The most wonderful time of the year has snuck up on us once again. And as New Yorkers know, it’s easy to get caught up in the festivities and put off your holiday shopping. If you’re scrambling to find gifts for your city-dwelling friends and family — or an aspirational New Yorker — don’t fret. Here are 10 perfect New York gift ideas.
Table of Contents
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Noho
308 Mott Street
$2,950No Fee
1 |
1
Lower East Side
167 Ludlow Street
$2,745No Fee
1 |
1
Financial District
1 Wall Street Court
$3,000No Fee
Studio |
1
Washington Heights
106 Fort Washington Avenue
$2,440No Fee
1 |
1
Kips Bay
137 East 26th Street
$2,809No Fee
1 |
1
Yorkville
525 East 81st Street
$2,450No Fee
Studio |
1
Central Harlem
30 West 141st Street
$1,965No Fee
Studio |
1
Upper West Side
858 West End Avenue
$2,195No Fee
Studio |
1
Lenox Hill
304 East 62nd Street
$2,650No Fee
1 |
1
Sutton Place
333 East 54th Street
$2,800No Fee
Studio |
1
Morningside Heights
515 West 111st Street
$2,861No Fee
1 |
1
Chelsea
213 West 18th Street
$2,395No Fee
Studio |
1
For the transit lover
There’s nothing more fitting for a populous that’s obsessed (consumed? disgruntled?) with the city’s transportation system than a subway-themed gift. From the New York Transit Museum Store, you can buy everything from MetroCard totes to subway-themed mugs and baby onesies.
You can purchase from the store online, or in-person at three different locations: the NY Transit Museum & Store in Downtown Brooklyn, the New York Transit Museum Gallery Annex & Store inside Grand Central Terminal, or the New York Transit Museum Shop in the Financial District. Check out the museum while you’re at it!
For the book lover
For the readers on your shopping list, go for New York-themed books. As you can imagine, there are countless fiction and non-fiction works on the subject. Local stores like The Strand and the Tenement Museum Shop have massive online and in-person selections of books about NYC. The Strand even offers a New York Collection bundle of used hardcover books on New York City history, culture, and more.
Literature fans will love Manhattan Beach by Pulitzer Prize-winning author Jennifer Egan, a historical drama that takes place in 1940s Brooklyn. Or consider Colson Whitehead’s The Collosus of New York, an ultra-relatable collection of essays inspired by the city. For history fans, the acclaimed biography The Power Broker will give readers a thorough (like, 1,344-pages thorough) understanding of infamous city official Robert Moses and how he shaped New York into the metropolis we know today.
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Stuyvesant Heights
494 Bainbridge Street
$2,995No Fee
2 |
1
Weeksville
1629 Saint John’s Place
$2,999No Fee
3 |
1
Crown Heights
931 Carroll Street
$2,743No Fee
1 |
1
Crown Heights
931 Carroll Street
$2,514No Fee
1 |
1
East New York
1152 Sutter Avenue
$1,602No Fee
1 |
1
Crown Heights
931 Carroll Street
$2,743No Fee
1 |
1
Crown Heights
931 Carroll Street
$2,514No Fee
1 |
1
East Flatbush
1789 Flatbush Avenue
$2,171No Fee
1 |
1
Gravesend
8855 Bay Parkway
$2,150No Fee
1 |
1
Sunset Park
4922 Fifth Avenue
$2,200No Fee
Studio |
1
Flatbush
160 Clarkson Avenue
$2,191No Fee
Studio |
1
Crown Heights
1413 Pacific Street
$2,100No Fee
Studio |
1
For the financially-minded
There’s one New York gift idea that’ll always work when time is running out before the holidays: cash. And given the cost of living in NYC, New Yorkers need plenty of it.
A survey conducted by The Harris Poll on behalf of StreetEasy asked New Yorkers about what they’d like to receive as a gift. When presented with the options of a vacation, money toward rent or a down payment, new electronics, or concert tickets, 2 out of 5 renters opted for the rent money, while 3 out of 10 aspiring buyers preferred money for a down payment. Recent sellers would also rather receive money toward a down payment on their next home than a trip or vacation. In other words, cash is king, especially for New Yorkers — and it’s an easy gift to give.
For the art and culture lover
You’ll never run out of gifts to give to the NYC culture hound in your life. But if you’re having a hard time choosing, here are a few ideas.
Jazz at Lincoln Center tickets or classes
Jazz at Lincoln Center offers classes in addition to concerts. (Wikimedia Commons)
As one of the leading jazz educational institutions and performance centers in the world, Jazz at Lincoln Center is a standout cultural institution in a city full of them. Give tickets to any of their stellar performances, or consider a Swing University class, where students learn about the history of jazz and how to appreciate the genre. Classes are held virtually, and can be purchased singularly or as a package.
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Jackson Heights
25-11 87th Street
$2,200No Fee
1 |
1
Jamaica
92-29 Guy Brewer Boulevard
$2,446No Fee
1 |
1
Jamaica
92-29 Guy Brewer Boulevard
$2,323No Fee
1 |
1
Far Rockaway
701 Beach 9th Street
$2,000No Fee
Studio |
1
Ditmars-Steinway
23-21 Steinway Avenue
$2,000No Fee
1 |
1
Jamaica
147-35 95th Avenue
$2,363No Fee
1 |
1
Forest Hills
69-10 Yellowstone Boulevard
$1,900No Fee
Studio |
1
Kew Gardens
82-77 116th Street
$2,415No Fee
1 |
1
Flushing
43-53 Main Street
$2,300No Fee
1 |
1
Auburndale
58-35 Utopia Parkway
$1,850No Fee
1 |
1
Rego Park
61-40 Saunders Street
$2,000No Fee
1 |
1
Jackson Heights
82-15 35th Avenue
$1,900No Fee
Studio |
1
NYC photography
Classic NYC photography always makes a great gift.
Help your friends decorate their homes with famous New York photographs, like the one of those men lunching precariously on a skyscraper construction beam. If you want to pick up some cheap prints, you can find them at many stands near tourist-heavy spots, like Times Square or Columbus Circle. And if you want to class it up a bit, you can opt for framed prints or unique reproductions by vendors at NYC holiday markets or on sites like Etsy.
Museum memberships
The Whitney offers great views outside, too.
A museum membership is a thoughtful gift that will keep on giving…at least until its expires. The Whitney Museum is expansive, hip, and has an outdoor terrace with Hudson River views for $90 per year. The Museum of Modern Art offers annual memberships for as low as $65, with higher tiers for the most dedicated of patrons. If you want to venture out of Manhattan and mix in a little nature with your nurture, think about a membership to the New York Botanical Garden or the Brooklyn Botanic Garden, whose exhibitions change with the seasons.
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Gramercy Park
7 Lexington Avenue
$799,000
Studio |
1
Battery Park City
380 Rector Place
$999,000
1 |
1
Murray Hill
20 East 35th Street
$795,000
1 |
1
South Harlem
352 West 117th Street
$1,400,000
3 |
2.5
West Chelsea
453 West 19th Street
$810,000
1 |
1
Upper West Side
101 West 81st Street
$755,000
1 |
1
East Village
315 East 12th Street
$875,000
2 |
1
Lenox Hill
225 East 74th Street
$760,000
1 |
1
Upper West Side
110 Riverside Drive
$825,000
1 |
1
West Village
107 Morton Street
$1,150,000
2 |
1
Financial District
120 Greenwich Street
$700,000
1 |
1
Tribeca
275 Greenwich Street
$1,365,000
1 |
1
Broadway tickets
Broadway shows: they make Times Square bearable.
Even if New Yorkers claim to hate Times Square, any sane person will make an exception for a Broadway show. If you’re looking to wow the lucky recipient, choose a coveted favorite like Hamilton, The Lion King, or Wicked. There are several resale and discount ticket sites and apps you can use to score a deal. If you want something a bit more low-key and less expensive, there are a slew of phenomenal off-Broadway theaters. Try Signature Theatre or Roundabout Theatre Company, which offer more intimate viewing experiences and top-notch performers, many of whom also work on more glitzy Broadway stages.
The New Yorker magazine subscription
Are you truly an NYC resident until you’re 20-plus weeks behind on your New Yorker pile? Give the gift of incredible long-form articles, restaurant recommendations, cultural commentary, and hilarious cartoons — all in one magazine that may take you an entire week to finish (in the best way!).
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Gravesend
2630 Cropsey Avenue
$489,000
3 |
1.5
Park Slope
499 12th Street
$950,000
2 |
1
Brownsville
179 Amboy Street
$598,000
3 |
1.5
Gravesend
2050 West 6th Street
$1,099,000
5 |
3
Bedford-Stuyvesant
107 Madison Street
$750,000
1 |
1
Midwood
1680 Ocean Avenue
$365,000
1 |
1
Greenwood
194 30th Street
$879,000
1 |
1.5
Bushwick
255 Weirfield Street
$1,000,000
6 |
3
Bay Ridge
7259 Shore Road
$338,000
1 |
1
Brighton Beach
35 Sea Coast Terrace
$430,000
1 |
1
Brooklyn Heights
70 Remsen Street
$390,000
Studio |
1
Sheepshead Bay
2654 East 29th Street
$1,099,000
6 |
3
For the sports fan
A love of sports runs deep in NYC’s pulsing, concrete-enshrouded heart, and team loyalties will always be a point of both pride and contention. Any Modell’s location in the city will have an array of local team gear. Or, browse the MLB Store for hats and jerseys from New York’s two baseball clubs. Whatever you’re gifting, though, don’t choose wrong — a Yankees fan will scoff at a Mets hat, and a Mets fan will certainly throw that Yankees jersey in the donation pile.
Hit the ball out of the park by giving tickets to a home game.
If you want to go all out, why not surprise and delight with tickets to a game? There are still a few games left in the NFL season, and the NHL season goes to mid-April. Tickets for next year’s MLB season are usually available this time of year, too. Grab home game tickets for the Giants, Jets, Rangers, Islanders, Yankees, or Mets.
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Rego Park
97-40 62 Drive
$319,000
1 |
1
Rego Park
98-20 62 Drive
$499,000
3 |
1.5
Hammels
260 Beach 81st Street
$359,900
2 |
1
Kew Gardens
125-10 Queens Boulevard
$328,000
2 |
1
Forest Hills
10 Holder Place
$575,000
1 |
1.5
Kew Gardens
45 Kew Garden Road
$569,000
2 |
2
Bayside
42-23 212nd Street
$618,000
1 |
1
Hunters Point
2-40 51st Avenue
$939,000
1 |
1
Hammels
317 Beach 87th Street
$999,000
6 |
4
Pomonok
163-07 72nd Avenue
$505,000
1 |
1
Pomonok
163-07 72nd Avenue
$385,000
1 |
1
Pomonok
163-07 72nd Avenue
$400,000
1 |
1
For the New York foodie
New Yorkers love — no, adore — their bagels and lox, and you can fuel their affair with a Russ & Daughters gift basket. The beloved Lower East Side institution first opened its doors in 1914, and has been wooing locals with perfect bagels and fresh fish ever since. Show your friends and family that you know good New York bagels when you see them.
If you have another spot in mind for the foodie on your list, Goldbelly offers a variety of specialties from legendary NYC purveyors like Barney Greengrass, Levain Bakery, John’s of Bleecker Street, Gramercy Tavern, and more. They deliver nationwide, so you can gift a little taste of New York to your loved ones even if they don’t call it home!