It’s no secret that New York City is one of the most expensive cities in America, but that doesn’t mean you have to go into credit card debt just to have fun here. In fact, one of the greatest benefits of being in a city as big as New York is the abundance of free things to do and see. To keep your wallet happy, take advantage of these completely free activities, from comedy shows and brewery tours to museum visits and tapings of late-night TV.
Spend Saturday morning admiring foliage
Prospect Heights
Every Saturday from 10am-12pm, admission to the Brooklyn Botanic Garden, located on the north side of Prospect Park, is completely free. The best time to get there is from late-April to mid-May, when the cherry blossoms are in full bloom, but there’s plenty off Instagram-worthy foliage to see year-round.
See comedians (and maybe even a few celebrities) perform improv
Chelsea
Standing in a line for over an hour is something of a New York rite of passage, and no line is more worthwhile than the one outside Sunday night's free Upright Citizens Brigade improv show, ASSSCAT 3000. Each week, a guest monologist (which could be a comedy writer, talk show host, or actor) tells stories from his or her life, and a group of improv comedians comes up with on-the-spot sketches based off the stories. Amy Poehler, who helped open the theater 20+ years ago, has been known to stop by as well. Here’s how the line works: Line up by 6:30pm to ensure you’ll get in (the theater passes out numbers at 8:15pm). You’ll have an hour to grab some food before lining up in the same order at 9:15pm to enter the theater. The show starts at 9:30.
Explore one of Manhattan’s most beautiful museums
Washington Heights
Located at the very top of Manhattan in Fort Tryon Park, the Cloisters -- the Met's sister museum dedicated to Medieval art and architecture -- is the perfect place to roam on a sunny afternoon. Take the A train to 190th St and then stroll through the park nestled right along the Hudson River. Although there’s a suggested price for admission, you can very well choose to not pay anything. The museum is open every day, from 10am-5:15pm from March-October, and 10am-4:45pm from November–February.
Wander around Socrates Sculpture Park
Long Island City
This free garden and public park in Long Island City (open every day from 9am to sunset) is NYC’s only space dedicated to large-scale sculptures and outdoor multimedia installations. Highlights include a piano harp that’s been transformed into a beehive and a self-sustaining forest garden. To get there, take the N/W train to the Broadway stop in Queens, then walk a few blocks west on Broadway until you reach the intersection of Vernon Boulevard.
See a live taping of a daytime or late-night talk show
Various locations
It will cost you exactly $0 to be in the same room as Jimmy Fallon, Seth Meyers, and Whoopi Goldberg as tapings to daytime and late-night talk shows filmed in NYC are completely free. You can put in requests for Good Morning America, Live with Kelly, The Chew, The View, and Late Night With Seth Meyers on this website, and information about many other free studio audience tickets can be found here. Do note that most of these shows tape during weekdays, save for Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, which tapes on Sunday afternoons.
Work on your crow pose
Various locations
Yoga to the People, with five locations across New York City, offers donation-based yoga classes, meaning you can get your zen on at no cost. Unsurprisingly, the classes are pretty popular, so make sure you get there at least 15 minutes early to snag a spot -- and bring your own mat (rentals are $2). If yoga isn't your thing, there are plenty of other ways to get fit in New York without spending any money.
Drink wine, eat cheese, and admire art
Chelsea
Every Thursday night, Chelsea art galleries host openings for new showings that are completely free to the public. Almost all of them offer freebies like wine and cheese, so make sure to check this website to stay up to date on gallery openings.
Discover how beer is made
Williamsburg & Astoria
Williamsburg-based Brooklyn Brewery offers free tours of its facility every half hour on Saturdays and Sundays, and after the tour, you can drink the beer for only $5 a pint (which isn’t free but still cheaper than most bars in New York). In Astoria, SingleCut Beersmiths holds a free tour at 5pm on Saturdays and Sundays.
Take in the views from the Staten Island Ferry
Lower Manhattan & Staten Island
Tickets for ferry rides to the Statue of Liberty are ridiculously expensive, and you have to battle pushy crowds for a good seat. To get an up-close view of Lady Liberty and Ellis Island, take the Staten Island Ferry, which departs from Manhattan every 30 minutes. If you take it during sunset, you’ll get great views of the skyline, and you can sip beer right on the ferry for about $4 a drink (or BYO).
Admire some of the world’s finest art
Various locations
Many New York City museums offer free admission days or pay-what-you-wish. There are also museums that are always free, like the FIT Museum in Chelsea, which features exhibits dedicated to fashion. Below are some of the best free museum days you’ll want to put in your planner now.
- MoMA: Every Friday, 4-8 pm
- Museum of the Moving Image: Every Friday, 4-8 pm
- Brooklyn Museum: First Saturday of the month, 5-11pm
- Frick Collection: First Friday of the month, 6-9pm
- Jewish Museum: Saturday, all day
- Metropolitan Museum of Art: Not free, but admission prices are just a suggestion, so you can get away with paying nothing
Stroll the High Line and Brooklyn Heights Promenade
Meatpacking & Brooklyn Heights
When the weather's nice, spend an early morning walking the High Line, an abandoned aboveground railroad track turned into an urban park, or the Brooklyn Heights Promenade, which features the best views of Lower Manhattan. If you're looking to avoid crowds at all costs, get there extra-early or go on a weekday.
Suspend yourself above the East River
Midtown
If you have an unlimited subway pass, trips on the Roosevelt Island Tram are free. There's no better way to conquer your fear of heights than being suspended above Midtown East and the East River. Once on Roosevelt Island, head south to South Point Park where there’s plenty of room to picnic, sunbathe, or set up an impromptu Instagram photo shoot with the skyline in the background.
Cuddle up with a good book inside an iconic building
Midtown
After a two-year renovation, the iconic Rose Main Reading Room at the flagship New York Public Library in Bryant Park is now open to the public again, and it’s the perfect place to head on a rainy day to discover a new book. If you want to learn more about the library’s history, free one-hour tours of the whole building are offered on a first-come, first-serve basis Monday through Saturday at 11am and 2pm and Sundays at 2pm.
Walk in the footsteps of a founding father
Various locations
Tickets to the Broadway hit Hamilton are going to cost you a few hundred dollars, but for free, you can visit many of the places that Alexander Hamilton actually frequented or lived. The highlight of your self-guided tour around the city is Hamilton Grange, which is where Hamilton lived the last few years of his life.
Test your movie knowledge
Bushwick & Williamsburg
Tuesdays in Brooklyn are the perfect time to see if your film knowledge is strong enough to get you free drinks. Every other Tuesday at 8pm, Syndicated Bar in Bushwick hosts a free movie-trivia night (winners get certificates to the movie theater in the bar, and there are chances to win free drinks throughout the night). Every Tuesday at 8:30pm, Videology in Williamsburg also hosts movie trivia with the prize of a free round of drinks for the winning team. Time to round up that one friend who can name every Best Picture winner since 1938.
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