SUMMIT One Vanderbilt Experience Ticket
Overview
Mobile ticket
SUMMIT One Vanderbilt blends elements of art and technology, taking the concept of an “observation deck” to entirely new heights. Explore three levels of mind-bending multi-sensory immersive experiences set atop the tallest commercial skyscraper in Midtown Manhattan.
Enjoy spectacular 360 views of New York City and beyond on all 3 floors of SUMMIT, including close ups views of the Empire State Building and the Chrysler building.
Additional Info
Wheelchair accessible
Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller
Service animals allowed
Public transportation options are available nearby
Suitable for all physical fitness levels
Children age 5 and under are free with accompanying paid adult
Dress appropriately to avoid unwanted exposure on glass and mirrored floors. We recommend wearing pants, shorts or tights when possible.
Wear comfortable shoes. Stiletto heels, steel toe boots, sports cleats and other footwear that can damage mirrored flooring are not permitted.
Outside food and beverage, smoking or e-cigarettes, large packages, suitcases, or weapons of any kind will not be permitted beyond the security checkpoint.
There is no storage for person items. Large bags, large backpacks and luggage are not permitted.
All SUMMIT tickets are timed. You MUST arrive at your scheduled time, which is indicated on your ticket. SUMMIT operates at full capacity. You might not be able to get in if arriving more than 20 minutes after the time indicated on your ticket. Any late arrival is subject to availability and a rescheduling fee from $25.00
Cancellation Policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
What‘s Included
LEVITATION: two transparent glass enclosed skyboxes extending from SUMMIT
All indoor immersive art experiences
Admission to all 3 floors of SUMMIT
ASCENT (exterior glass elevators experience)
Meeting and Pickup
Meeting points
SUMMIT One Vanderbilt
45 E 42nd St, Entrance Located On The Main Concourse Of Grand Central Terminal New York City United States
End points
This activity ends back at the meeting point.
What To Expect
SUMMIT One Vanderbilt
Explore three levels of mind-bending multi-sensory immersive experiences set atop the tallest commercial skyscraper in Midtown Manhattan. Set against the incredible backdrop of the New York City skyline, SUMMIT One Vanderbilt blends elements of art and technology, taking the concept of an “observation deck” to entirely new heights.
Options
Summit Observatory Ticket
General Admission Ticket
Reviews
5,200 reviews
Total reviews and rating from Viator & Tripadvisor
Long waits and chaotic queuing systems
MissAlanaErin,
Dec 5, 2025
- Review from Tripadvisor
1.00Firstly, when you arrive in the waiting area, it is chaos. There are no instructions as to where you need to go, and the queues are long. We waited in a queue for an hour and got to the front of the line to be told we were standing in the wrong place and were asked to join the back of the queue again. After some persuading they let us through to the security area prior to the experience. We got there 30 mins early for our 20.30 slot and we're glad we did as the wait times were uncomfortable. The experience itself was good, though overcrowded. The views are amazing. When you are done and want to leave expect a minimum of 1 hour queuing to get to the lifts. Even then, the staff were loading the lifts with people and waiting long periods before sending them down. I wish I hadn't gone as it took 3 hours from start to finish and was a waste of time due to the long queues. Due to the over crowded experience rooms, we must have spent 20 minutes on the actual experience. The rest of the time was waiting in line. We witnessed staff arguing amongst them selves and being quite rude to the guests. Maybe other times of the day/year may be different but if you're thinking of going, leave 3-4 hours to allow time from start to finish. Again, views were great, but that was about it
Unfortunate experience
Elizabeth C,
Dec 5, 2025
- Review from Viator
1.00It was so disappointing. I had a 5:30 ticket time. Got there on time, and stood in line for over 2 hours. The staff just kept saying “you only have 20 more minutes”, that was just to get to the next line. I had a dinner reservation for 8pm, so we had to get out of line at 7:30, never seeing the experience. I went back and told staff what had happened, and they wouldn't refund my money, or let me go through. So I lost $150
Summit One Experience
katherine c,
Dec 5, 2025
- Review from Viator
4.00Summit Experience had very long lines… 45 minutes to get in! Would be difficult for someone with a wheelchair or elderly.
Summit: Reservation System Without Respect
AlizaAbrahamson,
Dec 5, 2025
- Review from Viator
1.00We had a reservation and still ended up waiting over three hours just to be allowed inside. At that point, we never even went in. A reservation should mean something, this was a complete waste of time and incredibly disappointing. The lack of organization and respect for guests’ time made the experience unacceptable. Rude staff,
Excessive wait times and sadly an awful experience overall, AVOID!!!
DestinyWade,
Dec 5, 2025
- Review from Tripadvisor
1.00Overall awful experience!!! We booked our tickets online weeks before our trip and arrived 15 mins before our booking as per email (8.30pm). We did not arrive to the top for another 90 minutes and faced another hour wait to get the lift down once we had finished the ‘experience’!!! Yes the experience itself was well done and we got some beautiful photos BUT it was not worth the 3 hours of queuing that we had to wait and if we was aware of this then we would have not booked this experience at all! Sadly communication with staff was very poor as they failed to have any explanation on the excessive wait time and there was lots of very unhappy customers due to a lack of space & facilities provided! I would NOT recommend this experience to anyone with children, elderly people, people with health conditions or anyone who would struggle to stand waiting in a line for long period of times and sadly even though the views were lovely I would recommend visiting another sight in the city!
Horrendous Experience
Seaside785071,
Dec 5, 2025
- Review from Tripadvisor
1.00Absolute worst experience of my time in NYC. Queues were horrendous ,waiting to go up initially was 2 hours and to leave was another hour . The frustration was evident amongst all people . Way too many people allowed up , not enough lifts working to handle.anywhere near the numbers . Never again !!
Not worth it this time!
BryanChristian D,
Dec 4, 2025
- Review from Viator
2.00Workers should be a bit kinder to their guest. Lines can be a little bit confusing. In addition, they need to find out a way to make it less the wait. 2 hours just to stand in line to go up and then another 2 hours more to out, crazy!
Dont go to summitt 1 vanderbuilt in NYC
michaelhT9291NX,
Dec 4, 2025
- Review from Tripadvisor
1.00One of the worst experinese in all my travels Waited in line for 2.5 hours to get up to the elevators. Less than 1 hour for the experince. Another 2 hours in line to take elevator down. Nothing is worth being in line from 6 to 11:30.
2 hour queues to go up and hour + to get back down
kiel l,
Dec 4, 2025
- Review from Tripadvisor
1.00Bad management, 2 hour queues to get in with a lot of people allowed to queue jump when it suited. Then to top the experience off you get to stand in another hour + queue for the lift back down. Do not book or if you do expect to waste half a day.
Beware - long queues
kathysion,
Dec 4, 2025
- Review from Tripadvisor
1.00Do not book total chaos . Massive queues for over an hour just to get to elevator. People very upset. No co ordination or offer of refund.
From US$44.00
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Operated by SUMMIT ONE VANDERBILT