I am watching the St. Patrick's Day parade and everyone they are showing are bundled up like its freezing cold outside. The temp is 50 in NYC at the time i am typing this. In Phoenix Az. when its 50 I am wearing shorts and a sweatshirt. Does it feel colder in NYC then the temp actually is?

I am trying to figure out what i need to pack for my trip the second week of April.

Thanks everyone for the great help, mscmkr

I am in Hartford and it is very windy today. The wind can come off the water into NYC and make it feel much cooler. I would definitely pack warm clothes - sweatshirt and pants. But bring shorts too as weather could go either way.

Couple of years ago, the first warm weekend in April, my parents came up from FL (only had lived in FL for 5 years - had spent 50+ years in Mass) and only brought summer clothes. They were freezing.

Plan for both.

I am not sure how to answer the meteorological conundrum why is 50 degrees cooler in NYC than Phoenix today?
Becauase you do not know what is those kilts?

It is a bit breezy today and people do stand for three or four hours in the same spot. And NYC is usually not a shorts and sweatshirt type place. It is either shorts and a short sleeve something or sweatshirt and long pants something. Unless you are just coming from the gum.

April, hwoever is the perfect month to visit NYC. We have had freak snow storms but nornally bring light layers and leave on what you need to leave on.

It's freezing today. Heavy coat buttoned up to the throat cold. It was beautiful on Saturday. No coat, walking all day beautiful. Hold off on the packing!

When you're out all day, and you might come across a windy side street on a cloudy day, it sure feels cooler. If you're standing in the same spot and not moving, that adds to it. I also suspect that people from warmer places "feel it more"

But I was out today amd certainly not bundled up-- no hat, gloves or scarf, and jacket open at the top.

By the way, mscmkr, you can leave your shorts at home (unless you're going running or to a gym). While you might get a warmer day in mid-April, that would mean 70-75ish--and you would look and feel seriously out of place. And even a "warm day" at that time of the year will be followed by a cool or cold evening.

Okay, 50 degrees in New York and 50 degrees in Arizona feel different for a couple of reasons.

Firstly, Manhattan is an island that is surrounded by water. The water temp is barely 40 degrees. The wind whipping off the cold water makes the air temps colder.

Also, the concrete canyons are shaded and act as wind tunnels and keeps the concrete feeling colder.

The sun also sets early because of its longitude and lattitude and the city becomes shaded because of the tall buildings.

In Arizona, the sun bounces off the desert making it feel warmer.

Great answer, GoTravel.

I guess you'll have your eye on the weather reports as you get ready to pack for your visit. Though 2nd week in April is not predictable I'd say you'd want a coat, but not your warmest winter coat.

A leather jacket of some kind would probably be good, or a spring coat or raincoat. In either case, a warm sweater or blazer that you can wear under the coat or not, as needed. And I am a big fan of the cashmere scarf, for men or women, for travelling, as they are light, warm, and nice-looking.

First, Manhattan is an island in a major harbor and surrounded by rivers, making it usually quite damp - so cold feels colder and heat feels hotter.

Second, it tends to be quite windy at times - making it feel colder.

Third, it may be 50 where you are - but you're in the sun. The parade route is lined with highrises - which means most of it is in the shade - making it feel much colder.

And finally - I think very few people wear shorts when it's 50. (Typically when people from FL come to NYC they're wearing sweaters or jackets when we're running around in t shirts - since they need a jacket whenever it's less than 70.)