NYC is a city that needs to be seen from up above, so every time I'm there I like to take in the city from a new high vantage post. Which is why this is part two - part one can be found here, if you're interested. (And, I'll be honest, I preferred those observation decks to these!)
First up, and one that wasn't open the last time we were in town,
Edge at Hudson Yards. Which has the highest outdoor deck in the western hemisphere. It also has a glass floor, in part, so you can see that you're standing 100 stories up in the air! And if you're feeling super brave there's also
City Climb where you are harnessed up and can lean out even higher than the outdoor deck. Not for us!
We visited Edge in the morning - after having breakfast round the corner at the
Olly Olly Market - and found it to to have great views of Manhattan. Tickets cost from $36 for general admission, but only for certain slots - it actually worked out at $51.17 each for our ticket, which is roughly on a par with the various other observation decks around the city.
Next up, the
One World Observatory. It's the tallest building at that end of Manhattan, and obviously has serious significance with how this replaced the Twin Towers because of 9/11, but we found it to both pushy and deceiving. Within mere metres we were asked over and over whether we wanted to upgrade our visit. It got a bit much. We also wanted to take advantage of seeing a sunset from here - that was perfectly doable - then see the city at night. However, it closed just after sunset for us, leaving five minutes to snap some photos whilst getting yelled at to leave.
They were also very sneaky when we ordered a drink. A 20% tip was automatically included, which they don't tell you about - that was absolutely fine, we always tip well in the States - but they then ask you for another tip, meaning if we hadn't realised we'd already tipped, we'd have tipped 40%. Not cool, especially when we were just handed two glasses and two mini bottles of wine.
So, I wouldn't recommend there, in all honesty, unless you're using something like a NYC Pass and it's basically free because you've got the most value out of your pass. I will say as a positive it did have a cool reveal of the NYC skyline, but this has been my least favourite way to see the city from above because of the aforementioned things. Though, begrudgingly, the view is better than Edge. Tickets cost us $53.35 each.
Not quite as high as these two observation decks - far from it - but it's worth going up to the rooftop of the
M Social Hotel to have a cocktail (or two) with a Times Square view. You don't have to be a guest of the hotel to frequent the bar, and it's a nice way to have a stepped back view of Times Square with a drink (or nibbles!).
Finally,
RiseNY is a 4D flight simulator ride where you soar over NYC. Technically you're seeing the city from above this way! Tickets cost us $43.82 and as well as the ride there's also a museum with seven exhibitions that focus on fashion, Broadway, Wall Street, TV and radio, film, music and the skyline - all from a New York angle, of course - plus a film centred around NYC's first subway, narrated by Jeff Goldblum. You won't be there long, but it was enjoyable enough, though it is the same price as an observation deck. If you have to choose, do an actual observation deck!
Which is your favourite view? x
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