Money for New York

[jellied]

Off to New York with the family at the end of the month. 5 days with the associated sight seeing, pointless shopping etc.

What's the view on how much cash to take? Are credit cards as accepted as over here?Hoping to not take to much cash and avoid having to change it all back again upon the return.

Do taxis take cards? Thinking of going to and from airport [JFK]

Also any good bike shops i could escape to near Times Squares? Just to pick up some small token cycling object.

Alas I think it unlikely I shall be allowed to attend New York Critical Mass.

[nuttycyclist]

Check your credit card small print.

Some charge commission on every foreign transaction, and although it's not much it does mount up over a holiday.   We're careful to only take the cards that don't charge a currency conversion commission with us when we go abroad, and we take a suitable amount of cash with us to cater for small purchases/card not accepted/card machine broken so that we don't get stung on commission when taking money out of a cash point.  (We get it from whatever is commission free here before leaving)

I also recall that Travellers Cheques are accepted in USA as cash, so that's a bit safer than carrying loads of notes around.

Ah, and I also recall that when I was in the USA last year they have this expected practice of "tipping".  You have to have a big bundle of dollar notes and peel one or two off to give to just about anybody that you are served by (waitresses/waiters/taxi drivers/etc etc etc) (10% to 15% is the expected fee and they get funny if you don't pay).  I don't know why they can't just pay them a decent wage and mark the prices up accordingly, but it's probably a cultural thing

[alchemy]

Rather than take a taxi from JFK, I'd take the bus (can't remember the name of the company), loads cheaper than a taxi and they'll take you to Grand Central Station (which is very central) and then they do a shuttle bus to the hotels. You should be able to find it with a bit of Googling.

The cab drivers will have their hand in your pocket for every trip you make. And if you don't tip them "enough" (10%, or at least $1, minimum is the expected rate from memory) they'll rip right into you. One of them reduced a friend of mine to tears, and she's no shrinking violet 

I was surprised that for a country that was (apparently) so technologically advanced, their banking and payments system lagged behind Australia by quite a margin. EFTPOS was almost unknown and most non-cash transactions were still paid by cheque. But this was 5 years ago and things may have moved on since then (except the tipping thing), but I'd still have a reasonable wad of cash as Nutty says for the small stuff.

Enjoy it, it's a fantastic city 

[Mr Larrington]

Off to New York with the family at the end of the month. 5 days with the associated sight seeing, pointless shopping etc.

What's the view on how much cash to take? Are credit cards as accepted as over here?Hoping to not take to much cash and avoid having to change it all back again upon the return.

It's practically impossible to exist without some form of plastic money in the US - a lot of places will probably shop you to the Feds if you try paying in cash  Don't know about taxis though.  My debit card worked OK in ATMs over there, so you shouldn't run short.

[Jaded]

Some cabs in Boston took card payments when I was over there last year. If that helps...

[fred the great]

And be careful of being mugged. Don't show any serious money in Public.

Also there are certain "no go" areas in New York. I can't remember the road numbers but ask at your Hotel. They should be able to advise the safer areas i.e by the road numbers North, South, East and West.

[Jakob]

Manhatten as a whole feels safer than London if you ask me. Most places expect cards, apart from small purchases in cornerstores, coffeeshops, etc. (and bars)
Tipping in bars is essential. $1 per round is usually enough (as long as it's not cocktails and not more than a handful of drinks), but start out with $3-$5 and you'll get prompt attention if you are planning to stay the evening.

[rafletcher]

You WILL need a credit card, hotels won't take cash for example. I used my VISA card to withdraw cash as I needed it - I used the machines inside the shopping centre at Columbus Circle - we were staying close by. a nice quiet environment with plenty of security. The market in the basement there is pretty good too.

Taxis from the airport are fixed price ($35 last time I was there) to Manhattan addresses BUT the return fare is a "normal" one, and can be quite expensive. As you'll be jet lagged I'd suggest the taxi into Manhattan, but returning to the airport you can get a subway train for the fixed fare of $2 (may have gone up now) to close to the airport (can't remember the stop) then change to the Airport shuttle train, which was $5. Subway maps are readily available, and you can buy multi-trip "travel cards" - was 6 for $10, and these can be topped up at subway stations.

Make sure you see Chinatown - close to Ground Zero so an easy hop. The view from the Empire State is good at sunset - especially that of the Chrysler building. If you buy a ticket and the visibility is low, you can get the ticket stamped as such (obviously without going up - they tell you at the bottom what it's like) and can use it another day when the view is clear.

Don't know where you're staying, but when we were there we stayed in Midtown on W57th st, and found a really nice southern/cajun style restaurant on 9th Ave around W50th. Also a good diner at the junction of 9th and W57th.