New York

The metropolis of New York City stretches its wings along the mouth of the Hudson River and is, without doubt, one of the most culturally diverse, exciting and contrasting urban hubs in the world. 

Split into five boroughs, its main island of Manhattan is, unsurprisingly, the most densely populated area and is peppered with familiar landmarks split into a tapestry of districts. Manhattan’s heart is Midtown where some of New York’s most famed sights can be found such as bustling Times Square and the cultural Broadway Theatre District. The plazas and Art Deco buildings of the Rockefeller Centre are eminently strollable, and the sky-high Empire State Building is a landmark you can’t fail to miss. New York’s most affluent neighbourhood is the Upper East Side known for its high-end boutique shopping on Madison Avenue. It’s also home to some of the city’s greatest art centres and cultural mainstays including Museum Mile, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Guggenheim Museum and the Frick Collection, filled with revered Old Masters paintings. 

Upper West Side sits alongside Central Park and the Hudson River, made up of iconic brownstone houses and historic apartment builds. The American Museum of Natural History is a draw to the neighbourhood – popular with families and visitors alike and the Lincoln Centre for the Performing Arts is the place to catch dance, music and film performances featuring an eclectic selection from across the globe. On the west side of Manhattan is Chelsea, an arty district dissected by the High Line – a greenery-infused pathway set up on an old railway track and home to the Chelsea Art District– a compact few streets full of galleries. Discover the Whitney Museum of American Art, designed by Renzo Piano, featuring a comprehensive selection of American 20th-century art. 

Lower Manhattan in the south includes Greenwich Village, a lively neighbourhood with a great restaurant and nightlife scene and Washington Square Park, a pretty green space which inspired writers Henry James and Allen Ginsburg. TriBeCa is the place to see a range of architectural styles, from Gothic Revival to Art Deco seen in cast-iron buildings with ornate facades and tall portal columns, loft warehouses and fabulous redbrick buildings. Finally, FiDi is the Financial District, a cluster of skyscrapers such as the One World Trade Centrepinnacle that sits alongside Wall Street and the historic buildings of the New York Stock Exchange, Federal Hall National Memorial and Trinity Church.

One of the most exciting cities in the world, come to New York for a taste of the Big Apple, dipping into art galleries, opera houses, nightclubs, restaurants and shopping. It may seem unfathomably dense and running to a 24-hour clock, but it’s well worth it to take advantage of all the city has to offer. People watching in this diverse city is a never dull pastime either, but neither is reading the skyline in a city packed with endless architectural eye-candy.