New York travel costs
Last updated: 11.06.24
New York is one of my favorite big cities and it’s one of the greatest cities in the world – A city that never sleeps! There is always something to do. The vibe is vibrant and NYC is a must visit, if you ask me. It has been on my bucket list for soooo many years before visiting and it’s definitely a city I have to visit again.
Are you planning a trip to New York and are curious about the cost of visiting New York? No worries I got you! We spent 15 days in this incredible city and now I share my New York travel prices with you.
In this travel blog post I share cost transparency to make it easier for you to create a travel budget for your visit to New York. I have divided the New York travel costs into these categories:
- Cost of accommodation in New York
- Cost of transportation in New York
- Cost of food in New York
- Cost of experiences in New York
- Other costs in New York
- Total costs in New York
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New York travel costs
Here is what we spend per person for 2 weeks (15 days) in New York:
Cost of accommodation in New York
Accommodation price: $1714 – $114 per day
We stayed in the same apartment all 15 days. We had our own apartment with a bathroom and a little kitchen. It’s located in Chinatown in Manhattan and the place is called 138 Bowery Classic Queen Studio.
We paid around $228 per night and stayed for 2 weeks in the fall of 2023. That means the total price for the whole apartment was around $228 per day.
Staying in Manhattan: It’s definitely NOT cheap! But you will have easy access to everything.
You can check out prices and find your accommodation now at Booking.com.
Cost of transportation in New York
Transportation price: $90 – $6 per day
This includes many rides with the subway, bus and train tickets.
Most of the time we used the subway if we didn’t walk. The subway system is easy to use and you can go almost anywhere. I believe the subway can be much faster than sitting in a traffic jam in a cab. You pay $2,90 per ride in the subway.
You can check out the New York City subway maps here.
This price is WITHOUT our flight tickets from Denmark to New York – we paid for those: $614 per person.
Cost of food in New York
Food price: $673 – $45 per day
This includes eating out and grocery shopping. Most days we made our own breakfast. Furthermore we had a lot of amazing food experiences in New York.
Tip to keep your food budget in New York: Tap water is drinkable in New York and free at restaurants.
Example of prices for two people:
- Mexican food: $36,31
- Dim Sum: $83,79
- Pizza slices: $14
- Lunch bagels: $25,98
- Breakfast at Ellen’s Stardust diner: $60,57
This is a list of 10 culinary experiences I recommend you to try in New York:
- Banana Pudding from Magnolia Bakery (seriously the best!!)
- Dim Sum at Golden Unicorn in Chinatown
- A cookie from Levain Bakery
- Sour Cream Apple Walnut Pie at the Little Pie Company
- Los Tacos No. 1
- Breakfast at Ellen’s Stardust Diner (it’s an experience)
- Pastrami sandwich at Katz’s (it’s very popular but not my kind of food)
- Go eat at Chelsea Market
- A bagel from Liberty Bagels
- Furthermore you have to try pizza slices. You can’t visit New York without having pizza. We tried multiple places I loved.
Banana pudding from Magnolia Bakery
If you’re interested in more dessert food recommendations check out our New York food tour: “Experiences for presents – New York dessert tour”.
Cost of experiences in New York
This includes a Broadway show, a tour to Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty, NBA tickets, NHL tickets, NFL tickets, Summit one Vanderbilt and entrance at a jazz club.
Example of prices for two people:
- Broadway show: $238,48
- Basket game: $430,1
- Summit One Vanderbilt: $91,46
I love finding and booking activities through Viator. If you’re looking for inspiration for things to do in New York you can check out Viator.
Inspiration for free activities to do in New York:
Tip: You can do a lot of free actives in New York such as:
- Go for a stroll in Central Park
- Visit Wall Street and the Bull of Wall Street
- Watch the building from Friends
- Walk on Brooklyn Bridge and explore Brooklyn
- Explore the Dumbo area
- Admire the Statue of Liberty from distance
- Visit Times Square both at daytime and nighttime
- Watch the Flatiron Building
- Visit New York Public Library
- Visit Grand Central Station
- Watch the ice skating rink at Rockefeller Center
- Walk the high line in West Village
- Watch the World Trade Center Memorial
- Stroll around different neighborhoods (like Chinatown, Little Italy and SoHo)
Other costs in New York
Other prices: $26 – $2 per day
This includes a haircut.
Total costs in New York
Total: $3242 – $216 per day per person
New York is definitely expensive! It’s possible to spend less (but also much more). If you want to do it more budget friendly you could try to find a cheaper apartment or hostel outside Manhattan, stay a shorter period, make more of your own food and do more free activities.
New York is definitely worth a visit!! I highly recommend it!
For more reading about New York, you may also like:
- New York Guide: What to do, what to eat, how to get around, when and where to stay
- Experiences for presents – New York dessert tour
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