One minute we’re bossing the Big Apple. The next, we’re trapped on the wrong subway platform with an overpriced, underwhelming pizza slice wondering where it all went wrong.
Well, at least you can learn from our mistakes! These are the biggest blunders we made and what to watch out for on your own trip...
1. Walking too much. Especially on the first day
Fitbit engaged, comfy shoes on – we were ready to pound the pavements (sorry, sidewalks). Everyone knows you walk a lot in New York, right? But, as over-excited tourists hopping from one place to the next, the steps add up fast. After clocking up 30k on the first day and hobbling back to the hotel with all sorts of aches, we decided to take it a little easier for the rest of the trip. It’s a vacation, not a marathon, after all.
A red carpet was laid, but the steps were still unforgiving.
2. Thinking the subway is scary
Going back to point one, there was no need to avoid the subway at all costs. It wasn’t nearly as sketchy as we’d anticipated (aside from the carriages no-one's getting into – there’s a reason for that). It’s also a very affordable way to get around. The subway map isn’t one for the faint hearted, so CityMapper is your friend. And you’ll find the nearest subway stations to the attractions you’re visiting in our app – we're good like that.
3. Assuming the subway entrance is the one we need
Okay one thing you need to know about the subway is, some stations have separate entrances for Uptown and Downtown trains, and once you’re in, you may not be able to swap sides without exiting (and paying again, sigh).
Double-check the signs before descending into the depths!
4. Falling for trendy TikTok food spots
And, embarrassingly, we don’t even have TikTok.
Don’t be tempted to wait in line for a viral pizza slice and waste precious sightseeing time, kids. There’s plenty of just about every kind of food in New York on every corner. As you can imagine, the popular places are busy and come with a cost. $25 dollars for a bagel? They saw us coming.
Nice? Sure. Worth 25 bucks? Hmm.
5. Not carrying a portable power bank
Your apps, your maps, your CityMapper, the photos you’ll take, the videos! Without some backup that phone battery’s going to let you down faster than your ex. Pack that power bank and make sure it’s fully charged.
6. Not paying attention to the hourly forecast
Of course we checked the general weather. But it can change rapidly throughout the day, particularly when it comes to cloud cover. If we’d waited just an hour longer for the morning mist to clear at Top of the Rock, we may have got a better Empire State Building shot than this one...
ESB, but not in all her glory
7. Forgetting about that little thing called jet lag
“We’ll just stay up a little later and then magically adjust”. Well, it turned out to be a little harder than that, but nothing a strong coffee couldn’t fix. Just be aware that with your mealtimes off kilter, you might not be hungry for that big fancy dinner you arranged on the first night.
8. Trying to ‘complete’ New York
3 days. 15 attractions. 4 viral food spots. Almost every mode of transport. And we only just scratched the surface of one borough. It’s impossible to tick off NYC in one trip, but at least you’ll have an excuse to visit again. And again.
Not small. At all.
And the things we got right...
Having a New York Pass. Well duh – an absolute no brainer for saving loads on entry prices.
Asking as many locals as possible for their top tips, like these guys.
Visiting some lesser-known experiences like RiseNY and the Museum of Broadway.
Experiencing New York from every vantage point – street level to soaring observation decks, and all the way around Manhattan by cruise.
Taking it all in while going from A to B. Rather than being laser-focussed on getting to the next spot, we made sure we took in our surroundings on the way.
Getting all the photos. Yes, you might feel silly posing, but you’ll regret not having them if you don’t. Yes, even the souvenir ones.
How could we leave New York without this gem?
Enjoyed our biggest New York slip-ups?
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