Having lived in NYC for more than a year, there's actually quite a few "typical" things I haven't done here yet. So when my parents came to visit for the day last Friday, I decided to check one totally touristy thing off the list: visiting the Empire State building.
You can buy tickets online in advance, and we opted for the double pass which gets you access to the open air observatory on the 86th floor, as well as the very top viewing area on the 102nd floor. Make sure you allow yourself enough time for possible lines. When we went on a Friday, the wait was about 45 minutes, and one employee said weekends are even busier.
If you're on a tight schedule but not a budget, you can also purchase an express pass that lets you skip the line for nearly double the cost (but hey, this is NYC and time=money, right?)
On the way up, you can see photographs from when it was originally erected in the 1930's and read all about the building's history. Once you hit the 86th floor, you're rewarded with a 360 degree, open-air views of the entire city and it's pretty damn impressive.
