10 Must-See New York Sights for First-Timers, New York, New York

You could spend weeks exploring “The Big Apple”. However most visitors usually have a handful of days to immerse and explore this exciting city. This is why I developed this 10 Must-see list for first-time visitors.

They are based on my time living and working there, and the dozens of trips that I have made there over the past twenty years - often with people going there for their first taste. My most recent journey was taking my partner’s parents who have had it on their wish list for decades and asked me to design an itinerary. They wanted one that gave them a typical New York experience while not breaking the bank.

- New York Hotels can be expensive (and the rooms small), so you need to plan for it. Although there are over 100,000 rooms in Manhattan, it can be a challenge to find reasonable priced ones at times, like in the run up to Christmas or when there is a major conference in town. You need to (1) agree a decent budget for accommodation which may be higher than you usually like to spend and (2) book as far in advance to lock in deals.

- It’s challenging to rely on public transport to get to and from the airports. It is really difficult too use public transport from the airports into Manhattan as there is no direct links. There is a bus service but the easiest is to use a cab, or pre-book a transfer. The cab fare is a fixed fee and so you can be confident you will not be ripped off. They change over time but are around $40. ...... (follow the instructions below for accessing the rest of this article).