Madison Square Garden Guide: Best Seats, Close Bars & Food, Brief History

Madison Square Garden in NYC is one of the world's most iconic venues, and should be on your NYC bucket list.

But before you go, read this guide to make sure you have the best experience possible!

What we'll cover:

• Brief history of Madison Square Garden
• Getting to the arena
• Best pre-game bars and restaurants

• Best food and drink options inside MSG
• Best seats
• Extra tips & things to know

Let's do it. 👇

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Brief History of Madison Square Garden

Many would argue that Madison Square Garden is one of the most iconic venues in America, and possibly the world. Originally opened in 1879, it has been home to a plethora of famous concerts, sporting events, and cultural events.

Memorable events at MSG include:

• Muhammad Ali vs Joe Frazier's boxing match in 1971
• Marilyn Monroe’s famous birthday serenade to President John F. Kennedy in 1962
• Multiple benefit concerts following events like 9/11, Hurricane Katrina, and more
• Live performances by the likes of Bob Dylan, Elvis Presley, Taylor Swift, Madonna, and many, many more

While MSG is currently located on 31st and 33rd Street from Seventh to Eighth Avenue, it is actually the fourth iteration of the iconic venue.

Getting to the Arena

As mentioned in the previous section, getting to and from Madison Square Garden is straightforward due to its being built on top of a major transit hub.

Penn Station funnels travelers right below MSG, with the NJ Transit, Amtrak, and Long Island Rail Road systems offering train service in and out of this area.

There are also multiple subway lines that run straight into Penn Station, including the 123, ACE. Additionally, the NQRW and BDFM trains have stops nearby at 34th St. Herald Square.

Best MSG Pre-Game Bars & Restaurants

Be aware that before Knicks and Rangers games, the surrounding bars can be extremely crowded and hectic. Don't let that stop you, though. Just soak in the atmosphere and know it may take longer to get your food or drink.

Here are some of our favorite bars to eat and drink at near MSG:

• Stout
• Fèile
• Pennsylvania 6
• Jack Doyle's
• Mustang Harry's
• Pioneers Bar NYC
• Legends
• Finnerty's
• The Liberty NYC
• Temakase Hand Roll Bar (10 min walk from there to MSG)
• KazuNori Hand Roll Bar (10 min walk from there to MSG)
• Seeyamañana (Mexican food)
• Ayza Wine and Chocolate Bar
• Keens Steakhouse (higher-end steak house)

Best Food & Drink Options Inside MSG

Inside Madison Square Garden, expect to pay higher-than-average prices for both food and drink.

Here are the average prices for food and drinks at MSG:

• Hamburgers - $17
• Chicken fingers and fries - $21
• Mixed drinks - $25
• Tall boy beer cans - $18
• Draft beer

Episode Transcript

(00:02):
Welcome to the Better Together Here podcast with your host,
Devin. And Ashley?
Helping you make the most of your time in New York City.
Hey everyone, and welcome to today's episode of the Better
Together Here podcast. My name is Devin.
And my name is Ashley. In today's episode, we're diving
into one of the most iconic venues in America and certainly
in New York City, Madison SquareGarden.
We're going to give you brief history information for getting

(00:24):
to the arena, places to eat, nearby security, ticketing,
merch, food and drink, best seats, Everything you want to
know about Madison Square Garden, whether it's for
concerts, sporting events, or even shows.
So let's get right to it. Some may be wondering why it's
called Madison Square Garden, especially since it is not near
Madison Square. Where is Madison Square?
Madison Square is so in New YorkCity you hear a lot.

(00:46):
There's a lot of names that are squares, right?
Like Union Square, Madison Square, Times Square.
There are always the intersections of certain
streets. This in particular Madison
Square is around Madison Ave. and 26th St. generally.
So that's not close to Madison Square Garden at all.
It is not, but that is because this is actually the 4th
iteration of Madison Square. The one that is near Penn

(01:08):
Station on 31st, 32nd St. ish between 7th and 8th Ave. in
Manhattan is the 4th iteration. So let's take you back.
So let's go back in time a little bit.
But before that, Madison Square Garden, also known as MSG, which
we will reference it to. But if you go and Google and
search MSG history, you're goingto find information about the
cooking thing. Oh, like the cooking ingredient

(01:30):
MSG? Sodium glutamate.
Yeah, when I was doing research,that's like all the stuff that
came up, but I added stadium. MSG has hosted many memorable
events. A couple of that stand out.
One of the greatest boxing matches of all time, Muhammad
Ali versus Joe Frazier in 1971. Multiple benefit concerts
following events like 911 Hurricane Katrina.

(01:50):
The iconic birthday serenade to President JFK by Marilyn Monroe
was actually at Madison Square Garden in 1962.
Life performances by We don't have enough time to go through
all of them, but names like Bob Dylan, Elvis Presley, Taylor
Swift, Madonna, so many more political conventions, even
landmark visits from Pope John Paul the Second in 1979 and Pope
Francis in 2015. In my opinion, Madison Square

(02:13):
Garden is one of the most iconicvenues in the whole world.
And the reason I believe that isbecause pretty much every time
we've gone to Madison Square Garden and seen a comedy show or
some type of musical performanceor concert, the artist
performing will usually say, like, Oh my gosh, it's been a
dream of mine to perform at Madison Square Garden.

(02:34):
This is like, incredible to me. Thank you all for being here.
So it really does stand out as aplace that is very meaningful
for people to perform at. And that is part of why it one
of its nicknames is the world's most famous arena.
But how did it become this iconic, epic venue?
It originally was located on Madison Ave. and 26th St. at
Madison Square. It opened in 1871 but was

(02:56):
originally leased to PT Barnum. Yes, that PT Barnum.
He used it as Barnums Hippodrometo showcase circus axe.
His lease ended and when his lease ended it was officially
named Madison Square Garden. It was initially used for
activities such as boxing matches, more circus acts and a
lot of bicycling. So cycling events were kind of

(03:17):
one of the main things at MSG. In 1890 it was demolished due to
faulty balconies, deaths that happened because of this, and
there was also no roof on the original MSG, which just is not
a good option for New York City.Fast forward very quickly, MSG 2
Madison Square Garden 2 opens in1890, the majority ownership by
JP Morgan. At the time it was one of the

(03:37):
tallest buildings in the city and again, main events included
cycling operas, the Democratic National Convention in 1924.
But again, like MSG one lack of profit.
It was demolished in 1925. S the first two iterations were
actually at Madison Square. The third iteration, which
opened in 1925 and really what kind of cemented it as an iconic

(03:59):
venue. MSG 3 was at 8th Ave. between
49th and 50th streets, which if you ever go to the subway
stations, I believe it's the ACEthat stops there.
It's a massive, massive subway station.
Like, way too big for what it actually seems like it should be
because it used to need to handle the volume of MSG, many
cycling events. But this is the time where it

(04:19):
started to become more synonymous with things like
hockey, boxing, basketball, really kind of coming into its
own. And then Fast forward to 1968,
the current Madison Square Garden opens and becomes the
home venue for teams like the New York Rangers.
The New York Knicks starts hosting concerts, comedy acts,
rallies, other events. Part of why it's so popular is
that it's constructed on top of Pennsylvania Station, Penn

(04:41):
Station, which has service from the Long Island Railroad, New
Jersey Transit, Amtrak comes through there.
Basically, it's like the entire tri-state area can very easily
get right to MSG without having to do a whole lot of work.
In New York City, the ease of transit is so important for
sporting venues in particular because most people don't own
cars in the city. Even outside of the city, some

(05:02):
people rely on public transit very heavily.
And so the fact that it's on topof Penn Station, very valuable.
Since 1968, it is, of course, gone through multiple
renovations, billions of dollars, continues to serve as
just a hub for New York sports and entertainment.
And again, that is why it's earned the nickname of the
world's most famous arena. We flew through that history.
There is some very, very interesting deeper history if

(05:25):
you want to dive into. I honestly recommend going
online and just kind of searching Madison Square Garden
history and seeing some of the crazy stories that have happened
there. In our opinion, going to a show
or some type of event that mightbe going on at Madison Square
Garden while you're going to be in town is definitely worth it
to feel that atmosphere, be in the environment and be part of

(05:46):
Madison Square Garden history. And luckily doing that is very
easy. So getting to the arena, whether
you are staying somewhere in Manhattan, Brooklyn or Queens,
you're coming from Jersey, Long Island.
Again, Penn Station funnels likeright below MSG, so it's very
easy to get to. And there are multiple subway
stations. The 123 and the ACE stop at Penn

(06:06):
Station. And then the NQRW and BDFM
trains are nearby at 34th St. Herald Square, which is like a
block and a half essentially. We recommend using Google Maps
to just punch in if you need to get there.
If you're coming from outside the, they use one of the
specific apps for the trains you're going to need like NJ
Transit, LIRR, Amtrak, etc. But if you feel overwhelmed by
the idea of navigating to MSG orthroughout New York City,

(06:28):
remember we do have a 100% free New York City Transportation
Guide. It simplifies all of this.
It's completely free. Part of our newsletter Perks.
Sign up at bettertaylorhere.com back slash newsletter.
On that note, we wouldn't recommend taking a taxi or Uber
slash Lyft because that pocket of the city is already extremely
busy. And then you add on a sporting

(06:50):
event or a big concert or a big rally or whatever it is, and it
is just so, so crowded around there, like you'll be sitting in
traffic so much. Yeah, I completely agree with
Devin. I would not take any type of car
to or from Madison Square Garden.
If you want to take an Uber or Lyft, I would recommend walking
a few blocks of way in either direction and then calling your

(07:12):
Uber Lyft from that location. If you try to call it right
outside Madison Square Garden, it's going to be astronomically
expensive. If you want to bike, city bike
has multiple docks right around the area.
So that is a great, great option.
OK, we're we're going to get to like the food and drink within
the stadium, but just know that it's very expensive.
And so we want to give you some good bars and restaurants around

(07:32):
the area that are very exciting,especially when it's a Nix or
Rangers game. You'll show up to some of these
bars, they're going to be jam packed.
So just be aware of that, that if it's a sporting event,
they'll be very busy, which means you might, you know, wait
a little bit longer to get your food and drink.
But the atmosphere at some of these unbelievable, especially
at Stout. Stout is literally right next to

(07:53):
MSG Jack Doyle's is another that's popular Mustang.
Harry's is nearby Pennsylvania 6.
Like there's some really, reallysolid options that are within
like a block radius. A couple that are a little
further out is Legends Finnerty's, which is used to be
downtown but is now up in this area, and the Liberty NYC, which
we have been to multiple times. Those are some really, really

(08:15):
good bar centric options, but there's also some really, really
good food in a close proximity as well.
One of our favorite places to eat before Madison Square Garden
is a hand roll bar. So it's basically sushi but in a
handheld format. If you haven't had a hand roll
before, but Kazu Nori Hand Roll Bar is one of our favorite sushi

(08:36):
spots to get food. If you go around dinner time you
might end up waiting in line. They don't take reservations.
It's all a kind of a bar countertype setup.
It's. Like 25 seats maybe?
Yeah, if you're going with a group of more than like two or
three people, I probably wouldn't recommend this because
you're not really facing each other.
You can have a conversation withthe person next to you, but it's

(08:58):
kind of hard if you want to likeall talk together.
But hand roll bars are super funand a really delicious, cheap
way to get great sushi. This is about a 10 minute walk
from Madison Square Garden. If you get there and the line is
super long, there's another place we like right around the
corner from there called Timakase Hand Roll Bar.
I just think sushi is like a great like pre concert pre event

(09:19):
food. Fills you up, not super
expensive, it's usually pretty fast.
Fills you up, but isn't like heavy.
Like I feel like if you go get like a burger and fries, like
you can just feel like kind of weighted down and gross a little
bit. I don't know.
Totally. And rolls better.
It's also an exciting area to walk through it before a concert
or some type of sporting event. You have a lot of people making

(09:39):
their way there, so 10 minute walk really not too bad and
we'll save you money and you'll have better food than if you eat
in the stadium in my opinion. A couple other options that we
like for food, there's Sia Manana, which is Mexican food,
Aza Wine and Chocolate Bar, and Keene's Steakhouse.
I know I just said steak can make you feel heavy, but Keene's
Steakhouse is a New York City landmark that is not very far

(10:01):
from MSG, one of the best steakhouses we've ever been to.
You will probably want a reservation, but an epic spot
that if you were to get an earlydinner there like a 5:00 before
a game that starts at 7:00 or something like that.
I mean, that's just about as iconic of a New York experience
as you can have. But again, due to the ease of
transport to get MSG, you reallycan eat or drink anywhere
beforehand and then just make your way to MSG again.

(10:24):
If you want to see all of our favorite bars, including our top
close to MSG options, we have itin a handy Google Maps list,
which you get free access to again as part of our newsletter
perks. Once you're to MSG, know that
there are multiple ways to get in the largest, which means
often quickest entry is on the 7th Ave. side between 31st and
33rd. But there is an entrance on the
8th Ave. side, a couple on the corners.

(10:46):
Unless so you like need a specific entrance for some
reason, like just go wherever you're closest to.
You go through a standard security metal detector bag,
X-ray machine, that whole thing.After you go through security,
your tickets are scanned kind ofbefore you go up the escalators
to your section. But between security and
ticketing is where you're going to find most of like the
merchandise boost, the main teamstore that has Nicks and Rangers

(11:07):
gear. But if you're there for like a
concert, you're going to have the specific artists, merch
boost, kind of like on the sidesof that kind of main concourse
between security and ticketing. There's also some other
merchandise options inside the arena on the different levels,
but in my experience you get thewidest variety of merch down on
the main floor. Although sometimes the 100 level

(11:29):
merch areas has different merch than what's down on the main
area. Like when we went to Carrie
Underwood, the main floor was like shirts, hoodies, like hats.
But then that little like kiosk,I don't know exactly what
section it's near. It had like koozies and like,
yeah, you're right, like pens and like kind of like cheaper a
little bit more like trinkity type stuff.

(11:50):
But maybe they have those at themain ones too.
But it's probably worth looking at both of them if you care
about merch. And if the merch line on the
main level is super long, try going up to one of the other
levels and seeing if the merch line is less busy.
I would say if your dad said on getting merch, do it before, not
after, because if you do it before, you have the different
waves of people coming in and out.
But if you try to do it after, everyone's leaving at the same

(12:12):
time and it's going to be crowded.
All right. And that leads us to this
episode's you'll we'll have to check it out segment.
The next stop is Chick Chick. OK.
We have talked about chick chickon other episodes on our Upper
West Side guide. In our opinion, if you want the
best Korean fried chicken in NewYork City, you go to Chick
chick. This spot open by June Park, who
runs June Men Ramen in Chelsea, a very popular spot as well, is

(12:34):
probably one of our favorite spots overall.
If we've dined in, we've done take out, we've done delivery.
Like I don't know what they do to that batter and the chicken
but it is perfection. Crispy, crunchy, full of flavor
but not greasy. Which is often the problem with
fried chicken is it gets greasy but there's does not.
What's the spicy fried chicken that we get the Korean?

(12:55):
Spice. It's Nashville.
Gochu Gong Isn't there a Gochu Gong 1?
The Korean sweet gochu gong. Oh yeah?
Is that the sauce that we get? Yeah.
So good. Truly some of the best fried
chicken I've ever had. We probably get this.
We're either going in person or getting this delivered at least
once a month. It's so good.
And one quick note about the ramen spot that Devin mentioned.

(13:17):
Jun Men Ramen is actually walking distance to Madison
Square Garden as well. I've gone here before a concert
with a friend and it was very convenient and easy to get to
Madison Square Garden from that ramen spot.
Can also vouch for that spot as well.
Yeah, and at Chick Chick, any option is going to be good.
Typically we get just the fried chicken.
They have it as 1/2 chicken, full chicken, but they also have

(13:39):
really good chicken sandwiches. I had their waffle and chicken
sandwich, which was basically like an open faced sandwich that
the bottom was just a big, it's basically just chicken and
waffles, but they put a little bit extra on it compared to what
you get on just the chicken. So, so good.
I honestly love coming here in person too.
It's just everyone's very, very friendly.
It's not a huge spot, but there's bar seating and a couple

(13:59):
little booths and table seating.Like it's just a cozy spot.
We also really love the biscuitsthat they sell there.
Oh yeah, sounds kind of random. Them to beginning a biscuit at a
fried chicken. A Korean fried chicken place.
Maybe that's not random, but they are delicious.
So that is chick Chick, it is onthe Upper West Side, so make
sure you check that out. And now back to MSG Dan, clear

(14:22):
of the closing doors, please. As we mentioned in a previous
section inside Madison Square Garden, expect to pay much
higher than average prices. O these aren't exact, but like,
just to give you an idea, a hamburger with no fries, 17 good
hamburger. Don't get us wrong, but
expensive. Yeah, we actually had a great

(14:44):
hamburger before the Dua Lipa concert that we went to a couple
days ago, and it exceeded expectations.
It was $17.00, but it was like agood hamburger.
It was not like a previously frozen old Patty on a gross bun.
It was like, really good. Chicken and fries, which you've
been following us for a long time, you know I love.
Best value around $21. Devin loves the value so much.

(15:05):
You get the most amount of food when you get chicken fingers and
fries. Like I will take that.
That should be on my tombstone literally.
OK. It takes a lot for us to go to
some type of event where they are selling expensive food
because you can't go anywhere else for Devin to not really
really want chicken and fries. I've never been disappointed.
OK. As for drinks, this is where
it's like just ridiculously expensive, but like mixed drinks

(15:26):
are probably $25 or more. The Tall Boy beer cans are
around 18. Draft beer is 18.
A pour of wines probably like 18to $21.00.
So it's very, very expensive. We personally have brought in
snacks like protein bars, candy.Goldfish because we're children.
Goldfish. Like, I don't know if it's

(15:46):
actually permitted or not, but not once have we had someone
bother us about any food that webrought, whether it's like in a
jacket pocket or in a tote bag. We have like, I don't know, you
might not be able to bring in a sandwich.
They might care about that, but maybe not.
I honestly don't know. We should try.
Maybe we should try to take a sandwich next time we go.
Probably. It seems like they really only
care about weapons. I've never even had them.
Like, look at my Fanny pack fullof snacks when we've gone in.

(16:10):
Yeah. Which is how it should be,
frankly. Care more about weapons.
Let us bring our own food. If you do want to drink as part
of your experience, we highly recommend pre gaming at a bar
beforehand or even you know, a bodega.
Beer, Acvs, beer. That's your cheapest option.
If you want Acvs beer or drugstore beer, there's several
pharmacies around Madison SquareGarden.

(16:30):
So sometimes we'll go and just get a get a tall boy each and
walk around. I don't know if that's legal.
Maybe I shouldn't say it. It's.
Probably not legal, but if it's in a if they can just.
Put it in a bag. Brown bag like do it at your own
risk but I went to it all the time.
I went to concert a couple weeksago with a friend and we were
like, oh, maybe we'll get a beerbefore at a bar.
And then we were like, there's aWalgreens right here.
Should we just go in? And we got 2 tall boy Coors

(16:52):
lights for $5. And then we looked at the prices
when we actually got into Madison Square Garden and it was
like 18 or 20 bucks for a singlebeer.
So again, if you want the value,just get a get a Walgreens beer
before. OK, and now to maybe the most
important section. Which are the best seats at MSG?
This is very subjective, but letme rewind just a little bit
here. The first time I went to MSG, I
don't know how to explain it because when you are up next to

(17:15):
the stadium, you don't really see the iconic because usually
when you see it on TV or whatever, it's like that zoomed
out overhead view and you don't ever get that.
When you go to other sporting events, you kind of see all of
its glory from the outside because there's not much around
it usually. And MSG is just like smack dab
in the middle of the heart of Manhattan.
And so when you go in, it doesn't really feel like you get

(17:36):
the experience. You go up a bunch of escalators
and then when you come out of the actual concourse and step
into the arena for the first time, that's when you get the
moment. And I would just say if you're
gonna do this, just maybe get there a little bit early, give
yourself some time to like soak in what MSG is, regardless of
where your seat is. We're going to break it into
multiple categories because the best seats are going to be very

(17:56):
different for basketball versus hockey versus concerts and other
events. So let's start with the most
important in our opinion, which is basketball and the Knicks.
Of all the events, I would say your seats for basketball are
probably the least important because the gameplay is more
simple to follow, even if you'rein the higher sections.
And there's not a terrible seat in MSG.

(18:17):
But we've sat in the one hundreds, 2 hundreds, Chase
Bridge, 4 hundreds. Like obviously if money's not a
factor, go in the one hundreds. But if you're trying to do it
more on a budget, the 400 seats are not terrible when it comes.
Unless you're like very, very top section, very top row of the
four hundreds, then it's a little bit rough.
But like, if you're lower down in the four hundreds, it's still

(18:38):
a good viewing experience for basketball.
I would agree with this. And I truly think that at
Madison Square Garden for basketball, there's not really a
bad seat in the house. Versus when we went to a
Brooklyn Nets game one time, we sat in like the Super high upper
section and it really wasn't a fun experience.
You felt so far away. Everything was like pitched

(18:59):
super like high. It was, yeah, very steep pitch
for the seats, whereas like I'venever felt that way at Madison
Square Garden. So if you really want to go to a
Knicks game and it's expensive and you just want to get in the
building, I recommend just getting in the building and
getting the cheapest seats possible.
But the two hundreds section is probably our favorite experience
because you get a much better view than the four hundreds.

(19:22):
But it's usually not that much more expensive than the four
hundreds. And sometimes, sometimes it's
the same price depending like ifyou are fine sitting behind the
basket or something like that. So shop around.
Yeah, if you could choose between the two hundreds and the
four hundreds, choose the two hundreds every time.
Like even paying like 2025 bucksmore a ticket, I think that's
worth it to sit a little closer.But if you have to sit in the

(19:44):
four hundreds, you're still going to have a great time.
On the flip side, if we want to talk about hockey, sitting in
the four hundreds for hockey, especially in the upper rows, it
kind of sucks. Like hockey is just a little bit
harder to follow because the puck is small and sometimes the
lights are just hitting the ice and it's hard to see it
depending on everything. Like hockey is the one sport
where I'm like, if you can maybego save money elsewhere and pay

(20:07):
a little bit more and sit in theone hundreds or two hundreds for
hockey. Definitely worth it in my
opinion. As someone that likes to watch
all sports but doesn't really love hockey as much, I I've
enjoyed when we've gone to hockey games, but I don't really
understand the gameplay quite asmuch.
So I will just vouch for the people that aren't like huge
hockey fans. You got to sit closer otherwise

(20:28):
we don't know what's going on. Like, I can barely follow the
puck as it is when I'm watching it on TV, and so if I'm in the
arena in the 400 section, I'm going to get real lost.
On this note, the best resource for this is aviewfrommyseat.com
because if you go to aviewfrommyseat.com, click into
Madison Square Garden and you look at a section that you're
trying to, you know, possibly get tickets for.

(20:49):
Often it will show you that section for hockey and then
basketball and then concerts. So it'll give you the different
views that you're going to be able to expect.
Speaking of concerts, there's multiple different setups that
they'll have at MSG 4 concerts. Some it's kind of the open
center area with the performer in the middle, which is most
common for DJs and electronic music.

(21:09):
But if it's not that style, it'slikely that where the stage is
on one side of the arena with some type of catwalk that comes
out into the middle. When that's the case, we have
loved sitting on the side of thestage.
Again, if you can, in the one ortwo hundreds, even the four
hundreds, not awful. It all depends on the artist
because like certain artists youwant to be closer and like see

(21:32):
the dancing and see what's happening.
But if it's just a guy like sitting on a chair playing
guitar, like maybe doesn't matter as much.
Yeah, I would. I would agree with Devin.
If you really care about seeing the artists, like facial
expressions or dance moves, I would like maybe pay a little
more and get a better seat. But like Devin said, if it's
like a John Mayer concert and he's going to be sitting on a
stool playing guitar all night, just get in the building.

(21:53):
I think that advice also rings true if you're going to go to a
comedy show at Madison Square Garden.
I really don't think there's a bad seat in the house.
Obviously, the best seats are going to be if you're like up
close and can like truly see theartists and their facial
expression, but they're going tohave big screens up anyway.
So I would just get in the building for a cheap seat if
you're going to go see a comedy show.

(22:13):
Which is true for most of the concerts too, that they're going
to have video board boards on each side of the stage.
So it really just depends on howmuch you're willing to pay.
If you in the show notes, we'll put a link to the website
article for this podcast. And we have like 4 or five
different videos showing different views from where we've

(22:33):
sat at specific concerts. So make sure you check that out.
We're going to take a quick break to mention our free
transportation guide. If you were coming to New York
City for the first time or the 10th time and you need a
refresher on how to get around the Big Apple, this is the
answer. It is 100% free and it covers
everything from navigating the subway, getting a taxi, getting
to and from the airports, bikingaround the city, and all the

(22:55):
things that are important to make sure you maximize your time
in your city. So go to bettertogetherhere.com
and click the button that says free navigation Guide to sign
up. Just a last few final tips for
MSG Arriving 30 to 60 minutes before a sporting event is
probably ideal. If you wait too close to start
time, you're going to deal with long lines at the ticketing
turnstiles. But again, it's all like what

(23:16):
your personal references As for concerts, most of them if the
ticket time says 730, they're going to have at least one
opener and the main act won't come on for another 45 to 90
minutes. So those you have a little bit
more buffer as to when you actually need to get there.
But I don't think we've ever, whether sporting event or
concert, I don't think we've ever had more than 10 minutes.

(23:38):
Even combining security and the ticketing line like it's all
pretty efficient and moves pretty quickly.
So you don't need to give yourself a ton of time.
Although one of my favorite things about MSG is throughout
the concourses, they have a bunch of like plaques and
historical information about different events that have
happened there. It's not just general.

(23:58):
Like it'll tell you very specifically, like it has, you
know, the picture of the Hurricane Sandy benefit concert
and it'll talk about who played and kind of the context and
it'll have ticket stubs from that night and, you know,
sometimes even game worn jerseysfrom players.
It has a plaque about Wayne Gretzky's final game as a
professional hockey player. Like, I love that kind of stuff

(24:18):
personally. So whether you do that before
the concert or like as you go tothe bathroom or in between at
halftime or whatever, like there's a lot of cool history to
see throughout the concourse at MSG.
Another tip we have for you is that there are several water
fountains throughout MSG, so if you buy a bottle of water you
can refill it later. I'm not sure if they would let
you bring in a reusable water bottle, you would have to check

(24:41):
like the website because I've never tried to do that.
But if you do buy a water bottlein the venue, you can fill it
up. Or if you're going to the bar
area and purchasing a cocktail, I've had pretty good success
just asking them for a cup of ice and then filling it up with
water from the water fountain and having a free water like
that. In New York City, tap water,
we've mentioned this. It's amazing, so don't be afraid
of it. That caps off our Madison Square

(25:02):
Garden overview. Hopefully you feel ready to go
experience an event here. Like we've said, I think this
should be on your New York City bucket list.
It is one of the most iconic venues in the world.
It's well laid out, it's beautiful.
The acoustics are amazing. Whether it's for a concert or a
basketball game. Going and cheering on the
Knicks, like we love the Knicks.We think going to games at MSG,

(25:23):
although it is expensive, like if you can make it work
financially, it is an amazing experience.
The Knicks basketball experienceat Madison Square Garden almost
single handedly helped me becomea Knicks fan.
The environment is unparalleled.It's a super fun experience.
Everyone in the arena cares about what's going on.
Highly recommend coming to a Knicks game and checking out
something at Madison Square Garden for your next New York

(25:46):
City trip. And as a reminder, we mentioned
it throughout the episode, but our newsletter comes with a lot
of perks, including a 50 plus page New York City
transportation guide that coversgetting to and from the
airports, taking the subway, walking train times, all that
good stuff. Access to multiple curated
Google Maps list things like ourfavorite bars or our favorite

(26:06):
Asian restaurants or our favorite Italian restaurants
makes it really easy for you to just open Google Maps and find a
specific cuisine or look in the area that you're in and find
some place that we recommend. Just go to
bettertogetherhere.com back slash newsletter and other.
We'll catch you on the next episode.