I spent a month doing as many free things as I could in New York City - and I barely made a dent

Kathleen Elkins/Business Insider

The Brooklyn Brewery offer free tours on the weekends.

I'm no stranger to money-saving challenges.

I've ditched my credit cards and tried the "cash-only diet," completed the food-stamp challenge, and even taken the "Elon Musk Challenge," which entailed a $2-a-day food budget.

When I set out to do free things in New York City for the month of February, the "challenge" seemed simple enough.

Not quite.

The issue wasn't finding free things to do (ironically, the most expensive US city offers an abundance of free things to do). It was actually going out and doing them. Part of it was the February weather; part of it was not wanting to break up my day-to-day routine; and part of it was laziness. I will say that every time I did motivate to trade in my warm apartment for an adventure, it was 100% worth it. 

I made the goal of checking off 14 freebies - one every other day - and I fell short by three activities. Here's what I did, what I wished I did, and what I'm saving for sunny spring days. 

Keep in mind that this is far from a comprehensive list and only scratches the surface. If you put in a bit of effort, you can easily experience this glamorous city on the cheap many times over.