My boyfriend and I recently visited New York City to celebrate our one-year anniversary. We had a great time even though it was freezing!
This blog post includes fun things to do in New York along with the cost breakdown of everything we spent while out and about in the city.
Though please keep in mind that everything included is rounded up to the nearest dollar to keep things simple.
NAVIGATING THE CITY
We flew into the LaGuardia airport from Charlotte, N.C. Our tickets were both $175 with Delta airlines and we arrived in New York in a little over an hour and a half.
Once we arrived, we took the Qlink, a free shuttle service that takes passengers to the Roosevelt subway station.
Navigating the city can be a lot if you aren’t used to taking public transportation. After a little bit, you get the hang of it!
You can purchase a metrocard at any subway station. A single pass costs $2.75 but if you plan to be in the city for a few days you can get a 7 day pass with unlimited rides for $33.
WHERE WE STAYED
We stayed at The Public Hotel, a boutique hotel with great views of the city and very modern finishes. There was also a club that was free to enter for guests. They played house music and served bomb drinks.
FUN THINGS TO DO IN NEW YORK
While we waited for our room to be ready, we had lunch at Lombardi’s Pizza. Which is actually America’s first pizzeria!
Gennaro Lombardi is actually credited with making New York style pizza. The restaurant only takes cash so keep this in mind if you plan on visiting.
We shared the rustic double pepperoni pizza, which was just what I expected. I will say you could probably find better pizza in the city but it’s still worth trying! With drinks our total came to $38.
After strolling through the city we checked into the hotel and got ready for The Summit One.
General admission is about $40 but we immersed in the full experience and had cocktails at the top afterward. The Ultimate summit experience is $73.
The views were incredible. Undoubtedly my favorite part of the entire trip. Before you go you should know that you’ll have to wear black shoe covers in order to enter.
Also, as you ascend your ears will pop! So, keep that in mind.
After The Summit we had dinner at Osteria Laguna. This was the best Italian I’d had in a while. I had homemade ravioli stuffed with fresh salmon and goat cheese. I highly recommend this dish which cost $24.
Altogether with drinks and dessert our meal cost $72.
The next day, we started the day with breakfast at The Grey Dog, an all day coffee shop that serves up all your favorite American style dishes.
I enjoyed a hot matcha and egg and cheese croissant. My boyfriend had the Grey Dog’s Breakfast – French toast, eggs and bacon with home fries. Our total came to $51.
Afterward, we took the train to Ralph’s Coffee. Iconic! We even saw Sam Smith while we were there.
I’ll say this is a place that is cool to visit and great for an Instagram picture, but the coffee isn’t all it’s cracked up to be…we both had a cappuccino with vanilla, which was $4.50.
Later that afternoon we went to Hudson Yards and strolled around all of the shops. Jeremy bought a new shirt which he wore later that night at Nubeluz.
Nubeluz is a high-end cocktail bar that serves light snacks and…well…cocktails!
Before we spent $101 there, we had dinner at Blue Ribbon Fried Chicken. We both got chicken sandwiches and shared fries and baked mac n’ cheese.
We ended the night at the club back at the hotel and slept in the next morning before heading to brunch at Charm Bar and Restaurant in Brooklyn.
This is a Black owned establishment that is right across the street from the Barclays center. (We went to the Brooklyn Nets game later that night).
After brunch we headed to the Brooklyn Museum. We got tickets for Virgil Abloh: “Figures of Speech” exhibition which was $50.
After going through the exhibit, we headed back to catch the Brooklyn Nets game which was SO good.
We got great seats on the 17th row which cost $375, and a stranger paid for our popcorn and sodas!
They’d seen our pamphlet from the exhibit and after a quick conversation about it they offered to pay for our things.
After the game we got birria taco’s at a nearby hole in the wall restaurant for $15.
That concludes the recap of our trip!
I had a great time celebrating one year with my boyfriend. I can’t wait to visit the city again and make more memories with my best friend.
