Let me begin by saying New York was amazing in every sense, which is why it holds a special place in my heart. The travel there was super easy, we got a direct flight that felt quicker than it was and had a car service booked to take us straight to our hotel in Manhattan.

As it was our first time in New York, we stayed mostly in the Manhattan area. This allowed us to visit all the main attractions easily. Although now looking back I’m sad we didn’t spend more time in Brooklyn. There is so much to do and see there, but that just gives me an excuse to go back right?

If you’re planning a trip, here’s a list of some popular sights and activities:

• Times Square
• Catch a Broadway show
• Central Park
• Central Park Zoo, Bronx Zoo
• Empire State building
• Carnegie Hall
• Chrysler building
• Rockefeller
• The Metropolitan Museum of Art
• 5th avenue
• Bloomingdales
• Macy’s
• Soho (friend’s apartment)
• Brooklyn & Manhattan bridge
• Hop on & off bus tour
• Statue of Liberty & Ellis Island
• 9/11 Memorial & Ground Zero
• One World Trade Center
• Coney Island
• Washington Square Park

We hit most of the hot spots within the first couple of days and did some major shopping along the way. We then went on a boat tour that took us up to the Statue of Liberty which was amazing. We were also lucky enough to be able to take a short helicopter tour of Manhattan which to this day is still one of the best experiences of my life! If you have a little extra money to spend, I would recommend this unique way of viewing the city. We booked some of our activities online before we got there and others we did once we arrived, which worked perfectly for us.

We went in February and even with the colder temperatures we had a lot of sunshine. I think New York is at its best during the colder seasons, especially Christmas time.

To get around we got use to hailing yellow cabs, which can get very expensive. I would recommend using the subway as its cheap and you get to experience the life of a typical New Yorker.

I would go back to New York in a heartbeat and already have a list of places I want to visit when I do.