Hudson Yards to Meatpacking District
Walking the Highline Park is one of the best things to do in New York. Follow this one day itinerary of 13 top sights to explore the beauty, shopping, and food and drink of Hudson Yards, Chelsea, Meatpacking District.
- 34 St-Hudson Yards Subway 7 Train station will bring you directly here. 7 train can be found in Times Square and Grand Central Stations.
- Edge, Hudson Yards Begin the day by taking in the city panorama from Hudson Yard View observation deck. Continue down to The Shops at Hudson Yards, with shops from UNIQLO to Dior, there’s something to satiate all retail therapy appetites.
- Vessel, Hudson Yards Climb the stairs to the Vessel and take some bird’s eye snaps of the area. You can then skip leg day at the gym, and order desert guilt free. Temporarily closed, check here for opening date.
- The High Line Begin your stroll down the High Line. This elevated park began life as a freight train platform. After a decade of disuse, the city declared the intention to tear it down. Meanwhile, Mother Nature had turned this abandoned industrial space into a beautiful, natural garden. The community rallied around the idea of saving the platform and transforming it into a beautiful promenade. The restoration, fresh design and landscape of the High Line was unveiled in 2009 and it has since become an enormously popular destination for city residents and our guests.
- Little Island Getting hungry? Across the Westside Highway, about 14th street, lies the Little Island. Once the destined port of the ill-fated Titanic, the Little Island is a charming park that opened in 2021 and is suspended over the Hudson River by futuristic-looking pods. There you’ll find some rolling landscape, beautiful views, public restrooms, and food kiosks, offering sandwiches, paninis, salads and kid-friendly menu. There is also an amphitheater that hosts live music, dance, theater performances, mostly free (check this season’s schedule here).
- Chelsea Market, 9th AvenueIf nothing appeals for lunch, head back across 10th avenue and check out all the multi-culture delights in Chelsea Market. The market inhabits the building that was our country’s first National Biscuit Company (Nabisco) and hallowed ground where the Oreo was invented. This is another chance to shop. Consider booking a food tour for lunch.
- Gansevoort Beach Don’t get crazy! No swimming but this sandy peninsula with its beach grass and Adirondack chairs is like a taste of the Hamptons in Manhattan. Picnic tables invite a dining al fresco experience. Enjoy the sun or stay and watch as the sun sets over the Hudson as Jersey City lights come on.
- Whitney Museum of American Art, Focused on collecting and preserving 20th- and 21st-century American art. Its permanent collection, includes works by Thomas Hart Benton, Charles Demuth, Stuart Davis, Georgia O’Keeffe, Keith Haring, Edward Hopper, Jasper Johns, Roy Lichtenstein, Andy Warhol, and hundreds of others.
- Meatpacking Historical District Gansevoort Street If nothing appeals for lunch, head back across 10th avenue and check out all the multi-culture delights in Chelsea Market. The market inhabits the building that was our country’s first National Biscuit Company (Nabisco) and hallowed ground where the Oreo was invented. This is another chance to shop.
- Don Giovannis Reasonably price, charming atomosphe, delcious Italian, it’s my go-to for my family guests (who always ask to return). Try the tiramisu, order it with dinner, as it sells out.
- Empire Diner This retro diner is iconic from appearances in countless films and television programs (Manhattan, Home Alone 2: Lost in New York, Men in Black II, Law & Order) and you might just spot a star. Madonna, Julia Roberts and Steven Speilberg have all slummed it in this gleaming steel Art Deco eatery.
- Cookshop Simplicity and sustainability meet in the farm-to-table venture that proves American cuisine is legit. A must-stop for locovore foodies.
- Gansevoort Rooftop, Custom cocktail, unbeatable views make this rooftop loft a favorite pick for the fasionable. Choose dinner or just drink but know there is a dress code (“fashion-forward well-tailored attire”), a minimum billing and reservations are strongly encouraged, check here before arriving.
More One-Day Agendas
Midtown East
Admiring the architectural beauties of the Gilded Age is one of the best things to do in NYC. This itinerary takes you to Grand Central, the New York Public Library, Rockefeller Center and St. Patrick’s Cathedral.
Hudson Yards to Meatpacking District
Walking the Highline Park is one of the best things to do in NYC. Follow this one day itinerary of 13 top sights to explore the beauty, shopping, and food and drink of Hudson Yards, Chelsea, Meatpacking District.
