Best Tips for a Trip to NYC

“New York may be the city that never sleeps. But that’s because there’s something in the air here that renders sleep useless.”

New York City is one of my most favorite places on this planet. The love I have for it and the joy it brings me is indescribable. There is something for everyone any time of the year.

I hope these tips help in planning your upcoming trip!

Places to Stay:

I have stayed multiple places over the different times I have visited NYC but these are some of the best that I can suggest.

-The Stuart Hotel – 371 7th Ave. New York, NY 10001

Located across the street from Madison Square Garden.

17 minute walk, 10 Blocks from Time Square.

11 minutes walk from the Empire State Building

-Radio City Apartments – 142 W 49th St. New York, NY 10019

Older Apartments now turned into Apartment hotel rooms. Great for larger amounts of people. Multiple bedrooms.

Impeccable location. One block from Time Square. 7 minute walk from Rockefeller Center

–New York Marriott @ The Brooklyn Bridge – 333 Adams St. Brooklyn, NY 11201

Great hotel in Brooklyn. Really close walk to the Brooklyn Bridge

Places to Eat:

-The Sugar Factory – $$ – 10/11am – 12/2am – Best Restaurants for celebrations or just dessert!

Meat Packing District – 835 Washington St, New York, NY 10014

Upper West Side – 1991 Broadway, New York, NY 10023

-Ella’s Stardust Diner – $$ – 7am-Midnight – 1650 Broadway, New York, NY 10019

50s diner with singing broadway waitstaff! Make sure you time it right or you could be waiting out in the street for hours trying to get a table.

-Tavern on the Green – $$$ – 9am/12pm-9/11pm – Central Park, W 67th St, New York, NY 10023

The most beautiful restaurant located in Central Park. Highly suggested for brunch. Make reservations months in advance.

-The View – $$$ – 1535 Broadway, New York, NY 10036

NYC’s only revolving restaurant on the 48th floor of the Marriott Marquis with beautiful views of the city and Times Square.

Be sure to request “Reeta” as your waitress. She has worked their for 19 years and was a complete delight.

-Buddakan – $$$ – 5/5:30pm-11pm/12am- Asian Restaurant – 75 9th Ave, New York, NY 10011

Located in the Chelsea Market.

-Tao – $$$ – Most amazing Asian food I have ever eaten!

Downtown – 5pm-12/2am – 92 9th Ave, New York, NY 10011

Uptown – 11:30-12/1am – 42 E 58th St, New York, NY 10022

The uptown location used to be a movie theater and the rent is $25k per month!!

I would suggest ordering a few entries and sharing, their portions are huge!

-Rocco’s Tacos – $$ – 11:30am/12pm-10pm/12am – 339 Adams St, Brooklyn, NY 11201

Great Mexican restaurant. Located in Brooklyn. Walkable from the Brooklyn Bridge. Really fun to eat dinner at Rocco’s then walk across the Brooklyn Bridge back to Manhattan.

-Patzeria Perfect Pizza – $ – 7am-12/1am – 231 W 46th St, New York, NY 10036

We stumbled upon this delicious pizza place one night at 11:45pm right off of Time Square. Best Pizza I have ever eaten. I highly suggest the buffalo chicken slice!

Things to See:

-Time Square

Between Broadway and Seventh Avenue from West 42nd to West 47th Streets.

The biggest staple and busiest square of NYC. Known for its many Broadway theaters, cinemas and electronic billboards. An always must see.

Definitely go to the M&M store in Time Square. They always have new flavors you can try before the general public can buy them! My favorite is coconut!!!

-Rockefeller Center

In the winter time this is even more special with the tree and iceskating. But all seasons this is a must see. Right down from Radio City Music Hall. The Today Show’s studio and the most adorable shops.

-Top of the Rock

I have never done top of the rock observatory but have heard so many wonderful things. It is located inside the Rockefeller Center Building.

-Empire State Building

Just did the Empire State Building observatory for the first time the last trip I took to NYC. I highly suggest it. Such a staple in visiting New York City. A very informative process on the way up too. (See Big Bus tours for tickets to the empire state building, it is included)

-Wall Street

Located in the financial district of lower Manhattan. Make sure to see the “Charging Bull”.

-Brooklyn Bridge

Such a beautiful icon of NYC. I always enjoy eating dinner in Brooklyn and walking back across the Brooklyn Bridge to Manhattan. Breathtaking views of the NY skyline.

-9/11 Memorial & Museum and One World Trade Center

Such a beautiful reminder of those lives lost in the 9/11 attack.

The memorial is free. Regular admission to the museum is $26 for Adults. The Museum is open from 9am-8pm.

-Central Park

There are always things to do in Central Park no matter what season it is! Ice skate in the winter, catch a summer concert, the central park zoo, or ride in a horse drawn carriage.

Things to Do:

-Jimmy Fallon– https://fallon.1iota.com/show/353/The-Tonight-Show-Starring-Jimmy-Fallon#Tickets

One of my most favorite memories in NYC. On my 21st birthday we attended a taping of the Jimmy Fallon show. Such a cool experience!

I highly recommend it, but it’s a very competitive process to getting tickets. It is free but tickets are released only one month before the show and they go in seconds! All the information you need is in the link above. Also follow @FallonTix on Twitter to get updated about when tickets will be released.

Forewarning, you aren’t allowed to take any photos inside the waiting area or the studio because it is all copyright and the show won’t be coming live till 11pm that night.

-Good Morning America– https://1iota.com/Show/379/Good-Morning-America#Tickets

The studio is located Times Square at Broadway and 44th Street, and the show is Monday

Tickets aren’t as high of demand as Jimmy Fallon but still such a cool experience and there are always so many awesome guests!

Also, if you can’t get tickets for inside the studio you can always stand in the street and get on TV through the glass or sometimes the hosts even come outside.

-Big Bus

I did the double decker Big Bus tour for the first time my last trip to NYC. I can’t say enough good things about this. I don’t know why we haven’t done it before. It’s a hop on hop off system with 3 or 4 different routes that you can listen to a tour guide while you’re on the bus. I learned things and saw places that I had never heard or been to before. If you have some time this does save on transportation. Included in our ticket price was a 3 day pass with a pass to the top of the Empire State Building AND a boat tour on the circle line cruise.

-Shop on 5th Avenue

I say shop lightly because there was a dress in Bergdorf Goodman’s for $27,000!!

It is always fun to window shop though and you might even spot some celebrities!

-Chelsea Market

A food hall, shopping mall, office building and television production facility located in the Chelsea neighborhood. Such a great experience. Definitely can get busy and crowded around lunch and dinner but such a huge hit. You might even find a NY sample sale while you’re in there.

-The High Line

A a 1.45-mile-long elevated linear park and greenway created on a former New York Central Railroad.

If you’re visiting NYC with nice weather I highly suggest grabbing lunch, a snack, or some ice-cream and taking it up from the Chelsea Market to the High Line.

-Madam Tussauds Wax Museum

Pose for a selfie with your favorite stars. Madame Tussaud’s brings in new “people” every couple of months so your visit is different each time.

-Classic Harbor Line – https://classicharborline.com/nyc/

This is definitely a nice weather activity but I have done it twice and absolutely love it! There are many different cruises to choose from but the one I have always done is the Statue and Skyline sightseeing cruise. Such breathtaking views from the water of Lady Liberty and lower Manhattan.

Quite a few years ago now, we actually got to watch former President Obama fly into the city on Marine One Helicopter.

-Citi Bikes

Rent Citi Bikes! Just be aware of cars! Also, the pricing can get confusing, make sure to closely read the direction. Single rides are $3 but they are only for 30 minutes. Or you can get a day pass for $12 a day you just have to reset your bike at a station every 30 minutes or you will be charged extra. Conveniently there are stations located all over.

One of the most fun things I have done with my family in the city! We rode bikes from Midtown all the way to Tribeca.

On the Hudson side of Manhattan there are awesome bike and running paths.

-Brooklyn Promenade

If you’re staying in Brooklyn or want to get away from all the hustle and bustle of the city, the Brooklyn Promenade has amazing views of the Manhattan skyline.

Tips & Tricks:

If you need a cab driver from the airport here is my suggestion.

Bright Asare – 201.281.2580

Shoot him a text, he’s awesome! We met Bright going from JFK airport to the city and he also came to pick us up to take us back to the airport when we were leaving.

Some tips: Be aware if you are traveling with more than 4 people. Taxi’s won’t pick you all up at the same time if they don’t have the room, due to licensing rules. We tried to squeeze 5 of us in taxi and they made us get out… Uber comes in handy with 5+ people!

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Don’t hesitate to let me know if I can help plan your trip in any way!

Thanks for reading!

-CS