Recommended walking tours of the city 

We recommend an amazing selection of FREE walking tours throughout the city.

• Our Brooklyn Heights-Dumbo-Brooklyn Bridge Walking Tour gives students the opportunity to explore two very popular neighborhoods close to the school, and walk across the iconic Brooklyn Bridge. The tour takes 1 hour and 45 minutes and ends in Manhattan.
• Our Manhattan Movie Walking Tour takes students on a leisurely stroll to show some of the locations where famous movies and TV shows took place in New York while giving students the chance to see three of New York’s most well-known neighborhoods (SoHo, Greenwich Village, and the West Village). The tour takes 1 hour and 30 minutes.
• The Bright Lights of the Big City Tour takes students on a walk through Midtown Manhattan to see some of the city’s most iconic buildings including the Flatiron Building, Empire State Building, NY Public Library, Chrysler Building, Grand Central Terminal, and Rockefeller Center. For anyone interested in architecture, this tour is a must! The tour takes 1 hour and 45 minutes.
• One of our most popular walking tours is our Bushwick Graffiti Tour, which wanders leisurely through this very popular Brooklyn neighborhood. This tour is a great opportunity for students to see some great graffiti art, explore the neighborhood, and take some great photos! The tour takes 1 hour and 45 minutes.
• Our Central Park Tour explores the southern end of New York’s most famous park and includes Strawberry Fields, the Bow Bridge, the Bethesda Fountain, the pond, the beautiful Gapstow Bridge, and includes a great cityscape view. The tour takes 1 hour and 30 minutes.
• Our visit to the High Line takes students down one of New York’s newest and most popular attractions on Manhattan’s west side. The High Line is a great urban park, and the tour ends in the Meatpacking District. The tour takes 1 hour and 30 minutes.
• Our Lower Manhattan Tour takes students through Lower Manhattan to visit some of the areas most iconic buildings, streets, and districts. The tour is a great opportunity for students to see Wall Street, Trinity Church, the historic South Street Seaport area. 

NYC Museums 

There are so many great museums in New York that are less well-known but just as good! We have put together a selection of some of these below.

• The New Museum is a great modern art museum, located in Manhattan’s Lower East Side. Don’t miss the views from the top floor terrace!
• Up on Manhattan’s Upper East Side, and in the shadow of a number of more famous museums, sits one of the city’s great art museums, the Frick Collection. Housed in what was once a private home, this is definitely worth a visit.
• The Morgan Library in Midtown is a must-see museum and cultural space. It’s worth the visit just to see the richly decorated interior.
• The Met Cloisters, located close to the top of Manhattan next to the Hudson River, is part of the world-famous Metropolitan Museum of Art and includes a number of beautiful courtyards to sit and people watch!
• The Brooklyn Museum, located next to Prospect Park and the Botanical Garden, is a place just worth going to see because of the building, but also shows a variety of exhibits throughout the year.

Shopping & sightseeing 

There is so much to do and see in this great city that it would be impossible for us to list everything here. So here is just a taster…

Where to shop

You can’t visit New York without doing a little shopping.  Here are just a few recommendations. First, you can go to SoHo or walk along the famous 5th Avenue, which is full of well-known shops, such as Lord and Taylor, Tiffany & Co, and many others!

If you prefer big department stores, you should go to Herald Square, where you can find Macy’s and its 7 floors! Or why not buy a fancy bag at a 70% discount at Century 21, in downtown Brooklyn or Lower Manhattan?

If you would rather spend your afternoon looking at vintage and handmade objects you should take a trip to the Brooklyn flea in Williamsburg or go vintage shopping in Greenpoint. And if spending an afternoon in an independent bookstore is more your speed, check out the Greenlight Bookstore in the heart of Fort Greene or The Strand bookstore close to Union square.

What to do that’s FREE

There are several activities that can you do for free in NYC! You can go for a leisurely walk in picturesque Central Park, visit some of the cities best museums and cultural institutions during their free admission days,  admire the skyline as you cross the Brooklyn Bridge, enjoy reading a book at the New York Public Library, or watch a movie under the stars at Bryant Park.

You can also check The Skint for free and really cheap options every week…

Where to run, cycle, or spend a lazy summer afternoon

Central Park in Manhattan is one of the best places for runners, riders, walkers, and those just wishing to pass the time. Prospect Park in the heart of Brooklyn, and just a few subway stops from the school, is equally if not more fulfilling. Designed by the same people who designed Central Park, it’s a wonderful place to relax and get a little fresh air. And just steps from the school, the Brooklyn promenade has long been famous as a place to come, sit and watch the world go by. Also check out any of the public pools, including Astoria Park Pool with its stunning view of the Robert F. Kennedy and Hell Gate bridges.

Check out our blog post for 10 OF OUR FAVORITE PARKS, GARDENS, AND GREEN SPACES IN NYC

Eating & drinking 

Where to eat

Here are some of our favorites…

Williamsburg – Bunker and El Almacén
Cobble Hill – La Vara
Park Slope – Al di La and James
Prospect Heights – Olmsted and Alta Calidad
Carroll Gardens – Prime Meats, Frankies, and Buttermilk Channel
Bushwick – Roberta’s Pizza and Faro
Chinatown – Nom Wah Tea Parlor  and Spicy Village
Redhook – The Good Fork and Hometown Bar-B-Que

Where to have a drink in Brooklyn 

There are so many to choose from, but here’s a brief selection from around the neighborhoods…

Bed Stuy – Doris, Dynaco, Marco´s and Barron’s
Boerum Hill – Brooklyn Ale House
Brooklyn Heights – Floyd’s, Montero, and Elsa
Bushwick – Left Hand Path, Dromedary, and Pearls
Cobble Hill – June and Zombie Hut
Crown Heights – Super Power and Franklin Park
Fort Greene – Black Forest and Brooklyn Public House
Greenpoint – Goldies and Broken Land
Park Slope – 4th Ave pub, Mission Dolores, and The Gate
Red Hook – Sunny’s and Brooklyn Ice House
Williamsburg – Union Pool, Pete’s Candy Store, Fresh Kills Bar, and Black Flamingo.

Our favorite cafes in Brooklyn

Hungry Ghost, Prospect Heights
Cafe Regular, Park Slope
Smith Canteen, Cobble Hill
Bluebottle and Devocion, Williamsburg
Greene Grape Annex, Fort Greene
Swallow Cafe, Brooklyn Heights