I’ve just returned from my weekend trip in New York City, and after living there for over 5 years – I missed it so much! This time, I traveled solo to New York with our 3-month old daughter, and met up with my mom in the city. And of course, Nick joined us later on too. My mom is truly amazing, and the best travel buddy for a girls’ trip! We had so much fun together, and we managed to pack so many activities into our time in the city! After a successful weekend trip, I thought I would share some of my absolute favorite places to see, shop, and eat with you!
Friday
Our first stop when we arrived in New York was checking into The Roxy Hotel. You can’t beat this hotel’s central location and charming neighborhood. It’s close to Tribeca and within walking distance of SoHo!
The first thing on my list was a stop at Blue Bottle Coffee! It is a NYC staple and one of my favorite coffee spots. They have multiple locations throughout the city (19 to be exact) so you are sure to be close to one, no matter where you’re staying in the city! I’m a fan of their Iced Oat Milk Matcha Lattes and baguette sandwiches that are delicous!
Tip: Since I knew we would be doing lots of walking, I made sure to bring along Teddi’s travel car seat which converts into a stroller. We have this one from Doona and it has been amazing! Light and compact – I will never travel without it!
Once we were caffeinated, we made our way to SoHo to do a little shopping! Here are a few of my favorite stores to stop at in the area:
After a full day of travel and shopping, we needed to fuel up, so we made reservations for an Italian dinner at Terra Wine Bar Tribeca! Check out their Instagram for more photos and reviews. The most popular menu items are their fresh pasta and wood fired pizza. It was the perfect way to end our first day in New York!
Saturday
We started our day with brunch at Gilligan’s. They have the best frozen watermelon margaritas! They also have happy hour daily from 3pm-5pm with $2 East Coast Oysters + $12 Aperol Spritz & Rosé on tap, so if you don’t stop by for brunch, I’d recommend visiting in the afternoon too!
After brunch we headed to the Virgin Hotel pool! Located on the 30th floor, the pool has amazing views of the city. (You can buy day passes, but we had friends that were staying there and they let us join them) It was the perfect way for us to relax and cool off during the heat!
For dinner, we ate at Mamo, another delicious Italian spot! It was just a 5-minute walk from our hotel which was a huge plus.
After that we took off to lower Manhattan for a sunset sail boat tour with friends! The 2 hour trip takes you to see the Statue of Liberty. The view of the city from the water was stunning! Another fun view of the city is the new Summit ONE Vanderbilt. I visited this new attraction the last time I was in NYC and the 360 panoramic views are breathtaking. Check out my Instagram to see the full experience!
To end the night, we had a little late night out at the Django Speakeasy with live jazz music! It was so much fun to let loose with my friends after a full day of travel!
Sunday
This morning started super early for me! I had my hair and makeup done by @bymadelineeleanor, a professional global hair and makeup artist based in NYC! She is amazing and so talented, and was even featured in Vogue! I absolutely loved the look that she created for me.
Once everyone was dressed and ready, we went to Central Park for family photos. Our favorite photographer @sophiekayephotography shot for us, and she truly knows how to capture such amazing moments! I love this one of Nick and Teddi near the Bethesda Fountain.
After photos were done, we made our way towards Maman coffee. The greenery and vibes inside this spot were amazing! I enjoyed the matcha, a croissant and Carol’s tomato basil soup!
Staying near the park for the day, I planned a girls’ picnic with Picnic and Peonies and they put together this magical setup with comfortable pillows for seating, umbrellas for shade, drinks and light bites for the guests. It was amazing to be able to host such a fun event with my girlfriends without having to worry about setting up and taking down! During the picnic we had @chestercanasa, a NYC based photographer come in and take candid photos while I introduced my daughter to all of my friends! It was so special to have these moments documented!
For dinner we tried Kyuramen and wow! The ramen was delicious! Plus, Nick and I got to sneak away for a date night while my mom kept Teddi. It was a perfect meal to end our trip on!
Monday
Before we left New York we stopped by another favorite and very popular spot – Ralph’s coffee! It’s located close to Central Park in the Upper East Side, and the shop has exquisite indoor seating! The coffee shop is connected to the actual Ralph Lauren clothing store, and even features outdoor seating! While they have a few other locations and coffee trucks set up near Rockefeller Center, this location has the best scenery! Here is their Instagram with more photos! How cute!
With our visit to Ralph’s, our long weekend in New York City was complete! I feel like we fit a little bit of everything into our itinerary. It was a great way to experience some of the highlights of the city in one weekend! I always enjoy traveling back to the city and visiting the place I once called home. There is so much to experience in New York, and while living here, I actually created a Top 20 Restaurants blog post list and an Outdoor Activity Bucket List for NYC!
I just updated my “NYC Recs” story highlight on Instagram with photos and videos of everything above, plus a few outfits I wore while traveling! Make sure to check it out when you’re ready to plan your own weekend trip to the city!
Thank you Caila for sharing your amazing adventures!!! Definitely will keep these notes as we want to do a weekend in NYC!!! Teddi 🧸 looked like she had a fun weekend too!!!