Having a phenomenal day in NYC without spending your life’s savings is possible. Hotel not included (hopefully you’re staying with a nice friend), here’s how:

Breakfast: Hit up one of the seven Europan cafes around Manhattan. Two eggs – any style, served with home fries or french fries, and your choice of bread – is only $4.65. If you find yourself on the Upper West Side, check out Nussbaum and Wu near Columbia University, my personal favorite breakfast location. Their egg and cheese sandwich on a bagel (3.50) and fresh squeezed orange juice (2.95) is just what you need to fuel up for an action-packed day.

Next stop is the Metropolitan Museum of Art.  Purchase a MetroCard – unlimited all day pass is $8.25. To get to the MET across town, catch the M4 outside of Nussbaum on Broadway, and get off at 5th Ave. and West 84th St. Admission at the MET is only recommended; $.01 will get you into the museum. However, I suggest giving at least $5 so you don’t look like a douche bag.

Post cultural enlightenment, take in a light lunch from a street vendor in front of the MET. It’s a fantastic way to eat on the cheap, and sanitary; all vendors are monitored by NYS Consumer Protection Board. I have dined on many a delicious hot dog (usually around 2.00) from the yellow umbrella-covered stands.

After your lunch, if the weather permits, walk up to 5th Ave. and 105th St. to enter the secluded paradisal Conservatory Garden in Central Park. Pass through the Vanderbilt gate, and you will be instantly transported out of busy NYC and into a hidden world of flora and fauna. The six-acre garden is free, so explore at your heart’s content.

For a change of scenery, walk to the 103rd St. subway station and hop on the 6th train to get to the Lower East Side. Get off at the Spring St. stop, and walk over to Broadway to shop at the eclectic and chaotic Pearl River Mart. This gigantic retail store sells any Chinese good you could possibly imagine; lanterns, beauty products, tea sets, shoes, jewelry, clothing, instruments, delicious Chinese candies and teas, home furnishings, and kitchenware – just to name a few selections. I always purchase  candy and some soap as a souvenir; a bag of yummy Chinese fruit candy is $2.65, and a box of four assorted Bee and Flower soaps is only $1.95. Be prepared for an overwhelming experience; the size of the store and personalities of the salespeople can be intimidating, but don’t let it deter you from exploring the Mart.

As of the late afternoon, we’ve only spent around $25 (souvenirs included!) If you plan on saving your money for dinner and drinks later in the evening, I suggest partaking in free activities that will still give you a taste of NYC. The High Line Park on the downtown west side of Manhattan is a wonderful, unusual “park in the sky”. Originally a defunct above-ground freight train line, parts of the raised system developed into a public park. Observing the city from this view offers a different and fascinating perspective on the hustle and bustle of NYC. The park is free and easily accessible; entry points are every couple blocks.

By now you might be tired and in need of sustenance, entertainment, and a drink. Head on over to Le Poisson Rouge at 158th Bleecker St. for “art and alcohol”: “(Le) Poisson Rouge is a multimedia art cabaret founded by musicians on the site of the historic Village Gate. Dedicated to the fusion of popular art cultures in music, film, theater, dance, and fine art, the venue’s mission is to revive the symbiotic relationship between art and revelry: to become a creative asylum for both artists and audiences.”* The venue offers entertainment from Arabic music to disco to funk to jazz and beyond. In addition to live performances requiring ticket purchase (usually between $10-20), Le Poisson Rouge does offer free shows. Dine on the artist’s budget  by ordering from the $5 menu – this includes grilled cheese, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, and edamame. That way you can save your dough for one of Le Poisson Rouge’s custom cocktails. For $12, you can experience drinks like the Dark and Stormier, and the Venus Flytrap. If these exotic and expensive cocktails make your bank account nervous, stick with $4 canned Rolling Rock.

Depending on how drunk you’d like to get, you could spend anywhere from $5 to $1,000 at this establishment. Let’s stick with…$25 spent on dinner and drinks, and call it a night.

NYC by the numbers:

Breakfast – approx. $5, depending on if you eat at Europan or Nussbaum

Metrocard – $8.25

The Metropolitan Museum of Art – $5

Hot dog from the street vendor – $2

Candy and soap from Pearl River – $4.30

Dinner and drinks at Le Poisson Rouge – $25

And there you have it, folks, NYC in a day for $49.55!

Pearl River Mart

The High Line

Le Poisson Rouge

*(from the establishment’s website)

**photos courtesy of google image search

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