New York C3: choose three for $109

C3 is CityPASS for short trips: three attractions instead of five, for $109 instead of $149. It is the right pass for a long weekend, and the wrong one if you are staying a week.

How C3 works

New York C3 by CityPASS costs $109 for adults (13 and over) and $89 for children 6 to 12. You pick three attractions from a list of eleven: the ten on the full CityPASS (Empire State Building, Top of the Rock, Edge, the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island ferry, the 9/11 Memorial & Museum, Natural History, Circle Line, the Intrepid, the Guggenheim and the Whitney) plus MoMA, which the five-attraction pass does not include. It is valid for nine consecutive days from the first day you visit an attraction or have a reservation, runs through the same app, and carries the same 365-day refund promise when bought direct.

Which three to pick

C3 only saves serious money on the expensive choices. The strongest trio is two observation decks plus the Circle Line; a deck, the Statue ferry and the 9/11 Museum is the classic first-timer set. Three museums barely beat the gate price. And watch the ages: C3 charges adult prices from 13, while the full CityPASS keeps teenagers on child prices to 17, which can make the bigger pass the better family deal.

C3 or the full CityPASS?

The fourth and fifth attractions on the full pass cost you $40 together, about the price of one deck ticket. If you might want a fourth attraction at all, the full CityPASS is the better buy. C3 is sold direct by CityPASS rather than on Viator; if you want the Viator checkout, the full CityPASS and the Go City Explorer Pass (from $89 for two attractions) are the alternatives. Unsure whether any pass pays off? See is CityPASS worth it?