SUMMIT One Vanderbilt — Attraction in New York

I recently visited Summit One Vanderbilt and was thoroughly disappointed by the experience, which was overshadowed by excessive lines and commercial gimmicks. The problems began immediately upon arrival. Despite having tickets for 1:00 PM, we encountered a series of tedious lines: • First line just to enter the building • Second line for security checks • Third line for mandatory photos they later try to sell you • Fourth line for “accessories” • Fifth line to scan your face for a so-called “experience” (which is essentially just giving away your biometric data for photos they’ll try to sell you later) • Final line for the elevator All told, we spent over an hour just waiting in various lines before even starting the actual experience. The elevator ride was genuinely awful - possibly the worst of any building I’ve visited in NYC. While other observation decks offer beautiful visuals during the ascent, Summit features jarring flashing lights that seem designed to trigger seizures, accompanied by extremely unpleasant sounds. What were they thinking? Thankfully, things improved slightly once we exited the elevator. The view is admittedly excellent, especially on a sunny day, and offers a perfect perspective of the Empire State Building. The mirrored installation creates some interesting illusions for creative photography opportunities. The next floor features a silver balloon installation that makes for good photos, though the experience was continuously disrupted by inconsiderate visitors popping balloons and security constantly shouting at people to follow the rules. Another area displays a giant screen with clouds where you can see your 3D-scanned face (if you agreed to the scan earlier). My girlfriend did the scan but couldn’t find herself in the display. Of course, they’ll happily show you at the gift shop where you can purchase the photo. The whole facial scanning seems questionable - who knows if they delete this data or use it for other purposes? There was also a reflective stone exhibition that was completely forgettable and seemed like a pointless addition. The glass floor photo opportunity requires yet another line, and they only give you 30 seconds for photos. It’s hardly worth the wait as it doesn’t even offer the best view of the city. Finally, you endure the same unpleasant elevator experience with its seizure-inducing lights and irritating sounds on the way down. In summary, while the views are undeniably spectacular and some of the installations make for interesting photos, the overall experience is ruined by excessive queuing, commercial exploitation at every turn, and some genuinely unpleasant design choices. The price is far too high for what you get. I strongly recommend purchasing the NYC Pass instead, which gives you access to much better observation decks like The Edge, Top of the Rock, or the Empire State Building - all of which offer superior experiences without the frustrating elements of Summit...

Me and my girlfriends went on a Saturday evening for 3:#0pm, we wanted to see the city at sunset and at night which of course the tickets go up in price for this view, it was about $63 a person.

We arrived about 10 mins early. You go through a metal detector, they check your bags, then you get a wristband, you then watch a quick film about how the building was built. Then you get pictures taken, and then head over to a machine that takes a face picture which shows up in the cloud room during your visit which is actually really cool to see. You then go around a corner and wait in a line to go into an elevator and that's when the fun begins.

First room is the mirror room, extremely sunny so get the sunglasses downstairs or bring our own. Super crowded, people liked hogging certain windows for pics so you either wait your turn or say something so they move. Then on the same floor was the ball room, smaller than expected and packed with people. Literally need to grab a balloon and go to a corner for solo pictures as fast as you can, They were popping left and right. Their literally just balloons filled with helium.

I recommend staying on the bottom floor to watch the sunset then make your way upstairs to see the rest. We didn't listen to a worker who told us this and went to the second floor which didn't have much and barely go to enjoy the sunset because it was packed wit people hogging windows again. Also once you leave a floor you cannot return to it, so choose wisely.

Then there was a part with see through glass to stand on which you have to wait in line. They take a group picture of you and then they give you 30 seconds for individual pictures, not enough time at all but we did the best we could. Next was the cloud room where you scan your wristband and wait for a beep, you then enter the room to a screen with floating clouds and you wait to see your face appear in a cloud.

The top floor we made it for the night view which was spectacular. Great view of the empire state building and of the city at night. There was an indoor bar upstairs, I got the cloud drink which was made with rum and came with cotton candy, it was good!. You can then go out the doors to the outdoor deck and its a whole rounded deck you can walk along with another small bar and a little food cart.

Overall it was a fun expensive experience and I do recommend it, just take your time! I wish we took longer so we could've seen the ball and mirror room lit up with rainbow lights at night. Overall we were there for 2 and a half hours though however waiting to get upstairs was about 20...

I cannot possibly recommend this venue more highly! If you are looking for a thrilling new immersive experience, you need look no further than SUMMIT. Rain or shine, day or night, it is guaranteed to hold a unique and memorable experience for everyone.

I visited on December first (a Friday) in 2023. Much to my dismay, it was pouring rain that night. I imagined that the views would be so impeded by this heavy rain that at the height of the observation deck, it would spoil the entire experience.

Honestly, I do hope to return on a night with clear skies and clearly can see the city in it's entirety. With that said, let me explain why I felt that even in the rain, SUMMIT was the most incredible place I've ever seen!

I was very impressed by their staff who chose to show the crowd a live video feed of the sky that night from up high in their tower, confirming what I feared. At this point they offered to reschedule the viewing or invited us to see SUMMIT anyways. I certainly don't regret going up!

The entire adventure is a sensory experience which is difficult to describe. Even photos do not fully capture what it's like to be there. I can only describe it as walking into another dream. The artist's vision is well described on their site and I highly recommend reading it.

While the views were partially drowned out by the clouds, it did not fully consume the rain drenched city below. The wet streets echoed every light I could see and the rain drops on the windows made for some very unique photo opportunities for me, though it may make getting a great shot difficult.

Food for thought: The weather in New York changes quickly. It may be wise to book your experience a day or two before you arrive, or when you are certain the weather will be cooperative and not a month before you go, like I did.

Take Your Time!!! Do not rush yourself from one floor to the next. Once you go up a level, you cannot return to the one below. Just take it all in at your own pace!

Expect a glare of the lights and reflections of other guests on the windows and in your images. This may be a problem for those who are looking for a pristine image. There are many ways around this. I recommend doing your due diligence, if needed, before capturing a dream shot of...