Go City Pass New York: My Favorite Tourist Pass, Explained

From where I stand, the GO City Pass New York is the best sightseeing pass in New York, because its two versions (the Explorer Pass and the All-Inclusive Pass) work for just about every kind of traveler.

The GO City Explorer version is the better pick if you want to take your time and visit just a handful of New York attractions that actually interest you (for those of us who travel here often, it's ideal for checking out new places).

The GO City All-Inclusive version, on the other hand, is fantastic for squeezing every minute out of your trip, since you can visit as much as you want in a few days. It's the pass of choice for first-time visitors to New York.

Types of GO City Pass: Explorer and All-Inclusive

These days the GO City is even more flexible than it was a couple of years ago, since you can buy it in two versions:

🗽GO City Explorer Pass: you pick a number of activities and decide which ones to use once you're in New York.

🗽GO City All-Inclusive Pass: you pick a number of days and can visit as many attractions as you want.

Below I'll walk you through how each type of Go City New York Pass works.

How does the GO City Explorer Pass work?

The first thing to do is choose the number of activities you'll be able to visit (passes range from 2 up to 10 activities)

I'll say it again: at the time of purchase you don't have to choose the places you'll visit. You can decide that at your leisure once you're in New York.

Before your trip, it's important to check which attractions require advance reservations, so you can lock in your spot.

All the info on the attractions and activities included, and which ones require a mandatory reservation, is laid out clearly on the official Go City page.

Once you've bought your pass, you'll need to download the GO CITY app and follow the instructions. The QR code in the app works as your ticket at the entrance of each attraction.

The way I see it, the best thing about the GO City Explorer Pass is that you have up to 60 consecutive days to use it, starting from the moment you enter your first attraction (you can visit each attraction only once).

GO City Explorer prices

Number of visits	Adults	Kids*
2 options	$84	$69
3 options	$109	$89
4 options	$144	$119
5 options	$169	$134
6 options	$194	$154
7 options	$219	$174
10 options	$289	$239

*Kids ages 3 to 12. Children under 3 go free

Why do I like the GO City Explorer? Because of how simple it is: when you buy, all you have to decide is the number of activities (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 or 10) without picking them in advance. Then, starting from your first visit, you have 60 consecutive days to do them all.

You get to choose your attractions from more than 90 options!

And the savings are real: depending on the places or tours you choose, you can save up to 53% of what you'd have paid buying tickets separately (the pricier the tickets, the more you save).

How does the GO City All-Inclusive Pass work?

If you prefer the All-Inclusive Pass, you just select the number of days during which you can visit as many attractions as you like (once each).

This type of sightseeing pass is ideal if you want to see as much as possible in a short time. To make it pay off you need to plan well, start the day very early and be ready to walk a lot!

It's also key to check ahead for activities that require a mandatory reservation, so you can secure your spot. The official Go City page has the details on every attraction and which ones need booking.

GO City All-Inclusive prices

Number of visits	Adults	Kids*
1 day	$154	$114
2 days	$214	$169
3 days	$259	$199
4 days	$299	$229
5 days	$339	$264
7 days	$379	$289
10 days	$399	$299

*Kids ages 3 to 12. Under 3 go free

Where to buy the Go City New York

The Go City New York is bought online in a couple of minutes, even from your phone.

After buying it, you'll get an email with the link to download your passes in the Go City app.

Remember that the app is your ticket, and you'll need to show it at the entrance of each attraction. The app is incredibly handy, too, since it has up-to-date info on hours, which attractions require a reservation and other details worth knowing before you go.

The Go City New York is personal and nontransferable, so every traveler needs to buy their own.

An example of how much you save with the Go City Explorer

Let me run some simple numbers to show you how much you save with the Go City (Explorer Pass), based on my own experience using it on one of my recent trips to New York:

I got the Go City with 3 choices, and since the official site always has deals, it cost me $109.

If I had bought each ticket separately I would have paid $145.96, and since the Go City cost $109, I saved $36.96! That's a 25.3% discount on the price of the tickets.

You can check it yourself by adding up the individual ticket prices for the places I decided to visit once I got to New York:

1. The Edge observation deck at Hudson Yards. I had to see it so I could tell you about it! Individual ticket price: $50.08
2. The Intrepid Sea, Air and Space Museum, a floating museum on the Hudson River with a Cold War nuclear submarine, a World War II aircraft carrier and NASA's first Space Shuttle. Seriously impressive! Individual ticket price: $36
3. The Top of the Rock, a classic New York observation deck at Rockefeller Center whose views of the Midtown Manhattan skyline I wanted to enjoy again. Individual ticket price: $59.88

The discount is bigger on passes with more choices, but you always come out ahead, with zero stress and no need to rush around, since you have 2 months to do all your visits.

Run your own numbers by comparing the individual ticket prices for each attraction with the price of the different passes on the official Go City Pass site.

Which attractions does the Go City New York include?

With the Go City New York Pass you can pick your tickets from the city's top attractions, tours and activities. Here's a sample of the most popular ones:

• The new Edge observation deck at Hudson Yards
• One World Observatory
• Empire State Building Observatory
• Top of the Rock observation deck
• Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum
• Ferry to Liberty Island
• The Metropolitan Museum of Art (the Met)
• MoMA
• American Museum of Natural History
• The Guggenheim
• Whitney Museum
• Museum of Sex
• New York Botanical Garden
• Luna Park amusement park
• Radio City Music Hall tour
• Yankee Stadium tour
• Hop-on hop-off sightseeing bus
• Cruises and ferries around Manhattan
• It also includes several bus tours, tours of the Sex and the City filming locations, bike tours through Central Park and across the Brooklyn Bridge, and plenty more.

Is this pass worth it?

After trying it, I think it's the most flexible of all the discount sightseeing passes in New York. I recommend it:

• It's the only one you can use over 60 days, which is ideal if you're spending more time in New York and aren't in a hurry.
• If you travel to New York often, the pass always includes something new or something you haven't gotten to yet (I used mine to go inside a Cold War submarine, for example!)
• With the pass, tickets work out cheaper than buying them separately.
• You'll save time, since most attractions have a dedicated entrance for pass holders, which at least gets you out of the ticket line.

Comparison: which discount pass is the best?

People always ask me which discount pass is the better deal, and my answer is that it depends on the kind of trip you're taking:

• The Go City New York with its two pass types (Explorer and All-Inclusive) gives you a lot of flexibility
• The New York Pass and the Sightseeing Pass work if you want to see as much as possible in a short time (they include more than 100 attractions), with options for trips from 1 day up to 10 days.
• The City Pass lets you focus on the big hitters (it only includes 5 major attractions). Ideal for short trips or for anyone visiting New York for the first time.

If you need more help making up your mind, here's a comparison of the most popular tourist discount passes.

Frequently Asked Questions