Commuter rail lines are mostly used for traveling between the city and its suburbs, owing to the vast existence of the Subway; however, they can be used for intracity transit as well. There, the price is the same as the subway ($2.90), and is payable by MetroCard (free transfers from MTA buses work, just as is the case with subways). PATH also accepts the SmartLink Card (similar to the MetroCard, but the SmartLink Card cannot be used on the NYC subway), and accepts contactless payment directly using credit cards, smartphone taps, etc at the TAPP gates. Manhattan PATH stations are cramped and dusty; expect extremely crowded conditions during rush hours. PATH trains can be used to travel within Manhattan along a segment running under Sixth Avenue, although realistically there’s no reason to use this service unless the Sixth Avenue subway line ( B D F F M ) is severely delayed or disrupted. The much-feared subway crimes of the 1970s and 1980s are for the most part a thing of the past, and it is usually completely safe.
- Brooklyn (Kings County), on the western end of Long Island, has the most people living in it than any other borough.
- New York City’s food culture includes an array of international cuisines influenced by the city’s long immigrant history.
- If you use the subway or buses, you will almost certainly need to walk to and from stations or stops.
If you choose to park on the street, don’t be surprised if you find a few new scratches and scrapes on your bumper. In the case of parallel parking on the street, “bumping” cars in front of and behind of you to get into and out of a parking spot (known to some as “Braille Parking”) is common. The overwhelming majority of parking facilities in Manhattan have mandatory valet parking, so you must set aside a few dollars for tips, and anticipate the time it will take for a valet to retrieve your vehicle. Unfortunately, the majority of fast-moving roadways are designated as parkways in New York City.
- Many major US studio releases open earlier in New York than elsewhere (especially in the autumn) and can be found at the major cineplexes (AMC, United Artists, etc.) around the city.
- The borough of Manhattan is a long, narrow island nestled in a natural harbor.
- One out of ten private sector jobs in the city is with a foreign company.
- The minimum fare in these cabs is about $7, and it is advisable to negotiate the fare before you get inside (again, tipping your driver is expected).
In the pre-Columbian era, the area of present-day New York City was inhabited by Algonquians, including the Lenape. New York City is home to the highest number of billionaires, individuals of ultra-high net worth (greater than US$30 million), and millionaires of any city in the world by a significant margin. As of 2025update, New York City is the most expensive city in the world for expatriates and has by a wide margin the highest residential rents of any American city. The city came under English control in 1664 and was temporarily renamed New York after King Charles II granted the lands to his brother, the Duke of York, before this name was permanently adopted in 1674. The settlement was named New Amsterdam in 1626 and was chartered as a city in 1653.
Boroughs
Most of the city is built on the three islands of Long Island, Manhattan, and Staten Island. At least 43 people died in New York City as a result of Sandy, and the economic losses in New York City were estimated to be roughly $19 billion. New York City was heavily impacted by Hurricane Sandy in October 2012, including flooding that led to the days-long shutdown of the subway system, and flooding of all East River subway tunnels and of all road tunnels entering Manhattan except the Lincoln Tunnel. Two of the four hijacked airliners were flown into the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center, resulting in the collapse of both buildings and the deaths of 2,753 people, including 343 first responders from the New York City Fire Department and 71 law enforcement officers.
The official website of NYC
In 2012, Walls Street made 5.0% of the city’s private sector jobs, 8.5% ($3.8 billion) of its tax revenue, and 22% of the city’s total wages, including an average salary of $360,700. New York City has one of the largest Hispanic and Latino population in the United States. The majority of the people in New York City belong to ethnic groups that are minorities in the US.
Ethnicity and nationality
There are a small number of self-cleaning, coin-operated toilets in the city, which require quarters (25¢) and are always wheelchair-accessible. Asking for tap water is completely acceptable in any restaurant; your other choices are “bottled” (non-carbonated water, such as Fiji or Evian) or “sparkling” (which almost always means Pellegrino). Despite the stereotypes, many New Yorkers are nice people and don’t mind giving out directions (time allowing), so don’t be afraid to ask!
Return your bike to a station (remember to place it securely in a dock–you will be further fined if the light on the dock does not turn green). The program has over 750 stations in Manhattan and parts of Brooklyn, Queens, and the Bronx. The Manhattan Waterfront Greenway circles (almost) the whole of Manhattan, and protected bikeways exist on some major avenues. Street parking can be free or much cheaper than garage or lot parking, but can be extremely hard to come by. Parking in garages or outdoor lots is usually very expensive, costing as much as $40 per day in Manhattan, although cheap or free lot parking is available at some times at certain locations. Commercial traffic is prohibited on all multiple-lane roadways designated as “parkways” (such as the Grand Central Parkway, Cross-Island Parkway, or Henry Hudson Parkway) with frequent low bridges.
Die Highlights & Sehenswürdigkeiten im Badlands Nationalpark
Broadway theatre is one of the premier forms of English-language theatre in the world, named after Broadway, the major thoroughfare that crosses Times Square, sometimes referred to as “The Great White Way”. New York was voted the world’s most resilient city in 2021 and 2022, per Time Out’s global poll of urban residents. The oldest public-access television channel in the United States is the Manhattan Neighborhood Network, founded in 1971. The industry employed more than 100,000 people in 2019, generating $12.2 billion in wages and a total economic impact of $64.1 billion. Tabloid newspapers in the city include the New York Daily News, which was founded in 1919 by Joseph Medill Patterson, and the New York Post, founded in 1801 by Alexander Hamilton. Tourism is a vital industry for New York City, and New York City Tourism + Conventions represents the city’s official bureau of tourism.
Staten Island
These scammers will charge several times the rate into Manhattan, and add extras, such as “tax” and “tip.” In some cases, drivers have charged as much as $1,300 for the trip. Scammers outside of the arrivals terminals at JFK will offer their services, claiming to be Uber drivers and that their original fare cancelled their ride. John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK IATA) and Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR IATA) are large international airports, while LaGuardia Airport (LGA IATA) is a busy domestic airport. The long-established Jewish American and Italian-American communities have developed their own dialects that can still be heard throughout the city. Due to its large Ashkenazi Jewish population, many Yiddish terms have also made their way into local English slang. Traditionally, English in New York City was spoken with distinctive accents, which differed according to ethnicity, neighborhood and social class (compare the Queens accent of Donald Trump with the Brooklyn accent of Bernie Sanders, both New Yorkers, as an example).
The store was busier than usual because of a bocce tournament down the street — a celebration of Italian-American pride. Restaurants near the train station are displaying games outdoors, which will only become more frequent come summertime. This is the city that never sleeps, meaning there is always something to do or someone to meet. In 2026, when the region hosts eight men’s World Cup games, including the final, it will only deepen that legacy. On the designated busiest traffic days of the year, please consider walking, biking, or taking public transportation whenever possible.
Many of the world’s biggest media conglomerates are also in the city. The city’s securities industry, which has 163,400 jobs in August 2013, continues to be the biggest part of the city’s financial sector and an important economic part. The city’s fashion industry has about 180,000 employees with $11 billion in annual wages.
Secluded bridges and tunnels, as well as large parks and wooded areas that can give rise to brush fires, also present challenges. The 20th century saw a rise in the Mafia, dominated by the Five Families, as well as in gangs, vegas casino apk rummy including the Black Spades. New York City had one of the lowest homicide rates among the ten largest U.S. cities at 5.5 per 100,000 residents in 2021. The city set a record high of 2,245 murders in 1990 and hit a near-70-year record low of 289 in 2018. The New York Police Department (NYPD) is the largest police force in the United States, with more than 36,000 sworn officers.
While the namesake for Tammany Hall is 46 not widely known, this is an organization that continues to give acknowledgement to the Indigenous peoples to which the land belonged, even if only in name. Together with its growing immigrant population, which was angry about conscription, sympathies among residents were divided for both the Union and Confederacy at the outbreak of war. In 1842, water was piped from a reservoir to supply the city for the first time.
The 1980s began a rebirth of Wall Street, and the city reclaimed its role at the center of the worldwide financial industry. Like many major U.S. cities, New York suffered race riots, gang wars and some population decline in the late 1960s. Throughout the first half of the 20th century, the city became a world center for industry, commerce, and communication, marking its rising influence with such events as the Hudson-Fulton Celebration of 1909. From 1890 to 1930, the largest cities, led by New York, were the focus of international attention.
Nighttime temperatures are 9.5 °F (5.3 °C) degrees higher for the average city resident due to the urban heat island effect, caused by paved streets and tall buildings. Designated in 1984 to protect the island’s natural lands, the Greenbelt comprises seven city parks. The borough has a long beachfront shoreline including Coney Island, established in the 1870s as one of the earliest amusement grounds in the United States Marine Park and Prospect Park are the two largest parks in Brooklyn. Manhattan is the cultural, administrative, and financial center of New York City and contains the headquarters of many major multinational corporations, the United Nations headquarters, Wall Street, and many important universities. Manhattan’s population density of 70,450.8 inhabitants per square mile (27,201.2/km2) in 2022 makes it the highest of any county in the United States and higher than the density of any individual American city. With its population density and extensive exposure to global travelers, the city rapidly replaced Wuhan, China as the global epicenter of the pandemic during the early phase, straining the city’s healthcare infrastructure.
The city has a strong imbalance of payments with the national and state governments. New York City has not been carried by a Republican presidential candidate since 1924, and no Republican candidate for statewide office has won all five boroughs since the city was incorporated in 1898. As of November 2023, 67% of active registered voters in the city are Democrats and 10.2% are Republicans.
The city’s neighborhoods and streets are so iconic they have become ingrained into the American consciousness. The bustling, cosmopolitan heart of the 4th largest metropolis in the world and by far the most populous city in the United States, New York has long been a key entry point and a defining city for the nation. Visit the restaurants, parks, and landmarks that make New York City the best city in the world and leave with memories that will last a lifetime. Find a public computer center near you to access free Wi-Fi, devices, and digital skills training.
New York City is one of the relatively few American cities levying an income tax (about 3%) on its residents; despite this tax levy, New York City in 2024 was home by a significant margin to the highest number of billionaires of any city in the world, with a total of 110. In November 2023, the city had total employment of over 4.75 million of which more than a quarter were in education and health services. In 2017, the city had 205,592 employer firms, of which 22.0% were owned by women, 31.3% were minority-owned and 2.7% were owned by veterans. The city’s fashion industry provides approximately 180,000 employees with $11 billion in annual wages. New York City’s role as the top global center for the advertising industry is metonymously reflected as Madison Avenue. Many Fortune 500 corporations are headquartered in New York City, as are a large number of multinational corporations.
