Broadway shows re-opened in Fall 2021, after a long Covid hiatus! We were excited to see a show again during our trip to New York; it’s often one of the highlights of a trip there. Things have gotten slightly more complicated since Omicron, but most shows are still on.

The Logistics

Tickets: There are a many ways to buy tickets. Broadway.com has a list of ongoing shows, with links to purchase. In the past, we’ve used sites like TodayTix for discount tickets, and seen the physical same-day discount TKTS booth in Times Square. That said, tickets were relatively booked up for the October weekend we were there, so discounts somewhat sparse.

Locations: Each show is located at a different theater near Times Square. The setup is quite intense!

Cost: Varies by seat and show, but expect anything from tens to hundreds of dollars. Currently, full-price Aladdin tickets costs anywhere from $60-$225 per ticket, where Hamilton is $150-$450 per ticket.

Where to Sit: The best seats are typically in the center of the orchestra section about 8-10 rows back, or in the center of the first row of the mezzanine. We tend to sit a little further back in the orchestra section and find it to be a good balance between quality and cost. The higher seats can feel a little far away, and seats on the side can give you a weird viewing angle, but both can be good budget options. Just make sure you don’t purchase a ticket with an obscured view, or you are likely to be disappointed.

Our Experience

When we visited NYC in October of 2021, we were debating between seeing the Lion King and Wicked. We knew that if our kids were asked, they would probably pick the Lion King, but I had always wanted to see Wicked. In the end, since we were booking quite last-minute, we discovered that Wicked had better availability of good seats, so we picked that. Great choice!

New York does require vaccination checks and masks in Broadway shows. On arrival at the theater, the vaccination checks were reasonably thorough. While waiting for the doors to the performance to open, we found an out-of-the-way corner to hang out. I was pleased.

The theater itself was effectively full during our visits. We felt a little better that the ushers were actively making sure that people were complying with the mask rules (as a basis for comparison, when we went to a Celtics game later that month, half the crowd seemed to take off their masks once they got to their seats).

The performance was delightful! The story follows the somewhat bizarre friendship between the Wicked Witch of the the West (Elphaba) and Glinda the Good Witch (Galinda). Who knew that you could actually like the Wicked Witch of the West!

I won’t spoil the story, but while the boys went into the show skeptical, they came away with delight! If you are ever have the opportunity, try to see this wonderful Broadway musical!

Keep reading our blog for more New York City travel ideas!

Here are some more posts from this trip to NYC: