American author EB White once quipped about this city of eight and a half million inhabitants: “New York provides not only a continuing excitation but also a spectacle that is continuing.” And while he may have said this nearly a century ago, his words still ring true to this day. The surface of New York City may be always transforming, but its heart never really changes. Over the course of a weekend in New York spend one day seeing the sites in Manhattan and another day wandering the heart of global hipsterism in Brooklyn for the ultimate city break. Here’s how to do it.

And for further New York inspiration, see our guides to the city’s best hotels, restaurants, nightlife, bars, shopping, attractions and free things to do.

Eat: Take a bite out of Brooklyn

Confidant, an industrial-chic seafood-leaning spot, is the first quasi-fine-dining restaurant in Industry City, a mixed-use former warehouse space with art galleries, shops, and restaurants. One of the buzziest new spots in the borough is The Snail, serving up bistro-style American feel-good fare (think: lamb tartare and pasta with crab doused in saffron-spiked beurre blanc). Il Gigante, located in Ridgewood, Queens, just across the Brooklyn border, is a new rustic space and is the ideal venue for way-above-average central Italian fare.

Drink: Rooftops in Manhattan

High-altitude alfresco imbibing has recently made a major comeback and this season a few new rooftop spots are heating up the scene. Newly opened Hudson VU, hugging the Hudson River on the 16th floor, shakes up craft cocktails with 360-degree views of the Midtown skyline. Also in Midtown is the new Italian-accented Bar Sprezzatura, 16 floors above the street, where Gen Z’ers and Millennials go to sip Aperol spritzes and gawk at the sunset. Downtown, the new One40 serves up classic and signature cocktails with stunning views of the World Trade Center and the twinkling lights of the lower Manhattan skyline.

See: Summer art exhibits

The Guggenheim is showing a retrospective of the work of Rashid Johnson, titled A Poem for Deep Thinkers, with 90 of his works on display in the Frank Lloyd Wright-designed rotunda, until January 2026. On various evenings from June until August, point yourself north of Manhattan for Bronx World Film, where screenings of artsy cutting-edge films by artists, such as Spanish-born Ivana Larrosa, will be shown.

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Day one: morning

Hit Central Park for an early-morning stroll through this 843-acre-sized patch of greenery that looks like it was carved out of the urban landscape. The park, designed by genius landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted, is a great spot to feel submerged in nature, far from the bustle of the big city.