We're planning on celebrating our 25th anniversary in NYC in September. I keep reading here various references about how loud it is. We're considering Manhatten/Times Square area. We've stayed in many cities such as Chicago, Paris, Miami, Vienna, San Antonio, etc. And yes, they are a great deal noisier than our quiet community but then, NY is a huge city. So, just how loud is it? We've stayed in accomodations near airports, highways, trains and harbors. The only trouble we've had with the noise is the time we had a freight train right outside our ground floor window or the many times when we've been "blessed" with inconsiderate guests and noisy children staying in rooms near ours who holler and run through the hallways. Thanks for your input!!

NYC is not that loud. Times square is probaly the busiest and one of the loudest parts of the city, but it is also one of the most convenient and excitng parts. Don't let the noise put you off. Ask for a floor on a higher floor and you should be fine. If you have never been here before you'll be amazed at how much there is to see and do. Just don't come during the republican convention the city will be a nightmare then with security and traffic and things will be even more crowded then usual, bargains on tickets etc. will be non-existant during the convention. Have fun

it all depends on when and where you are. the vast majority of the noise is traffic, and not the honking kind (honking is outlawed in a lot of areas, and it's probably going to become even more rare soon), but sirens and trucks and the like.

there's very little of people blasting music, if anything, it might be just the overall effect of every person having a conversation at once. and of course the occasional club, but even them are pretty muffled from the outside.

the mayor is on a kick tho, there's already been legislation to muffle a lot of neighborhoods and now it's going to get 'better' to include even silencing ice cream trucks and barking dogs.

all in all, like you said, it's a city. could always be worse tho.

I think of it as a dull roar, a kind of constant background noise. As far as sleeping, it probably won't bother you if you are not hearing specific sounds, like a loud conversation, a garbage truck, etc. I think those are much more disruptive in a quiet environment. In NY they tend to all blend together.

I guess noise is all relative. Some people find particular noises annoying, while others don't mind them.
I also concur with the previous posters. I grew up in a small quiet farm town and remember when I 1st started working in NYC. Laying in bed at night I could hear the saxaphonist playing down on the street 20 floors below. Not that it was really loud, nor was it annoying, I just focused on it because I was used to dead quiet at night.
Now, I live in NYC on the 52nd floor. Sirens are the most common noise for me - I don't notice them at all(blend into the bacground), but can be on the phone with friends and they'll comment on hearing them. Horn honking is less common than in years past.
Based on your comments on previous stays, I'm sure you'll be fine in NYC. I would never let noise deter me from visiting the Big Apple! If you're really worried, then pack along some earplugs... but honestly, it's not that bad.

OK, I will admit up front that I am noise sensitive when sleeping. NY does have it's share of street noise, and alot of the bars are open really late, so you can hear people who have closed down the bars as they are loudly trying to find their way at 3 a.m. I'm the one who asks for the interior room, away from elevators and ice machines, w/the view of the brick wall so I don't have to hear street noise late at night or early a.m. I do fine in NY w/some planning. If I am on a street (and that would only be because I want a view of Central Park, otherwise it doesn't matter to me), I ask for a room very high up. If the hotel is not a highrise on the park, I ask for an interior room as described above. I stay away from street noise but also be aware that there are alot of garbage trucks that start picking up loads at 3-4 a.m., so I also make sure my room is not up from an alley that has garbage bins. I know, it seems like alot of trouble, but it is the differnce btwn being rested or being tired and cranky for me. (The funny thing is we used to live right next to a railroad track and it never bothered me at all! It's the random loud noise that does it)

I think it depends totally on who you are and where you're from.

I live on a farm in NC and used to travel monthly to NYC on business - where I would stay in Mid-town Manhattan.

Lord have mercy, I was always nearly jumping out of my skin at some ruckus or another, but I got used to most of it.

The two things that REALLY blew my little countrified mind though were the time I woke up to the sound of elephants trumpeting, and found the Ringling Bros. parade outside my third floor window, and the time I thought the city was under attack (pre-9/11), and it was just the thunder echoing off of the buildings during a storm.

Most of it is kind of a dull background roar, but neat to those of us who don't get to experience it in our daily life.

I think the hubbub is part of what makes visiting NYC so exciting.

I'm a light sleeper and routinely use earplugs, but that's not always necessary in NYC if you're in the right room in the right hotel. One thing that makes a difference is that many of the buildings are old enough to be made with very thick walls, which makes a big difference unless you're compelled to open a window. We've stayed in older buildings in residential neighborhoods(Excelsior, esp.) that were very very quiet.

Times Sq is probably the most congested area of NYC therefore the loudest. Most hotels in that area have rooms starting at several floors up, so the hotels themselves are not noisy. There definitely are quieter, nicer areas of NYC to stay in (Central Park South or West, Midtown East, Union Square to name a few).

In general I don't think NYC is all that noisy unless you're in a few select congested areas (like the roads leading to the Holand tunnel at rush hour). I've had trouble sleeping in Rome, Madrid and other major cities of Europe, but never in NYC (and I live there).

In most places it's more a matter of what noises you're used to - rather than how loud it is. (Although Times Square is one of the loudest areas fo the city - and many places stay open until 4am - witrh the loud and happy drunks going home them - singing or arguing in the streets.)

I'm used to the sirens and the 3am garbage truck grinding noises. Car alarms are much less of a problem since they enacted the law that they have to to turn off automatically after a short time (although I sometimes see out of state cars that blare on forever - perhaps the laws are deifferent other places?) what I find disturbing are the early morning construction noises - jack hammers at 6am etc - but you can enquire about this from your hotel beore you go.

But perhaps this is just because I'm used to these noises. Now, when I go to visit family in the country I'm always awakened by the birds tweeting in the morning - its amazing how much noise those tiny things can make.

New Yorkers: Did I imagine it or did I read soemthing in the NY Times a few wks ago about the Mayor wanting to do something to stop the noise from the bars that close at 3-4 a.m.?

i alluded to it in my post.. didn't mention the bars specifically, but yes, he wants to even do away with the music the ice cream trucks play.

even worse, he doesn't want to rely on decibel meters to determine violations, he wants to rely on NYPD to determine what they feel is appropriate.

Oh my, didn't realize that. I'm sure New Yorkers are on to this. I'd rather get my "interior room-far from the ice machine and elevator- facing the brick wall" than have the sound police.

That mayor! I would rather have him concentrate on those spine tingling, hair standing on end, screeches that the the bus breaks make. Ohmagawd. That is one sound that just puts me right over the edge. I'll take a happy tune from Mr. Softie over those buses any day.

BTW, while we are on the noise subject- I have noticed the big difference now that cabbies do not blow their horns indiscriminantly anymore (for the most part)in NYC. They get fined for doing so right? I assume it is enforced because they don't do it much anymore. I do think that makes a big positive difference.

I used to live in a large city and I can't stand street noise. But where does Bloomberg get off on banning ice cream truck tunes. I liked it.

there are a lot of 'quiet zones' designated in nyc, mostly in neighborhoods that are more residential, where there are posted fines for $350 (I believe) for horn honking. I think with Bloomberg, those zones grew a bit. The only time there are real problems with horn blowing nowadays is when the driver in front doesnt react 'quickly enough' to a green light and when the driver is about to run someone over.

Considering the metropolitan population for New York City is around 18 million, I'd say it probably can get noisy.

I think the quietest part of Manhattan is the Upper East Side.

ladykt: As some of the other posters have stated, it is all a matter of perspective.

In the Canadian city I live in, people VERY rarely honk their horns. The only time horns are used is when their is an impending car accident or if someone made a major traffic infraction.

I was in New York a few weeks ago and had to train myself to quit whipping my head around to see where the impending car accident was going to occur.

I found it quite humorous for the first couple of days that every time a horn honked, 10-20 times a minute in the Times Square area, I was expecting some major collision. Did not see a single fender bender through all that honking I'm glad to say!

I happen to live near a train yard also and find that noise and the noise of the downtown airport in our city to be just as distracting as any noise in New York. I would not let noise deter you from going, you will get used to the city noises quickly and be distracted by all the fabulous sights anyway. I am sure you will love NY as much as I do now.