Go City New York Pass Review 2026 – Is It Actually Worth the Money?

What is the Go City New York Pass?

The Go City New York Pass is a sightseeing pass that gives you access to a large selection of attractions, tours, museums, cruises and experiences around New York. There are currently 103 attractions included across the Explorer and All-Inclusive passes. Instead of buying an individual ticket every time you want to visit somewhere, you buy the pass and use it for the attractions included.

You use the Go City app to access your pass, so you don’t have to carry around a collection of individual tickets. The big difference between the two passes is how you pay for them.

With the Explorer Pass, you choose how many attractions you want to visit.

With the All-Inclusive Pass, you choose how many days you want the pass for and can visit as many included attractions as you like during those days.

Both passes are valid for one year from the date of purchase, but once you activate them, the Explorer Pass is valid for 30 days from your first attraction visit, while the All-Inclusive Pass is valid for the number of days you’ve purchased.

So, if you’re planning a trip where you already know you want to visit several of New York’s biggest attractions, the pass can make budgeting a lot easier.

How much does the Go City New York Explorer Pass cost?

The Explorer Pass is based on the number of attractions you want to visit. You can currently choose between 2 and 10 attractions, with access to 103 attractions.

These are the current prices shown by Go City:

The Explorer Pass is the one I’d look at first if you’re only in New York for a few days or don’t want to spend every day sightseeing. You aren’t tied to a particular number of sightseeing days either.

You simply choose the number of attractions you want to visit and have 30 days from activation to use your pass. Go City is also currently offering a free Big Bus 2-Day Downtown & Uptown Tour with the 4, 5, 6, 7 and 10 choice Explorer Passes, subject to the current promotion and use-by date.

Current prices: From $89 per adult
Attractions: 103
Best for: People who know which attractions they want to visit

How much does the Go City New York All-Inclusive Pass cost?

The All-Inclusive Pass works differently. Instead of choosing how many attractions you want, you choose the number of days you want the pass to last. You can currently buy a pass for between 1 and 10 days.

The current prices are:

All-Inclusive Pass	Current price
1 day	$169
2 days	$219
3 days	$269
4 days	$319
5 days	$359
6 days	$389
7 days	$399
8 days	$409
9 days	$419
10 days	$429

Go City Explorer vs All-Inclusive: Which one should you buy?

This is probably the most important decision you’ll make. The Explorer Pass is based on the number of attractions, while the All-Inclusive Pass is based on the number of days.

If you’re planning a relaxed girls trip where you might visit two or three major attractions and spend plenty of time shopping, eating and exploring neighbourhoods, I’d look at the Explorer Pass first.

If you’re planning your first trip to New York and have a long list of museums, observation decks, cruises and tours you want to tick off, the All-Inclusive Pass could give you better value.

The Explorer Pass also gives you more flexibility because you’re not trying to make the most of a certain number of consecutive sightseeing days.

The All-Inclusive Pass can work out better when you’re happy to dedicate whole days to sightseeing and make the most of the pass.

I’d also consider the type of trip you’re taking. If you’re travelling with friends and everyone has a slightly different idea of what they want to do, the Explorer Pass can be easier because you aren’t trying to keep the whole group sightseeing all day.

For a busy first-time NYC trip where everyone wants to see as much as possible, I’d be more tempted by the All-Inclusive option.

My pick: Explorer for a more relaxed trip; All-Inclusive for a sightseeing-heavy itinerary.

Is the Go City New York Pass worth it?

Yes, it can be but only if the attractions you’re planning to visit add up to more than the price of the pass. That’s the important bit.

Go City currently lists individual prices of up to $57 for the Empire State Building, $69 for Edge, $65 for Top of the Rock and $48 for One World Observatory.

Other major attractions include the American Museum of Natural History at up to $43, MoMA at up to $30, the 9/11 Memorial & Museum at up to $36 and the Intrepid Museum at up to $38. Those prices add up quickly.

For example, if you wanted to visit Edge, Top of the Rock and the Empire State Building, Go City’s listed individual prices add up to up to $191. The current 3 choice Explorer Pass costs $119. That would give you a potential saving of up to $72 before you’ve even added another attraction.

That’s a very different situation from buying the 2 choice pass for $89 and using it for two attractions that would cost $30 and $36 individually. In that case, you’d actually spend more on the pass. So yes, I think the Go City Pass can be worth the money, but your itinerary matters much more than the headline saving.

My verdict: Work out your individual attraction total first, then compare it with the pass.

Read exactly how I would spend 4 days in NYC for a first time visit here!

Go City Explorer Pass: when does it actually start saving you money?

Using the current prices displayed by Go City for its major attractions, you can see how quickly the maths can change. For example, the current 2 choice pass is $89.

If your two attractions were the Empire State Building and MoMA, Go City’s listed prices are up to $57 and $30 respectively, giving you a total of $87. In that example, I’d just buy the tickets separately.

The 3 choice pass is $119, though, and three expensive attractions can easily take you above that. The Empire State Building, Edge and Top of the Rock have listed individual prices of up to $57, $69 and $65, giving you a combined total of $191. That would make the $119 pass look very attractive.

The 4 choice pass is $149, and adding another major attraction such as One World Observatory takes the listed individual total to up to $239.

The 5 choice pass is $179, and adding the 9/11 Memorial & Museum takes that example to up to $275.

The exact saving will depend on the attractions you choose and the prices available for your dates, but the general point is clear: the Explorer Pass becomes much more value once you’re choosing several higher priced attractions.

My tip: Don’t count cheap attractions just to make the pass look better. Compare the actual tickets you’d genuinely buy.

Read my full guide to New York City here

What about the All-Inclusive Pass?

The All-Inclusive Pass is slightly harder to judge because you’re paying for days rather than a fixed number of attractions.

The current 1 day pass costs $169. That means you need to get a decent amount of value from that day for it to make sense. For example, Go City currently lists the Empire State Building at up to $57, Edge at up to $69 and Top of the Rock at up to $65. Those three attractions alone have a combined listed value of up to $191.

So, in theory, a $169 one-day All-Inclusive Pass could pay for itself if you visited all three. But I wouldn’t automatically recommend doing three observation decks in one day. Personally, I’d rather combine different types of experiences. You could do an observation deck in the morning, visit a museum, take a cruise or bus tour and then finish your day exploring another neighbourhood.

That’s where the All-Inclusive Pass becomes more useful. You’re not just trying to squeeze in as many attractions as possible. You’re building a sightseeing day where several paid experiences fit naturally together.

My tip: Look at the geography of the attractions you’re visiting and group them by neighbourhood so you’re not wasting your day travelling across Manhattan.

What attractions are included in the Go City New York Pass?

There are currently 103 attractions and experiences included.

The list is much broader than just the obvious observation decks.

The major attractions include:

• Empire State Building Observation Deck
• Edge
• Top of the Rock
• One World Observatory
• Big Bus 2-Day Downtown & Uptown Tour
• American Museum of Natural History
• MoMA
• 9/11 Memorial & Museum
• Intrepid Museum
• Madame Tussauds
• Museum of Broadway
• Mercer Labs
• Circle Line NYC Landmarks Cruise
• Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island Ferry
• Whitney Museum of American Art
• Guggenheim Museum
• Madison Square Garden Tour
• RiseNY
• Rockefeller Center Tour
• Radio City Music Hall Tour
• Brooklyn Bridge and DUMBO Walking Tour
• Harry Potter New York Butterbeer Experience
• Central Park bike rental

There are also food tours, walking tours, cruises, bike tours, rooftop experiences, neighbourhood tours, sports experiences and seasonal activities.

And if you’re visiting New York at Christmas, there are even holiday-focused experiences, including a Holiday Markets & Christmas Lights Walking Tour, Christmas Lights Walking Tour of Brooklyn and The Rink at Rockefeller Center.

Read my full guide on the best things to do in New York City at Christmas here!

The full attraction list is worth checking before you buy because the value isn’t just in the big-name attractions. You might find that two or three smaller tours or experiences fit perfectly into your itinerary and make the pass more worthwhile.

What are the best Go City attractions in New York?

If I were choosing attractions specifically to make the pass worthwhile, I’d start with the more expensive experiences. The observation decks are an obvious place to look because individual tickets can be expensive.

Edge, Empire State Building, Top of the Rock and One World Observatory are all included, although I wouldn’t recommend doing all four unless observation decks are a major priority for your trip.

I’d then look at attractions such as the 9/11 Memorial & Museum, American Museum of Natural History and Intrepid Museum. The cruises can also be a good use of the pass, especially if you’re planning to see New York from the water anyway.

You can use the pass for walking tours, food tours, bike rentals, neighbourhood tours and even some sports experiences. That means you can build a more varied itinerary rather than spending your entire trip inside museums and observation decks.

My top tip: Pick the attractions you’d pay for anyway, then see which pass gives you the best value.

Do you need to book Go City attractions in advance?

Yes, for some attractions. This is something I would definitely check before your trip because having the pass doesn’t automatically mean you can turn up whenever you want. Go City currently lists several attractions as requiring reservations.

• The Empire State Building, Edge and Top of the Rock all require reservations through the Go City app.
• Edge and Top of the Rock currently allow reservations up to 10 days in advance.
• The 9/11 Memorial & Museum currently allows reservations up to 14 days ahead.
• The Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island Ferry requires a reservation and currently allows bookings up to seven days in advance.
• The Rockefeller Center Tour also requires a reservation.
• There are also several walking tours, cruises and other experiences where you need to reserve your place in advance.

This is important if you’re visiting New York during a busy period such as Christmas. I wouldn’t buy the pass and then assume you can sort everything out when you arrive.

My tip: Once you know which attractions you’re using the pass for, check the reservation requirements and book the attractions with limited availability first.

Is Go City good for a New York Christmas trip?

This is where I’d be a little more careful. New York at Christmas has so many free things to do that you don’t necessarily need a sightseeing pass for your entire trip.

You can see the Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree, walk along Fifth Avenue to see the window displays, visit Bryant Park Winter Village, see Christmas lights and decorations around the city, explore Central Park and visit Christmas markets without using a Go City attraction credit.

That means I’d look at your Christmas itinerary as two separate lists. First, write down all the free Christmas things you want to do. Then make a second list of the paid attractions you want to visit.

If your paid list includes several observation decks, museums, cruises and tours, a Go City Pass could make sense. If most of your itinerary is Christmas markets, lights, shopping, decorated hotels and neighbourhoods, I’d probably skip it.

This is especially important for a girls trip because you’re likely to want time for long lunches, cocktails, shopping and wandering around neighbourhoods rather than rushing between attractions all day. For Christmas in New York, I’d personally lean towards the Explorer Pass unless I had a very packed sightseeing itinerary.

My verdict for Christmas: Work out your paid attractions separately from your free Christmas plans before buying.

Read my full guide on the best things to do in New York City at Christmas here!

My Go City New York Pass verdict

So, is the Go City New York Pass worth it? Yes, but I wouldn’t buy it without doing the maths first.

If you’re planning to visit several of New York’s expensive attractions, the savings can add up quickly. The current Explorer prices start at $89 for two attractions and go up to $299 for 10 attractions. The All-Inclusive Pass starts at $169 for one day and goes up to $429 for 10 days.

For a sightseeing-heavy trip, either option can work out well. For a slower trip, I’d probably buy individual tickets.

For a girls trip, I’d personally start by looking at the Explorer Pass because it gives you more freedom to mix sightseeing with restaurants, shopping, neighbourhoods and the free things New York does so well.

And if you’re visiting at Christmas, I’d be even more careful about which pass you choose because so many of the best festive experiences are free.

My biggest piece of advice is simple: make your itinerary first, add up the individual attraction prices and then compare it with Go City.

If the pass is cheaper, great. If it isn’t, don’t buy it just because it feels like you should. New York is expensive enough without paying for a sightseeing pass you won’t actually use.

Current Go City prices checked: 7th October 2026
Explorer Pass: $89–$299
All-Inclusive Pass: $169–$429
Attractions: 103

Thank you so much for reading and I hope this guide on whether the Go City New York Pass worth it has given you plenty of inspiration for your own trip. Feel free to check out the rest of my New York City guides here or below:

Check out my other New York guides here:

• Best Things To Do In New York in December 2026
• 4 Days in New York Christmas Itinerary
• New York City Travel Guide for First Time Visitors
• 31 Best Things To Do in New York City
• 4 Days in New York City Itinerary
• The BEST Hotels in New York City With a View
• How to Get From JFK Airport to Manhattan by Subway (Under $20)
• New York Monthly Guides