Four of us sisters went to NY in October, 2018. It was amazing. I swear we had an angelic tour guide part of the time because if we got turned around in a subway someone would say "you look lost, may I help?" When we visited Central Park a nice lady volunteered to give us a tour and took pictures of the four of us. She wouldn't even take a tip, saying she loved the park and this was her way of giving back.
We stayed in Brooklyn through Booking.com
Our Hotel was within walking distance to the Subway and we got a pass and used that to go everywhere in the city.
Our tours were arranged through Oasisbiblicaltours.com and we LOVED the Met tours and the Golden Triangle tour of Headquarters.
The tours to the headquarters had us meet at a restaurant and then board buses. We took an Uber to get to the restaurant. We had thought about renting a car but this way we didn't need to deal with traffic or parking and the bus was filled with brothers. Sometimes we felt rushed but the tours are time limited so driving there wouldn't mean we could spend all day in one location.
We saw Central Park, The Empire State Building,we took a ferry to Staten Island, visited the old Bethel facilities in Brooklyn, The Ross Building? Coney Island where we ate Nathan's hot dogs on the beach, and we ate Junior's cheesecake! We hit almost all things on our bucket list and got to know the city pretty well.
If we'd had time we would have taken the tour to Washington DC that originates in NY and see the Smithsonian and the Holocaust museums. Now the Museum of the Bible is open and that's included in that tour.
Saving money for a trip never works for me. I have a rough budget, save on housing and flights, but I use my credit card and enjoy! I pay it off when I get home. I love the idea of a BNB and staying a month. Much more relaxed and time to attend some local meetings.
We're planning another trip to NY. The Woman and Her Offspring soon has an online tour that will whet your appetite for the in-person tour I'm sure.
ENJOY! I'm excited for you.