In terms of academics McGill and NYU are comparable. Both are large schools and “individual attention” would be limited in freshman year classes. Both have limited athletics and Greek life. So neither is the “traditional college experience”.
Although you are someone from the New York metro area Manhattan is a different world from suburban New Jersey. When my son decided to attend McGill he wanted to get away from Boston unlike so many students who are eager to get to Boston for college. He never regretted that decision. He immersed himself in a new region, took his high school French to fluency (although that is not required) and made many friends from around the world.
It is a personal decision of course and most unfortunate that you are unable to visit Montreal.