Verdict
Destinations
Neighborhood · New York

Times Square

The blazing billboard canyon — costumed characters, the TKTS steps, and a wall of humanity.

Independent — no pay-to-rank Graded for who you are Verified 2026-06-06How we grade →
The verdict

Worth your time if you're…

Great for

Depends
  • Families with kids
  • Solo travellers
  • Photographers
  • Night owls
Not for
  • Travellers on a budget
  • If you've only got a day
  • Couples
  • History & culture buffs

Worth it for the right traveller.

What's here

Worth-it spots in the area

Why we say this

Insider secrets & local vibes

For a certain kind of traveler it's a can't-miss first-trip stop — the Big Apple at its biggest and most audacious — a culture-filled crossroads that rewards exploration.
afar.com
It's the literal epicenter of Broadway, with a star-studded season featuring A-listers, so most theater nights begin or end right here.
timeout.com
Tucked between the awful ones are genuinely good spots like the Rum House, a vintage piano bar with live jazz, and the century-old Drama Bookshop.
timeout.com
Much of the food is oversize outposts of suburban chains like Olive Garden and Red Lobster rather than anything you came to New York to eat.
afar.com
It's too loud, too bright, and too filled with Naked Cowboys, bootleg mascot characters, and scammers — overstimulating enough that many find it best avoided outside a show.
afar.com
What it feels like

Reading the room, traveller by traveller

  • First-timers

    If it's your first trip, this is the maximalist New York postcard you pictured — see it once, ideally tied to a Broadway show.

    For a certain kind of traveler, Times Square is a can't-miss stop on your first trip to New York City—the Big Apple at its biggest and most audacious.

    afar.com
  • As a couple

    Skip the plaza chaos for a date and duck into the Rum House for jazz, or book a window table at the rotating restaurant atop the Marriott Marquis.

  • On a budget

    The square itself costs nothing to gawk at, but eat and drink a few blocks off it — the on-square chains are pricey and forgettable.

    there are also some really delicious Times Square restaurants hidden between the awful ones

    timeout.com
  • With kids

    Kids tend to love the spectacle — the M&M store, Madame Tussauds, and the lights — even as adults find it exhausting.

What people say

Straight from the reviews

There's no denying it's too loud, too bright, too filled with Naked Cowboys and bootleg mascot characters and scammers. But it's also a culture-filled crossroads that rewards exploration

afar.com

For others, it's an overcrowded, overstimulating, overly commercialized neighborhood that's best avoided, except for the brief time when you're coming or going from a Broadway show.

afar.com

As the city's notorious epicenter of tourism, New Yorkers avoid Times Square at all costs

timeout.com
Good to know

Before you go

Cost
Free to gawk
Time
20–30 min
Last verified
2026-06-06
Best time
After dark for the full neon effect; weekday afternoons are marginally calmer than weekend nights.
Getting there
Times Sq–42 St is one of the busiest subway hubs in the system (1/2/3, 7, N/Q/R/W, S shuttle).
Booking
No ticket to enter; book Broadway shows ahead and consider TKTS in Father Duffy Square for same-day discounts.
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Independent — no pay-to-rank Graded for who you are Verified 2026-06-06How we grade →