Travel to NYC
Travel to NYC – Manhattan Neighborhoods
New York City is composed of five boroughs. While Manhattan and Staten Island are islands, Brooklyn and Queens are geographically part of Long Island, and the Bronx is attached to the US mainland. The islands are linked by bridges, tunnels and ferries. Check here for helpful NYC maps and guides.
At its core is Manhattan, a densely populated borough that’s among the world’s major commercial, financial and cultural centers. Its iconic sites include skyscrapers such as the Empire State Building and sprawling Central Park. Broadway theater is staged in neon-lit Times Square.
Manhattan is roughly 13.4 miles long and about 2.3 miles wide at its widest. Except at its northern and southern tips, the borough’s avenues run roughly north and south, and streets run east and west. One-way thoroughfares are common, with traffic moving east on even-numbered streets and west on odd-numbered streets.
Fifth Avenue divides the island into east and west sides (for example, locations on 57th Street west of Fifth Avenue are designated “W. 57th St.,” and east of Fifth Avenue, they’re “E. 57th St.”). As you move farther east or west from Fifth Avenue, street addresses increase, usually in increments of 100 from one block to the next.
For north-south avenues, 20 blocks equals a mile, and the street numbers increase as you go uptown. Blocks can be a useful measure of distance, but keep in mind your direction: walking uptown from 1st Street to 6th Street is about a quarter of a mile, but walking the same number of blocks crosstown, from First Avenue to Sixth Avenue, is approximately a mile.
New York is the most ethnically diverse, religiously varied, commercially driven, famously congested, and, in the eyes of many, the most attractive urban centre in the country.
No other city has contributed more images to the collective consciousness of Americans: Wall Street means finance, Broadway is synonymous with theatre, Fifth Avenue is automatically paired with shopping, Madison Avenue means the advertising industry, Greenwich Village connotes bohemian lifestyles, Seventh Avenue signifies fashion.
New York has more Jews than Tel Aviv, more Irish than Dublin, more Italians than Naples, and more Puerto Ricans than San Juan.
“New York” was named after the Duke of York, who would go on to become King James II.
Travel to NYC – – Gramercy Park
Gramercy Park
Gramercy is one of the most beautiful neighborhoods in Manhattan. It’s downtown, but it’s almost its own silent corner. There are few tourists compared with the nearby East Village and Soho. At the middle of Gramercy is Gramercy Park, a privately owned enclave built in the 1800’s. Unless you live on the blocks facing the park, you cannot get a key and get in. The community of Gramercy Park isn’t very friendly, but the surrounding parts of Gramercy can be very welcoming.
Luxury Hotels
Restaurants
Travel to NYC – – Upper East Side
Travel to NYC – Upper East Side
The Upper East Side has been known as the “Gold Coast” because of the wealthy men and women who dress well and live in this neighborhood. Due to its rich population, the Upper East Side is home to some of New York’s most expensive real estate, often in the form of single floor apartments and generous penthouses. It’s not an ideal place to live if you want to save money, unless you find a cheaper walk-up closer to the river than Central Park. The neighborhood is populated with many elite private schools like the Spence School, Rudolph Steiner School and some of the city’s best public schools. Families from other neighborhoods often tend to move to Upper East Side for its excellent schools.
Luxury Hotels
Restaurants
Travel to NYC – – Flatiron District
Flatiron
Flatiron is the inner west side of the blocks in the 20’s. The Flatiron District, a really nifty area, gets it name from the Flatiron Building, a building on 22nd and 5th that looks flat from the sides and–surprise–kind of like an iron. The real estate here used to be less than $1 million, however, now you’re likely to see prices around $2.5 million. 23rd street is the heart of the Financial District, and is flanked by Madison Square Park. It is a popular neighborhood among those working in entertainment, particularly models, directors, and media moguls. There are also a number of startups and coworking spaces in the area.
Luxury Hotels
Restaurants
Travel to NYC – – Chelsea
Chelsea
Chelsea is known as heaven for artists, and is also a bustling gay area. Some of the world’s most famous artists have lived in Chelsea because of the old buildings’ high ceilings and large freight elevators they could use to make and transport their work. Now over 300 art galleries exist in Chelsea. Chelsea is a great neighborhood to live in due to the restaurants, bars, shops and various cultural activities that exist within the vicinity, including the Chelsea Market. Chelsea is home to the High Line Park, a raised site of greenery made from an abandoned railroad track. The Empire State Building and Madison Square Garden are both within walking distance.
Luxury Hotels
Restaurants
Travel to NYC – – Midtown
Travel to NYC – Midtown
Midtown Manhattan is one of the busiest place in NYC. Crawling with tourists, midtown is home to major attractions such as the Empire State Building and Times Square. Midtown is great for people who love crowds and bright lights. On New Year’s Eve, it is swamped with people waiting for the ball to drop. Times Square requires business owners to display illuminated signs, so you’ll never get bored.
Luxury Hotels
Restaurants
Travel to NYC – – Soho
Soho
SoHo, home of the famous shopping street Broadway, is one of the trendiest neighborhoods and also one of the most expensive. There are many high-end restaurants and stores that attract a combination of the local and global elite. Many of the best boutique shops in New York City can be found in SoHo, along with the nicest hotels. As SoHo doesn’t follow the traditional street-naming rules, it can be confusing to get your bearings when first getting to the neighborhood. There’s always something cool to stumble upon, but you can also make generous use of navigation apps.
Luxury Hotels
Restaurants
Travel to NYC – – Hells Kitchen
Hells Kitchen
Hell’s kitchen may seem like a aggressive neighbor judging by its name, but that’s not the case. According to majority of the locals living here, it’s a very fun neighborhood. It has extensive theatre and restaurant culture. Hell’s Kitchen is now named Clinton, but most NYC citizens haven’t adapted to the new name yet. Hell’s Kitchen is home to many Broadway and off-Broadway theaters. Bryant park, the area’s greenery, has an ice skating rink in the winter and shows movies in the summer for free. You’re not too far from the chaos of Times Square, but it’s a little more peaceful.
Luxury Hotels
Restaurants
Travel to NYC – – Tribeca
Tribeca
Tribeca is an acronym for “Triangle Below Canal,” which is fantastic if you can afford it. There was a time that Tribeca was one of the most deserted places in NYC as it was filled with warehouses. However, a lot has changed and it closely resembles SoHo. Currently it’s one of the liveliest and hippest neighborhood in Manhattan. Although it’s cool, this comes at a price. The neighborhood is a grid of factories and warehouse buildings, many of them which are old. The buildings are short, so you’ll can see plenty of sky. However, the streets are small and full of dead ends which can be frustrating when driving. Tribeca was once home to Robert De Niro, the founder of the Tribeca Film Festivals. Thanks to him, people in NYC began to admire the cobblestone streets such as Washington, Greenwich and Harrison Streets.
Luxury Hotels
Restaurants
Travel to NYC – – Upper West Side
Travel to NYC – Upper West Side
Home to the American Museum of Natural History, the Upper West Side is a great place to live. One of the best parts about the Upper West Side is the ease of access to both Central Park and Riverside Park. These are great places to refresh your mind or go for a jog. The UWS is pet-friendly, with many shops offering bowls filled with water outside for pets passing by. It also has a lot of great restaurants with diverse food options. Although it’s great for living in quiet and with family, there isn’t much nightlife here. Also, the rent can be pricey considering how small the apartments are.