| New York City, officially named the City of New York, | | | | New York art scene, is now famous for high-priced |
| is the most populous city in the United States, and the | | | | clothing boutiques, and the art galleries are now |
| most densely populated major city in North America. | | | | concentrated in Chelsea. There are also large shopping |
| The city is at the center of international finance, politics, | | | | districts found in Downtown Brooklyn and along |
| entertainment, and culture, and is one of the world's | | | | Queens Boulevard in Queens. |
| major global cities (along with London, Tokyo and | | | | Food & Drink |
| Paris) with a virtually unrivaled collection of museums, | | | | New York is the best restaurant town in USA and one |
| galleries, performance venues, media outlets, | | | | of the finest in the world. New York has literally |
| international corporations, and stock exchanges. The | | | | thousands of restaurants to choose from (more than |
| city is also home to the United Nations, along with all of | | | | 25,000, in fact), encompassing nearly every cuisine in |
| the international missions associated with it. | | | | the world. Some of the big names are Eleven Madison |
| History | | | | Park, The River Café, Boat Basin Café, |
| Long before the arrival of European settlers, the New | | | | Veritas. Like restaurants, thousands of bars and cafes |
| York City area was inhabited by the Lenape people, | | | | are there in the city. A few old noteworthy among |
| including such tribes as the Manahattoes, Canarsies | | | | those are: McSorleys Old Ale House, Revival, Push |
| and Raritan. | | | | Café and White Horse Tavern. |
| Major events in New York history include | | | | Universities |
| ¢ In 1524 the first European explorer enters New | | | | New York City is served by the publicly run City |
| York Harbor | | | | University of New York (CUNY), the largest urban |
| ¢ European settlement begins with the following | | | | university in the United States, which has a number of |
| the 1609 voyage of Henry Hudson | | | | campuses throughout the five boroughs. The city is |
| ¢ Founding of the Dutch fur trading settlement in | | | | also home to a number of other institutions of higher |
| Lower Manhattan in 1613 later called New Amsterdam | | | | learning, some of national or even international |
| ¢ English ships captured the city without struggle | | | | reputation, including Columbia University, Fordham |
| in 1664 | | | | University, Manhattan College, New York University, the |
| ¢ The Dutch formally ceded New York to the | | | | Juilliard School, The Cooper Union, Marymount |
| English in the Treaty of Breda at the conclusion of the | | | | Manhattan College and The New School. New York |
| Second Anglo-Dutch War in 1667 | | | | City is also a major center of academic medicine. |
| ¢ The city was renamed New York, after James, | | | | Manhattan contains the campuses of the world-class |
| Duke of York, and became a royal colony in 1685 | | | | Rockefeller University, Weill Cornell Medical College, |
| ¢ After the Civil War, the rate of immigration from | | | | and Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, as well |
| Europe grew steeply, and New York became the first | | | | as Columbia-Presbyterian Medical Center and NYU |
| stop for millions seeking a new and better life in the | | | | Medical Center and their medical schools. New York |
| United States, a role acknowledged by the dedication | | | | City is home to several of the nation's top schools of |
| of the Statue of Liberty in 1886 | | | | art and design, including Pratt Institute, the School of |
| ¢ In two separate actions in 1874 and 1895, New | | | | Visual Arts, the Fashion Institute of Technology, and |
| York City (and New York County) annexed sections | | | | Parsons School of Design |
| of southern Westchester County known as the Bronx | | | | Sports |
| ¢ In 1898, New York City took the political form in | | | | Although in much of the rest of the country American |
| which it exists to this day. | | | | football has become the most popular professional |
| ¢ 9/11 changed the political map of the world | | | | sport, in New York City baseball arguably still stirs the |
| Place of interest | | | | most passion and interest. A "Subway Series" |
| Tourism is a major local industry, with hundreds of | | | | between city teams is a time of great excitement, and |
| attractions and 39 million tourists visiting the city each | | | | any World Series championship by either the New |
| year on average. Many visitors make it a point to visit | | | | York Yankees or the New York Mets is considered to |
| Ground Zero, the Empire State Building, Times Square, | | | | be worthy of the highest celebration, including a |
| Radio City Music Hall, the Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island, | | | | ticker-tape parade for the victorious team. |
| Wall Street, United Nations Headquarters, the | | | | Hotels & Accommodation |
| American Museum of Natural History, St. Patrick's | | | | The City of New York is known as the "city that |
| Cathedral, Fifth Avenue, and the Brooklyn Bridge, | | | | never sleeps", but its visitors have to. The city hosts a |
| among other attractions. There are over 28,000 acres | | | | large number of accommodations options. |
| (113 km²) of parkland found throughout New York | | | | Luxury Hotels |
| City, comprising over 1,700 separate parks and | | | | New York has many "grand dames," classic elegant |
| playgrounds. The best known of these is Central Park, | | | | hotels that have been around for years and endured |
| which is one of the finest examples of landscape | | | | majestically. The St. Regis, the Waldorf, Tribeca Grand |
| architecture in the world, as well as a major source of | | | | Hotel, Ritz-Carlton New York, Sheraton New York |
| recreation for New Yorkers and tourists alike. Other | | | | Hotel and Towers - are some to mention about. |
| major parks in the city include Riverside Park, Battery | | | | Budget Hotels |
| Park, Bryant Park, Prospect Park, Flushing | | | | Besides all those luxury hotels, a large number of |
| Meadow-Corona Park, Washington Square Park, and | | | | budget hotels are available in New York City. They are |
| Forest Park. | | | | comfortable, homely and light weight for the pocket. |
| Museums & Art Galleries | | | | Some of them to mention are - The Whitehouse Hotel |
| New York is a city of great museums with the | | | | of New York, The Pioneer, Chelsea Center, |
| Metropolitan Museum of Art's assemblage of historic | | | | Guesthouse and Harlem YMCA. Except these hotels |
| art, the Museum of Modern Art and Guggenheim | | | | and guesthouses, Skyline Hotel and Travel Inn are rare |
| Museum's 20th century collection, and the American | | | | exception among affordable hotels for their services |
| Museum of Natural History and its Hayden Planetarium | | | | and facilities. |
| focusing on the sciences. There are also many smaller | | | | Tours and Sightseeing |
| specialty museums, from El Museo del Barrio with a | | | | To know and see the New York City with no tension |
| focus on Latin American cultures to the Cooper-Hewitt | | | | way, a number of tour operators are there for |
| National Museum of Design. A number of the city's | | | | travelers help. These tours contain city and outskirt of |
| museums are located along the Museum Mile section | | | | the city sightseeing. Tours may vary from its contents |
| of Fifth Avenue. | | | | or theme. It may be a helicopter tour of Big Apple or |
| In addition to these museums, the city is also home to | | | | may be a double-decker bus tour. Some fair tour |
| a vast array of spaces for opera, symphony, and | | | | agencies are there in the city. Tours can be booked |
| dance performances. The largest of these is Lincoln | | | | from tour agencies or some hotels arrange them for |
| Center for the Performing Arts, which is actually a | | | | its patrons. Another easy way to book any of these |
| complex of buildings housing 12 separate companies, | | | | tours is online tour ticket booking. Some helpful |
| including the New York Philharmonic, the Metropolitan | | | | websites for this purpose are: |
| Opera, the New York City Opera, the New York City | | | | Transport |
| Ballet, and Jazz at Lincoln Center. Other notable | | | | The airport authority owns and operates the four |
| performance halls include Carnegie Hall, Radio City | | | | major airports in the New York City area, John F. |
| Music Hall, and the Brooklyn Academy of Music. | | | | Kennedy International Airport (JFK) in Jamaica, Newark |
| New York City boasts a highly active and influential | | | | Liberty International Airport in Newark, New Jersey, La |
| theater district, which is centered around Times Square | | | | Guardia Airport in Flushing, and Teeterboard Airport in |
| in Manhattan. It serves both as the center of the | | | | Teeterboard, New Jersey. |
| American theater industry, and as a major attraction | | | | Taxicabs are operated by private companies and |
| for visitors from around the world. Broadway theaters | | | | licensed by the New York City Taxi & Limousine |
| are considered to be of the highest quality in the world. | | | | Commission. Other than cabs, New York City has a |
| Shopping | | | | mass transit system. Unlike most of America's |
| Shopping is popular with many visitors, with Fifth | | | | car-oriented urban areas, public transportation is the |
| Avenue being a famous shopping corridor for luxury | | | | common mode of travel for the majority of New York |
| items. Macy's, the nation's largest department store, | | | | City residents. The city is served by an extensive |
| and the surrounding area of Herald Square are a | | | | network of parkways and expressways, including four |
| major destination for more moderately-priced goods. In | | | | primary Interstate Highways enter the New York/New |
| recent years 23rd Street has become a major | | | | Jersey metropolitan area. The world-famous New |
| location for "big-box" retailers. In southern Manhattan, | | | | York City Subway is operated by the Metropolitan |
| Greenwich Village is home to hundreds of independent | | | | Transportation Authority (MTA). It is the most |
| music and book stores, while the East Village continues | | | | extensive subway system in the world. The subway |
| to prevail as purveyors of all things "strange" and | | | | system connects all boroughs except Staten Island, |
| unusual which you can't find anywhere else. The | | | | which is served by the Staten Island Railway via the |
| "diamond district" (located on 47th Street between | | | | free Staten Island Ferry. In addition to these, city |
| Fifth and Sixth Avenues) is the city's main location for | | | | residents rely on hundreds of bus lines, both publicly |
| jewelry shopping, and SoHo, formerly the center of the | | | | and privately operated. |