New York City
We’ve compiled the best of the best in New York City - browse our top choices for the top things to see or do during your stay.
Sort by:
6 Recommendations
{{numTotalPoiResults}} {{ (numTotalPoiResults===1)?'Recommendation':'Recommendations' }}
0 Recommendations
Loading...
-
1. New Museum
Lower East SideThis seven-story, 60,000-square-foot structure—a glimmering, metal-mesh-clad assemblage of off-center squares—caused a small neighborhood uproar when it was built in 2007, with some residents slow to accept the nontraditional building. Not surprisingly, given the museum's name and the building, shows are all about contemporary art, often provocative and frequently with a video element. Free tours are offered; check the website for times.
235 Bowery, New York, New York, 10002, USA212-219–1222Sight Details
Rate Includes: $18 (pay-what-you-wish Thurs. 7–9 pm), Closed Mon. -
2. Tenement Museum
Lower East SideFor a step back to various points in time on the Lower East Side, book one of the experiences that revolve around the partially restored 19th-century buildings that comprise the Tenement Museum. Options include apartment tours, neighborhood walks (including "Reclaiming Black Lives" introduced in 2021), and informative talks. At 97 Orchard Street, theme tours take you through the preserved apartments of several generations of immigrants who lived in the building. The "Hard Times" tour visits the homes of Natalie Gumpertz, a German–Jewish dressmaker (dating from 1878), and Adolph and Rosaria Baldizzi, Catholic immigrants from Sicily (1935). "Sweatshop Workers" visits the Levine family's garment shop–apartment and the home of the Rogarshevsky family from Eastern Europe (1918), while "Irish Outsiders" explores the life of the Moores, an Irish American family living in the building in 1869. Nearby, at 103 Orchard Street, the Under One Roof exhibition explores the lives of immigrant families from Poland, China, and Puerto Rico who lived in the building after World War II. All the tours fill up fast so it's best to sign up in advance.
103 Orchard St., New York, New York, 10002, USA877-975–3786Sight Details
Rate Includes: Most tours $30 (not all allow children under 5) -
3. Essex Street Market
Lower East SideStarted in 1940 as an attempt by Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia to corral street pushcarts and vendors (and thereby get them off the streets), the Essex Street Market was defined early on by the Jewish and Italian immigrants of the Lower East Side and went through several incarnations. The latest and most exciting is the wholesale move from its original location on the northeast corner of Delancey and Essex Streets, across the street to the southeast corner, trading in a windowless and cramped space for one spread over three levels, including a light-filled atrium and plenty of seating. Although many of the vendors selling meat, fish, cheeses (vegan and dairy), produce, bread, pastries, and coffee, tacos, and tajines remain—as does the eccentric Shopsin's restaurant—there are many new shops and restaurants. The vast Market Line food court, downstairs, houses a plethora of famed New York outposts for dining.
-
4. International Center of Photography
Lower East SideFounded in 1974 by photojournalist Cornell Capa (photographer Robert Capa's brother), ICP continues to put on exhibitions that explore the timely social and political aspects of photojournalism. The institution, which has moved its collection of more than 150,000 original prints—spanning the history of photography, from daguerreotypes to large-scale pigment prints—several times, finally has a permanent home with both education and exhibition spaces. The new building's spacious, second- and third-floor galleries really allow the exhibits to shine. There's a gift shop and small café on the ground floor. It's pay-what-you-wish on Thursday night 6 pm–9 pm.
79 Essex St., New York, New York, 10002, USA212-857–0000Sight Details
Rate Includes: $18, Closed Tues. -
5. Museum at Eldridge Street
Lower East SideThe exterior of this 1887 Orthodox synagogue-turned-museum (and community space), the first synagogue to be built by the many Eastern European Jews who settled in the Lower East Side in the late 19th century, is a striking mix of Romanesque, Gothic, and Moorish motifs. Inside are an exceptional hand-carved ark of mahogany and walnut (used to hold Torah scrolls), a sculptured wooden balcony, jewel-tone stained-glass windows, vibrantly painted and stenciled walls, and an enormous brass chandelier. Daily tours are included in the price of admission (check the website for times), and begin downstairs where interactive "touch tables" teach all ages about Eldridge Street, the Lower East Side, and the Jewish immigrant experience. The crowning piece of the building's decades-long restoration is a stained-glass window by artist Kiki Smith and architect Deborah Gans, which weighs 6,000 pounds and has more than 1,200 pieces of glass.
12 Eldridge St., New York, New York, 10002, USA212-219–0302Sight Details
Rate Includes: $15, Closed Sat. -
Recommended Fodor’s Video
-
6. Orchard Street
Lower East SideIf you're looking for a good place to start your exploration of the Lower East Side, Orchard Street, from Houston all the way down to Canal Street, is probably the densest conglomeration of restaurants, cafés, boutiques, and art galleries. It's the perfect place to wander, checking out the art, browsing for clothes and knickknacks, stopping for a coffee or a glass of wine, and having a meal. Although no one gallery really stands out—you're best off visiting whatever catches your eye—look out for Perrotin ( 130 Orchard St.) and Krause Gallery ( 149 Orchard St.).
Orchard St., New York, New York, 10002, USA
-
{{ (numCurrentPage-1)*numPageLimit+index+1 }}.
{{ item.neighborhood }} | {{ item.first_keyword }}{{ item.review }}
{{ item.address }}{{ item.phone[0] }}{{ item.details.title }} Details
{{ item.details.content.toString() }}View Tours and Activities -
Recommended Fodor’s Video
No sights Results
Please try a broader search, or expore these popular suggestions:
There are no results for {{ strDestName }} Sights in the searched map area with the above filters. Please try a different area on the map, or broaden your search with these popular suggestions:
