How to Tour NYC & NYS on a Budget

Introduction

Who knows New York City better than a native New Yorker? Probably no one. So take all of this advice from the original native New Yorker and you will have a safe and wonderful trip to Manhattan and to New York State. The article continues right after this "comment and email " box below.

By: Lindaperry

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Difficulty: Moderately Challenging

Tips & Warnings:

Be sure to see at least one Broadway play while you are in NYC. I recommend Spamalot and Mamma Mia. There are plenty of other wonderful ones.
If you want the bus experience, try the B51 that goes from downtown Brooklyn all the way to Chinatown and City Hall, in Manhattan.
Be sure and visit the Pearl Paint Store. This store (five stores) is our most famous, most equipped, most creative arts, and arts and crafts store in all of New York City.
Stop in any large city libraries and you can find all the free bus and train maps there are.
Go to the New York Public Library on Clarke Avenue in Staten Island and you will find every bus and train map, along with the ferry schedules and other interesting travel bulletins, and these are all free of charge to you.
Check the section below about related articles. I have posted one article there that deals with making better photographs by cropping. Instead of buying expensive post cards and posters, use your own photographs as the souvenirs. With your cropping skills, no one will know the difference between the famous landmark postcards and your own photographs.
Stick with your Big Apple Greeter. That person knows the ins and outs of the city and you will get the best look and the best tour.
Never give money to homeless individuals on the street. If you feel that you must, give to the organizations that help the homeless instead of approaching homeless on the streets. Some people have been assaulted by homeless people when they gave or did not give money to them.
In the city, the pickpockets are notorious for "working" the bus lines. People pushing and shoving to get on busses are easy pickings for the pick pockets. Also other well-known spots are in the shoe departments when there are great shoe sales. Everyone is watching their shoes and no one is watching their wallets.
Carry just a little cash, and the rest in traveler's checks or credit cards.
Carry more than one credit or debit card, as some of them do not work in all the ATMS.
Everything in this article is copyrighted. All rights reserved including internet, Int'l and electronic rights. No copies without prior written permission. The Broadway actors and actresses pictures are not for sale at all. These are just for your viewing pleasure here in this article.

Step1

If possible, see the Pow-Wow Events all through New York State Decide where you are going and where you want to stay. Decide on your vacation dates and times, arrival times and all that necessary information. Once you book your trip, your arrangements are set and now you are ready to proceed to locate your free tour guide for the city.

Step2

Our Best Free Entertainment, our parades. I took this photograph at one of our St. Patrick's Day parades in New York State. Check out this site online and make the call or contact them online. Tell the person, in charge, the date that you will be arriving and let them know which dates you would like the tour guide to accompany you. Let them know which method of traveling that you will use to get around the city.

IF you intend to travel around the city by bus or train, be sure and get the FUN PASSES rather than regular Metro cards. The fun passes will give you unlimited riding on the regular busses and trains in all the boroughs for a certain period of time; it is a great discount.

Fun passes last for one day or for one week . At this time of this article, a daily fun pass is seven dollars.

Another best bargain is the park' s entertainment. All summer long, our parks have great entertainment, including Shakespeare and also some excerpts of Broadway and off-broadway shows. Usually these are all free of charge. Seeing part of the plays in the parks makes a good preview and then you have a better idea of which play you want to see on Broadway in Manhattan.

Step3

Be sure to see the World Trade Center Memorials while you are in New York City. Make the final arrangements and appointments to meet with your tour guide, and then go from there. You are almost guaranteed to have a great time as these volunteers love to show tourists around the city. Take note too that you do not have to be from out of town to have this free service. No matter where you live, make the arrangements. The service is all free. (You need to pay only your own admission tickets, meals, and souvenirs and for your own travel).

The actual service of the tour itself is totally free.

The website is posted in the Resource section. Please read the rest of this article, including the Tips and Warnings section.

NEW YORK STATE: New York State is very large. When visiting parts of Long Island, you can stay at some of the state parks that have camping areas. (Plan to camp out). Imagine staying at the Hamptons for under thirty-dollars a night? I did that once by reserving ahead of time for a camping space at the Hither Hills State Park in Long Island, NY.

Also when staying in NYS, check online for all the parks' events --throughout the state. This way you are prepared with the special dates and you can give yourself weeks of free entertainment by doing that.

You can even contact one of the Executive Producers of a Time Warner show to take part in the free auditions and or the free audience tickets. Much advance notice is needed, but these are still possibilities.

Before leaving New York City, try and spend time at Ground Zero or at other memorials throughout the city. This picture below is one of the thousands of memorials, throughout the United States, dedicated to the heros of September 11th.