The Best Girls Trip To New York City… Continued

Our Girl’s Trip to New York City continues with all the best sights, eats, and adventures we had in my favorite town! New York City! What What!

If you missed the first half of our NYC Girls Trip, click here so you get all the great places to explore and have fun in the NYC! [Jump straight to the NYC Girls Trip Itinerary]

Our New York City Hotel

The Roger Hotel Located in Midtown at 31st Street & Madison, it is gorgeously modern and very conveniently located!

If you had just one day in the city, our Day 3 itinerary would be exactly what I would do! It’s was our favorite day…

{ Day 3 }

Central Park Fun!! 

If you head to Central Park so that you’re there by 10 am, you can have your pick of row boats to row right in the lake in the center of Central Park! Wait too much later and there will likely be a wait plus the lake itself gets crowded with a bunch of people that row as backwards as you do. I rowed in college… so our boat were the super stars of the lake of course! Wink Wink. It will be the most fun you’ll have all trip!

• Rent boats at Central Park Loeb Boathouse for $15/hour (BRING CASH!!! They’ll need an additional deposit of $20)
• Boats fit up to 4 people all for the same $
• 10am to 6pm (April to Nov)

• Grab lunch at  Shake Shack. Best location to ensure short line is the Upper West Side just outside the park (Columbus Ave & 77th St). Even here we shared a burger and onion rings.
• From there, it’s just a short walk to Levain Bakery (74th St near Amsterdam) for their insanity in your mouth, world famous Chocolate Chip Cookie! It is amazing! Get 2 at least!
• Take the best chocolate chip cookie in NYC and roam the park a little more. Walk up Belvedere Castle (yup, there’s a castle in Central Park).

[NYC TIP]: I cannot stress enough the idea of sharing food in NYC. The portions are big, you’re snacking everywhere you go and it saves you MONEY!

From here we split up to take pedicab tours & rent bikes through the park. Whatever your energy or ability level, either is a perfect way to see all the sights of Central Park. Plan on about 1 1/2 hours to soak it all in. If you’re planning on biking yourself, there are some great hills but plenty of places to stop & take breaks!

• Here’s a link to Central Park Sightseeing Map & Attractions
• Pedicab Tours
• Bike Rentals & Tours

Central Park Mall

Pond in Central Park

Modern Art MoJo

Art is a passion of ours, so we can’t wait to make our way to Museum of Modern Art (or MoMA located at 53rd St near 5th Ave). It’s late afternoon, so we’ll only have a little less than 2 hours to tour it. That works out perfectly! The museum isn’t too big and if you have a moment to grab a coffee or a nibble at the cafe terrace overlooking the garden sculptures and the surrounding architecture, it’s worth it! So beautiful!

Battle Of The NYC Rooftop Bars

Since the girls split up to do our tours differently, we decide to have a battle of the rooftop bars! I have my daughter with me and she’s not allowed in the rooftop bar my aunt & cousin head to.

• 230 Fifth (27th St & 5th Ave): With an incredible view of the Chrysler Building and an unexpected tropical decor, it’s a great way to start the night or end it. It gets really packed as the night goes on, but there is plenty of seats during happy hour.
• Sky Terrace of the Hudson Hotel (58th St & 9th Ave): All ages are welcome here to relax, enjoy a cocktail, a take in the views of the Hudson River and the Statue of Liberty. The lobby of the hotel is amazing! A lush greenhouse strung with crystal chandeliers that leads out to a tequila & taco courtyard or up to the Sky Terrace.

Who do you think won the battle? 230 Fifth or Hudson Hotel Sky Terrace? (Leave us a comment & Vote!)

Good Eats On The Cheap… Head to the East Village

• Caracas Arepas Bar: Arepas are a South American cornbread hot pocket of goodness & yum. This tiny little restaurant has gotten a lot of great chatter, for good reason! It’s dang delicious and super affordable!
• The Big Gay Ice Cream Shop: chocolate dipped pretzel cone like you’ve never had before. So crazy yummy and the perfect way to end such a fun day!

 { Day 4 }  Walk the High Line

• The High Line is a public park built on a historic freight rail line elevated above the streets on Manhattan’s West Side. (Gansevoort Street in the Meatpacking District to West 34th Street, between 10th and 12th Avenues). Even on a overcast day, this is a great way to spend time outside enjoying the city!
• Start at the top and end in Chelsea Market so you can grab some nibbles.
• Click here for a MAP OF THE HIGHLINE

We were lucky in that there was a crazy, all white Lego Interactive Art Installation at the beginning. You never know what artists, musicians, or exhibits you’ll catch here. We go every visit and never have the same experience twice!

Let’s Shop SoHo!

After eating our way through Chelsea Market, we head down to SoHo to get a little shopping done… more like window shopping… SoHo’s pricey but you have a good shot of seeing celebs (We saw Anne Hathaway).

Our favorite shop in SoHo is Tierra (a Spanish Jewelry shop that has incredible beaded earrings, bracelets, and necklaces for $15-$80). Read more about this amazing little store & get to see inside in our Mother Daughter NYC Trip. We also make our way through Greenwich Village & Washington Square.

Dinner is wood fired pizza at Marta located in the swanky & modern Martha Washington Hotel. Order a Negroni and get cozy in their couch booths.

{ Day 5 } Wanna Go For A Boat Ride?

• Free Time: Whatever time you have left, fit all your “oops we never got to do that” items in. I love leaving time in a schedule for things you might have not gotten to do, either because of weather or time or any reason really. Itineraries are good but they better serve as guides or go to lists. Feel free to change things up & be loose around plans.
• Boat Cruise: Head to South Seaport & hop on a boat to cruise the island. The speedboat was put away for the season so we took the bigger boat which was actually a great tour. Our guide was very entertaining & we loved glorious sunshine and the wind in our face!

Do You Momofuku?

The one restaurant everyone salivates over when you mention NYC is Momofuku… at least everyone I know does. It’s the place that when you mention you’re planning a trip, you hear that one place called out over & over again. In our last trip we never made it. This time was going to be different dang it! I would make it to Momofuku! (Feel like I’m climbing a mountain or something…)

It was delicious and all the girls loved every slurp & every bite. Mmmm… Momofuku (no I’m not cussing you out, ha!)

So that’s our trip! Be sure to Download the FULL NYC Girls Trip Itinerary along with our GO-TO RESTAURANT LIST for Amazing Places to Eat!