Discovering the best things to do in New York City 2025 offers visitors an extraordinary opportunity to experience the city during its historic 400th anniversary celebration. The Big Apple is pulling out all the stops this year, combining its iconic attractions with special events, exhibitions, and festivities to commemorate four centuries since its founding. From world-famous landmarks and cutting-edge attractions to once-in-a-lifetime anniversary celebrations, things to do in New York City 2025 are more diverse and exciting than ever before. This comprehensive guide will walk you through 25 essential experiences that showcase the very best of NYC during this landmark year, helping you create an unforgettable itinerary whether you’re a first-time visitor or a seasoned New York explorer.
Things to Do in New York City 2025: Historic 400th Anniversary Celebrations
The centerpiece of things to do in New York City 2025 revolves around the city’s quadricentennial celebrations. This once-in-a-lifetime series of events commemorates 400 years since the establishment of New Amsterdam (later New York) by Dutch settlers in 1625.
NY400 Festival at Battery Park
The sprawling NY400 Festival at Battery Park—symbolically located where the original Dutch settlement began—offers visitors a spectacular immersion into New York’s 400-year evolution. This multi-day celebration features historical reenactments, cultural performances representing the city’s diverse communities, and interactive exhibitions chronicling New York’s transformation from a small trading post to a global metropolis.
The festival’s centerpiece is a massive timeline installation stretching along the waterfront, with each decade represented through artifacts, photographs, and multimedia displays. Visitors can witness live demonstrations of crafts and trades from different eras, sample cuisine reflecting the city’s immigrant influences, and enjoy performances ranging from Indigenous music to contemporary hip-hop that showcase New York’s cultural evolution.
400 Years of New York Exhibition at the Museum of the City of New York
Among the most intellectually stimulating things to do in New York City 2025 is visiting the Museum of the City of New York’s landmark exhibition “400 Years of New York: A City Constantly Reinventing Itself.” This comprehensive showcase features rare artifacts, many displayed publicly for the first time, including the original 1626 letter documenting the purchase of Manhattan, architectural models of the city across different eras, and personal items from notable New Yorkers throughout history.
The exhibition employs cutting-edge technology, including augmented reality stations that allow visitors to “step into” New York streets from different time periods and interactive displays showing the city’s physical transformation through land reclamation, grid development, and architectural evolution. Special attention is given to the diverse communities that have shaped the city, with oral histories and personal narratives providing intimate glimpses into New York life across four centuries.
Harbor of Lights: 400th Anniversary Spectacular
The “Harbor of Lights” spectacle represents one of the most visually stunning things to do in New York City 2025. This unprecedented nighttime show transforms New York Harbor into a canvas of light, music, and history. Scheduled for multiple performances throughout the anniversary year, this multimedia experience combines massive light projections on the water, drone light shows forming iconic New York symbols in the sky, and synchronized performances on multiple barges.
The 90-minute show narrates New York’s 400-year journey through chapters representing different eras, with original music performed live by the New York Philharmonic and featuring guest appearances by famous New York musicians across genres. The spectacle is viewable from multiple waterfront locations in Manhattan, Brooklyn, and Staten Island, with Battery Park offering the most comprehensive viewing experience. Free tickets are distributed through an online lottery system, making this spectacular celebration accessible to both locals and visitors.
Iconic Landmarks: Essential Things to Do in New York City 2025
While the 400th anniversary celebrations provide unique, time-limited experiences, no visit to New York would be complete without experiencing the iconic landmarks that define the city’s identity. Many of these attractions are offering special anniversary programming throughout 2025.
Empire State Building: New 400th Floor Experience
The Empire State Building remains one of the quintessential things to do in New York City 2025, especially with its new “400th Floor Experience” (a clever marketing name, as the building actually has 102 floors). This immersive attraction combines the building’s famous observatories with a new virtual reality experience that transports visitors through four centuries of the Manhattan skyline.
After enjoying the actual 86th and 102nd floor observatories with their spectacular views, visitors enter a specially designed space where VR headsets create the illusion of ascending to the fictional 400th floor. The experience shows how the view would have appeared in 1625, 1825, 1925, 2025, and a speculative 2225, allowing visitors to witness the city’s vertical evolution. The experience concludes with a personalized “future postcard” photo opportunity that places visitors against the backdrop of a futuristic New York skyline.
Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island: Immigrant Heritage Experience
Among the most historically significant things to do in New York City 2025 is visiting the enhanced Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island complex. The National Park Service has unveiled a comprehensive “Immigrant Heritage Experience” that creates a more immersive journey through America’s immigration history.
The expanded experience includes newly opened areas of Ellis Island Hospital, restored to show the medical facilities that processed millions of immigrants. Interactive exhibits use artificial intelligence to allow visitors to “converse” with holographic immigrants from different time periods, hearing firsthand accounts of their journeys and experiences. For the 400th anniversary, a special exhibition titled “Four Centuries of Newcomers” traces immigration patterns from the first Dutch settlers through the present day, emphasizing how successive waves of immigrants have shaped New York’s identity.
The Statue of Liberty itself features enhanced nighttime illumination for 2025, with special light shows every hour after sunset that transform the monument with projections telling the story of liberty and democracy in America.
Central Park: Four Seasons, Four Centuries Celebration
Central Park has launched an ambitious “Four Seasons, Four Centuries” program that ranks among the most enchanting things to do in New York City 2025. This year-long celebration transforms the park with seasonal installations representing different eras in New York’s history.
Winter featured ice sculptures and light installations depicting New Amsterdam and colonial New York. Spring showcases Victorian-era gardens and recreations of the original Central Park designs by Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux. Summer will transform the Great Lawn into a 1920s-inspired entertainment venue with jazz performances and outdoor cinema showing films set in New York. Fall will look toward the future with sustainable design installations and futuristic landscape concepts.
Throughout the year, guided tours focus on the park’s evolution and its role in New York’s urban development. The Belvedere Castle visitor center hosts a special exhibition on how Central Park has been depicted in art, literature, and film across different eras, showcasing its role as New York’s green heart for over 150 years.
Cutting-Edge Attractions: Modern Things to Do in New York City 2025
Beyond historical celebrations and iconic landmarks, New York continues to innovate with new attractions that represent the city’s forward-looking spirit. These cutting-edge experiences showcase why New York remains at the forefront of cultural and technological innovation.
The Edge Skyrise Experience at Hudson Yards
The Edge observation deck at Hudson Yards has unveiled its new “Skyrise Experience,” cementing its place among the most thrilling things to do in New York City 2025. This enhanced attraction takes the already spectacular outdoor sky deck (the highest in the Western Hemisphere) and adds a vertical dimension.
The new experience includes “Skyrise,” a controlled vertical ascent platform that raises visitors an additional 50 feet above the main observation deck, creating the sensation of floating above Manhattan with nothing but transparent glass surroundings. For the truly adventurous, the “Skyfall” experience simulates a free-fall with sophisticated hydraulics and wind effects while maintaining complete safety.
For the 400th anniversary, the Edge has also introduced “Skyline Through Time,” an augmented reality experience that allows visitors to point special viewers at the cityscape and see how it appeared during different periods of New York’s history, with detailed information about significant buildings and developments.
Little Island’s Immersive Performance Series
Little Island, the artificial island park in the Hudson River, has quickly become one of the most innovative things to do in New York City 2025 with its ambitious “Four Centuries in Four Seasons” performance series. This year-long program transforms the park’s performance spaces with immersive theatrical experiences that transport visitors to different eras of New York history.
Each season features productions set in a different century, with winter showcasing the 1600s-1700s, spring the 1800s, summer the 1900s, and fall the 2000s to present. Rather than traditional seated performances, these productions unfold throughout the park, with actors performing among visitors, architectural elements temporarily transformed to reflect historical periods, and interactive elements that invite audience participation.
The performances incorporate music, dance, theater, and digital elements, creating a multisensory journey through New York’s cultural evolution. Timed tickets are required but are free with park admission, making this one of the most accessible cultural experiences in the city’s anniversary programming.
Summit One Vanderbilt: LEVITATION+
Summit One Vanderbilt has expanded its mind-bending “LEVITATION” glass boxes with the new “LEVITATION+” experience, offering one of the most surreal things to do in New York City 2025. The original attraction featured transparent glass boxes that extend outside the building, creating the illusion of floating above Madison Avenue.
The enhanced experience adds a dynamic element—the glass boxes now incorporate transparent LED technology that can shift between complete transparency and immersive digital content. Visitors experience the physical thrill of stepping into space 1,100 feet above the street, but now with added sequences where the floor beneath them appears to disappear entirely or transform into historical views of the same location.
For the city’s 400th anniversary, a special program called “Vertical Timeline” uses the building’s height to represent four centuries, with each level of the attraction themed to a different era of New York’s architectural development. The experience culminates in “AIR,” the mirrored infinity room that now includes projection mapping celebrating New York’s future with speculative visions of the city in 2125.
Cultural Experiences: Enriching Things to Do in New York City 2025
New York’s status as a cultural capital reaches new heights in 2025, with institutions across the city offering special exhibitions, performances, and programs that celebrate the city’s artistic legacy while looking toward its future.
Metropolitan Museum of Art: “New York: 400 Years of Creativity”
The Metropolitan Museum of Art’s landmark exhibition “New York: 400 Years of Creativity” stands among the most intellectually stimulating things to do in New York City 2025. This unprecedented show spans the entire second floor of the museum, bringing together over 4,000 works that showcase art created in or inspired by New York from the 17th century to the present.
The exhibition includes rarely displayed treasures from the museum’s collection alongside loans from institutions worldwide, creating a comprehensive visual narrative of New York’s artistic evolution. Highlights include Indigenous artifacts from the Lenape people who originally inhabited Manhattan, Dutch colonial portraits and maps, Hudson River School landscapes, Harlem Renaissance masterpieces, Abstract Expressionist works, graffiti and street art from the 1970s-80s, and contemporary digital and new media works.
Interactive elements throughout the exhibition allow visitors to explore connections between different artistic movements and the social, economic, and political contexts that shaped them. A specially developed smartphone application provides extended content, including artist interviews, conservation insights, and augmented reality features that bring historical contexts to life.
Broadway’s “New York Stories” Festival
Broadway theaters have united to present “New York Stories,” an unprecedented festival that ranks among the most entertaining things to do in New York City 2025. This year-long initiative features 40 productions—both new works and revivals—that collectively tell the story of New York through theater.
The festival includes four new musical productions specifically commissioned for the 400th anniversary, each focusing on a different century of New York history. These productions run concurrently with revivals of classic New York-set shows like “West Side Story,” “A Chorus Line,” “Rent,” and “Hamilton.” Special “marathon weekends” allow dedicated theatergoers to experience multiple shows from different eras in chronological sequence.
Beyond the productions themselves, the festival includes special programming such as post-show discussions with historians, walking tours of theatrical landmarks, and exhibitions of costumes, props, and set designs from iconic New York productions throughout Broadway history. A digital pass program offers discounted access to multiple shows, making this celebration of New York’s theatrical heritage more accessible to visitors.
New York Philharmonic’s “Sounds of the City” Concert Series
The New York Philharmonic’s ambitious “Sounds of the City” series offers one of the most acoustically rich things to do in New York City 2025. This innovative program takes the orchestra beyond its Lincoln Center home to perform in iconic locations throughout the five boroughs, with each concert celebrating a different aspect of New York’s musical heritage.
The series includes performances in unusual venues like the Oculus transportation hub, Grand Central Terminal, the Apollo Theater, and even aboard a specially designed floating stage on the East River. Each concert combines classical compositions inspired by New York with works from the city’s diverse musical traditions, including jazz, hip-hop, Latin music, experimental compositions, and Broadway classics.
Guest artists from across musical genres join the Philharmonic for these performances, creating unique collaborations that break down traditional boundaries between musical styles. Many concerts are free or offered at reduced prices, with some performances livestreamed to outdoor screens in public parks throughout the city, making this celebration of New York’s musical identity accessible to the widest possible audience.
Culinary Adventures: Delicious Things to Do in New York City 2025
New York’s food scene is celebrating the 400th anniversary with special menus, food festivals, and culinary experiences that trace the evolution of the city’s diverse cuisine from its earliest days to its current status as a global food capital.
Taste of Four Centuries Food Festival
The “Taste of Four Centuries” festival represents one of the most delicious things to do in New York City 2025. This unprecedented culinary event transforms Hudson River Park into a chronological journey through New York’s food history, with four distinct zones representing different eras of the city’s culinary evolution.
The 17th-18th century zone features recreations of Dutch and British colonial taverns serving historically accurate dishes like oyster pies, hearth-baked breads, and ale brewed from period recipes. The 19th century area showcases the influence of waves of immigration, with German beer gardens, Italian pasta makers, Jewish delicatessens, and Chinese tea houses. The 20th century section celebrates the rise of New York food institutions from hot dog carts and pizza parlors to steakhouses and bagel shops. The contemporary zone features current New York culinary innovators alongside speculative “future food” concepts exploring sustainable urban gastronomy.
Throughout the festival, cooking demonstrations, historical presentations, and hands-on workshops allow visitors to deepen their understanding of how New York’s food culture has evolved through successive waves of immigration, technological change, and cultural exchange.
400 Restaurants: The Quintessential New York Dining Guide
The “400 Restaurants” initiative offers one of the most comprehensive culinary things to do in New York City 2025. This ambitious program has identified 400 restaurants—80 in each borough—that collectively tell the story of New York’s diverse food culture, from historic establishments that have served generations to innovative newcomers defining the city’s culinary future.
Participating restaurants offer special “400th Anniversary” tasting menus that showcase signature dishes alongside historical information about their neighborhood, culinary tradition, and significance to New York’s food culture. A dedicated smartphone application helps visitors navigate the 400 restaurants with interactive maps, reservation capabilities, and thematic itineraries like “Immigrant Food Journeys,” “Historic Establishments,” and “Future of New York Cuisine.”
The program includes establishments at all price points, from legendary fine dining institutions to beloved neighborhood spots, ensuring that this celebration of New York’s food heritage is accessible to visitors with varying budgets. Participating restaurants display distinctive “400” window emblems, and a commemorative cookbook featuring recipes and stories from all 400 establishments serves as a lasting record of the city’s culinary landscape in its 400th year.
Chelsea Market’s Time-Travel Culinary Experience
Chelsea Market has transformed its historic space into a “Time-Travel Culinary Experience” that ranks among the most immersive gastronomic things to do in New York City 2025. This innovative concept divides the market into four chronological zones, each recreating a different era of New York food shopping and dining.
The experience begins with a recreation of an 18th-century public market, with vendors in period attire selling historically accurate provisions. Visitors then progress to a Victorian-era food hall inspired by the original Washington Market, followed by a mid-20th century zone evoking the heyday of neighborhood grocers and ethnic food shops. The journey concludes with contemporary offerings and a “Future Market” showcasing innovations in urban agriculture, sustainable packaging, and food technology.
Throughout the market, augmented reality elements accessible via smartphone enhance the experience with historical information, recipes, and stories about how New York’s food systems have evolved. Special tasting tours allow visitors to sample representative dishes from each era, creating a literal taste of history that makes the city’s culinary evolution tangible and delicious.
Outdoor Adventures: Refreshing Things to Do in New York City 2025
Beyond cultural institutions and indoor attractions, New York’s parks, waterfronts, and public spaces offer refreshing outdoor experiences that showcase the city’s ongoing commitment to creating accessible green spaces within the urban environment.
Five Borough Bicycle Tour: 400th Anniversary Edition
The “Five Borough Bicycle Tour: 400th Anniversary Edition” offers one of the most exhilarating outdoor things to do in New York City 2025. This expanded version of the annual cycling event creates a comprehensive 40-mile route that takes participants through historically significant locations across all five boroughs, with the course designed to tell the story of New York’s development from a small Dutch settlement to a global metropolis.
The tour includes special stops at 16 “History Hubs” where riders can rest while enjoying short performances, historical reenactments, and multimedia presentations about significant events that occurred in each location. The route incorporates newly completed sections of the Manhattan Waterfront Greenway, creating a nearly continuous path around the island that offers unprecedented views of the harbor and rivers that have shaped the city’s development.
For those not ready for the full 40-mile journey, shorter borough-specific routes are available, each focusing on a different century of New York’s history. All participants receive a commemorative medal and passport that can be stamped at each History Hub, creating a lasting memento of this unique perspective on the city’s 400-year evolution.
Governors Island: New York Harbor History Center
Governors Island has unveiled its new “New York Harbor History Center,” establishing itself among the most educational outdoor things to do in New York City 2025. This comprehensive facility transforms the island’s historic Fort Jay and Castle Williams into immersive environments that tell the story of how New York Harbor shaped the city’s development as a port, immigration gateway, and commercial center.
The experience begins with an orientation film projected onto a massive 360-degree screen that places visitors in the middle of the harbor as it evolved over four centuries. Interactive exhibits allow visitors to navigate a virtual sailing ship into the colonial-era harbor, experience the immigrant arrival process at different points in history, and explore underwater archaeology revealing artifacts from shipwrecks and landfill extensions that have shaped Manhattan’s coastline.
Outside the main facility, the island’s grounds feature new interpretive trails with augmented reality elements that reveal how the landscape has changed over time. A specially commissioned series of site-specific art installations, “Harbor Visions,” presents contemporary artists’ interpretations of the harbor’s past, present, and future, creating a dialogue between historical understanding and artistic expression.
Brooklyn Bridge Park: Waterfront Through Time
Brooklyn Bridge Park’s “Waterfront Through Time” installation offers one of the most visually striking outdoor things to do in New York City 2025. This ambitious project transforms the 1.3-mile waterfront park into a chronological journey through the evolution of Brooklyn’s shoreline from pre-colonial times to the present.
The experience is structured around seven distinct zones, each representing a different era of waterfront development. Physical installations including reconstructed dock elements, shipping containers repurposed as exhibition spaces, and full-scale boat replicas create tangible connections to different periods of maritime activity. Large-format historical photographs mounted in precisely the locations where they were taken allow visitors to directly compare past and present views.
Interactive elements include a working scale model of the Brooklyn Bridge construction process, opportunities to try traditional longshoreman tools and techniques, and a water play area for children that demonstrates how tides and currents have shaped the harbor. Evening light shows project historical imagery onto the water itself, creating ethereal connections between the contemporary park and its working waterfront past.
Essential Items for Exploring New York City in 2025
To make the most of your experience discovering all the incredible things to do in New York City 2025, we recommend some essential items that will make all the difference in your urban exploration. Check out this selection of travel essentials that we’ve specially curated for urban explorers seeking to experience the best of New York during its historic 400th anniversary year.
Neighborhood Explorations: Local Things to Do in New York City 2025
While iconic attractions and special events draw much attention, exploring New York’s diverse neighborhoods offers some of the most authentic things to do in New York City 2025. Several neighborhoods have created special self-guided experiences that reveal their unique histories and characters.
Harlem Renaissance 2.0
Harlem’s “Renaissance 2.0” initiative presents one of the most culturally rich neighborhood things to do in New York City 2025. This community-led program celebrates the centennial of the original Harlem Renaissance while showcasing the neighborhood’s contemporary cultural vitality.
The experience centers around a self-guided walking tour that connects historic sites from the 1920s-30s Renaissance with contemporary cultural spaces. Visitors can see the locations of legendary venues like the Cotton Club and Savoy Ballroom, then visit their modern counterparts where today’s musicians, dancers, and artists continue Harlem’s cultural legacy. Augmented reality elements accessible via smartphone show historical photographs and play archival recordings in the exact locations where cultural history was made.
Throughout 2025, participating venues offer special programming including jazz performances, poetry readings, dance exhibitions, and culinary events that draw explicit connections between the original Renaissance and today’s creative scene. The Harlem Cultural Tour culminates at the newly expanded Studio Museum in Harlem, where a special exhibition, “Two Renaissances,” juxtaposes artwork from the 1920s with contemporary pieces addressing similar themes of identity, expression, and community.
Lower East Side: Immigrant Gateway
The Lower East Side’s “Immigrant Gateway” program offers one of the most historically illuminating neighborhood things to do in New York City 2025. This comprehensive initiative transforms the neighborhood into an open-air museum celebrating its role as home to successive waves of immigrants who have shaped New York’s identity.
The experience is structured around five self-guided walking tours, each focusing on a different immigrant community that has called the neighborhood home: German, Jewish, Italian, Chinese, and Puerto Rican/Dominican. Each tour connects historic sites, religious institutions, restaurants, and cultural spaces that tell the story of how each community established itself and contributed to New York’s development.
Participating businesses display historical photographs showing their locations in earlier eras, and many offer special “heritage” products or dishes that connect to the neighborhood’s multicultural past. The Authentic New York Experiences program culminates at Essex Market, where a special exhibition, “From Pushcarts to Pop-ups,” traces the evolution of entrepreneurship in the neighborhood across four centuries.
DUMBO: From Industrial Hub to Creative Incubator
DUMBO’s “From Industrial Hub to Creative Incubator” program presents one of the most architecturally fascinating neighborhood things to do in New York City 2025. This initiative celebrates the area’s transformation from manufacturing center to creative district while highlighting the preservation of its industrial heritage.
The self-guided experience begins at the newly established DUMBO History Center in a converted warehouse, where visitors receive orientation materials including a detailed map highlighting buildings of architectural significance and explaining their original industrial functions. The route connects adaptively reused spaces that now house technology companies, art galleries, performance venues, and design studios.
Participating buildings offer open studios throughout 2025, allowing visitors to see inside spaces normally closed to the public and interact with the artists, designers, and entrepreneurs who represent the neighborhood’s creative present. The experience includes the Architectural Wonders of New York with special attention to the Brooklyn and Manhattan Bridges that give the neighborhood its name, with new viewing platforms offering unprecedented perspectives on these engineering marvels.
Practical Tips for Experiencing Things to Do in New York City 2025
With so many special events and attractions available during the 400th anniversary year, strategic planning is essential to make the most of your visit. Here are practical recommendations for experiencing the best things to do in New York City 2025.
NY400 Pass: Maximizing Value
The specially created “NY400 Pass” offers exceptional value for visitors planning to experience multiple things to do in New York City 2025. This digital pass provides access to over 40 attractions and experiences, including most major museums, observation decks, boat tours, and special 400th anniversary exhibitions.
Available in 1-day, 3-day, 7-day, and 30-day options, the pass includes priority entry at many locations, helping visitors avoid the larger crowds expected throughout the anniversary year. The accompanying smartphone application provides real-time information about wait times, special events, and transportation options between attractions.
For maximum value, consider purchasing the pass before arriving in New York, as advance rates offer significant discounts. The 7-day pass represents the best balance of cost and flexibility for most visitors, allowing enough time to experience both iconic attractions and special anniversary events without feeling rushed.
Timing Your Visit: Seasonal Highlights
Different seasons offer distinct advantages for experiencing things to do in New York City 2025, with the anniversary programming designed to create unique experiences throughout the year.
Spring (March-May) features the official anniversary kickoff events, including the opening of major exhibitions and the start of outdoor programming as weather improves. This season offers a good balance of indoor and outdoor activities with moderate crowds compared to summer.
Summer (June-August) brings the most extensive outdoor programming, including harbor events, park performances, and neighborhood festivals. While this season sees the heaviest tourism, the expanded anniversary programming helps distribute crowds across more venues and experiences.
Fall (September-November) centers around the actual anniversary date in September, with the most elaborate celebrations and special events concentrated in this period. The pleasant weather and spectacular foliage in Central Park make this perhaps the most rewarding season to visit, though advance reservations are essential for anniversary week events.
Winter (December-February) offers a more intimate experience of the anniversary programming, with fewer tourists but continued special exhibitions, performances, and indoor events. The holiday season is enhanced with anniversary-themed decorations and light displays throughout the city.
Digital Resources: Navigating the Anniversary
Several digital tools have been developed specifically to help visitors navigate the extensive things to do in New York City 2025 during the anniversary year.
The official “NY400” application serves as a comprehensive guide to all anniversary programming, with real-time updates, interactive maps, reservation capabilities, and personalized itinerary suggestions based on interests, budget, and available time. The application also includes augmented reality features that reveal historical information about locations throughout the city.
For social media users, the #NY400 hashtag aggregator collects and organizes user-generated content about anniversary experiences, helping visitors discover lesser-known events and attractions based on real-time recommendations and reviews.
The “Virtual Time Machine” website and application allows those unable to visit in person to experience many aspects of the anniversary programming remotely, with virtual tours, livestreamed events, and interactive content that makes the celebration accessible globally.
Conclusion: Creating Your Perfect New York 400th Anniversary Experience
The extraordinary range of things to do in New York City 2025 during its historic 400th anniversary creates unprecedented opportunities for visitors to connect with the city’s past, present, and future. Whether you’re drawn to historical commemorations, cultural experiences, culinary adventures, or outdoor explorations, this landmark year offers something for every interest and budget.
The 25 experiences detailed in this guide represent just a fraction of the special programming available throughout the anniversary year. The key to a rewarding visit lies in balancing iconic attractions with anniversary-specific events, and in venturing beyond Manhattan to discover how the celebration extends throughout all five boroughs.
As you plan your visit to experience the things to do in New York City 2025, consider how this historic moment offers a unique lens through which to view the city. The 400th anniversary isn’t merely about looking backward—it’s equally focused on New York’s present vitality and future potential. The programming reflects this forward-looking perspective, inviting visitors to consider not just what New York has been, but what it is becoming.
Whether you’re a first-time visitor or someone who knows the city well, the 400th anniversary creates opportunities to see New York with fresh eyes and deeper understanding. By participating in this historic commemoration, you become part of the ongoing story of a city that continues to reinvent itself while honoring the diverse influences that have shaped its identity across four remarkable centuries.
The things to do in New York City 2025 during this anniversary year will create memories and insights that last long after the celebration concludes—a fitting souvenir of a once-in-a-lifetime moment in the history of one of the world’s most dynamic and influential cities.
