This June marks my fourth year living in New York City and my fifth year living in New York State! For those who don’t know, I moved to Syracuse for grad school in 2016 and then came straight to the city a year later. It’s been a wild ride, but I am in love with this city and everything it’s given me. Every year, I do a post in honor of my New York anniversary. Last year, I recreated Sex And The City looks. And this year, I wanted to finally put together the ultimate New York City bucket list!
Here’s my extensive list of 100+ places to see, eat, shop, stay, and more! Everything I’ve done is bolded, so please feel free to ask me about any of them! I’ve also linked out to any relevant blog posts I’ve done on these spots. And be sure to follow me on Instagram for more NYC content!
Tourist Attractions & Experiences
- Times Square
- Empire State Building
- Statue of Liberty
- Little Italy
- Chinatown
- Broadway
Here are some of the shows I’ve seen & loved:- Hamilton
- Dear Evan Hansen
- Six
- Moulin Rouge
- The Lion King
- Hadestown
- Mean Girls
- Frozen
- Waitress
- Anastasia
- Topdog / Underdog
- The Front Page
- Top of The Rock / Rockefeller Center
- Ferry Ride
- Roosevelt Island Tram
- The Edge
- SUMMIT One Vanderbilt
- The Brooklyn Bridge
- The Vessel
- The Oculus
- Grand Central
- Apollo Theater
- New York Public Library
- Take the subway
- Flatiron Building
- Carrie Bradshaw’s Apartment (for Sex and the City fans)
- Stuyvesant Street (one of the oldest streets in Manhattan)
- Get a slice of NYC pizza (there are hundreds of places to choose from)
- Find a speakeasy
- See a burlesque show
- Bathhouse Spa
- QC Spa on Governors Island
Museums & Monuments
Check out my post on the best pop-up exhibits in NYC.
- The Metropolitan Museum of Art
- The MoMA
- Museum of Natural History
- Brooklyn Museum
- Intrepid Sea and Air Museum
- Transit Museum
- Museum of Sex
- MoMa PS1
- Museum of Ice Cream
- Color Factory
- The Guggenheim
- Museum of Art and Design
- FIT Museum
- 9/11 Memorial
- NYC AIDS Memorial Park at St. Vincent’s Triangle
- Museum of The Moving Image
- Madame Tussauds Wax Museum
- Ripley’s Believe It or Not! Times Square
- New Museum
- RiseNY
- Museum of Broadway
Shopping
- 5th Avenue
- Soho
- The Strand Bookstore
- Chelsea Market
- Hudson Yards
- Westfield World Trade Center (at The Oculus)
- Macy’s on 34th St.
- Showfields
- Harry Potter Store
- Extra Butter sneaker store (the one in Queens has a hidden speakeasy)
Restaurants, Bars, Dessert Shops
You can also check out a post I wrote about places to eat in New York City for more!
- Sweet Chick (Brooklyn, southern comfort-food)
- Magic Hour Rooftop Bar (Manhattan, amusement park-themed cocktail bar)
- Blue Box Café at Tiffany & Co. (Manhattan, prix fixe American)
- Ralph’s Coffee (Manhattan, Ralph Lauren’s coffee shop)
- Ellen’s Stardust Diner (Times Square, ’50s-themed diner with singing servers)
- Sylvia’s (Harlem, soul food)
- The Bagel Store — order a rainbow bagel (Brooklyn, bagel shop)
- Magnolia Bakery — try the banana pudding (Manhattan, bakery)
- Red Rooster (Harlem, comfort food by Chef Marcus Samuelsson)
- NoMo Kitchen (Manhattan, upscale farm-to-table)
- Prince Street Pizza (Manhattan, square pizza)
- Sugar Freak (Queens, creole)
- Prince Tea House (multiple locations, tea and dessert shop)
- M Tea (Queens, all pink tea shop)
- 230 Fifth (Manhattan, rooftop bar)
- Westlight (Brooklyn, rooftop bar)
- Funny Face Bakery (Manhattan, cookie shop)
Parks & Beaches
- The High Line
- Coney Island Beach
- Luna Amusement Park (at Coney Island)
- Rockaway Beach
- Central Park
- Central Park Zoo / Bronx Zoo / Prospect Park Zoo / Queens Zoo
- New York Botanical Garden / Queens Botanical Garden
- New York Aquarium (at Coney Island)
- Prospect Park
- Washington Square Park
- Battery Park — ride the SeaGlass Carousel
- Domino Park
- Astoria Park
- Little Island
Hotels
- The Palace (I haven’t stayed there, but I’ve went to see the Christmas tree.)
- The Plaza Hotel
- The New Yorker
- The Standard
- TWA Hotel
- The Williamsburg Hotel
- Arlo
- The Ludlow Hotel
- Public Hotel (I haven’t stayed there, but I attended an events there.)
Seasonal Events
Check out my blog post on the best things to do in NYC during Christmas and unique things to do during fall in New York for more!
Sports
- Knicks NBA game at Madison Square Garden
- Nets NBA game at Barclays Center
- Yankees MLB game at Yankee Stadium
- Mets MLB game at Citi Field
- Giants or Jets NFL game at MetLife Stadium
Entertainment / Just For Fun
- Coney Island Mermaid Parade
- Ice skating at Bryant Park, Prospect Park, or Rockefeller Plaza
- The LuminoCity Festival at Randall’s Island
- Profundo Day Club Rooftop Pool
- New York Fashion Week
- See the Rockettes at Radio City Music Hall
- BeautyCon
- Tribeca Film Festival
- Comic Con
- Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade
- Anime NYC
Culture
- CurlFest
- Afropunk
- National Puerto Rican Day Parade
- Pride Parade
- Lunar New Year Parade & Festival
Anything I forgot to add to this New York City Bucket List?
Let me know!
