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NEW YORK CITY IN FIVE DAYS

Guide for a short trip to New York City

You can easily spend months in New York City and the surrounding boroughs and still not see and experience enough. Here's a list of first-timer sights to see. Try to pick a few things from these lists and not rush too much because you'll be back.  

Central Park & Museum Mile

Central Park​

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You can easily spend a full day exploring Central Park. Visit the Loeb Boathouse, Central Park Zoo, Bethesda Terrace, and try a Bike or Walking tour. 

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The Museum Mile 

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On the famous 5th Avenue, you'll find eight of the world's best museums:

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1. The Metropolitan Museum of Art

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2. Solomon Guggenheim Museum

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3. El Museo del Barrio

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4. Museum of the City of New York 

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5. Jewish Museum 

 

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6. Cooper-Hewitt National Museum of Design

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7. National Academy Museum and School of Fine Arts 

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8. Goethe House German Cultural Center 

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Not on Museum Mile but should be considered in your museum planning: 

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1. The Museum of Modern Art

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2. The Frick Collection 

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3. The Morgan Library & Museum

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4. Neue Galerie New York

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5. National Museum of the American Indian

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6. American Museum of Natural History

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7. Brooklyn Museum

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8. Whitney Museum of American Art

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9. Tenement Museum 

Midtown & Times Square

Midtown Highlights

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Home to the most iconic buildings and neighborhoods in New York, including:

  

1. Chrysler Building

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2. Empire State Building

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3. United Nations Headquarters

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4. St. Patrick's Cathedral

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5. New York Public Library

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6. Rockefeller Center and the Top of the Rock viewing deck

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7. Radio City Music Hall

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8. Grand Central Station

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9. Times Square and Broadway

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10. Flatiron District

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11. Gramercy Park

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12. Union Square

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13. Hell's Kitchen

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Downtown

So much is in lower Manhattan that it will take a few days to explore the various neighborhoods and sights. 

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1. Chinatown

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2. Little Italy

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3. Nolita

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4. Lower East Side

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-Wall Street

-9/11 Memorial and Museum 

-Stone Street

-Tenement Museum 

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5. ChelseaThe Highline 

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6. Meatpacking District 

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7. Greenwich Village

-Washington Square Park

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8. West Village

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9. SoHo

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10. Tribeca

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11. East Village

-Alphabet City

12. Noho

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Statute of Liberty

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Farther down from the rest of downtown, the Statute of Liberty on Ellis Island is accessible by ferry tours. If you want to only see the statute from a distance, the Staten Island Ferry is free and runs frequently. 

Brooklyn

Brooklyn and Around

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1. Brooklyn Bridge. If weather permits, walk across. 

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2. Prospect Park and the Brooklyn Botanic Garden

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3. Williamsburg 

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4. Greenpoint

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5. Bushwick

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6. Coney Island. Farther out but a perfect experience outside of the city. 

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Bronx & Harlem

The Bronx​

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1. New York Botanical Garden 

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2. The Bronx Zoo

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3. Food: Arthur Avenue, "Little Italy" 

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Harlem & East Harlem

Explore Harlem and iconic sights like the Apollo Theater and visit East Harlem, known as "el Barrio" for colorful street art and authentic Puerto Rican dishes. 

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