Empire State Building (ESB) is one of the most iconic buildings of New York. On my trip to New York, one of the major dilemmas that we faced was to choose between observation decks of Empire State Building or the One World Centre. But again the blogs of various travellers came to my rescue. Majority of the blogs suggested that if you are a first time traveller to the New York City then Empire State Building should the one to chose due to its iconic value and to be honest I would suggest the same.

Empire State Building is one of the smartest building that I have come across in terms of eco-friendliness and sustainability. We did not reserve the tickets before hand but we did made it point that we reached the ESB before 10am to beat the peak time. We bought tickets to the Main Deck (86th Floor) + Top Deck (102nd Floor) which was around $52/ person.

The “Main Deck” is a great place to take breath taking pictures of the whole NYC. Its an open area protected with iron grills and it gives you a full 360 degree view. To be really honest with you all I felt a bit ripped off when I visited the top floor because it was all enclosed with glass panes and was a bit congested, and offered literally the same view as the “Main Deck”. So I really believe that going to the “Main Deck” is enough as the view is a lot better and the area is a lot spacious.

If you are visiting the ESB during  winter season i.e. anywhere November -March, please keep in mind that when you are visiting the “Main Deck”, it gets extremely cold there due to the height and strong winds. So make sure that you wear enough warm clothes to keep yourself comfortable.

Also, the building has a gift shop where you can get a wide variety of souvenirs.  The only problem with the gift shop is that it is located right before the entrance to the “Main Deck”. So whatever you need to buy you have to do it before the start of your ESB tour and carry the stuff with you throughout the tour because the way the entry and exit to the ESB has been designed, you can only visit the shop at the start of your trip. So do not buy something very bulky which might be cause difficulty for you.

But I do recommend this tour of the Empire State Building if you are a first time visitor to NYC. The whole experience is a Tourist’s Delight. I hope you like this post and it helps you to plan your trip. If you have already been to the ESB  please do share your experience with us in the comments box below.