Places To Visit: A (Two-Day) New York City Travel Guide

When you visit New York City on a whim, with only a few days to spend, you want to make the best of it. So why not do all the fun things? Be prepared for little sleep, lots of coffee and unbelievable amounts of food.

There are a few must-do things when it comes to visiting, and I’m going to lay them all out for you below. I have been to New York City quite a few times and while most of the times have been business related it’s still fun to enjoy the sights and take it all in.

Chances are, you will fly into La Guardia and the reason I say this is, it’s usually the closest to Manhattan. A cab ride may be the safe bet if there’s only a few of you traveling but if not, a shuttle will do the job. Just know, it’s about $15 per person so if it’s just a few of you, a cab ride is definitely worth it.

Once you get into the city, you will most likely head to the hotel and drop off your bags. If your room isn’t ready, I’m sure the bellmen would be happy to help and let you check your bags in with the hotel and give you a claim number. Go have some bites and enjoy the city for a bit before returning to check in!

Places to stay (from experience):

Ink 48 Hotel
Muse Hotel
Park Central Hotel
Yotel
Millenium Broadway Hotel
The Roosevelt Hotel

All of these hotels are pretty close to Times Square so you will have no problem walking around or catching a quick cab to get to your favorite, famous spots.

Our hotel for this trip was the Park Central Hotel and it was amazing! Currently under renovation but they treated us so so kind and we had one of the best rooms! Just look at the view:

When we woke up, it was just as beautiful. We found out that the David Letterman Show was filmed in the bottom right corner of this picture.

Our hotel was right next to a little bakery called Tisserie and it was so so so so so good.

Things you MUST do when you visit New York City:

– Comedy Club:

You will most likely see people selling tickets on the street for a comedy club… and all I can say is, DO IT! Especially if it’s for the Stand Up NY! You will have the time of your life, but expect to spend at least $30 (tickets plus 2 drink min)…. but, for an hour of laughter, it really is worth it and I’ve done it… twice!

After the comedy club, we were on a mission to find snow! Being that we live in a place that will probably NEVER snow, we were so stoked to actually find some.

We didn’t lick it but we almost did.

Carriage Ride through Central Park

Just do it and don’t look back. This was one of the most fun things I’ve done and if you have a good “driver”, he will tell you about all of the buildings and show you the cool spots!

The clouds looked so beautiful this night as we were on the stroll through the park and around the city:

Tour of NYC: Downtown Loop & Uptown Loop

Go on the bus that will take you all over and show you the sights! You can pay to get off and on the buses so you can actually get off and enjoy the spots.

We went all over… Russian Tea Room, Copacabana, Empire State Building, Flat-Iron Building:

We got off the bus at Battery Park to take a look at the Statue of Liberty.

We almost took the ferry to actually go see it up close but we were FREEZING!!!! But bonus points for there still being snow on the ground:

We ran into Starbucks instead, oh and put scarves over our heads.

Yes, it was COLD. Okay honestly cold, I can do… but wind + cold = BRR!

Get a Hot Dog!

There is a new hot dog stand in Times Square and it’s freaking awesome. It’s called Snack Box and they make Chorizo Dogs… oh my… it was definitely worth 2 trips.

While you are there, enjoy the sight, the people, the lights…

Mario, Luigi… you know…

Visit Forever 21 in Times Square (and buy cute things)
Okay, maybe this is a personal preference but it involves escalators and elevators and it’s amazing.

Shop for Shoes!
Another personal preference but Fashion Avenue rocked the socks right off our feet! We may or may not have bought a few pairs of boots this day.

Numero28 Pizzeria
Some of the best pizza, ever.

Max Brenner Restaurant
If you don’t visit this restaurant, you are crazy! I’ve been here 3 times now since I’ve visited NYC and I am absolutely in love with this restaurant. You will be too.

Here are a few of our favorite dishes that you HAVE to try:

Black & Tan Beer Battered Vidalia Rings with Dark Chocolate Ranch Dressing

Waffle Fries Dusted with Chili & Cocoa Powder

Thai Style Chicken Satays with Max’s Peanut Sauce

Sliced & Diced Steak “Pillow” Panini: char grilled & thin sliced skirt steak tossed with diced caramelized onions on a bed of asiago cheese crisps. baby spinach, roasted tomatoes, red pepper aioli.

Really Cheesy – Really Crunchy Mac and Cheese:
special 5 cheese blend, tomatoes & smoked applewood bacon

Not to mention, their desserts:

The Crepe Brulee Sugar Waffle

The Chocolate Pizza
Chocolate Pizza with melted milk and white chocolate meteors and an ice cream snow ball
(optional: melting campfire marshmallows)

Huge Chocolate Syringe filled with a chocolate potion you can squirt directly into your mouth
(Maxs chocolate kingdom is the only place in the world where this is permitted)

Needless to say, we left this trip feeling full, tired and ready to return! New York City is one of the funnest places and we recommend visiting if you can!!!