Four Days in New York City

I’ve been lucky enough to visit New York a few times - I’ve travelled alone, with my husband, with friends and recently we took our 16 year old son there for the first time – each time brought with it new experiences and discoveries. The Big Apple is a busy city and you really do need good walking shoes as exploring on foot is the best way to get around. Yes of course, you will want to grab a Cab, ride the Subway and a ferry, but you will still take in a lot of steps! This time we stayed just off Times Square in the RIU Plaza New York Times Square, ideally located for getting around and includes a lovely breakfast so you are ready for the day before you even start. Being close to Times Square is a winner if you’re travelling with teenagers especially (my son loved to visit each evening on our way back to the hotel) but personally I think one visit to Times Square is enough! I created an itinerary before our visit – something I highly recommend and also something I offer my clients – and split our days into different neighbourhoods and districts to try and avoid doubling back on ourselves too much and adding to those steps. This is what we crammed in to our 5 night visit: Day 1 We started our adventures with a thrilling speedboat ride from the West pier near midtown to the Statue of Liberty, which was a great way to see the iconic statue if you’re pushed for time and don’t want to spend half a day visiting by ferry via Ellis Island. We then explored the Highline, had hot dogs in Chelsea Market and meandered over to Fifth Avenue via the Flatiron, and then the Empire State Building, with a pit stop at 230 Fifth, a fabulous rooftop bar that you can visit all year round for cocktails & a great views. It is tricky finding rooftop bars that allow under 21s, but this one did until early evening so if you time it right you catch sunset. Day 2 We were up early to catch the ferry to Dumbo in downtown Brooklyn and this was a fantastic way to see the Manhattan skyline from the East, and relaxing too. Dumbo is a lovely small area to have coffee and wander around, but if we’d had more time I would have loved to say longer and discover more of Brooklyn, but we did of course get ‘that’ snap of Manhattan bridge! We then walked across Brooklyn Bridge to downtown Manhattan, which I highly recommend (although finding the entrance did take the help of a local!) The views are fabulous and there is such a vibrant buzz when it’s busy. We then spent the rest of the day wandering around Chinatown, Little Italy and East Village. Day3 We started the day with an absolute must-do when you are in NYC, a trip up an observation deck. But which one? We chose SUMMIT One Vanderbilt, and wow, what a good choice we made. I visited the Empire State Building’s observation deck years ago and loved it, but this time I actually got to see this iconic building from up high and it was even better. The experience that SUMMIT offers as you wander around the deck is also magical and surreal, with mirrors, glass floors and floating balls, it’s not to be missed. SUMMIT is in a great location too. It’s right next to Grand Central Station, with it’s stunning architecture, delicious food hall and fun whispering gallery you can spend quite a while there, in a train station! Fifth Avenue is moments away so we spent the rest of the day visiting amazing shops and eventually ended up in Central Park for a quick rest before we caught the subway to The Bronx to catch the New York Yankees play baseball. Simply asking locals in Yankee tops the best route and places to eat meant that we had a great evening, and met some lovely people. Day 4 Still more to do and after three days we’re all flagging a little so all voted for the subway. It’s so easy to use, we tapped in and out with our phones to pay. We went downtown to Wall Street and the financial district and then onto Ground Zero and the 911 Memorial, truly humbling, especially as I was lucky enough to visit the top of the twin towers on my very first visit to New York. Steps away is the Oculus, a stunning modern transport hub & shopping centre, yet another amazing building that NYC boasts. After a quick walk by the Ghostbusters HQ we then visited Soho and spent a lovely Saturday mooching around the markets and vintage shops in Greenwich Village, and drinking frozen margaritas at Caliente Cab, a lovely Mexican restaurant that I discovered on my first too! Four full days of fun and we were then grabbing an internal flight to Nashville for a totally different experience! After my fourth visit to New York I still haven’t ticked everything off my list of places to go and experience. Manhattan is merely one borough, there is Brooklyn, Queens, The Bronx and Staten Island still left to discover more of… this is why I need to go back, again! Travelling with children in New York is very easy as there is so much to see and do, but different planning is needed depending on their age. Young children will get tired very easily and teenagers will ensure you see parts of New York you wouldn’t normally as Instagram and Snapchat will be their tour guide! Catching a sports game, concert or event is highly recommended when in the Big Apple, the atmosphere is electric even before you get there! And, if you’re travelling without children then you can really make the most of the foodie scene and the fabulous roof top bars.