Staying in New York

I met people at most of the hostels I stayed in elsewhere, but HINY has a lot of school groups so it was less friendly. The YMCA in Harlem has a small common room but people mostly use it for wifi so don't chat- though the staff do. I found though that I met people in cafes, queues, trains, galleries etc- in fact almost anywhere I stood still. If you are in NY for a while, your best bet is to go to the places that interest you and you are bound to meet friendly locals.

good question im planning on going there early october after ive finished around aus NZ and se asia then bk to east london for 2 days then off to the big apple ;)