New York City has five boroughs. Most first-time visitors stay in Manhattan, but Brooklyn and Queens have their own neighborhoods, museums and waterfronts. Book near the subway line you will actually ride.
Times Square, the Broadway theatres, Rockefeller Center and Grand Central are all in Midtown, a few blocks apart. It has the most hotels and the most subway lines. It also has the crowds and the street noise. Farther south, Chelsea and the Flatiron District sit between Midtown and Lower Manhattan, with the High Line and Madison Square Park.
Lower Manhattan is the base for the 9/11 Memorial, Wall Street, the Brooklyn Bridge and the Statue of Liberty ferries. Greenwich Village and the Lower East Side are better for evenings out. The Upper West Side and Upper East Side line Central Park and its big museums. Both are quieter and more residential after dark.
Across the East River, Williamsburg has restaurants and music venues, while DUMBO and Brooklyn Heights face the Manhattan skyline. Long Island City in Queens has waterfront parks and quick subway trips to Midtown. The nearest station matters more than the borough. Some Brooklyn and Queens addresses are a long ride from the Manhattan sights.
You don’t need a car in New York. The subway runs all night, buses cover the gaps, and for a short cross-town trip walking is often faster. Summers are hot and humid. Winter brings freezing nights and sometimes snow. Leave travel time between sights in different boroughs.