New York in 3 Days: What to See on Your Holiday

Wondering what to see in New York in 3 days? We’ve visited New York several times and know the city pretty well by now. Whether you’re planning your New York holidays or a quick city break, here’s a tried-and-tested itinerary that will help you see the very best of New York in just 72 hours.

Weather: When to Visit New York? 

The best time to visit New York is during autumn, winter, and spring. In summer, the city can get uncomfortably hot, and even though you can always duck into a museum to cool off, there are simply better destinations for a summer holiday. Plus, summer brings the biggest crowds of tourists.

Although winter months can be bitterly cold, there’s nothing quite as magical as New York blanketed in snow. The most beautiful months to visit are May, June, September, and October.

Where to Stay in New York: Best Hotels

For a 3-day visit to New York, we recommend staying right on Manhattan so you don’t waste precious time commuting from other boroughs. New York is enormous, and getting around takes much longer than you might expect.

Our favourite hotels include Artezen Hotel on Wall Street and Best Western Plus Soho Hotel near SoHo and Chinatown.

How to Save Up to 34% on Admission in New York

Pick up a New York CityPASS on GetYourGuide and save around 34% on admission fees. It includes entry to:

• Empire State Building
• American Museum of Natural History

Plus, you get to choose 3 of the following attractions:

• Top of the Rock® Observation Deck
• Ferry Access to Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island
• 9/11 Memorial and Museum
• Circle Line Sightseeing Cruises
• Intrepid Sea, Air, and Space Museum
• Guggenheim Museum

What to See in New York in 3 Days: Itinerary

We’ve put this itinerary together to minimise unnecessary travel — so you’re not zigzagging across the city all day. If you decide to swap any activities around, check the map first to make sure you’re not adding extra miles to your day.

Day 1: Midtown Manhattan

• Depending on how early you get up, kick off your morning with a stroll through Central Park — no visit to New York would be complete without it. You definitely won’t cover the entire park though; it spans over 340 hectares! 😁

• Top of the Rock – there’s nothing quite like seeing the city from above. If you haven’t bought a CityPass, grab your ticket for Top of the Rock on GetYourGuide. From here, you’ll get stunning views of the famous Empire State Building. You can of course go up the Empire State Building too, but in our opinion, the views from Top of the Rock are far better.
• Have a wander around Rockefeller Center. If you’re a LEGO fan, pop into the store on 5th Avenue before heading to St. Patrick’s Cathedral. This iconic Catholic church sits on Fifth Avenue in the heart of New York, right opposite the Rockefeller Center.
• Art lovers should head to MoMA – the Museum of Modern Art. Otherwise, continue towards Times Square, where you’ll find dazzling billboards and famous shops like Hershey’s Chocolate World and the Disney Store.
• Round off your day with a walk along Broadway and Columbus Circle. We highly recommend catching a Broadway show — you can safely buy tickets on GetYourGuide. Don’t buy tickets from street vendors! They’re often scams.

Day 2: Brooklyn and Financial District

• Start your second day in Brooklyn at the Brooklyn Heights Promenade, which offers breathtaking views of the Manhattan skyline. From here, make your way to Brooklyn Bridge via the DUMBO neighbourhood. (DUMBO — short for “Down Under the Manhattan Bridge Overpass” — is a small but vibrant neighbourhood in Brooklyn, sitting right between the Brooklyn and Manhattan bridges. You’ll get gorgeous views of Brooklyn Bridge from here.)

• Battery Park – Take a stroll through Battery Park, where you’ll find The Sphere, a peace symbol that originally stood between the Twin Towers at the World Trade Center before being damaged in the September 11 attacks and relocated here. From Battery Park, you can catch a ferry to Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty. If you haven’t included Statue of Liberty access in your CityPass, book your ticket on GetYourGuide to skip the queue.

💡 TIP: Try the ferry search engine and price comparison tool Ferryscanner.

• Once you’re back on the mainland, head to Wall Street and explore the world’s most famous financial district. Keep an eye out for the iconic Charging Bull statue, which symbolises an optimistic and thriving financial market.
• From there, make your way to the 9/11 Memorial and Museum — a deeply moving site and museum created in memory of the nearly 3,000 people who lost their lives in the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. It stands on the very spot where the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center once stood.
• If you still have time, we highly recommend visiting the One World Observatory. You can book your ticket on GetYourGuide.

• Combine dinner with a wander through Little Italy or Chinatown.

Day 3: Museums or Attractions of Your Choice

Visit at least one museum that catches your eye — you won’t regret it. Here are our top picks:

• The Metropolitan Museum of Art (The Met) — home to two million works of art, including paintings by Vincent van Gogh, Rembrandt, Vermeer, Cézanne, and Titian.
• The Guggenheim Museum — just a short walk from The Met, it houses works by Pablo Picasso, Vincent van Gogh, Wassily Kandinsky, and many more leading artists.
• The Intrepid Museum — officially known as the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum, it’s a must for anyone fascinated by aircraft, ships, submarines, and space exploration.
• New Museum — if you love contemporary art as much as we do, this is one of the best museums in the world for it.
• American Museum of Natural History — one of the most popular museums on the planet, welcoming over 5 million visitors each year.

• Next, head to the Chrysler Building — one of New York’s most iconic skyscrapers, built in 1930 in the stunning Art Deco style.
• From the Chrysler Building, it’s a short walk to Grand Central Station (Grand Central Terminal), the iconic railway station you might recognise from the film Friends with Benefits, starring Mila Kunis and Justin Timberlake.
• From here, continue to the Empire State Building. If you have enough time, you can ride the lift to the top — just make sure you’ve booked your ticket in advance (for example, through GetYourGuide).
• If your legs aren’t aching too much, walk from the Empire State Building to another landmark skyscraper: the Flatiron Building, famous for its distinctive wedge shape.

• For your final evening, we recommend an evening cruise around Manhattan — we did this ourselves and it was an absolutely brilliant experience. We found ours on GetYourGuide. Availability varies by season, with different cruises running in winter and summer.

Read More

Want to know whether New York is safe, what else there is to see, or what to eat while you’re there? Check out our article with 44 tips on what to see in New York.

Planning a longer stay? Read our guide on what to see in New York in 5 days.