Empire State Building

Which deck, and what you actually pay

There are two observation decks and the cheaper one is the better one. The 86th floor is the open-air deck with the parapet you picture from the films — the classic 360-degree Manhattan view, no glass between you and the city. The advance price is $44 (about £35) for an adult, plus a flat $5 (about £4) booking charge per transaction. The 102nd floor sits roughly 200 feet higher in an enclosed, floor-to-ceiling glass room and only sells as an 86th + 102nd combo from $79 (about £62). That nearly doubles the spend for a view that’s higher but not twice as good, and you lose the open air. Buy the 102nd only if the weather’s foul or you genuinely want the topmost point.

Skip the upsells. The Express Pass (from $85 for the 86th, $120 with the 102nd) buys a queue jump you rarely need if you’ve booked a sensible timed slot. The one splurge worth considering is Sunrise with Starbucks Reserve at $135 (about £107) — a small capped group on the deck before public opening, with the city to yourself.

When to go, and how to dodge the queues

Reservations are required and you choose a timed slot, but unlike some European blockbusters it doesn’t reliably sell out — booking a day or two ahead is plenty and gets you the lower advance fare. Standard hours run roughly 09:00 to midnight (later in peak summer), and the last lift up leaves 45 minutes before closing, so confirm your exact date on esbnyc.com before you commit.

Two good windows: the first slot of the morning is the quietest and clearest, or the last hour before close for the city lit up at night, which makes the stronger photo. Avoid late afternoon, when the security queue, summer haze and tour-group crush all peak together. Allow about an hour to ninety minutes overall — the route up runs you through a genuinely good Art Deco museum and the restored 1930s lobby, which is part of the ticket whether you want it or not.

Should you go up the ESB — or somewhere else?

Here’s the catch nobody mentions until you’re up there: you can’t see the Empire State Building from the Empire State Building. If you want the ESB itself in your skyline shot — and it’s the most photogenic thing on that skyline — you want Top of the Rock at Rockefeller Center or Summit One Vanderbilt instead. The ESB earns its keep on history, the Art Deco lobby and the open-air 86th floor you don’t get at the glassed-in rivals.

Our take for a first New York trip: do the ESB once, for the building, and take the postcard view from a rival deck. If you only have time and money for one deck, and the skyline photo matters more than the landmark, go to Top of the Rock. If standing on the open-air parapet of the most famous skyscraper in the world is the point, the 86th floor alone is the ticket to buy — and don’t let anyone talk you into the 102nd.