New York – Hostels in New York. Maps for New York, Photos and Reviews for each hostel in New York.

The second largest art museum in the world, with two million pieces of art spanning 5,000 years. Buy tickets online ($25) to avoid the queues or rock up and wait in line to pay what you want. Get there during the Museum Mile Festival in June, and you might even get in free of charge. As a backpacker you can visit whenever you like, so aim for Mondays - they tend to be quieter.

Website: http://www.metmuseum.org/

Address: Fifth Ave. at 82nd St. (5 Av/82 St) Manhattan, NY 10028

District: East Side

Phone: 212-535-7710

A gift of friendship from France to the US back in 1886, Lady Liberty is possibly the most iconic monument in the world. See her from the free Staten Island ferry, or buy tickets ($18) to Liberty Island through Statue Cruises. January and February during the week is the quietest time to visit.

Website: http://www.statuecruises.com/

Address: Statue of Liberty National Monument New York, NY, United States

District: Manhattan

We wanted to head here as soon as we checked into our hostel - for many visitors, Times Square IS New York. Surrounded by big city lights and giant billboards, it’s the heart of Midtown. A quick skip up the red staircase above the TKTS Discount Booth (50% off shows!) will give you an incredible view of the crossroads of the world.

Address: Manhattan, NY 10036, United States

District: Midtown West

One of the very best places to take in the NY skyline - and sadly it’s no secret. Backpackers and tourists alike flock here. Buy an Express Pass online to beat the lines, or visit before 10am or after 10pm (lookout is open til 2am). Thursday to Saturday a saxophone player strolls the 86th floor Observation Deck from 9pm.

Website: www.esbnyc.com

Address: 350 Fifth Ave. (5 Av/34 St), Manhattan, NY 10118

District: Midtown

Phone: 212-736-3100

With a heaving population (1,636,268live in an area of 22 square miles (59 km2)) and known as the cultural and economic centre of the US, Manhattan is a must-see, as 56 million tourists and backpackers a year will tell you. It includes Times Square, Central Park, Grand Central Station, Broadway and no fewer than three universities. Best time to visit is before or after a long weekend.

The most ethnically diverse urban area in the world, Queens has character oozing the streets and is home to both NY airports. Check out a game at Citi Field, or kick back at Flushing Meadows-Corona Park with zoo, boating lake, skate Park and BBQ area. From Gantry Plaza State Park, the view of Manhattan is pretty special.

Some 2,621,793 call Brooklyn home. And that’s what Brooklyn is – a home in a brownstone. It’s a community, thousands of them all rubbing along together pretty well. Try out Coney Island, with its beaches and waterfront amusement parks, and Brooklyn pizza and head to Nathan’s for the best hot dog in New York. Fact. There are are some great cheap hostels in the area too.

Every backpacker who comes to New York has to take the ferry to Staten Island, the adventure neighbourhood across the harbour. Ralph’s Famous Italian Ices in Port Richmond, open from March to October, is the perfect antidote for exploring the abandoned Sea View building or Staten Island Zoo, or taking a ride on the New York Wheel.

If you want the full-on US, experience, book your hostel for this weekend. It’s a two-day celebration of all that it is to be American, with fireworks, free concerts, flags and festivities. All across the city centre, landmarks are open, shops are selling and hot dogs are being eaten.

Website: http://www.nyc-arts.org/collections/133607/red-white-and-blue-july-4th-weekend-in-nyc

Since 1924, floats and inflatable balloons dance, prance, stroll and wiggle their way along the 2.5 miles from 77th Street and Central Park West to Macy’s in Herald Square at 34th and 6 th. Get there early – before 06:30 – and set up anywhere between 61st and 72nd on Central Park West for the best view.

District: Midtown

Set up in 2002 by Robert De Niro and Jane Rosenthal, the Tribeca Film Festival every April has screened over 1,400 films. Film-loving backpackers won’t want to miss it.

Website: https://tribecafilm.com/festival/tickets

If you’re in a New York City youth hostel at Christmas, this is a must. The Rockefeller Center switches on its 25,000 lights at the beginning of December, and it’s a huge deal, with live music and TV cameras trained on a tree that has been selected from thousands of Norway spruces nominated during the year.

District: Midtown

From June to August, a hundred shows pop up in 17 parks across the city. From modern dance and international music to spoken-word performances and concerts, SummerStage is well worth arriving early for because the queues get big quickly. The Upper West Side hostels close to Central Park make a great choice for this one.

Website: http://www.centralpark.com/guide/activities/concerts/summerstage-festival.html

Address: East 72nd & 5th Avenue, New York, NY 10019, United States

District: East Side

At Brooklyn’s Commodore Barry Park, August’s Afropunk celebrates the nexus between hip-hop, punk, and urban black culture and heaves with cool. Well worth a visit if you can get tickets!

Website: http://afropunkfest.com/general-admission-tickets/

Address: Commodore Barry Park Flushing Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11201, United States

District: Brooklyn

Hocks of cured ham festoon this cool, cave-like wine bar and meat shop close to the uptown hostels on the Upper West Side. Perch at a simple marble tables and tuck into shareable small plates of divine cured meat, the freshest mozzarella outside Italy, and duck meatballs stuffed with nuggets of pecorino.Plates from $3.

Website: www.salumeriarosi.com

Address: 283 Amsterdam Avenue, New York, NY 10023, United States

Phone: 212 877 4801

Filling, classic grub – big turkey sandwiches, tuna salads, burgers and much more. Brunch for a tenner? Done.

Website: www.freemansrestaurant.com

District: Little Italy

Dim sum at $1.50 apiece? If you ask us, those are very backpacker-friendly prices. 88 Palace is on the top floor of a Chinese shopping mall and is crammed with local families and carts loaded with classic Hong Kong–style dim sum. Just try to resist!

Website: http://88palacerestaurant.com/

Address: 88 East Broadway, New York, NY 10002, United States

District: Lower East Side

Phone: 212 941 8886

You want a good old-fashioned burger? You got it! In the Upper East Side, you can gorge on an 8oz slice of heaven in a white bun with American cheese, red onion and pickles – all for the old-fashioned price of $9.25.

Address: 1291 3rd Avenue, New York, NY 10021

District: East Side

Phone: 212 744 0585

Achingly state-of-the-art, this Meat Packing District venue is electronic music all grown up - one for backpackers who take their tunes seriously. If you want the best DJs, this is the place to be. $20, with e-flyer free before 11pm or $12 after.

Website: http://www.cieloclub.com/

Address: 18 Little West 12th Street

Hidden below high-toned Italian restaurant Peasant, you might find a wine bar. And you might not. Shh. While the punters upstairs quaff and pay for it, smart backpackers can head downstairs and get the same for less. Simple.

Website: www.peasantnyc.com

Address: 194 Elizabeth St.

District: Little Italy

This is just too cool for school. Head down into Crif Dogsrestaurant on St. Marks Place. Look for an old-fashioned phone booth.Step inside, pick up the phone and press the buzzer… once. Not twice. A voice answers and, after approval (you need to reserve!), the wall of the phone booth opens to let you into a small room with a bar at its centre. Just wow.

Website: http://www.pdtnyc.com/

Address: 113 St. Marks Place (between 1st Ave and Avenue A)

District: East Village

Photos: http://newyork.cbslocal.com/top-lists/best-bars-for-the-40-something-crowd/pdt-2/

© Copyrights: pdtnyc.com)

If there’s a group of you heading out of the hostel in search of music, a bit of a dance AND happy hours on food and drink, Cameo will sort you out. Dance party, live music, club nights: you’ll love it.

Website: http://www.cameony.net/

Address: 93 North 6th St between Berry St and Wythe Ave

District: Williamsburg

A real-life speak-easy! On Seventh Avenue and Leroy Street, look for a single rusted metal door with no signs but a bouncer outside. Once inside, you’ll go down a long stairway to get into the bar where you should just let the bartenders work their magic (cash only).

Phone: 22 Seventh Avenue S. (at Leroy Street)

Photos: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Little-Branch/41435210381

Nerd alert! Under the M-Train tracks at the intersection of Myrtle Ave and Cedar St. in Bushwick, vintage super hero paraphernalia lines the walls of the tiny Gotham City Lounge. It’s friendly and the drinks are dirt cheap. Winner! It’s not an exclusive place, but you need to get buzzed in. Follow them on Twitter@gothamcityloung.

Address: 1293 Myrtle Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11221

District: Brooklyn

Win the Most Glam In The Dorm award with 70% off Prada, Marc Jacobs and Narciso Rodriguez at THE Financial District discount department store. Get in there at 07:45 on weekdays, 10:00 on Saturdays and 11:00 on Sundays and don’t look back.

Website: www.c21stores.com

Address: 22 Cortlandt Street, New York, NY 10007

District: Downtown

The Garment District’s SSS Sample Sales gathers all the city’s truckloads of high-fashion, low-price designer clothes, shoes and bags. Give a label (like Kate Spade, Tory Burch, and Theory) a home.

Website: www.clothingline.com

Address: 261 West 36th Street, New York, NY 10018

District: Midtown West

If it’s shoes you want, Nordstrom Rack has them. In Union Square, on the threshold of Greenwich Village, a treasure trove of labels awaits. Overstock and last-seasons’ Marc by Marc Jacobs, Michael Kors, and Dolce & Gabbana just for you.

Website: www.nordstrom.com

Address: 60 East 14th Street, New York, NY 10003

District: Gramercy-Flatiron

Avoid Midtown for food. A better bet for backpackers is to look for delis with salad bars, or grab something yummy from a bodega and eat it in a park while people-watching.

They do it because they love NYC and you’re likely to learn a LOT.

Website: http://bigapplegreeter.org/

Two hours you get for $2.75 on any subway or bus. Load you pay-per-ride card with more than $5.50 and get 11% bonus. Pick up an unlimited 7-day MetroCard from a ticket machine for $31.