New York itinerary: 1 to 5 days
Plans for one to five days in New York, day by day: the Empire State Building, Grand Central and Central Park, Times Square, the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island, the 9/11 Memorial and Wall Street, the great museums and Brooklyn as you add days. Every stop has a typical visit length.
How long do you have?
Map: 3 days
New York in 1 day
Day 1
Statue of Liberty
Liberty Enlightening the World on Liberty Island, reached by ferry from Battery Park.
National September 11 Memorial & Museum
Two reflecting pools in the footprints of the Twin Towers, and the museum below.
Central Park
Manhattan's 843-acre park: lakes, meadows, bridges and Bethesda Terrace.
Times Square
The neon crossroads of Broadway, brightest at night.
New York in 2 days
Day 1
Wall Street
The financial district's famous street, with the Stock Exchange and Federal Hall.
Statue of Liberty
Liberty Enlightening the World on Liberty Island, reached by ferry from Battery Park.
Ellis Island
The island where 12 million immigrants arrived, now the National Museum of Immigration.
One World Trade Center
The tallest building in the Western Hemisphere, with the One World Observatory.
National September 11 Memorial & Museum
Two reflecting pools in the footprints of the Twin Towers, and the museum below.
Day 2
Empire State Building
The 1931 Art Deco skyscraper with open-air decks on the 86th floor.
Fifth Avenue
The famous avenue of flagship stores, St. Patrick's Cathedral and Central Park views.
Grand Central Terminal
A Beaux-Arts station with a celestial ceiling over its main concourse.
Central Park
Manhattan's 843-acre park: lakes, meadows, bridges and Bethesda Terrace.
Times Square
The neon crossroads of Broadway, brightest at night.
New York in 3 days
Day 1
Empire State Building
The 1931 Art Deco skyscraper with open-air decks on the 86th floor.
Fifth Avenue
The famous avenue of flagship stores, St. Patrick's Cathedral and Central Park views.
Grand Central Terminal
A Beaux-Arts station with a celestial ceiling over its main concourse.
Central Park
Manhattan's 843-acre park: lakes, meadows, bridges and Bethesda Terrace.
Times Square
The neon crossroads of Broadway, brightest at night.
Day 2
Statue of Liberty
Liberty Enlightening the World on Liberty Island, reached by ferry from Battery Park.
Ellis Island
The island where 12 million immigrants arrived, now the National Museum of Immigration.
Wall Street
The financial district's famous street, with the Stock Exchange and Federal Hall.
One World Trade Center
The tallest building in the Western Hemisphere, with the One World Observatory.
National September 11 Memorial & Museum
Two reflecting pools in the footprints of the Twin Towers, and the museum below.
Day 3
Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum
An aircraft carrier on the Hudson with jets, a submarine and the Space Shuttle Enterprise.
American Museum of Natural History
Dinosaurs, the blue whale and the planetarium, beside Central Park.
Metropolitan Museum of Art
One of the world's great museums, with 5,000 years of art on Fifth Avenue.
New York in 4 days
Day 1
American Museum of Natural History
Dinosaurs, the blue whale and the planetarium, beside Central Park.
Central Park
Manhattan's 843-acre park: lakes, meadows, bridges and Bethesda Terrace.
Metropolitan Museum of Art
One of the world's great museums, with 5,000 years of art on Fifth Avenue.
Times Square
The neon crossroads of Broadway, brightest at night.
Day 2
Statue of Liberty
Liberty Enlightening the World on Liberty Island, reached by ferry from Battery Park.
Ellis Island
The island where 12 million immigrants arrived, now the National Museum of Immigration.
Wall Street
The financial district's famous street, with the Stock Exchange and Federal Hall.
One World Trade Center
The tallest building in the Western Hemisphere, with the One World Observatory.
National September 11 Memorial & Museum
Two reflecting pools in the footprints of the Twin Towers, and the museum below.
Day 3
Empire State Building
The 1931 Art Deco skyscraper with open-air decks on the 86th floor.
The Museum of Modern Art
MoMA: Van Gogh's Starry Night, Picasso, Warhol and modern design.
Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum
An aircraft carrier on the Hudson with jets, a submarine and the Space Shuttle Enterprise.
Grand Central Terminal
A Beaux-Arts station with a celestial ceiling over its main concourse.
Day 4
The Cloisters
The Met's medieval art museum in a hilltop park in northern Manhattan, with views of the Hudson.
New York Public Library
The Beaux-Arts library guarded by its stone lions, with the Rose Main Reading Room.
Bryant Park
A green square behind the New York Public Library, with an ice rink in winter.
Little Italy
A few blocks of Italian restaurants and cafés around Mulberry Street.
Chinatown
Manhattan's Chinatown, a few busy blocks of markets, dumpling shops and bakeries.
New York in 5 days
Day 1
Statue of Liberty
Liberty Enlightening the World on Liberty Island, reached by ferry from Battery Park.
Ellis Island
The island where 12 million immigrants arrived, now the National Museum of Immigration.
Wall Street
The financial district's famous street, with the Stock Exchange and Federal Hall.
One World Trade Center
The tallest building in the Western Hemisphere, with the One World Observatory.
National September 11 Memorial & Museum
Two reflecting pools in the footprints of the Twin Towers, and the museum below.
Day 2
Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum
An aircraft carrier on the Hudson with jets, a submarine and the Space Shuttle Enterprise.
Rockefeller Center
An Art Deco office complex in Midtown, known for its Christmas tree and ice rink, and for the Top of the Rock viewing deck.
New York Public Library
The Beaux-Arts library guarded by its stone lions, with the Rose Main Reading Room.
Bryant Park
A green square behind the New York Public Library, with an ice rink in winter.
Grand Central Terminal
A Beaux-Arts station with a celestial ceiling over its main concourse.
Empire State Building
The 1931 Art Deco skyscraper with open-air decks on the 86th floor.
Times Square
The neon crossroads of Broadway, brightest at night.
Day 3
American Museum of Natural History
Dinosaurs, the blue whale and the planetarium, beside Central Park.
Central Park
Manhattan's 843-acre park: lakes, meadows, bridges and Bethesda Terrace.
The Museum of Modern Art
MoMA: Van Gogh's Starry Night, Picasso, Warhol and modern design.
Fifth Avenue
The famous avenue of flagship stores, St. Patrick's Cathedral and Central Park views.
Day 4
The Cloisters
The Met's medieval art museum in a hilltop park in northern Manhattan, with views of the Hudson.
Metropolitan Museum of Art
One of the world's great museums, with 5,000 years of art on Fifth Avenue.
Washington Square Park
Greenwich Village's park with its marble arch, fountain and street musicians.
Greenwich Village
Wander Bleecker, MacDougal and Christopher Streets for brownstones, jazz clubs, cafes and Washington Square Park, the city's old bohemian quarter.
Little Italy
A few blocks of Italian restaurants and cafés around Mulberry Street.
Day 5
Brooklyn Botanical Garden
Fifty-two acres of gardens in Brooklyn, famous for its cherry blossoms.
Williamsburg
A Brooklyn neighbourhood of cafés, vintage shops and Manhattan skyline views.
Brooklyn Bridge
The 1883 suspension bridge with a walkway high above the East River.
Union Square, Manhattan
A lively square with a big farmers' market four days a week.
Chelsea Market
An indoor food hall in the former Nabisco factory, with bakeries, tacos, lobster and shops, a short walk from the High Line.
High Line
A public park on a disused elevated railway on Manhattan's west side, with planted walkways, art and views over the streets and the Hudson.
Chinatown
Manhattan's Chinatown, a few busy blocks of markets, dumpling shops and bakeries.
Watch: New York in 3 days
A one-minute look at the plan: every stop, day by day, with the map.
Where to stay in New York
When to go to New York
April to June and September to early November are the most comfortable months in New York, with mild weather for walking. July and August are hot and humid, while January and February are cold and can bring snow but lower hotel prices. From late November to early January, holiday window displays, the Rockefeller Center tree and skating draw big crowds.
Plan the rest of your trip
- Where to stay: hotels in New York on Booking.com or Trip.com
- Skip-the-line tickets: museums and sights in New York on Tiqets
- Tours and day trips: things to do in New York on GetYourGuide or on Viator
- From the airport: a private transfer in New York with Kiwitaxi
- Sightseeing pass: save on New York's top attractions with Go City
- Data on arrival: an eSIM for United States from Airalo
- Last day: leave your bags in New York with Radical Storage and keep sightseeing
Some of these are affiliate links: we may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.
Tips for New York
- Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island tickets are sold only by Statue City Cruises; book ahead for pedestal or crown access.
- Tap a contactless card or phone (OMNY) on the subway and buses; fares cap after 12 rides in a week.
- Book the 9/11 Museum, the Empire State Building and MoMA online for timed entry.
- Walk the Brooklyn Bridge from Brooklyn towards Manhattan for the skyline view.
- Central Park is huge: pick a route (Bethesda Terrace, Bow Bridge, Strawberry Fields) rather than trying to see it all.
Make it your own
Open the guide in Andiamo Places to see every stop on a map with walking directions, move places between days, check opening hours for your dates, and add your own finds. After the trip, your photos become a journal and, if you like, a printed photo book.
Guides are made with the help of AI and public sources such as Wikipedia, and may contain errors. Opening hours and prices change, so check before you go. Spotted a wrong photo, a pin in the wrong place, a missing stop or a better one? Write to andiamotravelapp@gmail.com: the e-mail opens with this guide filled in.
Photo credits
- American Museum of Natural History: Ingfbruno, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Brooklyn Botanical Garden: Three60five ( talk ) ( Uploads ), Public domain
- Brooklyn Bridge: Suiseiseki, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Bryant Park: Jean-Christophe BENOIST, CC BY 3.0
- Central Park: Anthony Quintano from Hillsborough, NJ, United States, CC BY 2.0
- Chelsea Market: Ajay Suresh from New York, NY, USA, CC BY 2.0
- Chinatown: Famartin, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Ellis Island: Joe Mabel (on Flickr as Joe Mabel from Seattle, US), CC BY-SA 3.0
- Empire State Building: Sam Valadi, Public domain
- Fifth Avenue: A. Balet, CC BY 3.0
- Grand Central Terminal: Image from Flickr published under Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic (CC BY 2.0) by user soomness, CC BY 2.0
- Greenwich Village: Felix Stahlberg, CC BY 2.0
- High Line: Dansnguyen, CC0
- Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum: Ajay Suresh from New York, NY, USA, CC BY 2.0
- Little Italy: ajay_suresh, CC BY 2.0
- Metropolitan Museum of Art: Hugo Schneider, CC BY-SA 2.0
- National September 11 Memorial & Museum: Paul Sableman, CC BY 2.0
- New York Public Library: Ingfbruno, CC BY-SA 3.0
- One World Trade Center: Praneeth Thalla, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Rockefeller Center: Rockefeller Group/Mitsubishi Estate, Public domain
- Statue of Liberty: AskALotl, CC0
- The Cloisters: Christopher Down, CC BY 4.0
- The Museum of Modern Art: hibino, CC BY 2.0
- Times Square: Terabass, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Union Square, Manhattan: Scan by NYPL, Public domain
- Wall Street: unknown author, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Washington Square Park: Isabella Ruffalo-Burgat, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Williamsburg: Justicex07, CC BY-SA 4.0
Opening hours change; check before you go. Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors.
