the only interesting place in the state of New York is the city of New York.

What about Niagra Falls? That's partly in New York.

in going to NY next year with my school class

Shut up, GT. D: it is BORING

I went to Niagra Falls once, coming back from a summer trip from Rhode Island. We went right over (north mapwise) NYC both ways =P

There's plenty of stuff to do in New York. We've got two Six Flags, weve got some awesome trails in the Adirondacks, skiing if you're her in winter, Francis Bellamys Grave, the Kodak museum in Rochester, Corning Tower, the Carrier Dome, tons of art museums outside of NYC....

Seriously, SX, there's tons to do in NY outside of NYC. 🙁

Yes there is a lot of stuff OUTSIDE of NYC. >.> Such as Thousand Islands, Eastman museum, the Southern Tier is some of the most beautiful scenery, there's the Naple's festival in the fall.

Snow. Lots of snow. When you get sick of it you can visit Connecticut, because we just love having people from New York in our state... (ok, make that sarcastic comment directed at those from the city specifically. If your gonna look at the leaves, please rake them up and take them home with you.)

The best part of niagra falls is in Canada. New York City is great as long as you arent driving.

1) New York state is not uniform. The weather for downstate NY (particularly Long Island, NYC, & Westchester) is markedly different from the parts of upstate NY that border Canada. The weather in the parts of NY that is near the finger lakes or the mountains (though they're not that tall in NY) is drastically different. NY isn't as big as California or Texas, but NY isn't a small state in size either. Buffalo (for example) is well-known for regularly getting 2 feet of snow. Downstate NY usually isn't going to get more than 2-6 inches when it snows unless it's being hit by a huge storm.

2) Summers are warm (or hot depending on your heat/humidity tolerance) as 27 to 38 degrees Celsius is the norm.

3) There are plenty of incidents that one can look into if one is interested--same as any other place though.

New York City better not be the only interesting place in New York. I'm going to visit there on a family vacation during the summer and actively trying to put a list of sites to see while visiting. I've crossed Mount Hope Cemetary and a few war sites. I may have to try the hiking trails in the Adirondacks. I may try to suggest a Six Flags park, but that may get pricey with a group of 15 or so people.

It's not. Baseball fans could easily argue that Cooperstown is one of the best places in NY considering the Hall of Fame is there. ;p

Anyway, it depends on what you want to do. I know downstate NY a lot better than upstate as a Long Island/NYC-resident for my entire life.

http://www.iloveny.com/
http://www.newyorkforvisitors.com/
http://www.visitnewyorkstate.net/

Those are sites that give an idea of the variety of things that go on in NY, so you can think about something other than NYC or seeing Niagra Falls on the NY/Canada-sides if you choose. 😉

I'd be glad to help with anything pertaining to upstate as I lived there for the majority of my life. =3

New York State is cool. We got the aviation mall, colonie center, clifton country park, malls up the wazoo really. Cooperstown rocks. Racing fans might wanna check out Saratoga. There is a kickin' airport in Albany, the University of Albany had a Giants training camp, omigosh all the nice colleges you can pick and choose from. Many cities with museums, artworks, movie theatres, resteraunt chains, local delis, bike trails... Popular tourist spots include Iroquois longhouses (funky design- worth a look), mountains (Adirondacks are breathtaking), Finger Lakes, Erie Canal, The Great Escape (lake George is the win for amusement parks), and Fort Ticonderoga (for war/history buffs). There is much to do outside NYC. Not that I'm talkin' bad about the city it is beautiful and vibrant but it isn't all there is to that lovely state.
Course I lived in albany as a kid and traveled all over on class trips so there might have a bit prejudice. Still, I <3 NY and would return in a minute.
Beware of snow in wintertime, particularly Buffalo area. (I used to envy their snow days) With so many lakes, blizzards are not unheard of. The fiercest can knock out power buty city oficials are quick to fix telephone lines and break out the plows. Hot summers are possible but after my recent desert life it seems brisks to me. You won't get many 100+ temps, even in August. 80s is more typical.
Hopefully you will enjoy staying there ^^

Thank you so much for the links. I'm bookmarking everything and passing around to everyone who's going.

I wasn't too worried about the temp since I live in the Chicago suburbs and it usaully hits 90 in the summer. Compared to the 110 degree heat in the Dakota Badlands last summer when we visited, 80s sound fine.

At this point, I just waiting to hear about when we are heading out. I've got two aunts clashing about dates, I'm waiting until they decided before I can request the time off from work.