Drew Toal

While there’s nothing wrong with touristy attractions—some things you just have to see—the experience might be memorable for the wrong reasons: crowds, wait times, lack of time to fully enjoy. If you’re a repeat visitor or a local looking to get off the beaten path, these non-touristy things to do in NYC are for you. Visitors to New York flock to well-known attractions like the Empire State Building, Central Park, Chelsea, and Times Square. You can find equally impressive views, natural beauty, art galleries, and colorful photo ops at other lesser-known spots. These alternative things to do in New York are just as memorable and far less crowded. After you’ve explored these non-touristy alternatives, go a little deeper and discover the best secret spots in NYC. RECOMMENDED: Full guide to the best New York attractions RECOMMENDED: The best attractions in Manhattan RECOMMENDED: The best crime tours in NYC This article includes affiliate links. These links have no influence on our editorial content. For more information, click here.

Great authors don’t just paint a picture of New York attractions: They have a way of making city sights burrow under your skin and remain there for life. Some of the most beautiful NYC buildings, best museums and most gorgeous NYC parks have all appeared in literature about Gotham. But since the metropolis is always changing, many favorite New York places depicted in novels will have been demolished and replaced by the time you’re ready to finally visit. Thankfully, readers’ starry-eyed expectations won’t be let down by these iconic (and not so iconic) literary landmarks from some of the best books about New York.

1. Trolling Silicon Valley. There are still enough old-timers left in Startup City to make life difficult for the young, rich and insufferable. 2. Growing avocados. Have you had avocados in New York? They’re small, sad and outrageously overpriced. In San Francisco, fresh and affordable avocados mean mountains of guac for everyone at all times. 3. Recycling is so 1990s. Composting food waste is second nature to San Franciscans—as anyone who’s been left with a floor full of coffee grounds from a biodegradable garbage bag can attest. 4. Public nudity. Bay to Breakers is clothes-optional, and in the Castro, residents have evolved to the point where they barely bother with clothes at all. Nickelodeon/via Giphy 5. We know our wine. Even if you can’t detect subtle notes of notes of tomatoes, old barns and cigar boxes in your Pinot Noir, all San Franciscans gain a measure of expertise through mere proximity to Napa and Sonoma. 6. It’s been scientifically proven that we make America’s Best Burrito. 7. We take our coffee really seriously. Blue Bottle refuses to sell its beans ground in case it sullies the coffee’s freshness, and Four Barrel has shunned Wi-Fi in its shops. Sometimes you just have to take a break from Twitter for a flawless latte. 8. Turning bookish events into boozefests. Combine a high concentration of writers with some of the world’s best indie bookstores and a love of liquor, and you get incredible innovations in alcohol-fueled literature, like Writers with Drinks,