The New York Pass® – Free Big Bus Tour!

Navigating Manhattan with your family during Chol Hamoed is an adventure, but paying standard gate prices for every observation deck and museum will quickly drain your vacation budget. Grabbing a Go City New York pass is one of the absolute smartest ways to lock in your itinerary while keeping your costs entirely predictable. Instead of pulling out your wallet at every ticket booth, you pay one flat rate for a digital pass that lives right on your phone.

Go City currently offers three distinct pass structures for New York, depending on how aggressive your sightseeing plans are.

• How it works: You buy a pass valid for a set number of consecutive days (from 1 up to 10 days).
• The Vibe: Once activated at your first attraction, you can visit as many of the 100+ included locations as you want within those days.
• Best for: Power-sightseers. If your family is the type to wake up early, hit a museum, take a cruise before lunch, and end the day on top of a skyscraper, this pass offers massive financial value.

• How it works: Instead of days, you buy a pass for a specific number of attractions (choose 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, or 10 choices).
• The Vibe: You have a full 30 days to use your choices after activating the pass. You don’t have to decide which attractions you are visiting until you are ready to book them.
• Best for: A laid-back, curated itinerary. If you only want to hit one big observation deck and maybe a museum, and spend the rest of the day walking through Central Park, this pass lets you save money without feeling rushed.
• Limited time only! Ends January 4: Enjoy a free New York Big Bus Tour Usually worth up to $81! Added when you pick a 4, 5, 6, 7 or 10-choice Explorer Pass. Buy and use by January 4.

• How it works: This is a highly curated, 3-choice pass for $99. You pick exactly one major observation deck (Empire State Building, Edge, Top of the Rock, or One World Observatory) and choose two more experiences from a shortlist of the top 9 most popular attractions (like the 9/11 Memorial or Natural History Museum).
• The Vibe: It operates exactly like the Explorer Pass (giving you 30 days to use your 3 choices), but because the list is restricted to just the absolute biggest hits, the upfront cost is highly competitive.
• Best for: Families visiting the city for the first time who know they just want to see the “Big Three” staples and don’t want to be overwhelmed by a list of 100+ niche tours.

Use this interactive calculator to compare the pass types and see how much you can save based on your specific itinerary:

While the pass covers over 100 tours and rental options, here are the heavy-hitters and unique experiences families actually use:

• Empire State Building: The classic, quintessential NYC experience with iconic open-air views from the 86th floor.
• Edge Immersive Observation Deck: The highest outdoor sky deck in the Western Hemisphere, featuring a thrilling glass floor and angled glass walls.
• Top of the Rock: Arguably the best panoramic view in the city, offering a dead-center look at the Empire State Building and Central Park.
• One World Observatory: Incredible indoor views from the top of the Freedom Tower, starting with a dramatic, high-tech elevator ride.

• American Museum of Natural History: A non-negotiable for kids, featuring massive dinosaur halls, the giant blue whale room, and the planetarium.
• 9/11 Memorial & Museum: A profoundly moving, world-class museum built into the foundation of the original Twin Towers.
• Intrepid Museum: Explore a real, massive aircraft carrier, a space shuttle, and a submarine docked right on the Hudson River.
• Museum of Modern Art (MoMA): One of the most influential contemporary art collections in the world (and home to Van Gogh’s Starry Night).
• Mercer Labs – Museum of Art and Technology: A brand-new, wildly immersive, sensory-driven digital art experience that teens will love.
• The Museum of Broadway: A fun, interactive walk through the history, costumes, and behind-the-scenes magic of Times Square’s biggest shows.

• Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island Ferry: The official and only ferry that allows you to actually step foot on Liberty Island and explore the immigration museum.
• Circle Line Sightseeing Cruises: Choose from several routes (like the Landmarks or Best of NYC cruise) to get the best skyline photos right from the water.
• The Beast Speedboat Ride: A high-energy, wet-and-wild thrill ride down the Hudson River that blasts music all the way to the Statue of Liberty.
• Clipper City Tall Ship: A relaxing daytime sail around the harbor on a massive, historic sailboat.

• Madame Tussauds New York: Snap selfies with incredibly realistic wax celebrities and experience the immersive Jumanji 4D ride right in Times Square.
• Madison Square Garden Tour: Go behind the scenes of “The World’s Most Famous Arena” to see the locker rooms and VIP areas.
• Radio City Music Hall Tour: Explore the beautiful Art Deco theater, learn its history, and even meet a real Rockette.
• Yankee Stadium Classic Tour: A must-do for baseball fans, taking you down into the dugout and out to Monument Park.

• Big Bus 2-Day Hop-on Hop-off Tour: An easy, scenic way to navigate between Downtown and Uptown without fighting the subway system.
• Central Park Full Day Bike Rental: Grab a set of bikes from Unlimited Biking and spend the afternoon rolling through the park’s iconic trails and bridges.
• Brooklyn Bridge and DUMBO Walking Tour: A guided stroll across the city’s most famous bridge with incredible skyline photo ops at the end.

Rather than juggling multiple confirmation emails, you manage all of this directly through the Go City mobile app. Once you buy your pass, you sync your order number to the app. This turns your phone into your digital entry ticket for the gates, but more importantly, it unlocks their built-in trip planning tool.

You can select the museums and tours you want to visit, and the app will generate an itinerary, provide transit hints, and allow you to lock in those mandatory timed-entry reservations directly through their interface. Plan ahead, lock in your times on the app, and skip the massive ticket lines!

• Group by Neighborhood: New York is massive, and crisscrossing Manhattan in midtown traffic or packed subways will eat up half your day. Cluster your attractions geographically! Group Midtown and Hudson Yards together for one day (Edge, Top of the Rock, Empire State Building, MoMA), and tackle Lower Manhattan on another (9/11 Memorial & Museum, One World Observatory, Statue of Liberty Ferry).
• Book Reservations Early: Having a pass grants you access, but high-demand attractions strictly enforce timed reservation slots during peak travel times like Chol Hamoed. Lock in your entry times for heavy-hitters—especially the Empire State Building, Edge, and the Statue of Liberty Ferry—directly through the Go City app at least 1 to 2 weeks in advance.
• Skip the Cheap Stuff: If you bought the Explorer or Essentials Pass (where your choices are strictly capped), use your pass scans exclusively on high-ticket items like the Big Bus Tour ($81) or Edge ($69). Pay out-of-pocket for cheap $10–$15 tickets (like the Vessel at Hudson Yards or smaller historic sites) so you don’t burn a valuable pass choice on a low-priced entry fee.

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