We purchased the New York Pass, which cost us $140 per person for 2 days. The New York Pass is a great idea in theory. The one we purchased included several bus tours, which we only used twice. It includes 55 attractions in NYC that you could go to for free (because you purchased the pass).
Tip: Loosely plan out your day, but go with the flow. I booked our schedule around what neighborhoods we'd be in. Unfortunately I misunderstood the bus tour and ended up wasting a whole day only doing two things! The first thing you should do, especially if you purchase the bus tour, is start your bus tour as soon as you get there- and don't activate your Pass until the next day (as it will expire at Midnight the last day you can use it).
The bus tour that we hopped on was 2.5 hours long, and it's "hop on, hop off" which, again, sounds like a good deal, but that's if you leisurely want to see the city. (Where we went wrong is that we thought we'd be stopping at all of the stops, which wasn't true, and they kicked us all off at the Statue of Liberty, a long way from where we needed to be!) I suggest taking the Subway, which, on the high end, only costs $2.50 per single ride (cheaper if you get a Metro Card) and it will take you places much quicker than a bus tour or even walking. The subway system is pretty easy to figure out- and I actually enjoyed riding it when we were going really far (and also when it was raining and no cabs would stop!)
We saw the Statue of Liberty, which was included in the NY Pass. Unfortunately, the Pass did not include Monument Access, only a ferry ride to the island! You waited in line to get to the ferry for an hour or two, spend another hour in the security and ferry ride, where you're herded like cattle... and a 15 minute ride to Liberty Island, where you have to avoid thousands of amateur photographers photographing Lady Liberty.
Instead: take a leisurely stroll around the seaport and into Battery Park City, see the water, lovely landscaping and the boats. I was really in awe of the beauty of the New York City park system.
We saw two Broadway shows while in NYC- and if you go, you definitely need to see some! There's so many, one for every taste. If you're a student or have a student ID, check out the "Student Rush" tickets. These are available the day of the show, at the box office, at 10 am. We got two Jersey Boys tickets (2006's Best Broadway Musical) for $27 apiece with a student ID! We also purchased 2 Lion King musical tickets and paid more for them as they weren't eligible for discounts, but they were SO worth it. I researched several musicals online and watched the trailers on YouTube before deciding.
We visited The Bodies exhibit, which was also included on the NY Pass. It was amazing! It had been to the KC area a couple years ago, and if you ever get a chance to see it, take it! It is an exhibit of real bodies and real body parts- everything from lungs to hearts, eyes, brains, everything you could ever imagine... seriously! Some of the most amazing things that I saw were slices of the brain that had had an aneurysm, diseased lungs, the bronchial tubes/trees and different tumors. There was also a "game" called Mindball that you and a partner put sensors on your head and tried to relax as much as possible. As your brainwaves decline, the ball moves. If you "keep your cool" better than your partner, the ball goes into your partner's area and makes a "goal". Overall, this exhibit was my favorite- it showed you a completely different way to look at your body- from the inside out.
We visited Rockefeller Center, where 30 Rock, Saturday Night Live, and other NBC Shows are filmed. We went to the "Top of the Rock"- 68 floors up, (in 43 seconds!) and got an amazing view of NYC- without the long crowds of The Empire State Building!
We also saw The Lincoln Center, a beautiful fine arts campus. We had a lovely little Swedish tour guide who took us through the different theatres (and we saw Julliard!) and taught us the history.
Go to TIMES SQUARE! Times Square is amazing, invigorating, crowded, and fantastic. Being a small town girl from Missouri, I was in awe. Yes, you have to avoid people who stop in the middle of the block. But there's so much to see! Street vendors serving hot food, street performers dancing, cabs racing at you while you jaywalk, (or even just walk when it's time to walk- they're ruthless).
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