced tickets and the number of people taking part in the visit will now appear on the screen. Prices for adults are u$s 24.30 for adults and u$s 12.30 for children under 12 years old.

In the next step on the screen you will see a calendar with the days and times available for the visit. My advice is, if you can, that you visit it in the morning, remember that first you will visit the statue and then you will go by ferry to visit the immigration museum, the amount of people will be less and you will surely do the tours in a more leisurely and quiet way. But this is a personal opinion, and maybe it will be more comfortable for you to do it at a different time.

Then proceed to the payment, and that’s it!! you have your tickets to visit and climb the crown of the Statue of Liberty. You will receive the details of your purchase and an explanation of where to go and at what time.

• Arriving at Battery Park Pier

The day has come! Today you are going up to the crown of the Statue of Liberty! Remember to check the schedule and all the reservation information. Also check the weather, and remember that the island is always windy, so bring the appropriate clothing, a coat is never superfluous.

You will surely arrive by subway, because it is probably the way you are getting around New York. The stop to get off is: Bowling Green.

Did you see our post on how to take the subway from JFK  to Manhattan with the metrocard?

Then from Bowling Green station you must walk across the park to Castle Clinton, where you will find the ticket booths to pick up the tickets you previously purchased on the web.

Once there, look for the line for the correct window, you will see a lot of people, so it is important to ask if you have any doubts. For the same reason, due to the amount of people you will find, it is advisable that you are at least thirty minutes before the time marked on your reservation already in the line, as this usually takes a long time, as well as the boarding time. It is also important that you bring with you your reservation and an identity document that proves that you are the person that appears on your reservation. After this verification, they will give you your tickets for boarding and the visit.

Find the best price for hotels in New York

• Boarding and controls

After getting your ticket you will head to the pier, right there in Battery Park and almost next to Castle Clinton. Again the line will be long, but don’t worry, the boats arrive quickly and have plenty of capacity, so you’ll be on board in no time, passing a checkpoint on the way up.

Now, get ready to enjoy, the views you get of Manhattan from the river are great, so get a good place to enjoy them and take some good pictures. In a few minutes you will be very close to the statue, and while you see it, the pictures you will take there will be as magnificent as the ones taken before.

Don’t miss the New York Contrasts Tour, we tell you all about it in this post.

• Arrival at Liberty Island

Once you disembark on the island you can access the museum and the pedestal, and then go up to the crown. The first thing you will go through will be the security controls, scanning included.

The other thing is that you cannot go up to the crown with a backpack, bag or food. Yes, of course, with your camera or cell phone. For this purpose there are lockers at the entrance, but for small items, try not to bring anything too bulky.

Now we are light on our luggage and ready to start the tour!

Tour of the pedestal and the museum

Here we tell you about the mistake we made out of anxiety. As soon as we went through the security checkpoint and left our bag in the locker.   We were already looking forward to climbing the crown, so we got to the pedestal, took some pictures and went up right away, leaving the museum to do after coming down. Wrong!

The museum is something you should do before seeing the whole structure, because you will find a lot of information about the construction, transfer, and information that will be very useful once you are up there to appreciate the work in its entirety.

So our advice is to take your time and visit the museum, gathering all the information, and then start the climb inside the structure.

• Climbing to the crown of the Statue of Liberty

After the tour and with a lot of information now about how it was built, the transfer to its current location, and so much more, you have to start the climb.

The same is done by stairs inside the structure designed by Alexandre Gustave Eiffel (yes, the same of the famous tower), although the statue is the work of the French architect Frederic Auguste Bartholdi.

Expect 377 steps to be able to see Manhattan from the crown windows, the place is enclosed, something to keep in mind if you can’t stand the confinement.

While I was of the mindset that it wasn’t worth the climb, I have to admit that once inside the structure, I found it interesting to see the inside of this American icon.

Arrival, after negotiating the steps, you finally reach the crown. It is here when I have to tell you my feeling of that moment, the first thought was “is this so small?

Yes, honestly, the place inside the crown is smaller than I had imagined, but there we were!

• Visit to Ellis Island (Immigration Museum)

After all the time you want to spend on the ascent and tour of the island, you board again. Now the destination will be Ellis Island, where we find the immigration museum.

It’s easy, you head to the pier and you’ll board again with lots and lots of people, and it will be the last stop before the return to Battery Park.

Ellis was the main customs office for entering the city, so most of the immigrants who came to New York passed through here, and it is estimated that some twelve million passengers passed through this office between 1892 and 1954. Today it has been converted into a museum, and I assure you that it is worth the tour, you will go a little into the history, and for those of us who are descendants of immigrants it is interesting, since it is not so different from the history of other immigrants who arrived in other lands.

And finally, after completing the tour, we only have to board again, now towards Manhattan again, where the tour ends. We can now say, task accomplished, after climbing to the crown of the Statue of Liberty.

Again, be prepared for the views, as they are magnificent and you will surely, like us, take lots and lots of pictures.

• Extras : VIDEO

NOTE: The information in this article is based on our own experience, being totally objective. This article contains affiliate links.

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La entrada How to climb the Statue of Liberty in New York (2023) se publicó primero en Europa acompañada.