New York’s the greatest city on Earth — and one of the most expensive. With residents dropping an average of $3,000 a month for a one-bedroom apartment, $16 for a fancy cocktail and $22 to see “Ant-Man” (OK, you can save by skipping the 3-D), you’d think only the 1 percent could fully enjoy the city’s pleasures.
Hell, Serendipity 3 even charges $295 for a burger! Granted, it’s topped with white-truffle-butter-infused wagyu beef, shaved black truffles, Chinese kaluga caviar, a fried quail egg and a blini — but still.
It’s time to fight back. Put away your wallet — here’s what the city has to offer that’s 100-percent free.
Free boat rides
Manhattan is surrounded by water, but you don’t need to own a yacht to take advantage of that. A smaller — and free — alternative is the kayak. The Downtown Boathouse offers New Yorkers a chance to freely cruise city waterways at three spots along the Hudson River: Pier 26 between Hubert and North Moore streets (Saturdays and Sundays), 72nd Street in Riverside Park (Saturdays and Sundays) and Pier 96 at West 56th Street (Saturdays through Wednesdays). See downtownboathouse.org.
The floating North River Lobster Company, a restaurant docked at Pier 81 at 41st Street on the Hudson, takes several daily 45-minute cruises along the river starting at 12:30 p.m. If you’re hungry, you can shell out for food, but it isn’t required. See northriverlobsterco.com.
Perhaps the best free treat in New York is the 25-minute trip on the Staten Island Ferry. It departs every 30 minutes from lower Manhattan’s Whitehall Terminal, and offers unforgettable views of the skyline and of Lady Liberty. See siferry.com.
Also, the Governors Island Ferry is free from 10 to 11:30 a.m. on weekends, departing from the Battery Maritime Building in lower Manhattan and from Brooklyn at Pier 6 in Brooklyn Bridge Park. See govisland.com.
Free movies
“Ghostbusters” may be getting a reboot with some of the funniest women in showbiz, but it will be hard to beat the Bill Murray and Dan Aykroyd classic. Catch it Aug. 17, at 8:15 p.m. at Astoria Park Lawn in Queens. Or hit the lawn in Central Park, where you can time-travel back to 1980 via “The Blues Brothers,” “Airplane!” and “Raging Bull” — all of which will play on the big screen between Sheep Meadow and the 72nd Street Cross Drive from Aug. 25 to 29. See centralparknyc.org.
Oscar winner “Big Hero 6” is getting some big love this summer, with free screenings throughout the five boroughs. Tuesday, it plays at the Martin Luther King Jr. Playground (Lenox Avenue between West 113th and West 114th streets). at 8:30 p.m.; visit nycgovparks.org/events for a full list of free outdoor park screenings.
Who better to tell you about “Mallrats” than Jay and Silent Bob? That would be actor Jason Mewes and director Kevin Smith, who’ll team for a Q&A before an outdoor screening of the flick — a sequel’s out next year — on Aug. 4 at 50 Kent Ave., Williamsburg, nitehawkcinema.com.
Free theater
Unless you win their $10-a-ticket lottery, it’ll cost you a couple of Benjamins to see Broadway’s “Hamilton.” But off-Broadway’s smaller theaters — the Cherry Lane (212-989-2020), Second Stage (212-246-4422) and Atlantic Theater Company (212-691-5919) — recruit volunteer ushers for their performances (which you can watch). No previous experience needed to scan tickets and direct theatergoers to their seats and the exits. Check with each theater for details.
Then again, you don’t need to enter a theater to see some of Broadway’s hottest shows — not when their stars are coming to Bryant Park, courtesy of 106.7 Lite FM. Dream a dream with the cast of “Les Misérables” and celebrate New York, New York with the guys of “On the Town” (Thursday); crush on “A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder” (Aug. 6); and get to know all about “The King and I” (Aug. 13). All performances start at 12:30 p.m.; full lineup at 1067litefm.com.
Is one song from your favorite musical’s not enough? The cast of “Beautiful — The Carole King Musical” will perform the entire score at Central Park’s SummerStage, at Rumsey Playfield, Aug. 3 from 6 to 10 p.m., hosted by NBC’s Hoda Kotb; cityparksfoundation.org.
When in doubt, Shakespeare out. Many of the Bard’s best will be performed this summer, including the Drilling Company’s “Romeo and Juliet,” from now until Aug. 2 at Bryant Park, and “Macbeth,” beginning July 30 (shakespeareintheparkinglot.com); the Moose Hall Theatre Company’s “Henry IV” in Inwood Hill Park runs until Aug. 1 (moosehallisf.org) and New York Classical Theatre’s “Measure for Measure” is at Battery Park until Aug. 9 (thebattery.org).
Free music
Win your teen’s heart: Take her to Central Park on Aug. 21 to see Australian boy band 5 Seconds of Summer. The show begins at 7 a.m. at the Rumsey Playfield and will be broadcast live on “Good Morning America” as part of its Summer Concert Series. (Just don’t embarrass yourself by confusing them with One Direction.) Other bands coming up: Hozier, Luke Bryan and the Band Perry. Free tickets at gma.yahoo.com.
The “Fox & Friends” All-American Summer Concert Series goes classic rock-ish and country with its lineup. Country star Scotty McCreery, an “American Idol” winner, plays Friday. KC and the Sunshine Band plays Aug. 7 and Alice Cooper, Aug. 14. Shows are at the corner of West 48th Street and Sixth Avenue from 6 to 9 a.m., and even the food’s free, courtesy of Famous Dave’s BBQ; details at foxnews.com.
If you like country music — even if it’s from another country — go see Australia’s Kasey Chambers at Lincoln Center Out of Doors’ Americanafest NYC on Aug. 8. The 2 p.m. show, at Lincoln Center’s Hearst Plaza, also features the Quebe Sisters and Sam Outlaw.
Other Lincoln Center Out of Doors attractions include Randy Newman (Saturday), Judy Collins (July 26) and Lyle Lovett (Aug. 9); lcoutofdoors.org.
Free bikes
Bikes are more accessible than ever thanks to Citi Bike, but you don’t have to fork over $10 for a wheely good time. Instead, hop a ferry to Governors Island, where Blazing Saddles rents bikes for up to an hour at no cost, weekdays between 10 a.m. and noon (govisland.com). The ferry to the free bikes, however, will cost you $2 on weekdays.
Free food
On Wednesday, Grand Central Terminal’s Vanderbilt Hall turns into a sample-serving utopia, with the third annual Taste of the Terminal, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. and 4 to 7 p.m. Try vegetarian spring rolls from Feng Shui, Gouda from Murray’s Cheese, chocolate bars from Neuhaus Belgian Chocolate, chocolate mousse cheesecake from Junior’s and classic black-and-white cookies from
Zaro’s.
If you like what you’ve tasted, you can always buy more from the vendors. See grandcentralterminal.com.
Free live television
You can apply online for “Tonight Show” tickets, but you’ll have to wait up to a year to get in. Free standby tickets are distributed at 9 a.m. under the NBC marquee on West 49th Street between Fifth and Sixth avenues — you’ll want to be the first person in line if you want even a chance. Or visit the NBC Experience Store at 30 Rock at 12:30 p.m. for complimentary tickets to the dress rehearsal; showclix.com.
John Oliver tapes “Last Week Tonight” only once a week, but you’ve got a better chance of getting a ticket to that. Reservations for live tapings at the CBS Broadcast Center (528 W. 57th St.) on Sundays at 6:15 p.m. can be booked online at lastweektickets.com.
“Live With Kelly & Michael” doles out tickets up to a year in advance, but a dozen or so lucky folks can get in each day by waiting on the standby line. People can line up as early as 7 a.m. at the corner of Columbus Avenue and West 67th Street. Seats are filled on a first-come, first-served basis. See livekellyandmichael.dadt.com.
Daytime queen Meredith Vieira offers a slew of standby ticket options to her show, “The Meredith Vieira Show,” which tapes Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday at 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. Line up at 30 Rock for their 8 a.m. distribution. See meredithvieiratheshow.com.
Standby tickets to “The Dr. Oz Show” are distributed Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Fridays at 8:50 a.m. and 1:50 p.m. at 320 W. 66th St. The doc returns from hiatus Aug. 18. See doctoroz.com.