Things to do in Times Square

Times Square is a great place to start your trip to New York City. Go ahead: just gaze up at the ever-changing neon billboards and soak up that iconic New York energy. This may well also turn out to be the place you give your selfie stick the biggest workout, with flashing advertisements at every angle, rows of yellow cabs streaming through, and street performers that run the gamut from Donald Duck to Spider-Man (though note that you’ll be expected to tip handsomely for a snap with these guys). Meanwhile, pretzel stands, hot dog carts and about a zillion other fast-food outlets have you covered for snack attacks (our money’s on the OG New York cheesecake from Junior’s).

If you want to take a deeper dive into Times Square, its sights and its history, you could do a lot worse than this guided walking tour, which takes in the bright lights of Broadway and Times Square in two hours. The tour is included with The New York Pass, which comes loaded with entry to more than 100 top NYC tours, activities and attractions, all for one fixed price, potentially saving you a stash on regular entry fees, meaning more spare dollars for all those essential New York cheesecake and pizza slices.

Of course, you could also choose to preserve your legs for stomping around Central Park or climbing Lady Liberty’s precipitous 162 steps. Which is where the Big Bus comes in. A hop-on hop-off bus tour is a great way for newbies to familiarize themselves with New York City. You can hop on just outside the cavernous M&Ms World store on Times Square (NB: also well worth a visit if you’re a fan of candy-based characters and/or in search of the world’s biggest sugar fix). Once on board, expect a lively narration that will leave you with an absolute treasure trove of Big Apple trivia. Find out what’s the one thing you’ll never see on Times Square, and much more. 

There are around 20 stops at which to hop off (and indeed back on) along the Big Bus’s Uptown and Downtown loops – in short, it’s a whistle-stop tour of NYC’s greatest hits, taking in must-see landmarks like the Brooklyn Bridge, Grand Central Station, the Empire State Building, Wall Street and, well, just about anywhere else you can think of. Stay on board for the whole tour and hop back off in Times Square or jump off at any other location you fancy exploring a little more.

Read our complete guide to riding the Big Bus in NYC here.

Want to guarantee yourself a celeb sighting in the Big Apple? Easy! Just mosey on over to Madame Tussauds, where you can snap and schmooze with the A-list to your heart’s content. Well, sort of: we’re talking wax dopplegangers of Tay-Tay, Timothée Chalamet, the Kardashians, Justin Bieber, The Rock and many, many more.

The world-famous wax museum has an outpost right on Times Square, with loads of different zones to explore. Hit up the Glow Gala for the creme de la creme – Tom Cruise, RuPaul, Katy Perry dressed as a giant chandelier – visit Seasons of New York City to hang out with Mariah in her winter Wonderland, and say hey to Spidey, Groot, Loki et al in the MARVEL Hall of Heroes. 

Heck, you can even walk out with a model of your own fair hand, preserved in wax for all eternity (or at least until you accidentally leave it next to the radiator) – extra fees apply for this wacky but memorable souvenir of your visit.

Read our complete guide to visiting Madame Tussauds New York here.

This one’s for all the thrill seekers out there. RiseNY combines a fun romp through NYC’s contribution to pop culture – think King Kong, Friends, Broadway memorabilia and Biggie’s iconic red tracksuit – before taking you on a mesmerizing ride high above New York. No, silly: not literally! Instead, you’ll strap into your seat for a simulated 4-D adventure, complete with swoops, soars whistling winds and a wraparound screen that scrolls through the best of the New York skyline. You’ll be lifted some 40 feet in the air, giving the really very convincing impression that what you’re experiencing is the real deal.

You can take a deeper dive into what to expect at RiseNY in our complete guide, here.

Anyone with even a passing interest in the world of musical theater is sure to get a kick (and maybe even a high kick) out of the Museum of Broadway, where the history of the world’s most celebrated theater district takes center stage.

Don’t know your ‘Circle of Life’ from your ‘Singin’ in the Rain?’ You soon will, with a wealth of immersive exhibits and information to explore, including costumes, set designs, retro memorabilia and more. Skip along the yellow brick road? Check. Strike a pose on a Cabaret chair? Go on then. Hum ‘Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin’ in an Oklahoma! wheat field? When in Rome…

It’s a lot of fun, provides a real peek behind the Broadway curtains, and will leave you with a genuine appreciation of everything that goes on behind the scenes to ensure that the show always goes on. And, with that in mind, you couldn’t be better placed for taking in a Broadway show yourself. Wicked, Hamilton, Chicago The Phantom of the Opera… choose your own adventure and let the music play.

And that’s a wrap on our brief guide to things to do in Times Square!

1. The Empire State Building. This 1930s Art Deco icon needs little introduction, but we’re going to go ahead and give it one anyway. Rising up out of the Great Depression like some skyscraping space-age superstructure, the ESB remained the world’s tallest building for several decades and – thanks to King Kong – spawned one of the 20th Century’s most iconic movie moments. You can whiz up to its dizzyingly high observation deck just a few blocks southeast of Times Square. Read our complete guide to visiting here.
2. Top of the Rock. Sticking with natural New York highs, you’ll find this one pretty much just around the corner from Times Square. Another of Manhattan’s stalwart skyscrapers, 30 Rockefeller Plaza is just a couple years younger than the Empire State and – being a near-neighbor – offers some of the best views of its elder sibling in town. Check out our complete TotR guide here.
3. Radio City Music Hall. And what’s that familiar looking building just next to 30 Rock? Why, it’s only the legendary Radio City Music Hall. Step inside for a peek behind the scenes and a meet and greet with a genuine Radio City Rockette!
4. MoMA. Or the Museum of Modern Art, if you insist. One of the finest collections of 20th-century art on the planet, MoMA is home to landmark pieces by Pollock, Picasso, Warhol, Rothko and more. You’ll find it northeast of Times Square towards the southern end of Central Park. Follow our walk-through of MoMA’s greatest hits here.