If you want to learn more about the new New York Pass Essentials from Go City, you’ve come to the right place.
In this article, we’ll tell you everything you need to know about the Essentials Pass. You’ll learn how the pass works, which attractions and tours it includes (and which ones it doesn’t!), and we’ll show you all the pros and cons.
Then, we’ll answer the most frequently asked questions and share our impressions of the Essentials Pass with you.
PLEASE NOTE: You can currently get the biggest savings with the discount code GO5LOVING!
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💡 How does the Essentials work?
The New York Pass Essentials offers you a choice of 13 exciting attractions in New York. You can choose three of them on the spot, depending on what you feel like doing.
Choose one of four observation decks and two other attractions from a selection of nine top sights.
The Essentials Pass is a digital product that you can use on your smartphone. You don’t have to pick it up or print it out anywhere, you can start sightseeing right away.
When you’re in New York, show your Essentials Pass New York at the entrance to the attraction and you’ll receive your ticket.
From that point on, the pass is active and you have 30 days to visit the other two attractions.
Important: You don’t have to decide which attractions you want to visit. The only requirement is that you visit no more than three.
Please note: Some attractions require reservations. You can find out which ones here.
🗽 Which attractions are included?
The New York Pass Essentials from Go City offers a small but excellent selection of popular attractions. You can choose from 13 of the most popular highlights.
We will introduce these to you in the following sections. Then you will have a good overview of the attractions included:
🌃 Observation decks
With the Essentials Pass, you can visit one of four observation decks in New York.
- Edge at Hudson Yards (regular admission price: from $44)
- Empire State Building (regular admission price: from $48)
- One World Observatory (regular admission price: from $45)
- Top of the Rock (regular admission price: from $44)
You will need an additional reservation for the famous Empire State Building. You can make this reservation via the Go City reservation page or the Go City app. You will receive the appropriate link after booking your pass.
No reservation is required for the other three observation decks. If you want to visit them, simply go to the entrance of the attraction and you will be assigned the next available time slot. In our experience, this usually happens within 15 minutes to a maximum of four hours. However, you can also choose a later time if you prefer.
However, it is possible that there will be no tickets left. In this case, simply try again at a later time.
One observation deck is also missing from the Essentials Pass: the SUMMIT One Vanderbilt. This skyscraper opened in 2022 and is not currently included in any of the New York passes. Tickets for the SUMMIT can be purchased here.
🖼️ Museums with the Essentials Pass New York
New York City is home to several world-famous museums and exhibitions. With the Essentials Pass, you can choose two museums to visit for free from a selection of seven.
These museums are included:
- 9/11 Memorial & Museum (regular price: from $33)
- The Museum of Broadway (regular price: from $41)
- Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum (regular price: from $33)
- The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) (regular price: from $30)
- American Museum of Natural History (regular price: from $28)
- Madame Tussauds Wax Museum (regular price: from $48)
- Mercer Labs Museum of Art and Technology (regular price: from $57)
🚢 Boat trips
Even though the New York Pass Essentials includes fewer attractions than the other passes, you don’t have to miss out on a boat trip.
This boat trip is included:
New York Landmark Boat Tour with Circle Line (regular price: $41)
You will receive your tickets for the boat tour as soon as you show your Essentials Pass at the Circle Line ticket counter. You can’t miss it, it’s well signposted.
🚲 Bike rental with the Essentials Pass New York
When the weather is nice, it’s fun to explore the city by bike. And you can do that with the Essentials Pass at no extra cost!
The Essentials Pass New York includes a full day of bike rental in Central Park. Without the pass, this costs around $45 per person. So you can explore Central Park by bike for a day or, of course, check out other parts of the city.
📅 Reservations with the pass
For some attractions, you will need an extra timed ticket in addition to your Essentials Pass. This ticket is free but necessary to gain admission with the New York Pass Essentials.
This applies to highlights such as the Empire State Building, The Edge, and Top of the Rock, among others.
As these regulations are subject to change, please check the Go City website before your trip to see which attractions require a reservation.
The current list of attractions that require a reservation with the New York Pass Essentials can be found here.
It may happen that there are no appointments available on your desired date. In this case, please check if it works on other days.
💻 Is the Essentials Pass worth it?
Admission to New York City attractions is not cheap. For example, regular ticket prices for the Empire State Building start at $48 without a pass, the boat tour costs $41, and museum ticket prices range from $30 to $57.
The Essentials Pass costs $99 for adults and $79 for children aged 3-12. The more expensive the attractions you choose, the more the Essentials Pass pays for itself.
Here’s a quick example: If you choose the Empire State Building ($48), the Mercer Labs Museum ($57), and the Circle Line Landmarks Cruise ($41), the price for individual tickets is around $146. The Essentials Pass costs $99, so you save $47, which is 32%!
👨👩👧👧 New York Essentials Pass for Children
Many attractions offer free admission for children under 5 years of age. If your child is in this age group, the Essentials Pass is not advantageous for you.
These are the age limits for selected attractions:
Attraction | Child |
Empire State Building | 6 to 12 years |
Edge Hudson Yards | 6 to 12 years |
SUMMIT One Vanderbilt | 6 to 12 years |
One World Observatory | 6 to 12 years |
American Museum of Natural History | 3 to 12 years |
Museum of Modern Art | 16 years and younger free of charge |
Guggenheim Museum | 12 years and younger free of charge |
📲 Purchase, download & free app
After purchasing on the official Go City website, you will receive an email with your personal passes. This email will also include a digital travel guide with details about the attractions, including those that require reservations.
You can then choose to save the passes as PDF files and print them out, or simply use the free Go City app (what we recommend).
You can store your Essentials Pass in the app. This works in New York City even without an internet connection, so you don’t necessarily need a SIM card or Wi-Fi.
If you have purchased passes for several people, they will all be displayed in the app in the form of a QR code. Show this at the entrances to the attractions. A quick tip: you can save the individual passes as images within the app and forward them to other group members.
Even though you have already downloaded the passes, they are not yet activated! Read the following section to find out when and how they are activated.
🚀 Activating the Essentials Pass in New York
The pass is only activated when you use it for the first time in New York, i.e. when you have it scanned at an attraction. You don’t need to do anything else. Note: A reservation does not activate the pass!
✅ Advantages of the New York Essentials Pass
Here we show you why the Essentials Pass is definitely worth it:
- Flexibility: Since you have 30 days to visit the other two attractions after your first use, you are very flexible in how you plan your time.
- Boat tour: Despite the relatively small selection of attractions, a 1.5-hour boat tour is included.
- Savings: Go City guarantees savings with this pass. If, contrary to expectations, you do not save any money, Go City will refund the difference.
🚨 Disadvantages of the Essentials Pass
Although the Essentials Pass from Go City offers several advantages, we don’t want to hide the disadvantages from you.
- Reservations: You must make additional reservations in advance for some attractions. Here you can see all attractions where this is the case.
- No skip-the-line tickets: Although there are separate lines for pass holders, there are no VIP or fast lane tickets that allow you to skip all the lines.
- Scope: You can only visit 3 of 13 attractions with the Essentials Pass.
- Limit: You must choose one of four observation decks.
- No city tours: Unfortunately, the hop-on hop-off bus is not included in the Essentials Pass.
👉 Alternatives to the Essentials Pass New York
If three attractions are not enough for you, take a closer look at the Explorer Pass and the New York Pass. The Explorer Pass is attraction-based, meaning you can choose between 2 and 10 attractions to visit within 30 days.
The New York Pass is day-based. Here you choose your pass for 1 to 10 days, during which you can visit as many attractions as you like.
For a better overview, just take a look at our detailed New York Pass comparison.
🔎 Conclusion: Who is the Essentials Pass suitable for?
The Essentials Pass New York is perfect for anyone who wants to focus on a few attractions in New York and spread their visits over several days. Have you already been to New York and seen most of the sights? Then this pass might be a great option for you!
It’s also ideal if you want to save money on the city’s sights and tours.
💭 Frequently asked questions
When will you receive your Essentials Pass?
You will receive your passes conveniently by email immediately after purchase. If you have ordered for several people (for example, 4), the email will contain different pass numbers (in this example, 4).
Each Essentials Pass works independently of the others, so that everyone can visit exactly the attractions they want
Can you visit an attraction more than once?
No, you can only visit each attraction once with the Essentials Pass.
How long is the Essentials Pass valid?
After purchase, you have one year to activate the Essentials Pass. Once you have used it for the first time on site, it is valid for 30 days.
Is public transportation included in the Essentials Pass?
No, the Essentials Pass is only for attractions in New York, not for public transportation. This applies to all New York Passes.
What is the cancellation policy for the Essentials Pass?
Have your plans changed? No problem, you can return your unused New York Pass Essentials up to 30 days after purchase.
