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Debating trip to NYC or London, cheaper option?

Cincinnati, Ohio
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Debating trip to NYC or London, cheaper option?
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I am planning a budget 10-day trip this fall, and was looking either London or New York. I have always heard that London was one of the most expensive cities to vacation in, and that NY was a a cheaper option.

However, after doing research - it appears this information is backward for a budget traveler...

Even with the exchange rate, everything appears at least the same price or cheaper in London - and in some cases in a major way.

For example, the cheapest hotels in NYC along the subway route - that I can find - is at least $150 a night for a badly furnished room in an old building, with the average being more along the line of $200 or more a night. Meanwhile, in London, I can stay in a travelodge or IBIS budget right next to a tube station for less than $70 USD a night - and while the hotels might not be expensive, they don't appear to be overly run-down like a lot of the Manhattan hotels do.

There's also the difference in cost of attractions once there. In NYC, all the museums cost at least $25 a person, where in London most are free. London has almost all the major attractions on 2for1 offers with a train ticket, NYC doesn't. West end tickets are also much cheaper than NY - using Wicked as an example, the cheapest Broadway seats are $110 with fees, while the cheapest west end ticket is about £15, or about $23 - fees included.

Even with the airfare there and back, a 10-day London trip, at least on the surface, appears much cheaper than a similar NYC trip.

So with all this in mind, why does the whole 'London is most expensive than NYC' thing come from? Am I missing something here?

Dallas, Texas
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1. Re: Debating trip to NYC or London, cheaper option?
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Seems like you have the answer you want

Go to London

Wisconsin
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I love both cities and have been to both numerous times. Both cities can be very expensive depending on how you like to travel. NYC is notoriously expensive in the fall for lodging due to events going on in the city and the great weather (usually). With the amount of time you have and if you can swing the budget, I would pick London this time and go to NYC for a shorter visit sometime during a less popular month.

Illinois
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I find that hotel prices are similar or cheaper in London. I paid $244/night (including tax) for my hotel in NYC in March this year (£173). The hotel I normally stay at in London is £147. That's 2 twins instead of a queen. I think their double rooms are actually double beds, not queens, in London. That's either good or bad depending on who you're traveling with. The London hotel includes breakfast. I probably could have gotten a similar NYC hotel room to where we stayed for $20-30 less a night.

I'd say we probably averaged $30-40/night pp for dinner (no alcohol). That's currently £21-28. I think that's probably a little less than the same meal would be in London - food tends to cost the same in £ as it would in $. I pay more in London because my daughter is 20, so she can have wine with a meal in London but not in the US.

Depending on what you go see and if you get discounts, London sights are very variable. I paid $37 for 2 of us at the Met (daughter was a student rate), but that ticket is good for 3 days and you can visit the main museum, the Cloisters, and the Breuer. The Tower of London is about £25 pp, but we got the 2for1 discount, so it was £12.50 each but only for one day. The museums that are most like the Met are free. (British Museum, National Gallery, V&A.) London is fairly unique in having so many free museums, I think. The only other place I know of that's like that is Washington DC. (Not that I've been everywhere.)

In general, when I've priced similar seats for the same show in NYC and London, the London ones are cheaper by maybe $10-40 per person.

However, the airfare to London is usually around $1200. Our flights to NYC were $382 and it's a lot shorter of a flight. That's $818 extra dollars to spend on hotels and entry fees. For an 8 day trip, that's an extra $100/day. There's also not an overnight flight. We saw a Broadway show in NYC the same day we left IL. (We probably could have made a matinee, but we decided not to push it.)

I will say, though, that I like London better than NYC, so that's worth something too. I don't know which you like better.

r c
Portland, Oregon
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welcome,

Many museums in london are FREE. And that is easy on the wallet. However, if youre not a museum type of person, its moot.

I find that my flight is one of my most expensive parts of my trip. Its more expensive to fly to Europe than to the east coast.

You are closer, so it may not be a big a price difference.

Here is how i think and do things. Im wired differently so you or others my or may not agree. but its okay, since when i travel, its my money and time. not your or others.

I travel outside of the USA since i can at this time afford the flights. The flights are not as inexpensive as i would like, but i need to pay to play. So thats what i do.

I also figure if flights get too "expensive" i can always drive to NYC. So far, the cars i have bought will not fly or go over water or have a built in transporter.

good luck.

Dallas, Texas
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If you want free museums in the USA, go to the District of Columbia.

Phoenix, Arizona
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We find the general prices in both NYC and London, to be comparable, at least how we travel.

Starting with the airfare, it should be cheaper to get from Indiana to NYC, than to London - a savings there.

Dining in each city is a wash to me: though we are usually dining upper-end, both cities offer similar dining options, across the spectrum.

Museums? Nod to London.

Parks, and walking experiences? Close, but a nod to London.

Walkability? Tie

Now, which would I do? Well, London 3x this year, and NYC only twice - but not due to budgetary concerns.

Best of luck,

Hunt

Westchester, New...
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Not that you shouldn’t go to London but. I work in Manhattan and FYI it’s in small print but for some of the big museums in NYC (Met, History Museum etc) admission amount is suggested. You could give them a dollar and get in. Also anywhere in Manhattan is close the subway or bus. As a tourist thought you probably don’t want uptown. Most tourist sites are midtown or lower. You can also try for discount theatre tickets because it does get pricey.

Hope you have a great trip whatever you decide!

New York City, New...
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I live in New York City and visit London. I find London to be a much better value. London is much prettier than New York City, in my opinion. London has loads of visually appealing Victorian architecture, both exterior and interior, that I adore. I also love London's leafy streets. A front seat on the upper deck of a London double decker bus is the best. And if you go in September, Buckingham Palace is open to the public.

Edited: 5 years ago
Illinois
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The Met has a new admissions policy. It's now only suggested admission for NY state residents and Tristate students.

https://rsecure.metmuseum.org/admissions

NY Historical Society is only pay as you wish from 6-8PM on Fridays. (Not sure that's the History Museum you're referring to.)

https://www.nyhistory.org/visit/plan

I would say the public transportation system in London is marginally easier to use than the one in NYC. I've gotten on the wrong train twice in 3 trips to NYC and never have in London (that I recall) after probably 10-12 trips. Both times I think we got on an express train instead of a local. Everywhere in either city is near subway/tube or bus.

There's TKTS in both cities for discount theatre tickets, but I'm too picky about shows and seats, so I've never used them. (We got discount seats to Phantom in NYC and didn't think they were very good.)

New York City, New...
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Live in NYC, visited London numerous times, adore both cities. You can find more affordable nice hotels in London. I also think London is more pleasant to walk around in as a visitor.

I think you can find affordable food in both cities, but for good cheap food I give the edge to NYC.

For transport, subways are cheaper than the tube. But tube soooooooooo much easier to navigate. NYC yellow cabs are also cheaper than black taxis in London.. Not sure about Uber.

I’m guessing flights will be more expensive to London than NYC? But from London, you could easily visit another European city if you wanted to.

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