Our return to New York City was a long awaited one. I never would have expected that when I moved home to Palm Beach in November 2016 after nearly four years living in Manhattan that I wouldn’t return until six years later. Living in NYC was such a privilege and despite my decision to return to Florida permanently, I loved living there. The reason for waiting six whole years to visit was simply that time flew by fast. Oh, and you can’t forget COVID. Once we started feeling more comfortable from being vaccinated, I kept repeating, “we have to go back to the city soon.” At last, in June 2022, we returned to the Big Apple. Before your next adventure, keep reading for 4 simple tips for planning a perfect NYC trip.
When To Visit NYC
Honestly, there’s not a bad time to visit New York. One of the best times? June! It’s not too crowded and the weather is very pleasant. Most of the rain from spring has passed and the temperatures are warm but not by any means hot like it gets into summer. If I had to choose another favorite month, it would be November…specifically early/mid November when the fall leaves tend to be at their peak and the weather is just gorgeous.
NYC Packing Tips
When packing for NYC, my top three recommendations are to bring comfortable shoes, plan to layer, and be aware of dress codes for going out at night and fine dining. I also avoid flowy mini dresses/skirts…you never know when a gust of wind will fly through the streets! For more detailed packing guides and luggage reviews, check out the links at the bottom of this post.
Finding a Hotel in NYC
I wrote a separate post about NYC hotels and a review of where we stayed. In the meantime, besides budget of course, you should focus on location. LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION. It’s everything in NYC. Where will you spend most of your time? How close is it to the subway you’ll take most to get around? Is it walkable to places on your itinerary? Is it centrally located? Is it on a main street where it’ll be noisier?
Booking Restaurant Reservations in NYC
When planning our meals out, I noticed that most restaurants accept reservations now. At least, more than there used to be. Resy was the most popular reservations platform, with some places on OpenTable or Yelp. Resy specifies when reservations are released for each restaurant, and also has an amazing “notify” feature where you’ll get a notification/email when a reservation becomes available at your desired time. I was SHOCKED how fast reservations were going at some popular restaurants. I’m talking within seconds of the reservations opening, GONE completely…every time slot. It was quite the morning adrenaline rush I wasn’t expecting!
Some places open reservations one month out, while others were only one week. If you can narrow down your top picks and take note of the date/time when reservations open at least one month before your trip, then it requires diligence and luck to book them. If you miss it, use the notify feature, check back regularly, and just remember that a lot of people will cancel as the date gets closer, especially if they have cancellation policies to avoid getting charged. There’s also an Instagram account @nycresx that gives and shares last-minute reservations. Instead of being charged to cancel, you can “give” or submit it to them and they will re-share it for someone to take your spot.