Three Perfect Days in New York: Staying at the Plaza Hotel and Eating Our Way Around Manhattan

Long Weekend in NYC: Four Perfect Days in New York

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Being a former New Yorker, any chance to take a long weekend in New York City is always a treat. There’s something completely different about experiencing NYC as a tourist than living there as a resident. For one, the city is your oyster.

Long Weekend in New York City: View from 30 Rock

But even a long weekend in NYC is a startlingly short amount of time to cram all of my favorite activities into.

Though I sure as heck try on every visit. Here’s how you can emulate my many trips to New York City as a tourist.

Where to stay on a long weekend in NYC

Staying at a rental in Midtown or in an iconic hotel like the Plaza alongside Central Park means you’ll be a stone’s throw from some of New York City’s best attractions. And while this itinerary doesn’t necessarily encompass every tourist stop in town, it’s a good primer for a first timer in NYC, especially if you’re not really sure how to focus your time.

Three Perfect Days in New York City: Rockefeller Plaza

If you’re more into big hotels, there are plenty of those to go around, too. And if you’d rather get more of a local’s feel while still being central and accessible to the subway, I’d recommend staying in Downtown NYC, at a vacation rental in SoHo, the East Village or the West Village.



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Day 1 in New York City

We arrived early morning via Amtrak from Boston, hopped a yellow cab from Penn Station, then dropped our luggage off in Midtown at the Plaza Hotel. While we waited, we wandered through the subterranean Plaza Food Hall and snacked on treats from its many vendors, then took a stroll through Central Park.

Three Perfect Days in New York City: Central Park

One of the Plaza’s greatest assets is its location: Its 58th Street entrance literally opens out onto Central Park. Walking around Central Park with the first hints of a full blown spring peeking from the branches and ground is a great way to orient yourself and also to get a bit of a respite from the frenetic energy of a city eight-million-people strong that never rests.

Three Perfect Days in New York City: The Plaza Hotel

When we finally got the call that our room was ready late afternoon, we were lingering nearby in the park and made a beeline for the check-in desk not wanting to miss a moment in our palatial suite.

Three Perfect Days in New York: Staying at the Plaza Hotel and Eating Our Way Around Manhattan

After some downtime in our room, we headed all the way to the bottom level to Todd English Food Hall, which is basically my wildest dreams all under one roof: nine different food stations— Ocean Grill & Oyster Bar, Noodle & Dumpling Bar, Pasta Bar, Sushi Bar, The Grill, Taqueria, Pizza, Cheese & Charcuterie, Wine Bar and Patisserie—so at the end of the day, I didn’t have to choose.

Three Perfect Days in New York: Staying at the Plaza Hotel and Eating Our Way Around Manhattan

Where to Find Doughnuts in New York City
Where to Find Doughnuts in New York City
Where to Find Doughnuts in New York City

Three Perfect Days in New York City: Todd English Food Hall

Despite the station model, you still have a dedicated server, which makes the experience even better as you don’t have to go from counter to counter ordering separately. We had a little bit of everything, from pierogis to a California roll, a fig and prosciutto flatbread to tuna tartare wonton tacos and cocktails.

Three Perfect Days in New York City: Todd English Food Hall

Three Perfect Days in New York: Staying at the Plaza Hotel and Eating Our Way Around Manhattan
Three Perfect Days in New York: Staying at the Plaza Hotel and Eating Our Way Around Manhattan

Three Perfect Days in New York: Staying at the Plaza Hotel and Eating Our Way Around Manhattan

After dinner, we retreated to the Rose Club above the lobby and had a round of Manhattans (apropos) and listened to some live jazz before we turned in for the night.

Three Perfect Days in New York: Staying at the Plaza Hotel and Eating Our Way Around Manhattan

Day 2 in New York City

Before leaving for the day, we lounged around the Plaza, then headed downstairs to the hotel’s Palm Court for afternoon tea.

Three Perfect Days in New York: Staying at the Plaza Hotel and Eating Our Way Around Manhattan

High tea is an affair at every Fairmont property—by the way, did you know the Plaza is owned by Fairmont Hotels & Resorts? Yeah, I didn’t either until this trip!—and an event I don’t take lightly.

Three Perfect Days in New York City: The Palm Court

Three Perfect Days in New York City: The Palm Court
Three Perfect Days in New York City: The Palm Court

We ordered the whole shebang: the New Yorker Tea for SVV, and the Champagne Tea for me. What I really wanted to order was the Children’s Eloise Tea, but maybe next time with my niece in tow.

Three Perfect Days in New York City: The Palm Court

After tea, it was off to an observatory tower. New York City is known for its soaring views, and there’s no shortage of places to get a bird’s eye glimpse of Manhattan. Here are a few of the more famous ones:

Three Perfect Days in New York City: Top of the Rock

Three Perfect Days in New York City: Top of the Rock

Three Perfect Days in New York City: Top of the Rock

Three Perfect Days in New York: Staying at the Plaza Hotel and Eating Our Way Around Manhattan

Pro tip: If you’re hitting up a lot of museums and tourist attractions during your weekend in NYC, look into a New York CityPASS, which will give you discounts on pre-paid admission at many of the city’s top sites.

It’s all personal preference on observation deck yu choose, but my personal favorite is the Summit. I mean, would you check out these views?

Is the SUMMIT One Vanderbilt in New York City worth it?

Related Article: Is the SUMMIT Worth It? A View from Midtown NYC’s Tallest Tower

After our trip to the top, we headed down to the Financial District where we took our time exploring Wall Street and the new World Trade Center, which was rebuilt after the September 11 bombings and now features a memorial at the site of the original twin towers.

Three Perfect Days in New York: Staying at the Plaza Hotel and Eating Our Way Around Manhattan

Nearby is the striking white Oculus, a 9/11 memorial and functional train station designed by Santiago Calatrava, a world-famous Spanish architect known for his structural forms that resemble organic, bleached organisms. If you do one thing in downtown NYC, go inside the Oculus, a $4 billion that took a decade and a half to come to fruition.

Three Perfect Days in New York: Staying at the Plaza Hotel and Eating Our Way Around Manhattan

Three Perfect Days in New York: Staying at the Plaza Hotel and Eating Our Way Around Manhattan

Three Perfect Days in New York: Staying at the Plaza Hotel and Eating Our Way Around Manhattan

We also visited the 9/11 Memorial & Museum, though we didn’t venture inside, choosing instead to people watch and remember; I challenge you to find a more poignant spot than this very site, which invokes such varied emotions from its visitors. For those who have more time to spare, I’d definitely recommend incorporating the museum into your NYC plans.

Three Perfect Days in New York: Staying at the Plaza Hotel and Eating Our Way Around Manhattan

By late afternoon, we were getting thirsty and a quick Yelp search told me we were but blocks away from Clinton Hall Beer Garden. I’d never heard of this place, but apparently I was the only one as it was absolutely brimming with finance workers and other young folks fresh off of Wall Street.

Three Perfect Days in New York: Staying at the Plaza Hotel and Eating Our Way Around Manhattan

They also sell Walter White’s Crystal Methadonuts, which are injectable balls of goodness served with Nutella, raspberry and salted caramel filling.

Three Perfect Days in New York: Staying at the Plaza Hotel and Eating Our Way Around Manhattan

That night, we took the train out to Bushwick in Brooklyn to see friends and grab dinner at Roberta’s. It’s a bit of a commute if you’re staying at the Plaza—or anywhere else in Manhattan, for that matter—but this is one of those hipster destination restaurants that’s totally worth the trip over the bridge, and you must order off-menu and have the Bee Sting pie. You can thank me later.

Day 3 in New York City

When we awoke on Saturday morning, we took the subway to Union Square then walked over to Dough, which sells donuts the size of our heads in flavors like Dulce de Leche, Mocha-Almond Crunch and Hibiscus. We devoured them within another excellent people-watching hub, Union Square, which is right nearby and was my very first neighborhood to live in back in 2005.

Where to Find Doughnuts in New York City
Where to Find Doughnuts in New York City
Where to Find Doughnuts in New York City

Three Perfect Days in New York: Staying at the Plaza Hotel and Eating Our Way Around Manhattan

To offset the morning’s sugar, we lunched at Sweetgreen, which was music to my stomach with all its healthy quinoa bowls, then set out through the Village. The Village has long been my favorite part of Manhattan: so many charming streets and alleys tucked away amid bodegas and the crush of people. And dogs, lots and lots of dogs. If strollers are segregated to the Upper West Side, the Village is where New York’s canine population dwells.

Three Perfect Days in New York: Staying at the Plaza Hotel and Eating Our Way Around Manhattan
Three Perfect Days in New York: Staying at the Plaza Hotel and Eating Our Way Around Manhattan

Fitting then that we found ourselves down near Tompkins Square Park, where we paused to watch the pups play, thinking how much Ella would love all the sights (and smells) of New York City.

Three Perfect Days in New York: Staying at the Plaza Hotel and Eating Our Way Around Manhattan

Then, we continued south down to the gritty corridor of the Lower East Side, where we were looking for SVV some quality T-shirts to expand his collection.

Three Perfect Days in New York: Staying at the Plaza Hotel and Eating Our Way Around Manhattan

We came up empty—seriously, where are all the graphic Tee shops in NYC, pray tell?—but we did find a bar and some craft beer to boot at Top Hops, so I consider that a win.

Three Perfect Days in New York: Staying at the Plaza Hotel and Eating Our Way Around Manhattan

Dinner that night was at an iconic Village spot, Café Loup, that most out-of-towners would never stumble upon organically. We noshed on authentic French cuisine in this charming bistro with old friends before catching the subway back to Brooklyn again to sleep.

Three Perfect Days in New York: Staying at the Plaza Hotel and Eating Our Way Around Manhattan

Day 4 in New York City

Since we moved our base from the Plaza to Brooklyn for our final days in NYC, we spent our final morning in one of the city’s hippest boroughs and brunched at Carthage Must Be Destroyed. Though the signage was a bit off-putting—“no photos,” they instructed; “no touching any of the table centerpieces,” they said—ultimately the food was great and I’d return here in a heartbeat.

Three Perfect Days in New York: Staying at the Plaza Hotel and Eating Our Way Around Manhattan

Bushwick is just 20 minutes from LaGuardia, where we fly in and out of via Southwest from Nashville, so we hopped a cab to the airport after brunch, excited that we already have our next long weekend in New York return mapped out for later this year and stoked to tackle the rest of our Manhattan to-do list then.

Three Perfect Days in New York: Staying at the Plaza Hotel and Eating Our Way Around Manhattan


 

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Three Perfect Days in New York: Staying at the Plaza Hotel and Eating Our Way Around Manhattan
Three Perfect Days in New York: Staying at the Plaza Hotel and Eating Our Way Around Manhattan
Three Perfect Days in New York: Staying at the Plaza Hotel and Eating Our Way Around Manhattan
COMMENTS
  • May 28, 2017
    Dominique

    I like how your 3-day itinerary mainly includes food & drinks! That’s just the kind of itinerary I like! 🙂 You also named all the sights I haven’t visited in New York City, so I guess I’ll definitely have to go back there to eat all the food (ahum… I mean see all the sights)

  • May 28, 2017

    Beautiful pictures and hotel!! You make me want to go to NYC, pronto, and do everything you did!

  • May 28, 2017

    I don’t think I’ve ever had 3 full days in NY, always on business travel, but I did manage to squeeze in a trip to Rockefeller Center in March. Central Park still eludes me, as does the 9/11 memorial.

  • May 29, 2017

    Yes! Yes! And Yes!
    When I eventually get to New York ‘cos (hangs her head in shame), I haven’t yet been, I will be spending all my time in Manhattan! And I just know that I’m going to be over-whelmed and rushing around like a toddler on jelly-beans!

    I love the photos of the monks that you took. I so wasn’t expecting that, and the little round doughnut with a filler is hilarious! Mind you, without the chocolate sauce…!

  • May 30, 2017
    Rachel

    Ohh I want to travel to New York so badly! Top of my bucket-list, what a great itinerary 🙂

  • May 31, 2017
    Esther @Local Adventurer

    I didn’t know they were part of Fairmont either! And those methadonuts? haha I’m in! Was this your fave afternoon tea experience? I’ve only done it at the Mandarin Oriental, so I need to check more places out!

  • June 3, 2017
    Rhiannon

    I absolutely love New York City. I dreamt about visiting for most of my life, and finally made it there in June 2015! In fact, I’m half way through writing my own blog post about this incredible city! Your photos are giving me some serious nostalgia, and I’m missing the city like crazy! The views from the top of Top of the Rock and Empire State Building are breathtaking! Can’t beat that Central Park view. Great post, amazing photos! 🙂

  • June 3, 2017
    Diana

    I love NYC. We did a hop on/off bus tour and went on top of the Rock,what a view. We also did the horse and carriage ride through Central Park, very touristy right! lol

  • June 3, 2017

    It’s a little ridiculous how often I look to blogs of visiting travelers to see what I must do in my city. (But you know as well as I do how easy it is to overlook what’s right in front of you, right?)

    I’m adding Carthage Must Be Destroyed and those crazy Walter White donuts to my ever-expanding list of NYC priorities. And I think high tea at the Plaza needs to happen soon!

    But I swear I will walk the walk — today I’m going to go to Little Italy in the Bronx for the first time and take lots of photos. Because that is better than sitting inside and watching House of Cards.

  • June 3, 2017
    Katie

    Loved reading this post – the view from Rockefeller always takes my breath away. On our last visit they were still finishing the World Trade Center but it does look incredible. We went to the 9/11 museum and it was haunting, an interesting place to visit but I probably won’t return as it just is so sad. I will definitely check out Clinton Hall Beer Garden – my other half is a massive Breaking Bad fan! Your long weekend sounds perfect!

  • June 3, 2017
    Lauren Monitz

    Random thoughts in no particular order:
    1. I love that you find donuts wherever you go.
    2. Nail game on point.
    3. I haven’t been to NYC since the 9/11 memorial was built (how is this even possible)
    4. I also would want to order the Eloise tea set (no shame in that game)
    Glad you enjoyed xx

  • June 3, 2017
    Cynthia

    Oh, I love New York! It looks like you had an amazing visit! I haven’t been to the Plaza or it’s Food Hall, but those pictures make everything look absolutely scrumptious. I must make a point of getting to the World Trade Center / White Oculus. I missed that last time.

  • June 4, 2017
    Christie

    I love it! Your photos are so nice and this sounds like the most perfect weekend. The Plaza looks insanely beautiful and the high tea looks amazing! I also love the Top of the Rock way more than the Empire State Building and always recommend to people to go there instead 🙂 All of your food from the weekend looked so good! I love the doughnuts from Dough!

  • June 5, 2017
    Feisty Harriet

    I would very much like to eat my way through NYC. Please, and thank you.

    xox

  • September 15, 2017
    Shannon

    You really amazed to here my words but really i’m feeling all the images like it’s my own memory. Awesome Job!!!

    Thanks Kristin

  • May 11, 2018
    Harmony, Momma To Go

    I am at work – in Manhattan right now! I haven’t been to any of these food places – need to get downtown more!

  • April 2, 2019
    SKY

    Boston is nice place to spend the weekends. I mostly came here and enjoy my weekends.

  • March 19, 2023

    I just have to say – I love that you thwarted the rules to take photos of brunch!

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