How To Spend A Weekend In NYC
Overall vibe of New York City:
New York City is one of the busiest, most bustling cities in the US. I love to visit for the incredible restaurants, beautiful walks along the water and high energy community. There’s SO much you could see and do in NYC but for our visit we focused on Dumbo (in Brooklyn), SOHO and The West Village. I’m excited to share the spots we loved with you!
Brooklyn Bridge
Quick Guide to NYC:
Overall vibe: busy, lively, fast-paced, high energy, big city
How long to stay: 3 nights
Where to stay: Dumbo, SOHO or West Village
Getting around: walk or Subway
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Where to stay in NYC
Technically, we stayed in Brooklyn, not NYC, but I’d highly recommend the 1 Hotel Brooklyn Bridge.
The views are stunning, the design of the hotel is a VIBE (think Tulum) and there’s an awesome rooftop bar and infinity pool! It’s in a super cute neighborhood called Dumbo, which is a little bit quieter than the city, is right along the water and is super close to the Brooklyn Bridge.
View From 1 Hotel Brooklyn Bridge Room
1 Hotel Brooklyn Bridge Rooftop Pool
If you want to stay in the city, I’d recommend staying near SOHO or West Village.
Best restaurants in NYC
Chama Mama (Instagram: @chamamamanyc): AMAZING Georgian restaurant (we went to the Chelsea location but there’s also one in Brooklyn Heights)!! I’d never had Georgian food before but I quickly fell in love. Chama Mama has it all: the best vibes, drinks and food! We loved the lamb grape leaves, Georgian salad, smashed potatoes, Adjaruli Khachapuri (basically the world’s BEST cheesy bread - a MUST), cauliflower and mixed grill. Next time, we are getting the dumplings!
Chama Mama
Noodle Pudding (Instagram: @poodlenudding): really good Italian restaurant in Brooklyn with super cozy, traditional, authentic vibes and food. We loved the caesar salad, garlic bread, short ribs and lasagna! Oh, and the dirty martinis are amazing!
Noodle Pudding
Banter (Instagram: @banter_nyc): my FAVORITE breakfast spot I’ve ever been! It’s super cute and the golden eggs bowl was life changing!
Banter
Water Street Tavern (Instagram: @watersttavernnyc): cute, low-key (but still a vibe) dinner restaurant in Dumbo (Brooklyn) with an amazing burger!
Little Ruby Cafe (Instagram: @rubyscafe): super cute restaurant for breakfast, lunch or dinner. The lunch salads were really yummy! It’s right near Spring Street so it’s the perfect spot to eat lunch before or after shopping on Spring.
Little Ruby Cafe
Shouka (Instagram: @shukanyc): AMAZING Mediterranean restaurant (maybe my favorite ever). We loved the carrot dip and hummus, chicken shawarma, lamb/beef kabobs and turmeric rice.
Best coffee shops
Fellini Coffee (Instagram: @fellinicoffee): one of the best, if not the best, cappucinos I’ve ever had. HIGHLY recommend. There’s locations in West Village and Soho (I liked West Village better but both have very minimal seating and West Village is outdoor only).
Stumptown (Instagram: @stumptowncoffee): AMAZING cappuccino, good chill vibes, decent amount seating inside and out.
Stumptown
Irving Farm Coffee (Instagram: @irvingfarm): great matcha latte!
Best things to do in NYC/Brooklyn
Go for a walk and wander: walking was by far our favorite activity in the city. You can see so much and stumble into new surprises and adventures.
Washington Square Park: beautiful park to walk through or sit down and have a coffee or picnic in.
Rockefeller Park: great area to walk along water or bring a blanket to hang out.
Brooklyn Bridge: I highly recommend walking across the bridge. It’s so fun and so beautiful!
Brooklyn Heights Promenade: this walk along the water in Brooklyn is beautiful and has an amazing lookout spot with skyline/river views along the way.
Washington Square Park
Brooklyn Bridge
Go Shopping on Spring Street: this street has so many great stores like Aritzia and Monika Vinader. I recommend walking and shopping along Spring Street then grabbing lunch at Little Ruby’s Cafe.
Chelsea Market: a super cool market with tons of amazing food spots, shopping, coffee, etc.
Market 57: another market kind of like Chelsea Market (and very close to it) on the water. It looked like there were some good food/coffee options but our favorite part was going to the rooftop and just taking in the views from a bench.
Time Out Market: cool food court in Brooklyn. I recommend getting Ivy tacos and taking them to the rooftop to enjoy the views of the river/city while eating.
Google Map of All NYC Recommendations
I saved all of my recommendations for you in the map below to make it super easy to get around! Here’s the full link so you can save it: https://www.google.com/maps/d/u/3/edit?mid=1eSB7W_UhJOKF41oNYrRCvLP_L7791B8&usp=sharing.
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