The Empire State Building: The View, The Architecture, and Whether It’s Worth It

The Empire State Building was constructed in 13 months. Construction began in January 1930 and the building opened in April 1931. At peak, 3,400 workers were on site simultaneously; the steel frame rose at approximately four and a half floors per week. The building contains 102 floors, 443 metres to the roof, and was completed during the worst year of the Great Depression – the development was financed by Raskob and Smith before anyone knew how bad the economy was going to get. For years, it struggled to find tenants and New Yorkers called it the Empty State Building.

At 443 metres, it was the tallest building in the world for 41 years (until the World Trade Center topped it in 1972). One World Trade Center now exceeds it. None of that diminishes the 86th floor observation deck at dusk when the city’s grid is lighting up below you.

The Decks

The 86th floor Main Deck (320 metres): an outdoor wraparound terrace with 360-degree unobstructed views. The 102nd floor Top Deck (443 metres): enclosed glass at the building’s highest occupied floor, considerably more expensive, adds about 20% more vertical height with marginal view improvement. The 86th floor is the right choice for most visitors.

Tickets online in advance run approximately $44-55 for adults. Express passes (skip the queue) run $67+. Same-day window tickets cost more and involve queuing 60+ minutes at peak times. Timed entry tickets eliminate the main queue. Book for the sunset slot for the transition from golden-hour light to night cityscape.

Is Top of the Rock Better?

Top of the Rock (30 Rockefeller Plaza) costs slightly less, has a comparable view, and crucially includes the Empire State Building in its views south. Many photographers prefer it for this reason: the Empire State Building is the most photogenic structure in the skyline, and from Top of the Rock you photograph it rather than stand on it. Some visitors do both.

The Architecture

The Art Deco lobby is largely original. A bronze sculpture of the building lit in blue is often overlooked by visitors heading straight to the lifts. The lobby is accessible without an observation deck ticket and worth five minutes. The exterior’s limestone and granite cladding, the mooring mast intended for dirigibles (used exactly twice before the idea was abandoned), the setbacks demanded by 1916 zoning – these details make the building more interesting than most tower observations reveal.

The Chrysler Building, one block east and several blocks north on 42nd Street, is the building many architects consider the finer Art Deco structure. No public observation deck; the lobby (open office hours, free) is one of the finest interiors in New York.

Nearby

The New York Public Library on 42nd Street is 10 minutes’ walk north: the Rose Main Reading Room with its vaulted ceilings is free and extraordinary. Korea Town on 32nd Street between Fifth and Broadway has the densest concentration of Korean restaurants outside of Korea itself.