Good events/things to do in NYC as nerdy, arty tourists in October?

September 14, 2013 3:18 PM

We hit the Met and the Society of Illustrators Museum the last time we were in this fair city and loved them; can the hivemind suggest events or other semi-touristy things to see that will be going on between the 13th-15th of October for a couple to do? We enjoyed the EMP Museum in Seattle, and the Huntington Gardens in LA; we're occasional swing dancers and fire spinners, so we might like something dance or circus-oriented, and I'm up for most classical/representative art museums or nice areas to amble outside.
posted by tautological to Travel & Transportation around New York, NY (2 answers total)

You will be in town during Open House New York! OHNY event listings go live October 2nd but they've leaked some already, such as some nighttime tours, the new Whitney Museum's construction site, 4WTC, the unrenovated portion of the High Line, the Brooklyn Army Terminal tours, the TWA Flight Center (made famous in Catch Me if You Can), etc.

Some OHNY events are ticketed tours (like the High Line tour will definitely sell out quickly) but a lot of them are not and you can just show up (though some are limited capacity so there will be a line for smaller spaces like architect's apartments). For example, for Eero Saarinen's TWA Flight Center, you can just walk in during OHNY and wander around. It's stunning in person.

Previous answer that I gave someone:

There is nothing wrong with touring NYC's greatest hits: Top of the Rock ($27), Rockefeller Center (free), MoMA (free on Fridays, but there's usually a massive line in the summers), Times Square (free), Grand Central Terminal (free, plus MAS does a tour daily for $20 at 12:30pm), Central Park (free), The Metropolitan Museum of Art (donation suggested, you can pay a quarter and they'll still let you in), American Museum of Natural History, 9/11 Memorial (free but you MUST get the free tickets online ahead of time), and the High Line (free).

Space shuttle Enterprise at the Intrepid ($29) has just reopened, as the pavilion had sustained damage during Hurricane Sandy.

The Statue of Liberty ($17 + $3 for crown access) also just reopened this past summer, having also sustained damage during Hurricane Candy. Ellis Island remains closed to the public, unfortunately.

The Museum of the Moving Image currently has a very small but cool Breaking Bad exhibit with about a dozen different props and costumes used in the show. You might also like Museum, which is a tiny, tiny museum off a random alleyway downtown.

Also, the Woolworth Building is finally allowing people to tour the lobby & take photos.

The Art of the Brick by Nathan Sawaya is still running.

I also keep a list of Strange Places and Oddities in NYC.

Atlas Obscura's NYC events arm will probably announce some more events closer to October. I'd check Nerd York City's calendar closer to October as well.

See if anything at BAM's Next Wave Festival appeals; unfortunately you're missing their contemporary circus stuff.

If you feel like going back to the Met, you could try a Hack the Met tour.
posted by kathryn at 4:29 PM on September 14, 2013 [2 favorites]

Meeting at PS1 should be awesome in mid October, since sunset will nearly coincide with museum hours.
posted by nathancaswell at 4:44 PM on September 14, 2013