You won’t know you need this post, until you NEED this post!
Let me tell you, one time I was travelling through New York city on a layover and I had a couple of hours to kill walking around the city and times square. Except I came down with horrible food poisoning after arriving in the city and I thought I was going to die trying to find a bathroom!
New York city and times square have very few public bathrooms. Many of the restaurants in times square do not offer facilities, even if you tell them you’re going to go on their floor. I guess because they’re New Yorkers they have probably seen worse. I ended up walking blocks around the city finding all the public restrooms so you won’t have to go through what I went through and you will know all of your options. You can spend about 4 to 5 hours walking around Manhattan, and on a day with good weather you may even want to spend your whole day sight seeing. So bathrooms are going to be necessary at some point, so use my guide and be stress free.
My advice is to not even try fast food places because most restaurants do not offer public access or will make you pay. The restaurants with the best chance of free facilities are the McDonalds and Starbucks and I have also heard of people using the bathrooms at police precincts if you are really desperate.
Midtown Manhattan and Times Square
1. Grand Central Station
Location: 42nd Street and Lexington Ave.
89 E 42nd St, New York, NY 10017
Station terminals like Grand Central Station, Penn Station, and the Port Authority Bus Terminal all have public restrooms.
2. Rockefeller Center
Location: 45 Rockefeller Plaza, New York, NY 10111
Restrooms are located on the Concourse Level
3. Marriott Marquis Hotel
Location: 1535 Broadway, New York, NY 10036
4. Waldorf Astoria Hotel
Location: 301 Park Ave, New York, NY 10022.
Between 49th and 50th Street
5. Lincoln Center
Location: Broadway and 60th street
Lincoln Center Plaza, New York, NY 10023
The restrooms are located inside of the David Rubenstein Atrium.
6. Bryant Park
Location: 42nd Street between 5th and 6th Avenue
This park recently underwent construction to outfit the park with more public restrooms. These restrooms also have attendants, classical music, and flowers if you are looking for toilet luxury.
7. Central Park
There are multiple restrooms located throughout the park.
8. Time Warner Center
Location: 10 Columbus Circle and 59th Street
10 Columbus Cir, New York, NY 10019
9. Macy’s
Location: 34th Street and 6th Avenue
151 W 34th St, New York, NY 10001
Lower Manhattan and SOHO
1. citizenM Hotel
Location: 189 Bowery, New York, NY 10002
2. World Trade Center
Location: World Trade Center, New York, NY
The restrooms are located inside of the Oculus building.
3. Federal Hall National Memorial
Location: 26 Wall St, New York, NY 10005
4. National Museum of the American Indian
Location: 1 Bowling Green, New York, NY 10004
5. South Street Seaport Museum
Location: 12 Fulton St, New York, NY 10038
6. Bloomingdales
Location: 504 Broadway, New York, NY 10012
7. Grand Hotel de SOHO
Location: Grand and West Broadway
310 W Broadway, New York, NY 10013
The free restrooms are all the way in the back of the lobby past the front desk.
Greenwich Village and Chelsea
1. Washington Square Park
Location: Washington Square, New York, NY 10012
2. Chelsea Market
Location: 75 9th Ave, New York, NY 10011
3. High Line
Location: New York, NY 10011
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