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Museum of the City of New York: General Admission
4.4
85 Ratings
New City
Explore the vibrant history and culture of New York City at the Museum of the City of New York. Discover the city’s past, present, and future in a beautifully renovated building on Museum Mile.
Explore the vibrant history and culture of New York City at the Museum of the City of New York. Discover the city’s past, present, and future in a beautifully renovated building on Museum Mile.
Duration:
2 hours
Cancellation:
24 hours
Highlights
- Museum of the City of New York - The Museum of the City of New York features two ongoing exhibitions–the award-winning New York at Its Core, a three gallery exhibition that explores New York City’s history and future through objects, images, contemporary video, photography, and interactive digital experiences, and Activist New York, an…
- Museum of the City of New York - The Museum of the City of New York features two ongoing exhibitions–the award-winning New York at Its Core, a three gallery exhibition that explores New York City’s history and future through objects, images, contemporary video, photography, and interactive digital experiences, and Activist New York, an exhibition which seeks to tell the story of activism in the five boroughs past and present. There are also several special exhibitions on view at any one time and the short documentary Timescapes, a multimedia historical storytelling, bringing viewers on a 28 minute journey through 400 years of history. The film runs every 40 minutes and headsets are available in French, Mandarin, and Spanish.
What's Included
- All special exhibitions included
- Access to permanent exhibitions
- General admission covered
- Enjoy the ‘Timescapes’ 28-minute documentary
- All special exhibitions included
- Access to permanent exhibitions
- General admission covered
- Enjoy the ‘Timescapes’ 28-minute documentary
What's Not Included
- Snacks
- Gift Shop items
- Snacks
- Gift Shop items
Additional Information
The City of New York Museum cultivates comprehension of the unique character of city living in the world’s most impactful metropolis. It pulls in visitors through celebration, documentation, and explanation of the city’s history, current state, and future potential. The Museum, which is situated in a recently refurbished 1932 Georgian Colonial-Revival…
The City of New York Museum cultivates comprehension of the unique character of city living in the world’s most impactful metropolis. It pulls in visitors through celebration, documentation, and explanation of the city’s history, current state, and future potential. The Museum, which is situated in a recently refurbished 1932 Georgian Colonial-Revival architecture, boasts a location at the pinnacle of Museum Mile on Fifth Avenue and 103rd Street, opposite Central Park’s Conservatory Gardens, and on the south edge of East Harlem district.
Location
Museum of the City of New York
1220 Fifth Avenue at 103rd Street, at 103rd Street
Cancellation Policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Customer Ratings
4.4
(85 Ratings)
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489meghanm
May 31, 2025
Not To Be Missed - This museum is not to be missed. Start with the approximately 20 minute video on the first floor about the history of New York. It’s a good starting point for the rest of your visit. From there we visited the two rooms on the history of the city. There was so much information. I feel like I have a greater understanding of the city after going through these spaces. (Pro tip: grab a stool, there’s a lot of reading.) There’s a very well done film that’s about 30 minutes long on NYC film. I could watch it again since I know I missed parts due to where I was seated in the room (the film is along three walls).
The exhibit on Shirley Chisholm was excellent. I honestly knew very little about her before visiting the exhibit.
We spent four hours at the museum and didn’t see everything. I would definitely return. I wish I had visited at the start of our trip because I probably would have noticed some different things about the city after having visited the museum.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Danmy5870pp
May 29, 2025
Go for the video - The museum was good. The video of the city was the best bit. Films set in new york was also interesting. It will take about 2 hours to walk around
Review provided by Tripadvisor
475lizb
May 23, 2025
Don't miss this museum! - Excellent exhibits and films covering the history of New York. The exhibits about all the many forms of music and dance from this area was terrific! We spent about 4 hours seeing it all.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Chefsjourney
May 22, 2025
Where New York City Tells Its Story - This museum is super modern, clean, and easy to navigate—housed in a beautiful building along Museum Mile, overlooking Central Park.
If you're into New York City culture or just curious about what makes NYC so unique and iconic, this place is for you.
The exhibits cover a bit of everything: immigration, architecture, activism, fashion through postcards, graffiti, photos, and more.
One of my favorite parts was the upstairs section dedicated to movies filmed in NYC, with famous scenes playing across multiple screens at once.
I learned a lot and really enjoyed the visit. Whether you're a local or just visiting, it’s a great way to connect with the city’s story.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Uringoodcompany
Mar 5, 2025
Recommend! - Terrific museum, documenting the history of the city. Really well done. Multi media. Don’t miss the café featuring Amy’s bread. Took us about two hours.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Faenat
Feb 20, 2025
A really interesting museum! - What a wonderful museum. The Stettheimer dolls house exhibition was really interesting and it was lovely to see the house and all the detail that went into creating it. The exhibit on Shirley Chisholm was fantastic - what a roll model and trailblazer that lady was. I loved reading about the history of New York and its native people, the Lanape, as well as how the city has changed and developed since the 18th century. The exhibit on New York and various media projects was very interesting and it was great to see several screens showing a display of various films and shows that have been created in this magical city. The museum is in a beautiful neo-Georgian building, had a very interesting and reasonably priced cafe and the wasn’t too big as to be exhausting or overwhelming. I’d highly recommend! We did go on a Wednesday, which at the time of writing, the museum is free - worth bearing in mind! Book your tickets as close to the date as possible to benefit from this.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
R4960nkjustinw
Feb 5, 2025
I went on a private tour of the "Art Deco New York" exhibition with the curator - I went on a Members tour of the "Art Deco New York" exhibition at the museum before it closed. What was nice was it was a private tour and there were only ten of us with the curator of the exhibition. So we got a real behind scene of the exhibition. Some of the items on the collection was Ron Lauder's private collection of post cards, there was Art Deco architectural items such as the wooden models of Rockefeller Center and a complete collection of outfits from the early 1930's. It was an interesting look at Depression era architecture and how it influenced everything.
What was nice was the curator was there to explain everything to us and give us her perspective of the exhibition. This is one of the nice things about being a member are these interesting tours and lectures. It really gives an in-depth look at exhibitions.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Anonymoustipp
Feb 5, 2025
Best museum in NY! - This is a fantastic museum for first time NY visitors. It takes you right through the history of NY, up to 2020, with great displays of artifacts and information boards. Go on a Wednesday - it's free entry, with a suggested donation if you want.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Bigmeesh30
Jan 11, 2025
Great Collection all in Tribute to New York City - This museum has so many fun collections, which represent the diverse array of cultures, expressions, and history of New York City. We had to stop first to smell the best museum exhibit ever, the borough bake-off for best gingerbread houses. Though by this time, some of the construction was failing, the smell still lingered in the air. Another temporary exhibit was from the Martin Wong collection, celebrating the graffiti art of the 1970s and 1980s. This man's story and this man's love of art are both inspiring. We got to hear Shirley Chisholm's voice, read her words, and vote for her on a voting booth from the 1970s. And we also got to see how the other half lives through the eyes of their dollhouse. There were so many things to see and do for all ages. There were interactive exhibits, sights, and sounds. Definitely a must for all New Yorkers, who can pay as they wish, and definitely a place to return time and time again.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Jan 8, 2025
Upper East Side museum worth visiting - This was our first visit to this museum and we enjoyed it. We began as recommended with the half hour movie on the history and development of NYC narrated by Stanley Tucci. We enjoyed the immersive movie experience about filming in NY, the dollhouse, the Shirley Chisholm centenary exhibition, and the protests movement exhibit. As a bonus, the cafe (an Amy's Bread outpost) did a delicious and warming mushroom and barley soup - yum!
Review provided by Tripadvisor