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.
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Fort George
105 Arden Street
$3,100base rent
2 |
1
Hudson Yards
454 West 36th Street
$3,200base rent
1 |
1
Kips Bay
513 Second Avenue
$3,150base rent
Studio |
1
East Harlem
2319 Third Avenue
$2,869base rent
1 |
1
Yorkville
1582 York Avenue
$3,195base rent
1 |
1
South Harlem
13 East 117th Street
$3,200base rent
2 |
1
Central Harlem
12 East 127th Street
$2,050base rent
Studio |
1
Midtown
230 West 55th Street
$3,495base rent
1 |
1
Chelsea
113 1/2 West 15th Street
$2,995base rent
Studio |
1
Turtle Bay
903 First Avenue
$2,412base rent
Studio |
1
Washington Heights
580 West 161st Street
$3,300base rent
3 |
1
South Harlem
301 West 112th Street
$3,195base rent
1 |
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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Crown Heights
1499 Bedford Avenue
$2,800base rent
Studio |
1
Weeksville
1266 Park Place
$2,953base rent
2 |
1
Midwood
1500 Ocean Parkway
$2,450base rent
2 |
1
Ditmas Park
1326 Ocean Avenue
$2,666base rent
1 |
1
Bay Ridge
7200 Ridge Boulevard
$2,350base rent
1 |
1
Bay Ridge
7200 Ridge Boulevard
$2,750base rent
2 |
1
Ditmas Park
1326 Ocean Avenue
$2,312base rent
Studio |
1
Bay Ridge
7901 Fourth Avenue
$2,050base rent
Studio |
1
Bay Ridge
141 74th Street
$2,650base rent
2 |
1
Bay Ridge
7002 Ridge Boulevard
$2,300base rent
1 |
1
East Flatbush
897 New York Avenue
$2,667base rent
1 |
1.5
Park Slope
480 Fifth Avenue
$2,950base rent
1 |
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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Oakland Gardens
221-18 64th Avenue
$2,300base rent
1 |
1
Astoria
23-30 Broadway
$2,300base rent
Studio |
1
Ridgewood
17-26 Himrod Street
$2,400base rent
1 |
1
Rego Park
61-15 98th Street
$1,900base rent
Studio |
1
Bayside
221-35 59th Avenue
$2,395base rent
1 |
1
Rego Park
98-26 64th Avenue
$1,950base rent
Studio |
1
Ditmars-Steinway
20-06 49th Street
$2,350base rent
1 |
1
Sunnyside
45-25 42nd Street
$2,400base rent
1 |
1
Rego Park
65-61 Saunders Street
$2,077base rent
1 |
1
Jackson Heights
35-65 85th Street
$2,350base rent
Studio |
1
Flushing
142-41 41st Avenue
$2,200base rent
2 |
1
Jamaica
153-38 Hillside Avenue
$2,350base rent
1 |
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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Upper West Side
174 West 89th Street
$900,000
3 |
1
Upper West Side
138 West 87th Street
$550,000
1 |
1
Financial District
20 West Street
$525,000
Studio |
1
Battery Park City
280 Rector Place
$499,999
1 |
1
Lenox Hill
420 East 64th Street
$849,000
1 |
1
NoMad
35 East 30th Street
$650,000
1 |
1
Murray Hill
35 Park Avenue
$579,000
1 |
1
Upper West Side
230 Riverside Drive
$999,000
1 |
1
Upper West Side
15 West 72nd Street
$795,000
1 |
1
Kips Bay
150 East 27th Street
$475,000
Studio |
1
Lenox Hill
166 East 63rd Street
$1,400,000
1 |
1.5
Chelsea
253 West 16th Street
$450,000
Studio |
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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Weeksville
1598 Union Street
$1,395,000
4 |
2
Stuyvesant Heights
129 Malcolm X Boulevard
$899,000
1 |
2
Weeksville
1640 Union Street
$1,395,000
8 |
3
Clinton Hill
205 Clinton Avenue
$850,000
2 |
1
East New York
672 Elton Street
$650,000
Studio |
2
Canarsie
1625 East 96th Street
$649,900
3 |
1.5
Ocean Hill
593 Bainbridge Street
$1,399,999
3 |
2
Williamsburg
429 Kent Avenue
$1,169,000
1 |
1
Brooklyn Heights
130 Hicks Street
$399,000
Studio |
1
New Lots
1043 Hendrix Street
$559,999
3 |
1.5
Sheepshead Bay
1663 Burnett Street
$999,000
5 |
2.5
Coney Island
2837 West 19th Street
$758,000
3 |
2
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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Oakland Gardens
75-34 Bell Boulevard
$480,000
2 |
2
Rego Park
99-60 63 Road
$350,000
2 |
1
Flushing
136-21 Latimer Place
$580,000
2 |
2
Flushing
136-21 Latimer Place
$600,000
Studio |
3
Flushing
136-21 Latimer Place
$610,000
Studio |
3
Flushing
32-18 137th Street
$610,000
Studio |
3
Flushing
136-21 Latimer Place
$570,000
Studio |
3
Kew Gardens
83-44 Lefferts Boulevard
$388,000
2 |
1
St. Albans
185-16 Galway Avenue
$760,000
3 |
1.5
Ditmars-Steinway
21-38 35th Street
$335,000
2 |
1
Bay Terrace (Queens)
13-16 212nd Street
$325,000
2 |
1
Ditmars-Steinway
21-57 33rd Street
$320,000
3 |
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!