New York City long weekend

Day by day

The plan

Times are suggestions. Opening hours and seasons change, so check before you go. Once it’s in your trip, move anything you like.

1. Day 1

   Arrive and Midtown

   1. 13:00

      Airport to Manhattan

      Getting around

      From JFK, the AirTrain connects to the subway or commuter rail; from Newark, a train runs into Penn Station.

   2. 15:00

      Stay in Midtown

      Stay

      Central for the subway and walkable to most of the first days’ sights.

   3. 16:30

      Grand Central Terminal

      Activity

      Look up at the painted ceiling of the main concourse, then try the whispering gallery downstairs.

   4. 19:00

      Times Square and a Broadway show

      Activity

      See the lights once, then step into one of the theaters on the side streets.

2. Day 2

   Downtown and the Brooklyn Bridge

   1. 08:30

      Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island

      Activity

      Ferries leave from Battery Park; go on the first boat to beat the lines, and give Ellis Island’s immigration museum time.

   2. 13:30

      Lunch: dumplings in Chinatown

      Food & drink

      Small, busy kitchens and some of the best cheap food in the city.

   3. 15:00

      9/11 Memorial

      Activity

      Two reflecting pools set in the footprints of the Twin Towers, with the names of the victims around them.

   4. 17:00

      Walk the Brooklyn Bridge

      Activity

      About 30 to 40 minutes on the raised walkway, with the skyline behind you as you head to Brooklyn.

   5. 19:00

      Dinner: pizza in DUMBO

      Food & drink

      Finish at Brooklyn Bridge Park, where Manhattan lights up across the river.

3. Day 3

   Central Park and the museums

   1. 10:00

      The Metropolitan Museum of Art

      Activity

      Pick two or three wings, such as the Egyptian temple and the European paintings; you can’t see it all.

   2. 12:30

      Walk across Central Park

      Activity

      Bethesda Terrace, Bow Bridge and the lake, heading west across the park.

   3. 13:30

      Lunch: bagels or a deli sandwich on the Upper West Side

      Food & drink

      New York’s classic quick lunch, a block or two from the park.

   4. 14:30

      American Museum of Natural History

      Activity

      Dinosaur halls and the giant blue whale; a good stop with kids.

   5. 18:00

      Top of the Rock at sunset

      Activity

      The view from Rockefeller Center takes in Central Park and the Empire State Building together.

4. Day 4

   The High Line and the Village

   1. 09:00

      The High Line

      Activity

      A park built on an old elevated rail line, walked from the Meatpacking District up to Hudson Yards.

   2. 12:00

      Lunch in Chelsea

      Food & drink

      Tacos, ramen or a food hall near the south end of the High Line.

   3. 13:30

      Greenwich Village and Washington Square Park

      Activity

      Tree-lined streets of brownstones, then the arch and the street performers in the square.

   4. 16:30

      Head to the airport

      Getting around

      Leave plenty of time; traffic to JFK and Newark is slow in the late afternoon.