Do you need cash in New York City?

My Trip to Manhattan, Taxis, Tipping and Tap-to-Pay Reality

Last autumn we went to New York City as a family, and before we travelled I kept wondering: do you actually need cash in New York anymore? The answer is a slightly strange “yes and no”. New York feels like the home of card payments. This is the country that created Visa and Mastercard after all. You can pay by card almost everywhere, and I mean almost everywhere. Hotels, restaurants, attractions, coffee shops, even the hot dog stands in some places.

But despite that, there were still moments where having some US dollars in your pocket made life easier (the taxi driver from the airport wanted cash, and also went out his way to ask if we had enough for a tip, which I did give, although he actually chatted loudly on the phone all the way in to NYC while weaving in and out of the traffic!)

Yes, You Probably Still Need Some Cash

I’m glad we took some dollars with us.The biggest example was the taxi from the airport. The fare itself was fixed, but the driver was happy with cash as I mentioned above.

Cash was also useful for:

• tips
• small purchases
• snacks
• convenience stores
• the occasional place where card minimums existed

You do not need huge amounts. But I personally wouldn’t go to New York with no cash at all.

For a family trip, I’d probably take somewhere around $400 to $800 in cash depending on how long you’re staying (NYC is extremely expensive by the way, so be prepared to spend alot if you are eating out all the time).

The Tipping Culture Is Intense

The thing that genuinely surprised me most about New York was tipping.

Everybody wants a tip. And I mean everybody. We went into Starbucks one morning, collected our own coffee, and the card machine spun round asking for something like:

• 18%
• 20%
• 25%

for literally handing over a latte. It becomes slightly exhausting after a while because you feel momentarily bad for not providing a tip !

Restaurants obviously expect tips, but so do:

• bars
• cafés
• hotel staff
• taxi drivers
• food deliveries

You need to budget for this because it adds up quickly.

My Favourite Parts of the Trip

New York somehow manages to feel cinematic even when you’re just buying a sandwich.

A few highlights stood out.

The 9/11 Memorial

The 9/11 Memorial was extraordinary. Quiet, emotional and incredibly powerful. The huge memorial pools sit exactly where the Twin Towers once stood, and the museum underneath is one of the most moving places I’ve ever visited. The Virgil quote on the wall stayed with me long after we came home:

“No day shall erase you from the memory of time.”

It’s difficult to explain the atmosphere properly until you stand there yourself. Booking ahead and also booking a tour guide really helps – both on time queuing for tickets (and it gets v busy after 10am) and also the guide gives you so much more information.

Seeing Manhattan From Above

Going up the skyscrapers is expensive, but absolutely worth doing.

The views across Central Park and Manhattan are astonishing. New York from above looks like somebody tipped an entire civilisation vertically into the sky.

My advice:

• pre-book your tickets
• go early in the morning
• avoid weekends if possible

Queues become enormous later in the day.

Seeing the Skyline From the Water

One of the best things we did was simply getting out onto the water and seeing Manhattan properly from a distance. We had a tour on a river boat right around the island which was very interesting – you can get food on the boat, but it is just pizza and is very expensive !

It’s also one of the best ways to appreciate just how huge New York really is.

The High Line

The High Line was another surprise favourite. An old elevated railway line turned into a long urban garden walkway sounds like something that should not work. Yet somehow it does. You drift above the streets between glass towers, plants, cafés and little viewing spots.