Clash of the Midtown titans: Top of the Rock vs the Empire State Building

Included:

• Entry to the open-air 86th-floor observation deck, 1,050 feet above the streets of Manhattan.
• Access to exhibitions and interactive attractions on the second and 80th floors. Watch original construction footage, snap a selfie next to the giant trembling hands of King Kong, and catch the kaleidoscopic theater screening hundreds of pop culture clips relating to the Empire State Building simultaneously across 72 screens. 
• A visit to the lavish Fifth Avenue Lobby, a soaring space that comes complete with 24-carat gold-leaf ceilings, shimmering chandeliers and a massive Art Deco painting of the Empire State Building itself.

Not included:

• There’s another (fully enclosed) observation deck right at the top of the tower, 1,250 feet high on the 102nd floor. Entry isn’t included with general admission tickets, but can be added via the Go City app or at the Empire State Building ticket office.

Included:

• Entry to Top of the Rock’s three floors of observation platforms, including the partially enclosed 67th and 69th floors and the fully alfresco 70th floor right, 850 feet up at the top of the tower.
• Admission to exhibits that include footage, photos and artifacts from the building’s construction, including the classic snap of workers taking a break on a suspended steel beam way above the streets of Manhattan and designer Raymond Hood’s original model of 30 Rockefeller Plaza.
• Access to the Grand Atrium Lobby, with its 35-foot-tall Swarovski chandelier, an inverted replica of the shape of 30 Rockefeller Plaza.

Not included:

• If you want to get even higher than the titular Top of the Rock, you’ll want The Skylift, a revolving open-air platform that spins you a further three stories above the 70th floor. 
• Likewise, The Beam on the 69th-floor deck is designed to recreate the classic ‘Lunch atop a Skyscraper’ photo. You’ll sit on a replica of that famous beam as it ascends 12 feet into the air and rotates 180 degrees to give you a feeling for what it may have been like for those fearless, sandwich-munching 1930s construction workers. Don’t worry: unlike them, you’ll be securely strapped in.
• Both of these add-on experiences can be booked via your Go City app or direct at the Top of the Rock’s box office.

Not massively, to be honest. Both are located between Fifth and Sixth Avenues in Midtown Manhattan, with Top of the Rock around a mile north of the Empire State Building, right by St Patrick’s Cathedral. It means that, with the help of your Go City NYC pass, you could easily tick off the pair of them in a single day. Heck, you could even tack on Madame Tussauds, the Museum of Modern Art or a stroll in Central Park if the mood took you – they’re all pretty close together.

Both Top of the Rock and the Empire State Building are easily accessible, with several bus and subway stops within just a few minutes’ stroll. The famous hop-on hop-off Big Bus also stops by both.

At 1,050 feet above ground, the Empire State Building’s 86th-floor deck stands a little higher than the Top of the Rock's 70th floor platform, and its location further south in Manhattan gives you better views of the Financial District’s cluster of waterside skyscrapers, including the massive One World Trade Center. You’re also a mile closer to landmarks like the Brooklyn Bridge, Manhattan Bridge and Statue of Liberty. The height of the observatory ensures that many of the views are clear and uninterrupted, though the southern half of Central Park is largely obscured by fellow skyscrapers.

Landmarks you can see from the Empire State Building include the Rockefeller Center, Chrysler Building, Flatiron Building, One World Trade Center, Central Park, Times Square, Statue of Liberty and the Brooklyn Bridge. 

At around 850 feet high (and a little higher if you add The Skylift to your experience) Top of the Rock is among NYC’s more diminutive observation decks. What you get here is an intimate feeling of being up among the rooftops, rather than soaring way above them. Key to Top of the Rock’s appeal is its unobscured view of our old pal the Empire State Building; arguably the best view in town. It also has a pretty clear overlook of Central Park though, as noted above, some of the southern Manhattan landmarks are a little further away.

Landmarks you can see from Top of the Rock include the Empire State Building, Chrysler Building (partially obscured), One World Trade Center, Central Park, the Bank of America Tower, the George Washington Bridge, Brooklyn Bridge and more. 

The Empire State Building is open 8AM-2AM daily and the last elevator to the 86th floor leaves at 1.15AM. You should plan to spend 2-3 hours enjoying the views and exploring the various exhibits. Note that sunset slots are not included with the Go City NYC pass. 

Top of the Rock’s opening hours are 8AM-midnight daily, with the last Sky Shuttle elevator ascending (at breakneck speed) at 11.10PM. You should plan to spend 1-2 hours here, and longer if you want to catch the sunset; book your slot well in advance and aim to be up top in plenty of time for those classic golden hour snaps.

Tips for both towers:

• Visit early in the morning or late in the evening on weekdays to beat the crowds. 
• Both Top of the Rock and the Empire State Building have free apps with self-guided audio tours, maps, building identifiers and more. 
• Kids under five go free with an accompanying adult at Top of the Rock, and kids under six go free at the Empire State Building.
• Dress for the weather and remember it's likely to be colder and windier hundreds of feet in the air than it is on the ground. 
• Don't forget your camera and binoculars to guarantee the best views and most Instagrammable pics.

Remember too that you don’t have to choose! You can do both with the NYC pass from Go CIty and save money in the process. And you can’t really say fairer than that. Better yet, while you’re in the Midtown area, there’s a plethora of additional bucket-list attractions and experiences you can access with your pass, including:

• The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA): check out masterpieces by Manet, Monet, van Gogh, Picasso, Pollock and more.
• Madame Tussauds: get up close and personal with waxy pals including Lady Gaga, Taylor Swift, Timothée Chalamet, Pennywise the Clown, the President of the USA and more.
• RiseNY: a crazy ride through New York’s cultural landscape, followed by a crazy ride over its rooftops.
• Rockefeller Center tour: take a deep dive into the Rockefeller’s vast complex, including cool art and architecture and, if you’re there at the right time, the famous ice rink and Christmas tree.
• Central Park: rent a bike and cruise your way to major park attractions including the Lake, Strawberry Fields, Bethesda Terrace, Belvedere Castle.