The Best Areas to Stay in New York for Any Budget

Lower Manhattan, also known as Downtown, offers a huge variety of ethnic and historic neighborhoods and can occupy a traveler for days on its own merits. Some excellent choices are Union Square, Greenwich Village, Soho, Tribeca, and the South Street Seaport. Most of these areas are accessible to each other on foot or by short taxi trips, as well as to Chinatown and Little Italy. The Lower East Side, the Battery, and parts of the East Village are a little on the gritty side but might offer less expensive options to budget travelers.

Attractions in Lower Manhattan

• One World Trade Center
• Stonewall Inn
• Federal Hall
• Washington Square Park
• Whitney Museum of American Art
• National September 11 Memorial & Museum
• CBGB
• Windows on the World
• New Museum
• Bowling Green

The most attractive areas in Midtown Manhattan are Chelsea and Midtown East.

Times Square and the Theater District shouldn't be missed but probably aren't an ideal location for a base. Don't expect to find many budget options in Midtown.

Attractions in Midtown Manhattan

• Empire State Building
• Museum of Modern Art
• New York Public Library
• Rockefeller Center
• Grand Central Terminal
• Carnegie Hall
• Trump Tower
• St. Patrick's Cathedral
• Waldorf-Astoria Hotel
• Plaza Hotel

The advantage of Uptown Manhattan is the proximity to Central Park and many of New York's top museums, as well as the upscale surroundings of some of New York's priciest real estate. As with Midtown, budget options Uptown are few and far between. As one gets further and further uptown the accommodation prices do decline but neighborhoods become decidedly more blue collar and less convenient to tourist attractions.

Attractions in Uptown Manhattan

• Cathedral of Saint John the Divine
• Cotton Club
• The Cloisters
• Grant's Tomb
• Museum of the City of New York
• Rucker Park
• Fort Tryon Park
• Hispanic Society of America
• Hamilton Grange National Memorial
• El Museo del Barrio

The outer boroughs of Brooklyn and Queens are much better locations for visiting New York now than they were twenty or even ten years ago. The most convenient neighborhoods in Brooklyn are Brooklyn Heights and Williamsburg, which abut the East River. Aside from easy access to Manhattan by road or public transportation, these areas have been reinvigorated in recent years and are now hotspots for restaurants and nightlife.

Attractions in Brooklyn

• Brooklyn Museum
• Prospect Park
• Brooklyn Botanic Garden
• Brooklyn Public Library
• Brooklyn Academy of Music
• Prospect Park Zoo
• Russian Orthodox Cathedral of the Transfiguration of Our Lord
• Brooklyn Children's Museum
• Peter Luger Steak House
• Library of Agudas Chassidei Chabad

The best neighborhoods in Queens are likewise those on the East River which include Long Island City and Astoria.

Long Island City is a small neighborhood that is rapidly becoming more prominent with art galleries and trendy restaurants and breweries.

Astoria is one of New York City's foremost ethnic melting pots and is close to fascinating Queens neighborhoods such as Jackson Heights and Flushing as well as to Brooklyn and Manhattan.

Attractions in Queens

• Flushing Meadows–Corona Park
• Unisphere
• Museum of the Moving Image
• New York Hall of Science
• Queens Museum
• Queens Zoo
• Queens Botanical Garden
• The Africa Center
• Noguchi Museum
• Socrates Sculpture Park