Morning
Land at JFK
AirTrain to Jamaica, then the LIRR into Grand Central Madison — about 35 minutes and no traffic.
Drop bags at The Algonquin
59 W 44th St. Open since 1902, home of the literary Round Table and a resident house cat.
Afternoon / Day
Grand Central Terminal
89 E 42nd St. Free to wander: the constellation ceiling, and the whispering gallery under the tiled arches by the Oyster Bar.
Lunch at Grand Central Oyster Bar
Lower level of the terminal, open since 1913. Order an oyster pan roast at the counter. Closed weekends, so today is the day.
New York Public Library + Bryant Park
476 Fifth Ave. Free. Past the lions Patience and Fortitude to the Rose Main Reading Room, then out the back into Bryant Park.
MoMA
11 W 53rd St, open daily 10:30 to 5:30 and to 8:30 on Fridays. Starry Night and the Water Lilies room are on floor five.
Evening
Sunset at Top of the Rock
30 Rockefeller Plaza, two blocks from MoMA. Book the timed slot ~45 min before sunset; the Empire State Building is in this view.
Dinner at Keens Steakhouse
72 W 36th St, trading since 1885 under a ceiling hung with clay churchwarden pipes. The mutton chop is the order. Reserve; closed Saturday lunch.
Morning
Breakfast at Lexington Candy Shop
1226 Lexington Ave at 83rd. A 1925 luncheonette that never modernised — eggs at the counter, from 7am on weekdays.
The Met
1000 Fifth Ave. Closed every Wednesday, which is why it sits on day two. Go straight to the Temple of Dendur, then the American Wing.
Afternoon / Day
Lunch at Cafe Sabarsky
1048 Fifth Ave, inside the Neue Galerie. Viennese room, goulash and Sachertorte. Both the gallery and the cafe are closed Tuesdays; expect a wait at lunch.
Cross Central Park on foot
In at Fifth and 85th, out at 81st and Central Park West. Belvedere Castle, then down to Bethesda Terrace and over Bow Bridge.
American Museum of Natural History
200 Central Park West, where the park path drops you out. Ninety minutes gets the blue whale, the Gilder Center and the dinosaur floor.
Evening
Lincoln Center plaza
10 Lincoln Center Plaza. The Revson Fountain runs after dark against the glass of the Met Opera. Free to stand and watch.
Dinner at Cafe Luxembourg
200 W 70th St. Upper West Side brasserie open since 1983 — red banquettes, steak frites, and a post-theatre crowd.
Morning
9/11 Memorial and Museum
180 Greenwich St. Museum open Wednesday to Monday, timed tickets in advance. Allow 90 minutes; the pools outside are free.
Staten Island Ferry round trip
Whitehall Terminal, 4 South St. Free, 25 minutes each way. Stand on the starboard side outbound for the Statue of Liberty.
Afternoon / Day
Dim sum at Nom Wah Tea Parlor
13 Doyers St, on the bend in Chinatown. Open since 1920. Pan-fried dumplings and the original egg roll.
The High Line
Enter at Gansevoort St. Free. A freight viaduct replanted as a park — walk north as far as you like, then drop back to street level.
Little Island
Pier 55 at West 13th St, open 6am to midnight and free to enter. Tulip-shaped concrete pots holding a hill over the Hudson.
Washington Square Park
Fifth Ave at Waverly Pl. The arch, the fountain, the chess tables and whoever is playing piano that afternoon.
Evening
Dinner at Minetta Tavern
113 MacDougal St, a Village bar since 1937. Book on Resy well ahead — the dining room is small and the burger has a following.
Jazz at the Village Vanguard
178 Seventh Ave S. A basement room since 1935 and the reason half the great live jazz records sound like this. Book ahead through the link on their site.
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Morning
Walk the Brooklyn Bridge
Pedestrian entrance across from City Hall Park on Centre St. Go early and eastbound — the skyline is behind you the whole way.
DUMBO and Jane's Carousel
65 Water St, Brooklyn Bridge Park. A restored 1922 carousel in a glass box; the Manhattan Bridge view is one block up Washington St.
Brooklyn Heights Promenade
Runs above the BQE from Orange St to Remsen St. Ten quiet minutes with the best free view of Lower Manhattan in the city.
Afternoon / Day
Coal-oven pizza at Juliana's
19 Old Fulton St, under the bridge. Open daily 11:30 to 9, but the kitchen shuts 3:15 to 4 — get in before three.
Brooklyn Museum
200 Eastern Pkwy, on the 2 or 3 train. Closed Mondays and Tuesdays. Egyptian galleries downstairs, The Dinner Party on the fourth floor.
Brooklyn Botanic Garden
990 Washington Ave, next door to the museum but a separate ticket. Open to 6pm on Saturdays; the Japanese garden is the reason to go.
Evening
Sunset at Domino Park
15 River St, Williamsburg. Six acres on the old sugar refinery site, open to 11pm, with the Williamsburg Bridge framing the skyline.
Dinner at Peter Luger
178 Broadway, serving steak since 1887. No credit cards — cash, US debit or a Luger card only. Reserve weeks out.
Upper Manhattan: Cloisters to Harlem
Morning
Check out, bags at the bell desk
Leave the luggage at The Algonquin and travel light — you come back through Midtown on the way to the airport.
The Met Cloisters
99 Margaret Corbin Dr, Fort Tryon Park. Take the A train to 190th St. Closed Wednesdays. Go for the Unicorn Tapestries.
Afternoon / Day
Strivers' Row
W 138th and 139th between Adam Clayton Powell Jr and Frederick Douglass. Row houses of 1891-93, one block by Stanford White. Just walk it.
Lunch at Sylvia's
328 Malcolm X Blvd, Harlem, open since 1962. Smothered chicken, collards, cornbread, sweet potato pie. Sunday queues are long.
Studio Museum in Harlem
144 W 125th St, in its new purpose-built home. Open Wednesday to Sunday; admission is free every Sunday.
Apollo Theater marquee
253 W 125th St, two blocks west of the museum. The historic home of Amateur Night, its marquee relit in 2026 during a long restoration — check what is running before you plan around it.
Evening
Fly home from JFK
Collect the bags in Midtown, then LIRR to Jamaica and the AirTrain. Leave Harlem about four hours before departure.
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