Guides

Last updated: August 2026

Background reading to go with the meeting schedule links. How A.A. is organized in New York State, and practical notes on living without alcohol here.

Understanding A.A. in New York

• A.A. Areas, Districts and Intergroups in New York State, Explained
  What Area 47, 48, 49 and 50 mean, how districts and intergroups differ, and which one covers your town.
• Online and Hybrid A.A. Meetings in New York
  Where to find them, how the formats differ, what happens in the first five minutes, and how anonymity works on a video call.
• A.A., SMART Recovery and the Other Options in New York State
  How SMART, LifeRing, Recovery Dharma and Women for Sobriety differ, what the research shows, and how findable each one is upstate.
• Your First A.A. Meeting: What Actually Happens
  Whether you have to speak, what the chip is, how the hour runs, what it costs, and what to do if the first one is a bad fit.

Living without alcohol in New York

• Alcohol-Free Drinks in Albany and the Capital Region: A Practical Guide
  Where to get a good non-alcoholic drink around Albany, Schenectady, Troy and Saratoga, and how to handle a night out when you are not drinking.
• Sober Things to Do in Saratoga Springs
  The springs, the state park, the race course, Yaddo and SPAC, plus how to get through track season.
• Non-Alcoholic Beer in New York: What to Buy and Where to Find It
  What 0.0 and 0.5 percent mean, which ones are worth the money, where they are sold, and the honest argument about drinking them in recovery.
• Non-Alcoholic Spirits: A Beginner's Guide to Seedlip, Ritual and the Rest
  What they actually are, why they do not taste like gin, which are worth the money, how to mix them, and where to buy them.