New York City is renowned for its sky-high towers, historical monuments, stylish architecture, dynamic culture, bars and clubs, and great nightlife. There are many more secrets and hidden gems to unlock the mysteries of the Big Apple if you're eager to enjoy the unique things to do in NYC. Scary and haunted houses, haunted hotels, and secret spots hidden in the shadows explore the dark side of NYC and reveal the secret of the dark history of the grand city.
Let's check out the unusual activities and weird things to do in NYC.
List of Weirdest and Quirky Things to Do in New York City
Graffiti Tunnel in New York City
Graffiti Tunnel is one of the quirkiest spots in NYC. It is at Washington Heights, 191 Street, subway station. This hidden attraction has been a weird place for several years underneath the city. It was invented in 1967 by a high school student.
The Graffiti Tunnel connects the subway station with the street. It was a dark, scary, dirty place full of dangerous rats. The tunnel was painted with graffiti street art on the walls, illustrated the tunnel, the spray-painted shabby images, and the letters looked fantastic and vibrant, colorful scripts.
The NYC authorities quietly cleaned up and painted the tunnel's walls in Beige color. The street art on the walls and spray-painted scripts are now hidden under the beige color-painted walls.
Old City Hall Subway in New York City
The Old City Hall Subway Station opened in 1940 in New York City. The subway station was operating till 1945; the station was closed and declared abandoned due to security issues for the passengers. Today, it's a historical site and a must-see place in New York City. NYC Transit Museum offers a tour of the Old City Hall Subway to explore the historical scene of the ancient transit system of NYC.
Grab a Cocktail in a Bank Vault in NYC
The most unique and weird experience was drinking in an underground bank vault at 115 Broadway, NYC. Trinity Place is an American Bar and cafe in the famous wall street of the Financial District, and it's a fascinating dark place to visit in New York. It's the prior underground bank vault from 1904, which is now converted into a Tavern. It was a New York Reality Bank Vault with steel walls and two tons of heavy vault doors. The unique tavern serves signature cocktails and exclusive beers, whiskey, and wines.
Wine Cellar and Gaming at Laundromat in NYC
Sunshine Laundromat at 860 Manhattan Avenue, Brooklyn, looks like an ordinary laundry shop from the outside but has a secret door leading to a wine cellar and gaming zone. The washers can enter the bar and enjoy the pinball arcade games by passing through the hidden backdoor inside the shop. This weird wine cellar is open till midnight; at the weekends, it opens till late at night.
Boroughs of the Dead in NYC
Boroughs of the Dead is a ghost tour of NYC to explore the city's dark, scary, haunted places, history of the ghostly shabby spots, witches, and occult. It's the world's most scary top-rated ghost tour in the city. It includes the Greenwich Village Ghost Tour, Explore the rich history of the Lower East Side Witches, discover haunting historical sites in Astoria, delve into the forbidden dark historical places of Manhattan, embark on West Village Ghost Tours, and uncover the mysteries of the Island of Lost Souls with Roosevelt Island Ghost Tours. These captivating activities offer a unique and immersive experience among the many intriguing things to do in West Village and its surrounding areas.
Royal Palms Shuffleboard Club in NYC
The Royal Palms Shuffleboard Club is at 514 Union Street, Brooklyn. The first Shuffleboard club in New York City has over ten regular shuffleboard courts and a wine cellar that serves craft beers, signature cocktails, tropical drinks, and delicious food. No need for reservations; the Shuffleboard Club is a walk-in spot, but private reservations for large groups, parties, and events are available for the members.
Trapeze School in NYC
There are plenty of unique activities in New York City. Trapeze School in New York City offers a unique way of learning the Flying Trapeze, Aerial Arts, and Trampoline. It has expert professionals and the entire apparatus for training from beginning to advanced levels. Extra workshops for festivals and celebrations are also available at the school.
Handprints of the Celebrities in NYC
Movies lovers have a unique opportunity to check out the Handprints of Celebrities in East Village in front of Theater 80 St. Marks, renowned as A Jewel of Off-Broadway Theater at 80 Saint Marks Place, NYC. The most popular celebrities left their handprints in the wet cement in this place to make a memoir so that you can explore the golden age Hollywood stars' handprints.
The Theater 80 was famous in the 1960s. In 1971, it was converted into a movie revival house. The owner organized the grand event for the premier and invited the top celebrities of that era to make a memorable event and leave their handprints on the wet cement. In 1999, a sidewalk construction project tried to remove these grand Hollywood marks of the golden era stars from the spot. Still, the interruption of the community and locals stopped the authorities from destroying the legends of Hollywood from the surface.
Whispering Gallery at the Grand Central Station in NYC
The Weird Whispering Gallery is at the passageway on the lower-level entrance at Grand Central Station, NYC. It's a vault-like archway passage, and when the two people stand at opposite corners of the passageway and whisper, they can hear their murmuring voices clearly as they stand close to each other.
The whispering gallery has a structure with low arches and curves at the dooms up on the ceilings of the passageway; it raises the sounds and makes them travel through these arches and strange curves in the domed ceiling. So, you and your friend can hear the whispers clearly at this rushing station down the passageway. It's a fascinating fun place to go in NYC with friends.
IFC Center in NYC
IFC Center Theater has been operating since 2005, priorly working as the famous Waverly Theater. The IFC Center is an arthouse theater with favorite late-night shows like Office Space, The Shining, The Aliens, Beyond the Valley of Dolls, El Topo, and A Clock Work Orange.
The Cauldron Magical Bar in NYC
The Cauldron Magical Bar is the weirdest thing to do, especially for first-time visitors to New York. It's the Harry Potter-themed bar that portrays the magical theme. The Unicorns, and witches, make cocktail potions. The Cauldron will change your fantasies alive, and you will experience the real harry potter unique experience while eating and drinking in this fantasy-themed bar and restaurant in NYC.
Green Wood Cemetery in NYC
Green Wood Cemetery is in Brooklyn. Several famous personalities are buried here from the 190s, and it's a wild tourist attraction from years back in NYC. The cemetery has a Gothic revival structure with old Gothic-style gates, statues, and a beautiful lush green space with natural trees, shrubs, and flowers. It looks like a park more than a cemetery. In late times the rural cemetery movement was active to make the cemeteries more beautiful, like parks, to pay homage and respect to the deceased. You can find certain ancient monuments of famous late figures at this cemetery, and it's the darkest and weirdest spot to visit in New York City.
Houdini Revealed Museum in NYC
The Museum is dedicated to NYC's legendary Magician and Illusionist Houdini. It has the most extensive collection of weird stuff, full of strange artifacts, pictures, a coffin used for life escape stunts, and much more that belongs to the magician. You can explore the life history of the famous magician of NYC. If you're looking for dark, weird things, it's the best place you've ever seen.
Houdini's Grave in NYC
Houdini's grave is a weird and strange spot in Queens, NYC. He died in 1926, but his grave is a famous place for people to celebrate his life works. Mostly the magicians of NYC gathered at the grave on Halloween night while waiting for him to escape from death. It's the weirdest thing in New York City, so let's check out the grave of the late magician on Halloween night in Queens!
Berlin Wall Parts in NYC
The Great Berlin Wall fell and broke, its parts sold out, but four parts remained in NYC. You can explore the genuine pieces of the Berlin Wall in NYC. Its remains stand in Kowski Plaza,520 Madison Avenue, United Nations Plaza, and Ripley's Believe it or Not Museum in New York City. Check out NYC's strange wall pieces, weird art, and pictures.
Brooklyn Grange Rooftop Farm in NYC
Brooklyn Grange Rooftop Farm is a strange kind of farm cultivated on the rooftops in NYC. The company started to grow fresh fruits and vegetables on the rooftops of neglected buildings; it's a proper plan for sustainability and provides organic fresh fruits and vegetables to the public in NYC. The company has three rooftop farms in different locations in NYC; Sunset Park, Brooklyn Navy Yard, and Long Island City. They also provide agricultural education and farming, cultivation, and nutrition workshops.
The Life Underground Sculptures in NYC
The Life Underground sculptures were installed at the 14th Street subway station, 8th Avenue, NYC. The strange statues portrayed the 1800s life in New York City. Tom Otterness was a famous sculpture artist who created this world of historical New York life stories into these statues. The tiny strange bronze sculptures, unique pieces of art distinctive by their small size usually missed by many travelers at the station. Check out the Life Underground at the 14th Street subway station to see some weird things.
The Tanen's Magic Shop in NYC
The Tanen's Magic Shop is a strange shop that sells weird magical stuff and is the oldest magic shop in NYC. This store has excellent tarot cards, decks, dice, magic canes, wands, and many more bizarre things to buy. The shop has been operating since 1925, and the most famous magicians are the clients of Tanen's magic shop.
The Dare Devil Tattoo Museum in New York City
The Dare Devil Tattoo Museum is a famous tattoo shop with an inside museum that portrays old tattoo art, artifacts, pictures, and tattoo machines. Explore the weird stuff and original tattoo artwork by the tattoo legends Bert Grimm, Cap Coleman, George Burchett, and Samuel O'Reilly. The tattoo shop holds the owners' collections, Brad Fink and Michelle Myles. You can purchase strange tattoos and explore the artifacts of the history of tattoo art in NYC.
Meow Cat Parlor in New York City
The Meow Cat Parlor is the best place for cat lovers. If you have a cat and you need to groom it or explore other cats, visit the cat parlor. It offers a cat package for your kitties. It's a cat cafe, and you can enjoy meals and drinks with your cats. They offer adoption and fostering plans for saving the lives of the cats. You can adopt a cat permanently or keep one for a week or a few weeks. This quirky but adorable spot is one of the best things to do in New York for those who want to check out playful cats and enjoy quality time with their feline friends.
The Campbell Tavern in New York City
The Campbell Tavern is a hidden gem at the Grand Central Station in NYC, and its entrance is at 15 Vanderbilt Avenue, 43rd Street. The bar has art deco interiors with elegant furniture and a stone fireplace. The tavern serves delicious food, fantastic cocktails, beers, and live jazz music.
The Harry Potter Exhibition in New York City
The Harry Potter exhibition is an awe-inspiring experience for the art of storytelling. The wild imaginations of the wizarding world of Harry Potter come true at this magical place. The Unicorns, the beasts, the creatures, and the characters in the story all come real. You can select your own Hogwarts house, wands, and costumes for the immersive journey of the wizarding world. The audio guide is available with personalized headphones to listen to and follow the instructions within the exhibition hall. This weird but great immersive experience is the best activity for kids in NYC.
Elizabeth Street Garden in New York City
In the Lower East Side tenements, there's a beautiful, abandoned garden on Elizabeth Street in NYC. The green space boasts fascinating sculptures, statues, and giant trees, but the plants and flowers appear dead and discarded. Despite its eerie atmosphere, the garden remains captivating, resembling a secret dream garden in the heart of the city. Regrettably, this hidden gem is about to be replaced with another project for progress by the city authorities. Exploring this unique garden is among the intriguing things to do Lower East Side before it undergoes transformation.
The Dakota Building in New York City
The most classic and luxurious residence of old NYC is the Dakota Building, which opened in 1884 and is the most haunted in New York City. The famous figure John Lennon was brutely murdered outside of the Dakota building in 1980. People who lived in the building had pieces of evidence of ghost hauntings in the building.
House of Death in New York City
The House of Death is in Washington Square Park, Greenwich Village, NYC. It's the most haunted space in the city, an abandoned and dark, scary building. In the 19th century, mysterious deaths occurred in the building for years, and phantom hauntings were noticed there. Famous author Mark Twain lived here for a year and died; a criminal defense attorney murdered her little daughter, a six-year-old girl, and a famous Broadway actress Jan Bryant was residing at the building, writing her memoir about the hauntings and dark experiences at this palace. If you're brave enough and not afraid of ghosts, consider spending a night at the House of Death in Greenwich Village, NYC. Exploring haunted spots like this is one of the unique and spine-chilling things to do in NYC at night.
New Amsterdam Theater in New York
New Amsterdam Theater recently displayed the super hit Aladin show. The theater has a great history on Broadway. The theatre has been operating since 1903, but there's a ghost hanging over the stage. The late actress Olive Thomas committed suicide in Paris in 1920. Several audience members and the actors and staff at the theater have evidenced her ghostly appearance around the stage.
Conclusion
New York City is the most renowned city worldwide for its commercial, financial, cultural, and historical values. You can explore fascinating sightseeing, fun, entertainment spots, events and festivals, and the best shopping destinations in New York. Many tourists visit the Big Apple all year for several attractions and unique historical and cultural sites, but there are fascinating unusual, and weird things to do in NYC.
It depends on your interests, but if you'd like to unleash the dark, scary, weird secrets and explore the unusual site scene in NYC, it has plenty of haunted hotels, houses, sites, and cemeteries with original dark history. If you're not scared, please visit one in New York City.
