New York City

The CouchSurfing Wiki, an informal workspace which anyone can edit.

Jump to: navigation, search
United States US wiki pages Places Other links
US flag

New York City • San Francisco • Los Angeles • Seattle • Chicago • New Orleans • Nashville • Portland • Detroit • Tucson • Philadelphia • Orlando • Las Vegas • Salt Lake City • Houston • Austin • Boston • Hawaii • Washington, D.C. • Miami

Flag of the City of New York

New York City, also known as The Big Apple, is the biggest city in the United States.

Contents

Meetings

The Google Calendar for NYC is a great way to keep informed of upcoming events in the greater NYC area.

Thursdays have been the weekly meeting day but there is always something going on. The New York City Group is an excellent way to keep up to date. You should definitely join before visiting.

There are also regular meetups in Brooklyn, Queens and New Jersey.

New Member Welcome Kit

The US New Member Welcome Kit answers a lot of questions and is a great resource for both new members and seasoned CSers.

Important Numbers & Services

Emergency Services

Dial 911 from any phone to contact emergency services when there is an emergency, lives are in danger, serious injury, serious medical condition, crime in progress, or any other situation needing immediate attention.

NYC Information

Dial 311 from any phone for government and non-emergency information or visit their website.

Government Information

Official NYC website.

Police Stations

If you are really unlucky and manage to land yourself into trouble, here's a list of the local police stations.

Staying Safe

Safety Tips

CS Guidelines

What's acceptable to do on CS? Read our guidelines and terms of use.

References

Honest, accurate references are incredibly important!

You do not have to couchsurf with someone in order to leave a reference. You are encouraged to write a reference whenever you have learned something about a CouchSurfer that will be informative to the community. The CS guide to references gives you more information about when to write a reference and what information to include.

Please remember that reporting a negative experience is not the end of the world. It is normal that not everybody gets along fine and that you are describing your experience for the benefit of others, not judging a person. Negative references aren't just for safety issues. They're to give you a better idea of who the person is. CS will make every effort to remove any unjustified negative references received in retaliation for having left a negative reference. The Member Disputes FAQ has more information about when CS will remove a reference.

Doing the right thing in reporting a negative experience honestly will not create insurmountable problems, and the clean conscience of not sharing responsibility for seriously bad things happening to other members by far outweighs any inconvenience.

Reporting CSers who behave inappropriately, including but not limited to offensive, violent or sexually inappropriate behavior, who steals from you or engages in any other disturbing conduct, is required by our terms of use. You must immediately report such person to the appropriate authorities and to us by contacting us and choosing "Problem with Another Member.”

Member Disputes & Safety Team

You are required to report dangerous members to the MDST. You can do this by going to contact us and choosing "Problem with Another Member." It is important to do this even if you choose not to leave a negative reference or press charges, so the MDST can look out for recurring problems and take action as necessary. If you require assistance with moderating a dispute or filing a police report, please contact MDST and/or a local ambassador.

Theft

You are required to report dangerous members to the MDST. You can do this by going to contact us and choosing "Problem with Another Member." It is important to do this even if you choose not to leave a negative reference or press charges, so the MDST can look out for recurring problems and take action as necessary. If you require assistance with moderating a dispute or filing a police report, please contact MDST and/or a local ambassador.

It is not advisable to post a public warning about another member. The MDST will take action and warn members under specific circumstances.

CouchSurfing Workshops

Please check the NYCS group and events calendar for our next workshop. Workshops include information on how to set up a profile, what to expect while hosting and surfing, and how to stay safe while CSing.

Self Defense Classes

A number of organizations offer self-defense classes in New York City. Many colleges and non-profit organizations will host free or low-cost classes.

Finding a Couch

Doing a CouchSearch

Finding a couch in NYC can be difficult because hosts receive many requests and most people live in small apartments. Send out requests early and be prepared to move around during your stay.

Doing a couchsearch of New York will only bring up hosts in Manhattan, so be sure to search in all five boros (Brooklyn, Queens, Bronx and Staten Island). You can do this by doing a specific search or setting a five mile radius.

Keep in mind that New Jersey is just over the river. Hoboken, Jersey City, Weehawken, Fort Lee, are closer to Manhattan than some parts of Brooklyn & Queens, and provide 24 hour access to the city (check hosts profile to see if they say that they live near a 24 hour bus or the PATH train).

The various public transportation systems allow easy, relatively cheap movement around the NYC metro area. Pretty much everything within a 15-20 mile radius allows easy access to Manhattan. You can go as far as 100 miles out but fares and transit time increase. Maps are available online:

Sample CouchSearches

All of these locations are within or reasonably close to New York City with convenient public transportation options. You can check the location on the search page map. A search for "New York" will concentrate on Manhattan, eliminating from your results thousands of potential hosts, but you can reach Manhattan easily from all of these locations.

Insider Information

The various public transportation systems allow easy, relatively cheap movement around the NYC metro area. Pretty much everything within a 15-20 mile radius allows easy access to Manhattan. You can go as far as 100 miles out but fares and transit time increase.

So the technique is, basically, display a map, center it on Central Park and zoom in and out to find individual cities, boroughs and neighborhoods that are not Manhattan. Then CouchSearch each specific place for likely hosts. You can use the "within x miles of" feature but be aware that centering on or including a place, like "New York", where you're already having trouble finding a host will cause the search results to include many of the same hosts you've already given up on.

Searches are most useful when they don't max out the 1000 hit limit. Once you reach that, you have no idea which profiles you're NOT seeing within your parameters.

City names for the parts of NYC are not all intuitive. The legal NYC is composed of 5 boroughs with varying naming conventions: 1) A postal city of "New York" always means Manhattan. 2) A postal city of Staten Island always refers to that island (also known as Richmond County). 3) A postal city of "Bronx" always means the mainland portion of NYC north and east of Manhattan. 4) A postal city of Brooklyn always refers to the legendary borough, also known as Kings County, at the SW tip of Long Island, SE of Manhattan. 5) The fifth borough is the tough one. Queens residents may refer to living "in Queens" but there is no postal city by that name. Instead, through historical petrification, Queens is considered to be five separate towns by the US Postal Service. Worse yet, many postal codes in Queens have more than one allowable town name, so Queens residents have a lot of latitude as to what they put down as their town of residence. To search Queens exhaustively, you have to search each possible town name in the borough. Here's a list: http://www.queensbp.org/content_web/cultural_affairs/neighborhoods.shtml and a map: http://www.johnnyroadtrip.com/cities/newyork/maps/map_queens.htm

On top of all that, NYC is heavily neighborhood-oriented. Some people name their town as Park Slope, e.g., instead of the official Brooklyn. Even in Queens, postal names and neighborhood names are related but do not reliably correspond to each other. For anyone except Queens residents, the Queens naming scheme is a mess. And you have to deal with it!

Midtown Manhattan is closer to many places outside of official New York City than to many neighborhoods within it, so there's no reason to limit your search to NYC proper. I had a childhood friend from outer Queens who left his house to go to Manhattan years ago and still hasn't arrived. Adjacent non-NYC areas are northeastern New Jersey (northwest and southwest of Manhattan), southern Westchester County (north of the Bronx), and western Nassau County (east of Queens).

This is enough information to locate hosts in the metro area. Other things being equal, the likelihood of success is much higher outside of Manhattan than in it. No matter where a traveler searches for a host, the task is to convey a sense of "here's why you really want to host me!"

Emergency Couch Group

Post your last-minute couchrequests in the Last Minute CouchRequest Group

It is always better to find a host by messaging other members directly. Please only use this group for emergencies and last minute couches. For example, you should not post to this group if you're looking for a couch 2 months from now.

Please take some extra time to read potential hosts' profiles, including sleeping arrangements and references, in order to find a good match. Usually you look through many profiles before finding someone to contact. Make sure to take the same care when people are contacting you and offering a last minute couch. We want you to all have good NYCS experiences.

Other Accommodation

New York hosts are often overwhelmed by requests, so it's not always possible to find a host through CouchSurfing.

Temporary Apartment Listings

Hospitality Sites

Hostels

Transportation

See the New York City Wikitravel page for detailed advice about transportation and attractions.

By Plane

There are three major Airports in the NYC area. JFK and Laguardia are both Located in Queens. Newark is located in New Jersey but provides for easy access to the city.

JFK

The AirTrain costs $5 and runs from JFK and connects to the following subway/train stops • LIRR trains and E/J/Z subways at Jamaica Station • The "A" subway line at Howard Beach Station From these subways and trains most of the 5 Burroughs and outlying areas can be reached rather easily. Cab rides to Manhattan are a flat fee of $45. If you're looking to cab in don't be afraid to ask people where they're going and see if they're willing to split a cab with you. Various Express buses are also running and range from 15 - 25 dollars for a trip to Manhattan.

Safety notice: Don't accept a ride from people inside or near the airport exit offering a taxi service as those drivers are unlicensed. Best case you will share the ride with strangers while paying the same rates as your own cab. Worst case...well, just don't use an unlicensed taxi service!

Left Luggage is available at JFK if you will only be in for a short while. http://www.panynj.gov/CommutingTravel/airports/html/ken_luggage.html

Laguardia

Various buses run between Laguardia and the 5 Burroughs. The two most popular buses are the M60 and the Q33. The M60 will take you into Manhattan and makes a stop near the 4, 5 and 6 subway line as well as the 125th Street LIRR station. The Q33 drops you off in Jackson Heights near different subway stations depending on where you need to get off. Don't hesitate to ask the driver where to get off for your particular subway line if you're unsure. Cab rides to Manhattan and other areas are metered. During non rush hours the typical cab ride into Manhattan will be at least $30. If you're looking to cab in don't be afraid to ask people where they're going and see if they're willing to split a cab with you.

Safety notice: Don't accept a ride from people inside or near the airport exit offering a taxi service as those drivers are unlicensed. Best case you will share the ride with strangers while paying the same rates as your own cab.

Newark

New Jersey Transit runs their airtrain service from Newark to New York Penn Station for around $15. This is usually the fastest method. See http://www.njtransit.com for more information. Cab rides to Manhattan and other areas are metered. During non rush hours the typical cab ride into Manhattan will be at least $50. If you're looking to cab in don't be afraid to ask people where they're going and see if they're willing to split a cab with you. The cheapest way is to take the New Jersey Transit #62 bus ($1.25) in front of the terminals to Newark Penn Station (20min), and then the Path train ($1.75) to lower Manhattan (25 min). They are both very frequent during the day.

Safety notice: Don't accept a ride from people inside or near the airport exit offering a taxi service as those drivers are unlicensed. Best case is that you will share the ride with strangers while paying the same rates as your own cab.

By Bus

There are many buses that connect New York with other major cities in the Northeast, which are often significantly cheaper and more convenient that Greyhound or even Amtrak. These are the Chinatown buses and will typically run from Chinatown to Chinatown. Often they pick up and drop off on the side of the street, so it is important to know where they are. There are many companies that operate between the major cities, usually running every half hour every day. The following are a few of the many companies:

New Century Travel
http://www.2000coach.com/
Operates between NYC and Philly ($20 RT), Washington ($35 RT) and Richmond ($60 RT)

Fung Wah Bus
https://www.fungwahbus.com/Default.aspx
Operates Between NYC and Boston ($30 RT)

Apex Bus
http://www.apexbus.com/
Operates between NYC and Philly ($20 RT), Washington ($35 RT), Richmond ($60 RT), Baltimore ($35 RT), Rockville, MD ($45 RT), Norfolk ($60 RT), Albany ($45 RT), Atlanta ($200 RT), Nashville ($70 RT)

Bolt Bus
http://www.boltbus.com/
Operates between NYC and Boston ($16-20 OW), Philly ($13-$15 OW), Baltimore ($18-$20 OW), Washington ($18-$25 OW). However, if you book far enough in advance you can get a ticket for as little as $1 OW. They also offer wifi on board and power outlets.

The best way to find other companies is to google "Chinatown bus New York 'city'"

By Car

Goethals Bridge Runs into Staten Island Holland Tunnel runs into Manhattan Lincoln Tunnel runs into Manhattan George Washington Bridge runs into Manhattan Current toll rates can be found at: http://www.panynj.gov/CommutingTravel/tunnels/html/tolls.html

By Foot or bicycle

The George Washington Bridge lets you walk or ride a bike across it when coming from the mainland (New Jersey). It offers quite a stunning view of the Hudson river and NYC skyline.

Mass transit once in the city

New York City has arguably the best developed and easiest public transportation system out of all major cities in the United States ( http://www.mta.info). It is easily navigable, runs 24/7 and fairly safe. It is an aged system, though and the subway stations can be smelly and unbearably hot in the summer and there is a lot of rodentcide applied on a regular basis. But the subway cars are generally clean, climate-controlled and well-maintained. Also, note that you are also subject to random "bag checks" by the police at all times (but I've only seen a couple of instances of this in the last few years). As a traveler without a car or bicycle you will heavily rely on NYC's public transportation system and you could wind up taking at least half a dozen rides in the subway/bus on any given day. At $2.25 a ride that can become an expensive proposition. Thus, your best bet is to buy an "Unlimited" Metrocard that provides unlimited rides within the subway and bus system of NYC (all 5 boroughs) for either 1 day ($8.25), 7 days ($27), 14 days ($51.50) or 30 days ($89) including free bus transfers). In one of the most expensive cities in the world, the Unlimited ride option is one of the most cost-efficient purchases you can make. The metro cards are available 24/7 at the vending machines in any subway station. The regular option for a metro card will give you a 15% bonus for a purchase of $8 or more (e.g. $10 gets you $11.50). The system gives you a free bus transfer good for two hours following your entry into the system. So, you could take the subway uptown and then hope on a bus back back downtown for $2.25 provided you get on the bus within 2 hours of entering the subway station. Again, if you're going to spend a lot of time in the city and/or will be making a lot of trips, then you should favor the unlimited ride metrocard over regular metrocard option.

Bicycling within the city

New York city has become more bike friendly over the last couple of years with the establishment of bike lanes on various streets and avenues in the City. So, if you have a bike, ask your host if there is a safe place to store it.

NYC bike trails
http://www.nycbikemaps.com

Visiting New York City

New York City isn't just Manhattan. It's worth at least a visit to each of the outer boroughs to provide yourself with a well rounded experience. New York City is comprised of Manhattan (New York County), The Bronx (Bronx County), Queens (Queens County), Brooklyn (Kings County), and Staten Island (Richmond County). Some highly recommended places outside Manhattan include: Astoria, Queens (N,W from Broadway to Ditmars Bvld or R,V to Steinway) located directly across the East river from Manhattan. Houses a plethora of great ethnic restaurants from Eastern European and Greek to South American and Asian cuisine. Population is very diverse and mostly young; Jackson Heights, Queens (Roosevelt Ave stop on the E,F,R,V or anywhere on the 7 between about 74 and 90) is an incredible multicultural neighborhood primarily populated by various Latino groups (bring your Spanish phrasebook!) and make sure to stop by the Little India; Williamsburg, Brooklyn (L to Bedford Ave.) is the up-and-come hipster neighborhood filled with many cute shops, restaurants, bars and clubs; Coney Island (D,N,F,Q to Coney Is.) is not to be missed almost any time of year if you can stomach the long subway trip. This is such a tiny offering of the hundreds of fascinating and diverse neighborhoods to explore. When in Manhattan, JUST WALK! You can walk for hours and hours, and almost every street is fascinating. See how places change character over a matter of blocks, how different people live next to one another, etc. This is one of the best cities for just getting lost (although that's a bit difficult given the grid).

Museums & Attractions

Being the big city that it is, New York City is home to many of the world's finest art museums featuring many well-known and famous paintings. Naturally (and unfortunately), you will have to pay for admission to these museums. Of course, these admissions benefit the museums and help them preserve their collections, but there is a once-weekly exception to this. On Fridays from 4:00 to 8:00 PM, one can gain free admission into the Museum of Modern Art (also known by its abbreviation, MoMA, and is commonly referred to as that) through their Target Free Friday Nights (which is sponsored by the American department store chain called Target). Outside of the museum before 4:00, a series of dividers are placed to the side of the museum to create a place for people to stand online while they wait to enter for free. Despite the 4 hour time range, one should arrive at least 45 minutes beforehand (3:15) because the line does becomes very long and full of people interested in free tickets. Tickets are given out first-come first-serve, so be sure to arrive early. Yes, the museum will be much more crowded than normally, but this is a great way to see some of the world's finest collections of modern art yet have money for dinner later on that night as well.

There are a number of museums in the city that are free, offer free hours, various discounts or suggested donations.

Many NYC locals have free passes to museums, through membership, school or work. Be sure to ask around!

List of museums with free or discounted hours

Internet Access

The NY Public Library, Times Square Information Center, Times Square Plaza and Apple Stores have computers with free internet access and wifi.

Many of the parks have free wifi, including several downtown, Madison Square Park, Union Square, and Bryant Park.

Luggage Storage

There are no luggage lockers in New York train stations. The lockers below have been posted to the NYC CS group.

Schwartz Travel Services 212-290-2626 355 W 36th St. Between 8th & 9th Ave. 2F NY NY 10018 Open: 8:30am - 8pm & 43 W 46th St. Between 5th & 6th Ave. 6F NY NY 10036. Open: 8am - 11pm Storage Price: approximately $8 to $10 (depending on size). per 24 hours. Monthly Rate: $3 to $5 a day, per luggage, box or locker.

Guides

A Google map made by some CSers in New York - bars, cafes and fun places to go

HeyLetsGo New York- Lists fun events in New York.

New York Virtual Tour - Loads of 360 panoramas of New York sights linked to Google maps with local and travel information.


[1] A free guide in which you can add and edit as well. If registered you can create a pdf of the guide via the build a guidebook function.

Free & Cheap Events

Free NYC

The Skint

Summer Events

River to River

Celebrate Brooklyn

NYC Summerstage

Hudson River Park

Lincoln Center

Central Park

Bryant Park

Dumpster Diving

In Manhattan you can do some great dumpster diving. One spot for that is at the Food Emporium of 83rd Street and 3rd Avenue close to one of NYC's most active hosts, Slawek. You might be able to organize a big feast there. But be careful: dumpster diving was criminalized under the so-called quality of life initiatives.

Freegan.info: Events & Resources

Dumpster Map

Local links

CS group - Wikipedia - Wikitravel

Medical Information

Hospitals

Map with a list of all NYC hospitals.

LifeNet Crisis Helpline

  • English: 1-800-LIFENET (1-800-543-3638)
  • Spanish: 1-877-AYUDESE (1-877-298-3373)
  • Mandarin, Cantonese and Korean dialects: 1-877-990-8585
  • All other languages: 1-800-LIFENET (1-800-543-3638)

National Suicide Prevention Lifeline

Call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255), a free, 24-hour hotline available to anyone in suicidal crisis or emotional distress. Your call will be routed to the nearest crisis center to you.

  • Spanish: 1-888-628-9454
  • For Hearing and Speech Impaired with TTY Equipment: 1-800-799-4TTY (4889)

Substance Abuse Hotline

For information on substance abuse treatment, call 1-800-662-HELP.

Poison Hotline

National Poison Hotline 1-800-222-1222

Walk-In Clinics

http://www.yelp.com/search?find_desc=walk+in+clinic&ns=1&find_loc=New+York%2C+NY

Couchsurfing Doctors

Are you a doctor and a member of CS who is interested in helping travelers? Add a link to your profile here.

Free Medical Services

NYC Dept of Health

STD testing and emergency contractraception. http://www.nyc.gov/html/doh/html/std/std2.shtml

Women's Health Free Clinic

STD testing & treatment, emergency contraceptive, gyn exams, pap smears, pregnancy testing, medical abortions. http://www.med.nyu.edu/nycfreeclinic/womens_health_free_clinic/index.html

New York City Free Clinic

primary care, women & men's health, vaccinations, STD testing & treatment, lab work, radiology http://www.med.nyu.edu/nycfreeclinic/patients/services.html

NYC Condoms

Available at bars, colleges, restaurants, medical centers, etc. http://www.nyc.gov/html/doh/html/condoms/condoms.shtml

Sexual Assault

RAINN National Sexual Assault Hotline

Anonymous, confidential counseling from trained volunteers. http://apps.rainn.org/ohl-bridge/ 1-800-656-HOPE

If You Have Been Raped in the Past 96 Hours Emergency Guide

List of hospitals with special training for survivors of sexual assault. http://www.nycagainstrape.org/survivors_emergency.html

Emergency Contraception for Rape Survivors

Information on where to get emergency contraception in several languages. http://www.health.state.ny.us/nysdoh/consumer/women/emergency_contr.htm 1-800-522-5006

NYC Alliance Against Sexual Assault

Legal resources, survivor resources, how to press charges, what to do if you do not want to press charges, fact sheets. http://www.nycagainstrape.org/survivors.html

RAINN Resources

NYC Crime Victims Board

Assistance and compensation for crime victims. http://www.cvb.state.ny.us/helpforcrimevictims/helpforcrimevictims.aspx 1-800-247-8035

Legal Resources for Travelers

Visa Information

http://travel.state.gov/visa/temp/temp_1305.html

Consulates in New York City

http://gonyc.about.com/od/foreignvisitorstonyc/a/foreign_consula.htm

Travelers Aid

JFK International Airport, Terminal 6, Jamaica, NY 11430 http://www.travelersaid.org/ta/jfk.html (718) 656-4870

Fraud Prevention

(Guidance note: This may not be available/applicable for all cities/ CS localities, but something to consider. It may require further investigation to dig up any information. If you can find any for your area or even a generic national helpline for your country, then this is the place to list it.)

Immigration Advisory Services

(Guidance Note: Please put in details of the local Immigration Services, if any, here)

Legal Advice

Hopefully one should never need it, but there are resources in NYC for free legal consultation, at least at initial stages.

New York City Bar

Law clinic and legal hotline. http://www.nycbar.org/LRS/ActivitiesandServices.htm

List of free legal aid organizations in New York State

http://www.usattorneylegalservices.com/free-legal-aid-new-york.html

CouchSurfing Lawyers

Are you a lawyer and a CSer interested in assisting travelers? Add a link to your profile here.

Your Local CS Ambassadors

Manhattan

Brooklyn

Queens

Jersey City

Nomadic

US Ambassadors

Retrieved from "http://wiki.couchsurfing.com/en/New_York_City"
Personal tools