72 hours in NYC!
A local's itinerary for cool people who don't mind a ton of walking
I’ve lived in New York for eight years. Although I haven’t hit the requisite ten year anniversary required to call yourself a New Yorker, I’m pretty damn close, and I’ve learned and seen a lot along the way.
If I had a best friend visiting the city, this is a version of what I’d recommend we do over the weekend. It include any of the super touristy stuff, but it does have a lot of hidden gems that are sure to surprise and delight.
This is an ambitious itinerary. It requires a lot of walking, and I recommend comfortable shoes. But it’s worth it! I’m someone who always prioritizes walking as my form of transportation, because I fully believe the best way to see a city is above ground. There are so many things to stumble upon! You’ll visit three parks designed by Olmsted himself. You’ll get to see some incredible waterfront views. You’ll eat some fantastic meals, some casual, and some fancier, but nothing too expensive. You’ll see some breathtaking art, and you’ll have plenty of opportunities to buy meaningful souvenirs along the way.
This is a LONG post, so it might be cut off in your email. Either read it in the Substack app or here to see it in its totality.
Friday: Manhattan arts, culture, and shopping
Note: If you’re coming from out of town, do your best to arrive on the early side on Friday, or fly in Thursday night. I recommend staying at either The Hoxton in Williamsburg or the 1 Hotel near the Brooklyn Bridge. The Hoxton has two excellent restaurants in house (Laser Wolf and K’Far), and the 1 Hotel has an excellent rooftop pool scene if that’s what you’re after. Everyone stays in Manhattan, but staying in Brooklyn is a vibe, and most of your time will actually be spent exploring Brooklyn, because there’s just so much to see!
But today is all about Manhattan museums, galleries, and walking around Downtown.
Morning
Take the train uptown and head to Cafe Sabarsky in the Neue Gallery for a leisurely breakfast. Don’t skimp on food, today’s a long day, and you have a lot to do before lunch! After filling up on coffee and crepes, make a lap around the Neue Gallery, known for housing Gustav Klimt’s glittery works.
Afternoon
After you’ve gotten your fix at the Neue Gallery, take a short stroll over to Salon 94, a gorgeous art gallery on the Upper East Side with rotating exhibitions. No matter what’s on display, the space alone is worth seeing and shouldn’t take more than 30 minutes to an hour.
Now it’s time to take a short ten minute stroll to The MET! Although it’s more well-known than our early morning stops, the MET is never to be missed. You could spend an hour here or all day, as it’s massive. Check ahead of time to see what’s on display, and plan to stay here for no more than two hours, because you have a lot more to see after this!
From The MET, take a 30 minute stroll through Central Park to the 5 Av/59 St Subway station. From here, hop on the Q Train and take it to the Canal stop. Get out and walk to Thai Diner in Nolita for a hearty late lunch. It’s my favorite indulgent spot in the city. You cannot go wrong with anything on the menu, but their phat see eiw is the best I’ve ever had in my life, and the baan salad is my favorite salad in the entire world, which is saying something.
Now that you’ve loaded up on carbs and thai ice tea, it’s time to walk it all off around SoHo, Nolita, and the Lower East Side.
If you want to fit another art experience in, take a quick trip to The New York Earth Room, a permanent art installation by Walter De Maria, featuring 280,000 pounds of earth (literally, soil) meticulously arranged in a SoHo studio since 1977. This minimalist work creates a serene, contemplative space that blends natural elements with an urban environment, inviting you to experience the intersection of art and nature.
If you want immerse yourself in real nature, head to Elizabeth Street Garden. It’s a communal green space filled with flowers and people reading and dreaming. I used to work in Soho pre-covid, and I always came here on my lunch break when I needed to turn a bad day around. It’s healing.
Tomorrow is our big shopping day, but if you want to check out some SoHo/Nolita/LES spots, here are my favorites:
Still Here for well-made denim
Ending Soon for one-of-a-kind vintage clothing
BDDW, a gorgeous furniture and art showroom
Desert Vintage for rare, high end vintage finds
The Bode men’s store for some serious window shopping
If you need caffeine and sweet treat at this point, I don’t blame you. head to the SoHo location of La Cabra for coffee and pastries. At a minimum, you should be getting a cardamom bun to save for later.
At this point, you’re probably exhausted. Head back to the hotel, drop off your shopping bags, shower, and regroup.
Night
The evening plans are lowkey tonight — you’ve been bouncing all over town, and we still have two full days of our itinerary left! I leave you with two dinner suggestions, depending on where you’re staying in Brooklyn:
Ingas Bar in Brooklyn Heights for a fantastic burger in a very cozy setting
Llama Inn in Williamsburg for the best Pisco Sour of your life (off menu, just ask for one) and some decadent Japanese-Peruvian fusion food. They have a very cute rooftop in warm weather months
After dinner, go back to the hotel and get some rest! Tomorrow night, we are going out, so we’ve gotta pace ourselves…
Saturday: Brooklyn exploration + a night out on the town
Morning
Sleep in, and then wake up and head to Nick + Son’s Bakery in Williamsburg for an unbelievable za’atar croissant. This is one of my favorite bakeries in the city!
Take your croissant to Marsha P Johnson park for stunning views of the water and Manhattan. Continue the stroll through Williamsburg down to Domino Park for some casual people watching. We are starting the day slow, because you’re are going out tonight, and if you do it right, you might be out until 3AM. Gotta pace ourselves, here.
After a leisurely morning, it’s time to go shopping! Williamsburg and Greenpoint have some of the best vintage stores, along with some other unique stops worth checking out.
Here are my favorites:
Sorbara’s for an incredible curation of unique men’s and women’s vintage pieces
Bedford Vintage for fun graphic tees
Awoke Vintage for a huge selection of affordable vintage denim in a wide range of sizes
Amarcord for when you’ve saved up for an expensive souveiner, such as a vintage Chanel jacket
Haricot Vert’s dreamworld, where you can make your own charm necklace souvenier as a reminder of your trip
Dobbin Street Vintage Co-op has a ton of fun vintage home decor at affordable prices. Buy something cute and easy to pack as a souvenir, such as candle taper holders!
Afternoon
For lunch, we are grabbing casual tacos at Taqueria Ramirez in Greenpoint. It’s gonna be busy, but the line moves fast and it’s 100% worth it for the best tacos in all of New York City.
Afterward, if you want to grab a glass of wine, go next door to the listening bar/clothing store, Million Goods. They usually have DJs spinning during the day on the weekends.
And now, you guessed it, time to walk it off around Greenpoint. Allow yourself to meander and take in all of the little coffee shops, stores, bars, restaurants, etc…
Yoseka Stationery is a great Japanese stationery store with every type of pen, notebook, and paper you could possibly imagine.
Big Night is a fun, colorful store with every gourmet pantry good and tableware nicknack you could think of. I always get housewarming gifts here!
WNYC Transmitter Park is great for more water views and a break to read and rest your feet, if you need.
Radio Bakery is a great coffee/treat stop if you’re in need of a chocolate chip cookie at this point. I wouldn’t blame you.
Head back to your hotel and drop off your shopping bags. Enjoy the pool if it’s warm enough, or a spa treatment if you will. Get your relaxing in before we go dancing tonight.
If it’s cold out, head to Bathhouse and make use of their saunas, steam rools, and thermal pools.
Night
We are going out in Bushwick, and we are going to eat a late dinner over there too. For a cute, romantic dinner spot, head to La Cantine. It turns into a wine bar at night, has a rotating menu that’s always impressive, and is the perfect place to load up on calories before a night of dance. Sometimes, they have a thirty-something layer lasagna on the menu, and if you’re lucky enough to be there when it pops up, order it. The desserts are crazy, too.
The going out doesn’t get started until a little later, but you can get your drinking and dancing started at Carousel. It’s massive and has pool tables, a 70s style dance floor, plenty of booths and conversation pits.
Finally, it’s time. Head over to House of Yes for a ridiculously fun night of disco dancing, people watching, and to see some incredible outfits and forms of self expression. It’s my favorite club in NYC because you’ll find an extremely diverse crowd of people of all ages, sexes, and races having a fucking fantastic time together. Everyone is really respectful here, and I’ve never felt unsafe or like I couldn’t be myself.
Check the event calendar to see what the specific programming is, and buy tickets ahead of time. Some nights are themed, but if you enter on the earlier side, a costume isn’t required. During the DJ sets, acrobats and artists usually perform every hour in the main room!
You’ll be out late, and you might be hungry after. If that’s the case, either head to Artichoke for a slice of pizza (a quick walk away), or if you are with besties and want to debrief on the night, head back to Williamsburg and load up on the tall nachos at the 24-hour Kellogg Diner. It’s an absolute neighborhood staple.
Now go get some sleep!
Note: This guide took me over 10 hours to compile and put together. Because of the love and care I put into this guide, day three of the itinerary + a bonus list of 30 of my other favorite spots around NYC are for paying subscribers only. If you like what you see, please consider supporting mindholiday by upgrading to a paid subscription. It’s only $5 a month, or $50 a year, and I promise I’ll make it worth your while!
Sunday: Nature in Brooklyn + the best cake I’ve ever had
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