The toilet paper suggestion was a joke.

Oh, I LOVE the TP idea, genius! Here we all were, dressing in black, avoiding white sneakers and fanny packs, surreptitiously sneaking out our tiny digital cameras and eschewing maps, in a doomed effort to look like a local, when all we needed was a package of TP in a clear plastic sack!

NOW you tell us!

I'm a native NYer living in SoHo. I have to say that NYC is full of people carrying cameras and video equipment around for any number of reasons.

I enjoy taking one of my large SLRs for a walk now and then, even if just to document certain highlights and changes in the neighborhood.

The point is carrying a camera may not be the giveaway that you're a tourist.

And "muggings" happen so infrequently in NYC now that when they do, they are often news stories:
http://www.nypost.com/seven/06122008...oma_115226.htm

I think this is silly as well!!! I feel very safe in New York and always see lots of people carrying their cameras! Obviously don't wander out at dark into remote areas that you are unfamiliar with but isn't this just common sense no matter where you are?! Don't stress...take your camera, wear it around your neck, and take lots of photos! I second the opinion that you should NOT wear a fanny pack!!!

Fanny packs should be banned. I don't care how useful anyone thinks they are.

Last time I was in Times Square (a couple of months ago) a Russian woman handed me a VERY expensive camera and asked me to take photos of her. She was adorable and I was happy to do it.

But I did sort of think it was trusting - then again, I don't really fit the profile of a thief. Haha.

Aduchamp1 - I know it was a joke!

I didn't know about the arrangement of that housing with LC. But I did learn recently that the area before LC was built was the setting for "West Side Story." I was reading about Jerome Robbins (it is the 90th anniversary of his birth) and the article talked about the play and the setting. I can't remember what that whole area looked like prior to LC being built.

Aduchamp, that's very funny.

As a SoHo resident, I find myself making a considerable effort to conceal my toilet paper when walking home from shopping.
Sometimes I just get it delivered (NYers get lots of things delivered) along with a sandwich or something.
Maybe I'll just let that flag fly from now on!

My wife who is also a native NY'er, always wears her fanny pack. And when the weather is bad she will put under her jacket, so she looks like a boa constrictor that ate a deer.

I don't get all the anti-fanny pack sentiment.

I wear a fanny pack sometimes, sometimes instead a small shoulder bag with strap long enough to sling diagonally across the front of my body. I do both because I strongly prefer having arms and hands free when I'm doing a lot of walking.

I've done both many, many times in NYC and Philadelphia and for that matter also Rome, London, San Francisco....never had a problem. I think being aware and using common sense is all that matters.

Wear whatever's comfortable for you, so what if anyone knows you're a tourist if you are one, and so what about other people's judgements of fashion, unless your inner teenager is overly alive and well :-)

Oh, and there are plenty of photographers in NYC who live there, with all kinds of cameras!

The only thing I *would* be careful of is putting anything valuable in the backpack, since that's hard for you to stay aware of at all times.

Have fun!!

As most have pointed out, use common sense. I've been to NYC and carried my SLR; instead of leaving it hanging around my neck, I kept in in a large padded tote bag that I could zip when I wasn't using the camera. I've also used a small 4 MP point-and-shoot, and the pix I got with that were just fine.

centralparkgirl - Could you mean the area in Central park called The RAMBLE? There is no area called the BRAMBLE, as far as I can tell on all the maps on the CP website. I've noticed this mistake in your postings before, and wondered.

The Ramble was notorious in the 70's and 80's as a dangerous area of the park, and as a place for assignations for gay men.

mp - I am seriously wondering about my brain!!! Of course I mean the Ramble - thank you for the correction. Yes, that is the place. The last time I walked through I was with DS and it was so quiet, it was uncomfortable. DS thought my reaction was ridiculous (what else is new?), but I think it's not wise to be in an area where there aren't a lot of people and it's not an open area as well (lots of narrow paths if I remember correctly). Anyway, everyone's got a comfort level - that place is not one of mine.

Muggings in NYC are very, very rare nowadays (post-Giuliani). Pickpockets are still around. In the mid 90's, I had my cash lifted from a small purse by someone who must have reached under the divider in the Macy's dressing rooms.

As for the camera around your neck, it might announce you as a tourist. However, that doesn't necessarily mean anything, since it will be pretty obvious you're a tourist anyways - like Aduchamp says - you're not walking briskly, eyes straight ahead and in business clothes. For convenience, why don't you put the camera in a backpack that you carry on your back (not front), and be aware of your surroundings when you're in crowds.

Hayjax, as a fellow tourist, I would not wear these items strictly as a comfort issue. After awhile, that backpack gets heavy, the camera strap starts to rub and the fanny pack becomes annoying. I'd rather have a small nylon zippered tote bag for my digital camera, guide book and water bottle with a zipper compartment for money & credit cards. I don't know what time of the year you're going to NYC, but the summers are hot and carrying all this stuff makes you sweaty(ier). In the winter, it's not any better by the time you bundle up to go out in the cold. JMHO.

I'm here. I'm taking lots of pictures and don't care if I look like a tourist. But, I did buy a leather messenger bag on this trip and I love it. I toss in my camera, bottle of water, my tiny purse (and it is tiny) and my notepad with addresses of places I want to visit. I have really enjoyed using it.

Stop worrying about looking like a tourist and muggings. You are a tourist and you won't be mugged. Just be aware of your surroundings - just like you would in any city. I wouldn't want to walk around with my camera around my neck because 1) it's really hot up here right now and 2) what toed said - don't want it hitting on things.

Ok I have finished laughing, but a camera around your neck in NYC will be perfectly fine, unless you are walking thru Port Authority Bus Terminal at 2 a.m. or along 12th Ave at 3 a.m. Stay off the subways between 11p & 7am but that should be just fine. Buy a Metro card which can also be used on the many convenient bus lines, from which you see more scenery than a subway. Really, do you know how many 10's of thousands of NYPD are on patrol each and every day? I used to know the ratio of cops/population and it is probably higher than any other city in the US, esp. post 9/11. I think you should google crime statistics in U.S. cities; a moderately backpack is worn by thousands of New Yorkers in lieu of briefcase or while biking rollerblading to work. Does anyone use fannypacks anymore?? Skip that, and be sure not to check the camera in your luggage. Cameras are more likely to disappear from checked baggage than from around your neck (esp. if on a moderate strap). Yes, you can wear jewelry too! I would not leave it on a park bench in Central Park while you walk and get a lemon ice, but it was while in a church in Rome where MY camera was stolen on vacation. BUT keep your id & credit cards on your person, not packed in a backpack and enjoy! You have been given a bad rap.

I have been to NYC three times and felt very safe each time. In fact I felt safer there than in many other cities I have traveled to. Just use plain common sense and you will be fine!

hayjax, sounds like most people here, visitors and residents think you'll be just fine.
Of course there is crime everywhere, but the fact that
kgh8m had to go back to the "mid 90s" to recall being pickpocketed should tell you something.

BTW, the toilet paper in a shopping bag thing is funny, but is based on a fairly common travel tip.
I've often seen it mentioned with regard to places in Europe where a suggestion is to carry a copy of a local newspaper when traveling by public transportation or to leave one in a rental car. The idea is to blend in more, and be less likely to be a target of street crime or car break-ins.

Thank you ALL for the great advice. I feel much better about going. I have settled on a small sling purse that is shoulder friendly--keep it light in weight and have a good time. I can put my SLR in it, it zips and it will be a wonderful trip. BUT I will be looking for native NYer's walking with their TP(ha). Thanks again for taking the time to post. The FODOR folks are the best!