13 Reasons To Actually Go To Manhattan

Sure, we live, eat, and entertain in the outer boroughs, and with the abundance of tourist-focused and chain stores, it can be hard to actually find a legitimate reason to enter into Manhattan. Here are 13 reasons to go to Manhattan

1. Money

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Manhattan is considered the financial capital of the world. Runoff from the stock market, tourists, tech, and marketing firms feed a good portion, if not all, of our salaries. Need proof of its abundance? Look at the skyline, it's filled with office space. Get to Manhattan, make money, and go home. Or don't because...

2. CitiBike

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Other than northern Brooklyn, the outer boroughs are severely lacking in bike share. That's why a one time use of your metrocard to Manhattan is a great excuse to enjoy a day full of non-committal biking. Just don't go above 59th Street, it's like an outer borough up there.

3. Shopping!

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New York, New York was recently named The Fashion Capital of the World by the Global Language Monitor, and who are we to argue?? Maybe if we were Parisian, sure, but we're not. Hit up a sample sale if you can't afford the sticker price, otherwise, you can get all your shopping done in the SoHo neighborhood, whose prior existence as factories provide the perfect foundation for retail.

4. Subway to the other boroughs

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Getting from one outer borough directly to another via mass transit is almost entirely impossible; the only immediate way would be to try your luck with the perpetually inept G train (not only is it short, but you have to wait half an hour for it to come - zoinks!) or find the nonsensical time to get all the way out to Sumthin Boulevard in Jamaica (yeah right). Luckily trains usually start and stop in either Bronx, Brooklyn, or Queens (Sorry Staten Island!) -- For all of these, you'll have to go through Manhattan along the way.

5. Cross a bridge

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Want to walk across the Brooklyn Bridge? Want to ride across the Williamsburg? You'll have to step at least a few feet inside Manhattan before you turn around. It's a great walk and well worth it. Get an egg custard while you're on the Manhattan side - it's probably closer than Flushing.

6. Your friends are in town

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Broadway plays, off-Broadway plays, Central Park, Harlem, Times Square, Daily Show - they are all in Manhattan! This is the perfect opportunity to see what these things are all about while accompanying their movie memories.

7. Dining to Impress

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If you want to truly show you care for someone, you'll spend over $200 on a meal for two. With only one exception, Manhattan is the only place you can regularly hit triple digits per person. These restaurants, mostly catering to tourists, sushi snobs, francophiles, business accounts or pied-à-terres, will not only consistently have well above average quality but also will prove that you love someone when it's time to pay the bill.

8. Avoid tolls to and from the Bronx

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It's a little known fact that there are a few bridges that actually have no tolls. Otherwise, if you want to go to the Bronx, you'll be shelling out over $10 just for the pleasure of suspension. Hit up the Williamsburg or Queensborough to the Willis Avenue and you've just saved $13. Boom.

9. The Arts

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NYC is truly the capital of the world for the arts. Our home museums and film theaters can get a little too experimental, so when you want a truly palatable Warhol or Truffaut , you're gonna have to go to Manhattan. And I probably don't have to tell you that admissions are only suggested...

10. Pizza!

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Sure, you've got plenty of pizza back home, but in Manhattan you can sometimes also get a great slice too. Try Bleecker Street for an assortment of pies from all around the dollar spectrum. Mangia!

11. Bolt Bus

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Want to get out of the city on the cheap? Discount buses advertise prices as low as one dollar (as long as you're the first seat, sorry number two!). Unfortunately, they aren't leaving from anywhere outside the large manzana, so you'll have to get over to the throws of Penn Station or the Port Authority if you're going to board.

12. Because you're feeling lazy

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Finding a place to do something can be a bit of a chore in the outer boroughs. When you don't want to do your homework, you can simply just use google to search for things. Type in "Best" followed by what you are looking for, then follow with "in NYC" and you're sure to find a minimally decent solution to your every need. For example, search "Best Bar in NYC": The 13th Step. "Best shoe store in NYC": Tip Top Shoes on 72nd Street. Easy. Now get on the train.

13. Taxis!

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Tired of the train or plain old hoofin' it? Finding a yellow taxi in an outer borough can feel like birding a White-throated Needletail. We may get a negotiable black cab or the trans-boro green cab, but hailing a cab outside of Manhattan just doesn't have the same rush of power and immediacy as it does on the island itself.

So yes, Manhattan is definitely a place to go.