The Original Guide to New York
New York City exists in our collective imagination, and everyone arrives with a preconceived notion of what it’ll be. The joy lies in how the Big Apple will surprise you. It’s the cultural crossroads of the globe, offering the pinnacle of every art form and unparalleled dining, but it’s also made up of micro neighbourhoods buzzing with local life and charm. Our guide encompasses it all
01/01/2025
Patti Smith’s memoir is an evocative coming-of-age story set in NYC
Hip-hop OG Nas (Ross Gilmore)
Audrey Hepburn as Holly Golightly in Breakfast at Tiffany’s
PRE-TRIP CULTURE CHECKLIST
READ: Just Kids by Patti Smith
An affectionate account of her relationship with photographer and kindred spirit Robert Mapplethorpe, Just Kids is also a love letter to 1970s New York City. It’s so evocative of the times that after reading it you might just believe that you, too, will bump into Salvador Dalí at the Chelsea Hotel or Allen Ginsberg in a diner. Though the only name here you might be lucky enough to see is Patti herself, still the city’s beloved resident bard.
LISTEN: Illmatic by Nas
In the city that was the birthplace of hip-hop, Nas’s Illmatic stands out as one of the all-time greats – and a quintessentially New York album. Released in 1994, it opens with the rattle of the F train overhead, and soon launches into the lucid ode to the streets that is ‘N.Y. State of Mind’. In April 2024, a mural of the rapper was unveiled across from the Queensbridge housing project where he grew up to commemorate the album’s 30th anniversary.
WATCH: Breakfast at Tiffany’s
While other movies might portray New York with more grit and realism, the nonchalant glamour of Breakfast at Tiffany’s will get you in the mood. Set in the polished Upper East Side, cameos of city sights abound, from its iconic opening outside Tiffany’s on Fifth Avenue to Central Park at its golden best in autumn. But no scene conjures the city better than Holly Golightly sitting on her fire escape singing ‘Moon River’.
Bakes fresh from the oven at L’Appartement 4F (Nico Schinco)
A LOCAL’S VIEW
“Other places in the world have tempted me, but my love for New York City always wins. I live in Cobble Hill in Brooklyn, and I walk everywhere. Growing up in Manhattan, that was also true. I love a local life, and you get that here in ways that you can't in most places. In my neighbourhood, if I’m feeling fancy, I go to L’Appartement 4F for an exceptionally good croissant in the morning. For lunch, I might go up to Poppy’s, have some focaccia and one of its tahini brownies – so delicious.
“I always need a new notebook, and Measure Twice has this one specific kind that I love. 21 Tara is where I buy gifts – well-made, beautiful things. And then I end up at Popina for dinner, drinking a Negroni, eating some pasta and just being as happy as a little clam. I tell visitors to pick a neighbourhood that is not Midtown Manhattan and walk around – that’s the best. And don’t be afraid to ask for directions. New Yorkers are extremely friendly!”
THE NEW VIEW
Take the Q, B, D or N train over Manhattan Bridge (above) for a view powerful enough that even the locals lower their phones for a lingering glance. As you emerge from the tunnel, suspended above the East River, for the price of a subway fare you’ll get panoramic views of the waterfront, the towering skyscrapers of Lower Manhattan and even Lady Liberty herself.
Nathan’s on the Coney Island Boardwalk (Nico Schinco)
THE ORIGINAL ROLLERCOASTER
In 1884, LaMarcus Thompson built the first ‘gravity switchback railway’ in Coney Island. It’s long gone, but the Cyclone, now in Luna Park, remains the oldest wooden rollercoaster in the world. That might not inspire confidence, but brave a ride, then walk the historic boardwalk of this delightfully kitsch seaside destination, stopping at the original Nathan’s Famous Hot Dogs or timing your visit for the annual Mermaid Parade.
BIRDS-EYE VIEW
The Empire State Building, especially at night, remains the rightful classic, but The Edge, which opened in 2020 in Hudson Yards, has the thrill factor. Suspended in mid-air, it’s the highest outdoor observation deck in the Western Hemisphere. The views over Manhattan are suitably jaw-dropping, as is the glass floor. Take it to another level, literally, with the City Climb experience and scale the outside of the skyscraper to dangle 1,200ft above ground.
That scene with Meg Ryan and Billy Crystal from When Harry Met Sally
AS SEEN ON SCREEN
Just walking New York’s storied streets feels cinematic because you’ve seen so much of the city on screen. The New York Public Library in Ghostbusters, the Flatiron Building in Spider-Man, and Times Square in Midnight Cowboy, to name but a few. The queue at Katz’s Deli is still there thanks to that famous scene in When Harry Met Sally, and fans of Sex and the City can reliably be found on the stoop of Carrie Bradshaw’s West Village brownstone.
New York offers accessible taxi services
ACCESS ALL AREAS
While more than 100 subway stations are accessible, many smaller stations are not, and lifts are badly maintained. All buses are accessible, however, and a hotline provides accessible taxi services. More than a third of New York City hotels are accessible, as are many of its attractions, theatres and museums – and cultural institutions generally pride themselves on offering inclusive programming. For a calendar of events searchable via accessibility or disability needs, visit the Museum, Arts & Culture Access Consortium. New York City Tourism also has a handy resource hub.
Exterior and interior of the Gothic Revival-style Met (Nico Schinco)
RAINY DAY SAVIOUR
The Met, or The Metropolitan Museum of Art, takes up 11.5 acres with more than two million works of art spanning 5,000 years from palaeolithic flints to Van Gogh’s Starry Night. The challenge is where to start. Located on Museum Mile, The Guggenheim is also a quick dash away. Or, if the rain lets up, head into Central Park for a stroll.
THE SENSORY SIX
Greek beauty brand Korres on Elizabeth Street
The Village Vanguard in the West Village (Michael Larson)
Super Funland at The Museum of Sex
Brian Bills at Queens Night Market
Broadway theatre starts here (Nico Schinco)
The Green-Wood Cemetery
Smell
In a four-block radius in Nolita there is a veritable hive of niche perfume boutiques. Upgrade or personalise your fragrance at the minimalist Scent Bar, Greek perfumery Naxos Apothecary, Olfactory NYC or the flagship outpost of Le Labo.
Hear
The Village Vanguard opened in 1935 as a haven for poets and artists, and it’s still going strong today, as is Greenwich Village’s world-class jazz scene, home to the legendary clubs Blue Note and Smalls. Alternatively, for dance music, head to Brooklyn’s Elsewhere, for folk, to Jalopy and, for indie up-and-comers, to Baby’s All Right.
Touch
With three floors and 15,000 artefacts exploring the history, evolution and cultural significance of human sexuality, the Museum of Sex isn’t all titters. But the calling card is its interactive Super Funland exhibit, an erotic ode to the carnival, encouraging visitors to play all manner of naughty and curious games for over 18s only.
Taste
The city’s most ethnically diverse borough, Queens is also home to its best food, yet often – mistakenly – overlooked by tourists. Head to Elmhurst for exceptional Thai cuisine or Jackson Heights for Colombian, or, for a taste of it all, the open-air Queens Night Market brings together more than 100 vendors cooking up flavours from around the globe for mostly less than $10 a dish.
See
The glittering lights of Broadway are always a buzz. The TKTS booth in Times Square sells last-minute tickets at a discount, which, at least, will decide for you whether to see Hamilton again or branch out and try something new.
The Sixth Sense
The gothic Green-Wood Cemetery is more than the final resting place for the likes of Leonard Bernstein and Jean-Michel Basquiat. It’s also a bona fide arboretum, a magnet for bird watchers and a cultural venue. Take an after-hours walking tour or wait for Death of Classical to stage a candlelit concert in the Catacombs, an evening so stirring one worries the dead might rise.
Central Park provides a wealth of green space (Nico Schinco)
THE ONE THING
Eat and drink
Start the day with brunch at the ever charming Buvette in the West Village or go for steaming baskets of dim sum in Chinatown. That’ll keep you sated until dinner, where the low-key Four Horsemen offers natural wines, small plates and great tunes. Alternatively, go big and bag a table at the hot ticket in town, Tatiana by Kwame Onwuachi, serving Afro-Caribbean cuisine through a New York lens. No trip is complete, however, without a slice from one of the city’s thousands of pizzerias. Bonus tip: grab a cocktail at the revamped Long Island Bar, a love letter to Brooklyn and one of the city’s best.
To see
The city’s museums will keep even the most committed art enthusiast busy, with both MoMA and the Whitney unmissable. But for a return visitor, try gallery-hopping amid the concentration of galleries in Chelsea, with Thursday evenings the prime night for wine-fuelled openings.
To do
The best way to experience the city is to walk its streets – though don’t loiter in thoroughfares or you’ll hear about it from a fast-walking New Yorker! Classic walks include crossing the Brooklyn Bridge on the elevated pedestrian walkway, people-watching your way through Central Park or ambling along The High Line, a repurposed rail line now dotted with public artworks and greenery.
WHERE TO STAY
Berlin beckons
WHERE NEXT?
Berlin shares some of New York City’s best attributes. It’s walkable and multicultural, with all the benefits of art and cuisine that brings. It’s also known to be friendly and notably laidback which, after some time in nonstop hustle of the Big Apple, might be in order for your next trip.
