New York in 3 Days: The Lucalvry Itinerary

Day 1

The Met, Central Park, the West Village evening

1. 8.00am

   Hotel breakfast

   Hotel breakfast. Walk to the Met for the 9.30am opening — be at the steps by 9.20am. (If your hotel is downtown, taxi up the FDR by 9am to avoid traffic.)

2. 9.30am

   The Metropolitan Museum of Art — three hours covers the European Paintings galleries (V…

   The Metropolitan Museum of Art — three hours covers the European Paintings galleries (Vermeer in 614, Caravaggio in 621), the American Wing (the Tiffany glass and the Hudson River School), the Egyptian Wing (the Temple of Dendur in Sackler) and the Greek and Roman Court. Skip the temporary exhibitions on a 3-day visit unless one is unmissable.

3. 12.30pm

   Lunch at the Members' Dining Room (rooftop, requires a temporary museum membership at t…

   Lunch at the Members' Dining Room (rooftop, requires a temporary museum membership at the desk — worth it for the view) or at Café Sabarsky in the Neue Galerie three blocks south for the Viennese standard.

4. 2.30pm

   Walk south through Central Park — Bethesda Terrace and Fountain (the canonical photo),…

   Walk south through Central Park — Bethesda Terrace and Fountain (the canonical photo), Sheep Meadow, Bow Bridge — and exit at Columbus Circle. Forty-five minutes at a slow pace.

5. 4.00pm

   Coffee at Maman on Centre Street or the Bryant Park kiosk if you continue further south

   Coffee at Maman on Centre Street or the Bryant Park kiosk if you continue further south. Reset at the hotel.

6. 6.30pm

   Aperitivo at Bemelmans Bar at the Carlyle (the Ludwig Bemelmans murals, the most atmosp…

   Aperitivo at Bemelmans Bar at the Carlyle (the Ludwig Bemelmans murals, the most atmospheric hotel bar in New York, no reservations) or the King Cole Bar at the St. Regis if your base is closer to midtown.

7. 8.30pm

   Dinner at Carbone in NoHo (the Major Food Group spectacle, the spicy rigatoni vodka is…

   Dinner at Carbone in NoHo (the Major Food Group spectacle, the spicy rigatoni vodka is the order, three months ahead through Resy or your hotel concierge) or, if you can't get Carbone, L'Artusi on West 10th in the West Village. Walk through the West Village's brownstone streets afterwards — the city's best post-dinner walk.

Day 2

Downtown morning, Brooklyn Bridge, midtown evening

1. 7.30am

   Hotel breakfast

   Hotel breakfast. Subway or taxi to the World Trade Center / Oculus for the 9/11 Memorial pools at opening (free, contemplative; the Memorial Museum below is a separate two-hour visit and a Day 3 add-on).

2. 9.30am

   Walk north through Tribeca to the new Whitney Museum of American Art at Gansevoort and…

   Walk north through Tribeca to the new Whitney Museum of American Art at Gansevoort and Washington — two hours covers the permanent collection (Hopper's *Early Sunday Morning*, the Calder mobiles) and the rotating contemporary floors. The rooftop terrace is the museum's hidden draw.

3. 12.30pm

   Lunch at the Highline-side Santina (Chelsea Market's Italian-coastal sister room) or, f…

   Lunch at the Highline-side Santina (Chelsea Market's Italian-coastal sister room) or, for a more reliable downtown lunch, walk seven minutes north to Cookshop on West 20th.

4. 2.00pm

   Walk the Highline north from Gansevoort to 30th Street — the elevated park, the Hudson…

   Walk the Highline north from Gansevoort to 30th Street — the elevated park, the Hudson Yards Vessel and the new Edge observation deck if the weather is clear. Allow ninety minutes for a slow walk; descend at 16th Street and continue to Chelsea Market for an hour of food-hall walking.

5. 4.30pm

   Reset at the hotel

   Reset at the hotel.

6. 6.00pm

   Walk the Brooklyn Bridge (catch the BMT or a taxi to the Brooklyn-side Cadman Plaza, th…

   Walk the Brooklyn Bridge (catch the BMT or a taxi to the Brooklyn-side Cadman Plaza, then walk back into Manhattan against the sunset). Allow forty-five minutes; this is the second-canonical photograph of the trip after Bethesda.

7. 8.30pm

   Dinner at Le Bernardin on West 51st (three Michelin stars, the most consistent serious…

   Dinner at Le Bernardin on West 51st (three Michelin stars, the most consistent serious seafood dinner in America, six weeks ahead) or, if you prefer a less formal evening, Frenchette on Franklin in Tribeca for the most Parisian dinner south of Houston. Either is the central New York dinner of any first trip.

Day 3

MoMA, Central Park, last evening

Three days is not New York. But three days done in this order is enough to know whether you'll come back — and almost everyone does.

1. 8.00am

   Hotel breakfast

   Hotel breakfast. Walk to the Museum of Modern Art on West 53rd for the 10.30am opening — buy a timed-entry ticket the night before to skip the queue.

2. 10.30am

   MoMA — two hours covers the fifth-floor permanent painting collection (the Picassos, th…

   MoMA — two hours covers the fifth-floor permanent painting collection (the Picassos, the Matisses, the Van Gogh *Starry Night*), the Monet *Water Lilies* room and the rotating sculpture garden. Skip the temporary fashion or design exhibitions on a tight 3-day visit unless one is the reason you came.

3. 12.30pm

   Lunch at the Modern in the MoMA atrium (one Michelin star, the bar room is the smart pi…

   Lunch at the Modern in the MoMA atrium (one Michelin star, the bar room is the smart pick at lunch) or, for a quicker meal, Sant Ambroeus on West Houston for the Milanese standard.

4. 2.30pm

   Walk to Central Park's southern entrance and rent a bike or a horse-drawn carriage for…

   Walk to Central Park's southern entrance and rent a bike or a horse-drawn carriage for a 45-minute loop, or simply walk to Bethesda Terrace and the Conservatory Garden if you missed it on Day 1. The Conservatory Water (the model-boat pond at 74th and Fifth) is the most underrated spot in the park.

5. 4.30pm

   Coffee at the Sant Ambroeus outpost in the Whitney's lobby, or the Madison Avenue Sant…

   Coffee at the Sant Ambroeus outpost in the Whitney's lobby, or the Madison Avenue Sant Ambroeus if you're closer to the Upper East Side.

6. 6.30pm

   Sunset rooftop at the Press Lounge at the Ink48 in Hell's Kitchen (the cleanest panoram…

   Sunset rooftop at the Press Lounge at the Ink48 in Hell's Kitchen (the cleanest panoramic view of Midtown West and the Hudson) or the Manhatta on the 60th floor of 28 Liberty (the downtown alternative, with the Empire State and the Statue of Liberty in the same panorama).

7. 8.00pm

   A final dinner — Daniel on East 65th (two Michelin stars, the Boulud flagship, six week…

   A final dinner — Daniel on East 65th (two Michelin stars, the Boulud flagship, six weeks ahead) for the classic Upper East Side serious dinner; Atomix in NoMad (two Michelin stars, modern Korean, three months ahead) for the most ambitious tasting menu in the city; or, for a less formal last evening, Estela on Houston for the Ignacio Mattos small-plates standard.

8. 10.30pm

   A nightcap at Apothéke (the Chinatown speakeasy) or Bemelmans Bar at the Carlyle for a…

   A nightcap at Apothéke (the Chinatown speakeasy) or Bemelmans Bar at the Carlyle for a final return. End the trip the right way.