One of New York City’s great assets is its walkability. Manhattan is mostly a grid system of uptown/downtown streets intersecting with crosstown streets so it’s hard to get lost here. Most of the city is flat, perfect for strolling. Exploring it all from a walker’s pace, at eye level, is the best way to get a real feel for the city. It’s the cheapest way to get around, and sometimes (depending on traffic and distance) it is the fastest. On our crowded sidewalks, you’ll see people snacking, meeting long-lost friends, gossiping, taking business meetings via cell phone. If you’re in a residential neighborhood - especially one near a park - you’ll see professional dogwalkers, each with ten or so pooches on leads on their way to romp while their masters are at work.

If there is such a thing as a typical New Yorker, he or she will most likely be walking quickly, dodging other pedestrians, cars, buses, construction sites, street musicians, bicycle messengers. Although we’re often in a hurry, we’ll cheerfully point you in the right direction if you’re lost, so don’t hesitate to ask directions!

Buses run every 30 minutes between the city and JFK International Airport; the trip takes at least an hour. You can also take a subway to the Howard Beach-JFK station then transfer to a bus, a journey of about 75 minutes. Buses run every 30 minutes between the city and La Guardia; a water shuttle also runs along the East River, or you can catch the subway to Roosevelt Ave-Jackson Heights and transfer to a bus, but it will take you well over an hour. To get from Newark Airport, you can get a private or public bus from the city. Taxis from all three airports into the city are expensive.

New York has more than enough public transport options: driving your own car is tantamount to insanity in a city where traffic is horrendous, parking costs astronomical and petty thievery commonplace. New York car rentals are also notoriously expensive - you’ll have to budget at least $95 a day (plus tax and insurance) for a medium-sized car - and petrol in the city costs far more than elsewhere in the US. If you really must rent a car, you’ll need a license and a major credit card. The major agencies are in all three airports.

The main bike trails are paved, but mountain bikes (or street-and-mountain-bike hybrids) are best if you plan to explore the dirt roads; cobblestones on Main Street make for rough riding, too. There are several places to rent bicycles in town. Look for bike stands along Main Street, as there aren’t many on side streets.

Obey all bike rules, including signaling for turns, giving a clear warning when passing, and observing one-way roads. You must walk your bike if you’re going the wrong way or you can be fined. Note that Massachusetts law requires the use of protective helmets for children under 13 when operating a bike (or riding as a passenger), and that Nantucket also required helmets for adults.

Some people prefer the bus to the subway. It can be a more challenging ride in that the stops aren’t announced and you’ll have to recognize the place you’re going to (or at least pay more attention to the street signs), but it is also nice to be able to look at the buildings and cars and people while you get where you’re going. Buses take the same Metrocard as the subways and are $1.50 per ride, including one free transfer back to the subway system. Be sure to check the bus map, as bus routes are a little less regular than subway routes.

The bus is definitely the easiest way to go cross-town, especially when you need to cross Central Park (few subway lines cross the park, as the tunnels were built by open excavation, which would have caused years of damage to the park’s plant life). However, the subways were originally constructed to avoid street-level traffic, and they do still have that advantage over the bus system. It’s possible for a short trip to become a long one if there are street blockages.

New York’s public transport is cheap and efficient. A single journey anywhere in the city using buses or the subway costs $1.50. A Metro Card Fun Pass costs $4 and allows unlimited travel for one day; a seven day pass is $17. Taxis start at $2 and then charge 30 cents for every fifth of a mile with surcharges between 8pm and 6am.

The New York Water Taxi is a new addition and currently runs between the Circle Line at West 42nd Street, Chelsea Piers at West 23rd Street and Battery Park as well as providing a connection between the South Street Seaport, Pier 11 at Wall Street and Fulton Landing in Brooklyn.

You’ll probably end up doing a lot of walking so pack comfy shoes. New Yorkers describe distances in blocks; 20 north-south blocks are about a mile, and the same as 10 east-west blocks. It doesn’t work out quite so neatly when the streets are twisty in place like Greenwich Village and the Financial District.