If you’ve not booked your New York hotel yet, stay here. If you’re already staying up town, give yourself at least a very full day here or, better still, two or three days. If you’ve not even booked a flight, do it now and get a taste of New York’s district of the moment.

COMMEMORATE 9/11 – #1

There are literal and metaphorical highs and lows when it comes to the various places that were built in the aftermath of the tragic terrorist events of September 11, 2001.

The first is so high you’ll see it looming large and redefining the New York skyline. One World Trade Center and Observatory is, along with the Empire State Building, the tallest building in the city.

Entry costs start at $US34 ($A45) depending on when you book, and will give you access to 360-degree views from 102 floors up. It’s an uplifting, exhilarating experience that starts the minute you get in the lift. Once you alight, the building’s place as a physical symbol of strength and optimism is immediate.

Along with having a drink at Bar SixtyFive at midtown’s Rockefeller Centre, it’s my two picks for a skyscraping view of NY.

COMMEMORATE 9/11 – #2

The sombre twin reflecting pools of the National September 11 Memorial are more poignant symbols of the day. These deep, dark water features, measuring about half a hectare each, stand where the two World Trade Center Towers once stood. On the edges are the names of all the victims of the 9/11 attacks as well as the 1993 bombing at the building.

Beneath the memorial site is the 9/11 Memorial Museum, which chronicles the events of the day through news stories, artefacts, multimedia displays and a massive photo display of 2983 people killed, minus 10 victims whose families chose not to supply a photo or of whom photos cannot be found.

It’s a profoundly moving museum and one of the most thoughtfully curated I’ve ever been in. To get the most out of the experience, I highly recommend the audio tour by downtown local Robert De Niro. Entry is $US24 an adult.

COMMEMORATE 9/11 – #3

The Oculus – an Instagram moment waiting to happen – is destined to become one of the world’s iconic buildings. Designed by architect Santiago Calatrava to look like a dove, it’s a symbol of peace in a landscape heavy with a history of destruction. Once a year only, on September 11, its 108m-long skylight is opened for 102 minutes as a reflection on the time the terrorist attack lasted.

GO SHOPPING

It’s Westfield, but not as you know it. Beneath the Oculus is the largest shopping centre in Manhattan, and even before you’ve set foot into one of the 100-plus shops, it’s something to behold. Enter from street level and you’re standing in a cavernous white steel skeleton three open floors above an expansive floor of white marble.

Nearby is the impressive and equally new Brookfield Place. Sitting next to the Hudson River, this shopping district targets the luxury end of the fashion, footwear and jewellery market and includes NYC’s second Saks Fifth Avenue.

If you can’t afford the likes of Gucci, Hermes and Burberry, have a meal
at the up-market food court at Hudson Eats or enjoy the water views with a takeaway from Either Oar or the Tartinery.

If you have the stamina, visit Century 21, an institution for bargain hunters. At first glance it’s a mess of racks, but astute shoppers tell tales of discovering a designer bargain at
70 per cent off the retail price.

GO TO EATALY

The brand new Eataly NYC Downtown (Eataly.com) is for food lovers what the Met is for art aficionados or Yankee Stadium is for sports fans: essential and mind-blowing. At a whopping 3716sq m of retail and restaurant space (that’s about the size of 14 tennis courts) it’s devoted to Italy’s finest food and drinks. The merchandising of about 10,000 different products is impeccable so even if you’re not in the market for Piedmontese prime rib, limoncello pandora or white truffle salt, the experience of walking around and watching the mozzarella makers, dough kneaders and fishmongers in the market-style space is joyful.

Eataly is open 7am to 11pm daily so time your visit to coincide with a meal or snack time. The dining options range from quick, casual counter meals – a coffee and pastry or granola for breakfast, panini and glass of chianti for lunch, or midafternoon gelato – to table-service restaurants each devoted to southern Italian cuisine, pizza and pasta,seafood and salad, and share platters. Check online for booking details – some require reservations, others are first in, first served. If food is your thing, give yourself at least 90 minutes plus eating time to get the most from it.

VISIT THE STATUE OF LIBERTY

She’s as famous as they come and downtown’s Battery Park is a prime vantage point for seeing Lady Liberty. Want to get a little closer? Ferry rides around the Hudson to get even closer to the 46m high statue and the historic Ellis Island start in the same park.

STAY AT THE BEEKMAN

The Beekman (thompsonhotels.com), which opened in August, is born of a superior DNA dating back to the late 1800s. The nine-storey building was one of New York’s first skyscrapers as well as a theatre and public library and is now one of the neighbourhood’s, if not the city’s, most sophisticated, sumptuous hotels.

The hands-down highlight is the internal atrium, which looks into a bar with so much old-school cool and new-school cred, it’s guaranteed to become a hangout for the rich and influential. The furniture, art and decorative touches in the rooms and throughout the hotel are an eclectic mix of new and vintage. The outstanding concierge, Graham Thomas, is your passport to the hot spots in town.

If the room rate is not in your price bracket, put on your finest threads and go for a drink at The Bar Room or splurge a little more on Tom Colicchio’s Fowler and Wells or Keith McNally’s Augustine. Both chefs have impeccable New York pedigrees (McNally’s Balthazar is a New York superstar) and the food is sure to be fashionably fabulous.

WALK ACROSS THE BROOKLYN BRIDGE

It’s one of the most photographed places in the city and it either begins or ends downtown, depending which way you’re heading.

I suggest starting in Brooklyn (City Hall or Chambers Street are the closest subway stops) and walking to Manhattan so you get the full impact of the skyline.

GO TO BRUNCH

Weekend brunch – usually available all day – is a New York institution. Saturday is good but Sunday is better as the fabled New York Times is heavy as a brick, jammed with excellent journalism and good company for an hour or two of eating, reading and pretending you live in a loft apartment nearby. Try the cheddar grits or jalapeno scramble biscuit sandwich at Bubby’s Tribeca (bubbys.com) with a housemade lemonade or local ale.

A menu that’s a little cheaper and more familiar is Tribeca’s Kitchen, (tribecaskitchen.com) where you find the stereotypical American diner experience – red vinyl booths, drip coffee, service with a smile.

GO TO DINNER

Dinner at New York institution The Odeon (theodeonrestaurant.com) is a must. The menu is American bistro with a hint of French but it’s the buzz of the place that you’ll fall in love with. The night I was there I spotted actor John Slattery, aka Roger Sterling of Mad Men fame. I kept my cool like a true New Yorker, because that’s the kind of place it is. It’s also open for breakfast and brunch.

FORGET THE COFFEE

Get over yourself, latte lovers. You’re not going to the US to drink coffee so stop complaining about how average it is; it’s tedious and misses the point of travelling. Think of this when at the Museum of Modern Art standing in front of Andy Warhol’s famed Campbell’s Soup Cans.

If you must pursue the quest for the downtown’s most decent caffeine fix, go to Birch Coffee (birchcoffee.com) at 8 Spruce St and other locations around the city.

The writer travelled to New York courtesy of NYC & Company and Cathay Pacific. for more information go to nycgo.com

MY NEW YORK TRAVEL TIPS

Airport to Manhattan: A New York Taxi fare from JFK to Manhattan is US$52 plus tolls. If you’ve flown from Australia (ie, tired and possibly cranky from the long flight), it’s the most straightforward, fuss-free transport option. Get used to the other local transport options when you’re refreshed and without luggage.

Uber: Using Uber in lieu of a taxi isn’t new but the UberPooling ride-sharing option is available in New York and 44 cities around the world (none in Australia at the moment). There are times I used it when the fare I paid was so cheap it was almost criminal. It’s ideal if you’re travelling solo or as a couple.

Googlemaps: Don’t scrimp on global roaming when you head to New York because you’ll get payback in spades when it comes to using GPS to find out the best way to get somewhere. Googlemaps is your guru when it comes to knowing if travelling on foot, others the subway, bus or taxi is the way to go.

Metrocard: Pay US$2.50 for a single ride or better still US$29 for a 7-day Metrocard. Get over your nerves and catch the subway on your first day — you’ll instantly feel like a local and never look back.

Citypass.com: US$116 per adult will buy you a New York CityPASS and save you 40 per cent on the top six New York City attractions (Empire State Building, American Museum of Natural History, Metropolitan Museum of Art, Top of the Rock Observation Deck or Guggenheim Museum, Statue of Libery or Circle Line Cruises, 9/11 Museum of Sea, Air and Space Museum).

Opentable.com website app: This real-time restaurant booking service, with more than 9815 establishments in the offering, is the fastest way to discover restaurants and make a reservation in the neighbourhood you’re in. Time saving and delicious!