Summit One Vanderbilt, the New Observatory in New York

New York's newest observation deck, SUMMIT, is located at One Vanderbilt, a spectacular new state-of-the-art office skyscraper next to Grand Central Terminal in the heart of Midtown.

The building rises to a height of 427 meters. Located between 42nd and 43rd streets on Vanderbilt Avenue and Madison Avenue, this newly opened observatory, which occupies from the 91st to 93rd floors, offers amazing views of the city that you can not miss. Ready to climb to the heights? Read on and I'll tell you how!

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NYC SUMMIT One Vanderbilt Experience Tickets

Climb to the top of Manhattan with tickets to New York's SUMMIT One Vanderbilt observation deck.

See the best skyline of New York and climb to the top of this building located more than 300 meters above sea level.

From $47 at Hellotickets

With tickets to SUMMIT One Vanderbilt you can climb to the most modern viewpoint in New York City located over 300 meters high and you can get there in less than a minute thanks to its fast elevators. You can access the three floors of the skyscraper and admire from there the best views of the city.

Discover the hall of mirrors and live an immersive experience with its multiple reflections or enter the Levitation platform where you can walk on cubes that protrude from the building and are more than 320 meters high. Make sure you get your tickets in advance to avoid queues at the ticket office.

• Recommended if... You like heights and want to take the most mythical view of New York as a souvenir of your trip. It is essential not to have vertigo.

The most convenient (and taking into account the high demand because it is the newest attraction in the city) is to buy tickets to SUMMIT One Vanderbilt in advance.

Tickets will arrive to your email and it will be enough to show them from your cell phone. Now, the question is to choose the day and time you want to go up. Once at the top, you can stay as long as you want, so you can take it easy and enjoy the views.

At the moment and due to its recent opening, the SUMMIT tour is not included in any tourist pass in New York City, but sooner rather than later it will be available. What is available are tours of Manhattan that include a ticket to SUMMIT.

The price to go up to the new SUMMIT viewpoint starts at 40 Euros (standard ticket for an adult) but depending on the extras or access you are looking for, it is very variable.

And in addition to a supplement in the hours near sunset of 9 € ($10), from the official website of SUMMIT offer several types of tickets with a different cost depending on what they include. Here are all the details:

• SUMMIT Experience: General admission whose prices range from 40€ for adults and 28€ for children between 6 and 12 years old, children under five years old get in for free.
• SUMMIT Ascent: General admission plus the Ascent to 1,200 feet. Tickets cost from 50€ ($59) for adults and 45€ ($53) for children between 6 and 12 years old, children under five years old are free.
• Ultimate SUMMIT: General admission, the Ascent and a cocktail at Danny Meyer, the restaurant's official bar. Prices range from 62€ ($73) for adults and 55€ ($67) for children between 6 and 12 years old.

Group ticket prices

If you are in a group of 15 or more people, SUMMIT offers a group reservation section that includes some preference in the price.

New York resident ticket prices

If you are lucky enough to be a New York resident, SUMMIT offers preferential admission pricing when paying with a card associated with a New York City zip code.

The SUMMIT One Vanderbilt observation deck is open every week from Thursday through Sunday at the following times:

• Thursday between 3:00 p.m. and 10:30 p.m.
• Fridays and Saturdays from 9:00 a.m. to midnight.
• Sundays, from 10:00 am to 7:00 pm.

New York has many skyscrapers and observation decks, from the most classic (such as the Empire State or the Top of the Rock) to the most innovative, such as The Edge or SUMMIT itself. But if you're wondering why to choose SUMMIT among the various observatories in the city, here are the main reasons that make it a must-see:

• First of all, both because of its recent opening and its various attractions, it is the trendy lookout.
• Currently arguably offers the best views of Midtown: located next to Central Station, its height and its panoramic view of almost 360 degrees will allow you to enjoy every corner of Manhattan in detail.
• Its architecture and design is totally original and different from previous viewpoints in the city. All angles, viewpoints, glass platforms suspended in the air and vertigo glass designed so you do not miss anything.
• You will take the best photos of the trip: SUMMIT is a skyscraper designed for the 21st century visitor. Designed by the New York artist Kenzo, it offers multiple visual attractions, interactive installations and a set of mirrors, which pose incredible optical illusions to take some dreamy pictures that will be the envy of all your Instagram followers.
• Having two indoor but glassed-in floors and one outdoor floor, SUMMIT becomes an ideal option to go up throughout the year.
• If it's not your first time in New York and you've been up other more classic skyscrapers before, this new view will blow your mind: the experience is unlike any other observation deck.

SUMMIT has a number of outstanding attractions that make the visit expand the horizon of our imagination. Among the various installations that make our visit even more inspiring, the following stand out:

Ascent, a glass elevator that takes visitors up to a height of 368 meters on the outside of the building and stops for a few minutes. Count on it to make your stomach turn!

Levitation, glass cubes that protrude from the building at a height of 324 meters and allow you to walk above New York streets such as Madison Avenue. Be careful if you suffer from vertigo...!

Getting to SUMMIT is very easy as access is through the main concourse of Grand Central Terminal, a central station that has multiple connections and is also another very interesting visit to New York because it was the location of the movie The Avengers.

Once in the station and through a subway passage, Vanderbilt Passage, you will reach the One Vanderbilt skyscraper that houses the fashionable observation deck.

By subway

The easiest way to get to this station located in Manhattan is by subway. The 4, 5, 6, 7 and S lines stop at Grand Central and the station is open from 5:30 am to 2 am. You can also go by train with the Far Rockaway, Hudson, Montauk, Path, Port Jefferson and Port Washington trains.

By bus

And, for those who prefer to go by bus, you have the option of taking the M1, M2, M3, M4, M5, M42, M98, M101, M102, M104 and Q32 lines.

Walking

On the other hand, it is approximately 5 kilometers from Central Park, so those who prefer to walk can take advantage of the day to do both visits and enjoy the walk.

Going up to SUMMIT is a perfect plan for any time of the year, because although the 93rd floor is an outdoor terrace, the 91st and 92nd floors are two closed floors with glass walls that allow visitors to enjoy this experience regardless of the time of year.

Regarding the best time to go up to SUMMIT, there is a clear answer, at sunset, in the hours close to sunset and, so much so, that going up in the hours close to this time of day has a supplement in the cost of admission of 9 ¤ ($10). In addition, if the sky is clear we can always admire the views better.

Therefore, one of the main recommendations when choosing a day or time to climb is to take into account the weather forecast: a sunny or cloudless day will expand your vision far beyond the island of Manhattan and you will see its buildings and streets in full definition. Spectacular!

SUMMIT offers an almost 360º panoramic view of the city. From this observatory, you will have a very broad perspective of the city in which you will see in addition to a myriad of streets, avenues and buildings of Manhattan, other locations that here I detail for you to go with your homework done and get the most out of your visit.

Central Park

You will be able to see Central Park, one of the favorite views of those who go up to SUMMIT since from the other viewpoints of the city you will not get such a clear view of the popular park.

Statue of Liberty

To the south and if the weather permits because the sky is clear you will be able to see the Statue of Liberty.

Bryant Park

Central Park is not the only park you will see on your visit to SUMMIT, many onlookers also lose their eyes in this wonderful tourist attraction, Bryant Park.

Key Buildings

The Empire State Building or the Chrysler Building are some of the most popular buildings you can see from SUMMIT. But besides them, you can also see the skyscrapers of the Hudson Yards neighborhood and a multitude of other buildings.

Bridges

Seeing the bridges from an observatory of this height is an image that you can not miss and from SUMMIT you can see bridges such as the George Washington Bridge, Brooklyn Bridge, Manhattan Bridge, Williamsburg Bridge or Queensboro Bridge.

Due to the particularities of the SUMMIT observation deck, there are a number of recommendations to keep in mind if you want to get the most out of your visit. Take note!

• Be sure to wear sunglasses, as the reflective materials used throughout the space create a bright environment during the day.
• It is essential to wear comfortable shoes. Stiletto heels, steel-toed boots, sports cleats and other footwear that may damage the floor are not allowed.
• It is recommended to wear pants, shorts or tights when possible, since, due to the reflective facilities, when wearing a dress or skirt we can show more than desired, you know what I mean!
• Avoid crowds: the hours in which SUMMIT has a greater number of visitors is in the hours around sunset and, it is true that this observatory offers amazing views at that time, but I also recommend the possibility of going early in the morning when the sky is also spectacular and you will be alone.
• Check the weather forecast: If you buy your ticket well in advance you run the risk of going up to SUMMIT on a cloudy day, and although we have said that it is always a good time for this viewpoint, we will enjoy the visit much more if we do it on a clear day in which we will have greater visibility. The ideal is to buy them a week before in which we already know approximately what kind of day it will be.
• Take advantage of the gastronomic services and treat yourself at the SUMMIT restaurant. There is the option to buy the Ultimate SUMMIT ticket which includes, in addition to the general admission and the Ascent, a cocktail at Danny Meyer, the official bar of the restaurant. Prices start at 62€ ($73) for adults and 55€ ($67) for children between 6 and 12 years old.

If you are still not convinced that SUMMIT is your choice and you want to evaluate other plans in the heights, I recommend you take a look at the following options:

One World Observatory

The One World Observatory will offer you a superior experience, as well as a spectacular view of New York's financial district and far beyond, as incredible as it may seem, the view reaches more than 72 kilometers in any direction.

Rockefeller Center, the Top of the Rock

The multi-block Rockefeller Center shopping and office complex, also in Midtown Manhattan, features an observation deck known as the Top of the Rock that offers an incredible close-up view of the Empire State Building.