Our guide to NYC: how to spend a long weekend in the city

Big Apple break

New York City is everything you expect it to be: blazing lights, stellar museums, urban parks, grand bridges, buzzy restaurants and even buzzier nightclubs. It's also one of the ultimate US short break destinations.

Click through the gallery for the best things to do, what to eat and where to stay for the perfect long weekend in the Big Apple...

Day 1: Check into the Arlo Williamsburg

Conveniently located close to a subway station (L trains take 20 minutes to Union Square Station, which offers connections to pretty much everywhere in Manhattan), this hotel is perfect for collapsing in a comfy bed after a day of sightseeing.

It’s effortlessly cool and trendy much like the rest of Williamsburg, and the hotel’s Water Tower Bar, set in a refurbished water tower (pictured), is iconic.

Day 1: Wander through Central Park

A true New York icon, you can’t miss out on a stroll down The Mall, surrounded by the lush greenery of Central Park.

From Strawberry Fields and the Bethesda Terrace and Fountain, to the Bow Bridge and the view of The Plaza hotel from the Gapstow Bridge, Central Park is everything you expect it to be.

Day 1: Grab lunch from the Halal Guys

What started out as a New York City hot dog cart, is now one of the best-regarded street food chains in New York.

The food is big, greasy and delicious, and the hour-long queue at their W 53 St & 7 Ave cart is rewarded by a spit-roasted lamb on basmati rice with the creamiest white sauce.

Day 1: Marvel at the view from Summit One Vanderbilt

New York City's newest observation deck will make your head spin. Some rooms are clad in mirrors, reflecting the Big Apple's larger-than-life skyline over and over again; others are filled with silver balloons or photogenic contemporary art installations.

Finish off with Ascent, a glass lift that offers cinematic views over the city's jungle of skyscrapers.

Day 1: Walk through history at the Empire State Building

Even though the views are much better from Top of the Rock, it’s worth paying the Empire State Building a visit as well.

You’ll get a chance to peek at the magnificent Art Deco interiors and walk through the building that has defined the Manhattan skyline since the 1930s.

Day 1: See the lights at Times Square

It’s bright, it’s loud, it’s crazy and it’s well worth visiting once. A definite tourist trap, it’s swarming with visitors from everywhere in the world, but there’s something undoubtedly magical about standing in the middle of it all and being blinded by the lights.

Day 1: Dine at Rosemary’s

Vegetables sourced from Rosemary’s rooftop garden and their farm in Hudson Valley are transformed into a delightful aubergine caponata and sweets beets with shallot vinaigrette and whipped goat's cheese.

All of this is accompanied by silky pasta dishes, a classic New York strip steak and indulgent tiramisu.

Day 1: Listen to world-class jazz and drink at the Village Vanguard

Everyone who’s been anyone in the jazz world has played on the stage of this legendary New York institution.

Not much has changed since the 1930s when the club opened – the tables are tightly packed, the music is loud and the drinks pleasantly boozy.

Day 2: Have a brunch at Katz’s Deli

There’s nothing like a juicy pastrami sandwich to soothe the consequences of last night.

Prefer a Reuben? This classic here comes with gloriously melted Swiss cheese and unbeatable Russian dressing and sauerkraut combo.

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Day 2: Be moved by the 9/11 Memorial and Museum

A beautiful yet poignant reminder of what happened on the morning of September 11, 2001, the memorial and museum documents the day that changed the course of modern history.

Day 2: Explore Lower Manhattan

Financial district’s streets, where sky-high skyscrapers sit next to historic buildings like the Federal Hall, are unlike anywhere else in the world. Walk Wall Street, see the New York Stock Exchange, and imagine miles of tunnels loaded with gold bars beneath you at the Federal Reserve.

Don’t forget to look down a narrow side street with steam rising from the subway to feel as if you’re in Gotham.

Day 2: Grab a dollar slice from Joe’s Pizza

Dollar slices are a big deal in New York – you’ll see many walk-in pizza places on street corners where people of all walks of life queue up to grab a hot, saucy slice of cheesy goodness and devour it right there at the counter.

Not all dollar slices, however, are created equal. It’s the classic Italian crusts and more than 40-year-old recipes and methods that people keep coming back for at Joe’s.

Day 2: Walk the High Line

An exemplary project of repurposing old spaces within a city to create something new and exciting, The High Line has been a big draw in the Meatpacking District since it opened in 2009.

Created on a former New York Central Railroad, it’s a green oasis in the city, running from the Whitney Museum of American Art up to Hudson Yards. You can join it at various points along the route and enjoy the serenity high above the hustle and bustle of the streets.

Day 2: Hang out at Little Island

New York City's newest park floats over the Hudson River. It's a futuristic sight, built on a series of white stilts, with wiggling walking paths, a pair of amphitheatres and epic views across the water.

Day 2: Slurp noodles at Momofuku noodle bar

If you enjoy a bowl of ramen and the soft, pillowy goodness that is a bao bun, you owe a lot to David Chang. He’s the chef who brought these foods into the mainstream over a decade ago, including the very New York corned beef bao buns, pictured.

Stop by Momofuku’s original location and order a bowl of pork ramen and Chang’s signature pork belly buns. Check opening times before going as the noodle bar is closed between lunch and dinner services.

Day 2: Feel like a film star at Bemelmans Bar

Hidden away at The Carlyle, below a 24-karat gold leaf-covered ceiling, is a bar reminiscent of the Roaring Twenties and the old-school New York glam.

Named after the creator of the children’s book Madeline, Ludwig Bemelmans, whose illustrations adorn the walls, the bar’s signature cocktail Old Cuban is a heady mix of rum, Angostura bitters, lime and muddled mint.

Day 3: Grab a coffee from the Brooklyn Roasting Company

Brooklyn is peppered with hipster coffee shops serving perfectly brewed cups of carefully sourced coffee and this company takes its role as coffee ambassadors very seriously.

Pop in for a leisurely Sunday morning brew to set you up for the day.  

Day 3: Wander around DUMBO

Once a warehouse district, DUMBO’s cobblestone streets are lined with one-of-a-kind boutique stores, high-end restaurants and trendy cafés.

You’ll want to stop at the corner of Water & Washington to snap that iconic shot of the Manhattan Bridge framed by the red brick warehouses (pictured).

Day 3: Snack on a lobster roll from Luke’s Lobster

Have you ever dreamed of a lobster roll so full of sweet lobster meat drenched in lemon butter that the bun can hardly hold it all in?

Luke’s Lobster is where to get it from, the Brooklyn Bridge backdrop on the side.

Day 3: Marvel at Manhattan from Brooklyn Bridge Park

There’s something special about the light in New York, and Manhattan’s glistening skyscrapers across the water is one of those iconic New York vistas you’ve just got to see.

Head to Brooklyn Bridge Park for the best uninterrupted view.

Day 3: Walk across the Brooklyn Bridge

Probably one of the most famous bridges in the world, the Brooklyn Bridge is not only a top tourist attraction but also an engineering masterpiece.

The walk across the East River will take you about half an hour, photo stops included.  

Day 3: Take in Chinatown, Little Italy and NoLIta

The social history of New York, and that of the United States as well, has very much been reflected in the four waves of immigration since the late 1700s. It’s impossible to visit New York without tracing the history through the city’s neighbourhoods and food.

Luckily, these are especially distinctive in Manhattan in Chinatown, Little Italy and NoLIta, each as flavoursome as the next.

Day 3: Don’t miss out on lunch at Xi’an Famous Foods

From a family-run stall in the basement of a Queen’s supermarket, specialising in Chinese dishes from the city of Xi’an in northwestern China, this has exploded into a much-loved chain that New Yorkers can’t get enough of.

You’ll have trouble picking between a stewed pork belly meat sandwiched between two crispy slices of flatbread, one of the intensely-flavoured hand-ripped noodle dishes, or the classic boiled Chinese dumplings.

Day 3: Discover a world of art at The Met and The Guggenheim

Two museums, among the world’s best, sit almost side by side in the Upper East Side so it would be almost rude to skip them.

The Met is the home to such masterpieces as Washington Crossing the Delaware by Emanuel Leutze and works by Georgia O’Keeffe, Vincent van Gogh and Claude Monet, while The Guggenheim, apart from being an architectural masterpiece, houses works by Picasso, Warhol and Cézanne.

Day 3: Dine at Le Crocodile

You'll feel as though you've been whisked away to Paris at this sophisticated brasserie. Fill up on dishes such as escargot (snails) with fennel, parsley and steak tartare and duck breast with figs and mizuna.

And, whatever you do, make sure you leave room for the crème brûlée for dessert.

Day 3: Savour your last night in Williamsburg

Still one of New York's most exciting neighbourhoods, Williamsburg has everything you need to enjoy a night out in town.

Take your pick between rooftop bars like Night of Joy or Westlight (pictured). Then check out the extensive European wine list at The Four Horsemen.

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Now find out more about New York's unbelievable history