For this trip, my pick is Fouquet’s New York in Tribeca. The entire hotel feels like a little jewel box — Art Deco details, beautiful color, incredible fabrics and that distinctly French sense of glamour. And the powder-pink marble bathrooms? They may or may not have provided a little inspiration for the bathroom renovation happening at my own house.

Tribeca also gives you such a good home base. You can walk into SoHo and the West Village, have some of the best restaurants in the city practically outside your door, and still retreat somewhere that feels quieter and more residential at the end of the night.

Fall insider tip: if your trip lands near Halloween, make time for a walk through the Upper East Side residential streets. The townhouse decorations can be incredible, and Kelly Ripa’s Halloween setup has become one of those fun things to look for while you’re in the neighborhood. Pair it with Madison Avenue shopping rather than making a separate trip uptown.

If you’re in the mood for a workout, book a class at The Soto Method in Tribeca—a sculpt-focused workout that’s perfect for kicking off a day in the city. Or skip the class altogether and simply get your steps in. New York is one of the best cities to explore on foot, and walking from neighborhood to neighborhood is half the fun.

A good NYC weekend needs coffee stops strategically scattered around the shopping.

• Felix Roasting Co. in SoHo — Come for the coffee, stay for the incredibly chic interiors—it feels like a little jewel box in the middle of SoHo.
• Frenchette Bakery in Tribeca — A very chic neighborhood stop for excellent coffee and truly incredible French pastries. Grab a croissant and coffee before heading out to explore Tribeca.
• Ralph’s Coffee on Madison Ave — An all-time favorite and the perfect Upper East Side stop to grab a coffee before a morning of shopping.
• La Cabra Bakery in the East Village — A cool Scandinavian-style bakery known for beautifully made coffee and exceptional pastries—absolutely worth the stop.
• Café Ginori at Bergdorf Goodman — This gorgeous little corner of Bergdorf’s is the perfect spot for a cappuccino and something sweet between stops along Fifth Avenue. Come for the coffee, stay for the gorgeous Ginori details—and then get right back to shopping.

• Sushi Noz is the splurge, and absolutely worth making a night of it. This intimate Upper East Side omakase is truly an experience—the kind of dinner you’ll still be talking about long after the girls weekend is over.
• The Eighty Six in the West Village is a quintessential New York dinner and high on my list. Set in the former Chumley’s space, this intimate steakhouse has so much old New York history, but the Art Deco interiors and menu feel incredibly current.
• Tucci in NoHo is such a good girls’ night spot. It’s warm, low-lit and polished without feeling overly formal—and I love that they encourage you to “dress for the occasion.” Reservations open 30 days out, so plan ahead, get dressed up and leave plenty of time for this downtown Italian night
• L’abeille in Tribeca is set on a classic Tribeca cobblestone street corner, the intimate 48-seat space feels elegant and tucked away, with contemporary French cooking and Japanese influence. Definitely a night to get dressed up for and on my list. 

I’ve said it once, but I’ll say it again—you have to try for a reservation at The Polo Bar. My friends and I were just there during NYFW, and I casually made eye contact with the truly iconic Goldie Hawn! It’s quintessential New York—great martinis, incredible people-watching and that buzzy energy that makes the whole night feel special.

I would devote several hours to going uptown and simply wandering.

Start around Fifth Avenue at Bergdorf Goodman — no New York girls’ shopping weekend feels complete without a walk through Bergdorf’s. I always make a point to stop in and pick up a Christmas ornament — one of my favorite little souvenirs to bring home from a trip.

Then work your way up Madison Avenue. This stretch from roughly East 57th to East 86th is essentially one long luxury-shopping corridor. Madison Avenue is where I’d browse Chanel, Miu Miu, The Row, Ralph Lauren, Prada, Khaite, Toteme, Celine and all of the beautiful smaller boutiques tucked between them. Stop into Hermès Maison Madison too — the flagship is worth seeing even if you’re just browsing.

Then lunch or late-afternoon espresso at Birley Bakery before heading back downtown. We popped into their Chelsea location in London last year and loved it, so I could not wait to see the New York outpost!

• Sadelle’s New York in SoHo is hard to beat — bagels, smoked fish towers, coffee and a room that always feels celebratory.
• Tribeca Deli Grill is a classic New York morning stop for a bacon, egg and cheese to go. It’s old-school, no-frills and exactly the kind of neighborhood spot you want before heading out to explore the city.
• L’Appartement 4F in the West Village is a tiny French bakery window with hand-rolled croissants, sourdough and beautiful laminated pastries. It feels special and very downtown without being overly touristy.

I wouldn’t over-schedule this trip. The luxury of a girls’ weekend in New York is leaving enough room to wander into a store, stay too long over lunch or go back to the hotel and change before dinner.

I’d book the hotel, secure the three important dinner reservations, make one or two lunch reservations and leave everything else fairly loose. Pick a neighborhood each day — Tribeca/SoHo, West Village, Upper East Side — and build the day around it rather than spending half the weekend in a car.

And pack for the occasion. New York in the fall is one of those trips where getting dressed is genuinely half the fun. A great coat, beautiful flats you can actually walk in, a little suede, an evening bag and enough layers to take you from coffee in the morning to a martini at The Polo Bar at night.