September 19, 2025
A Swiftie’s Guide to New York City
Jess
My wildest dreams came true on my recent Taylor-Swift-inspired trip to New York City! A friend and I were discussing how much we missed The Eras Tour, and I threw out the idea that we should take a trip to NYC and do all the Swiftie things. We couldn’t get it booked fast enough, because when a getaway like this calls, you don’t say you’re on your own, kid. You say I know places.
Thanks to points, we spent four incredible nights at the Park Hyatt New York for $0. We redeemed a whopping 180,000 Hyatt points for our four-night stay, but because I was traveling with a friend, she transferred Hyatt points to me so we each contributed half. It’s nice to have a friend to share the points cost with! It came out to just 90,000 Hyatt points for each of us—not too shabby for a luxury four-night stay. The cash price for our stay would have been over $9,000! Talk about champagne problems avoided.
This is your sign you get your Swiftie friends on board with points & miles so you can take a Taylor-Swift-inspired trip to NYC, too!
Ready to visit some of Taylor’s favorite spots? This Swiftie’s Guide to New York City will help you plan the perfect trip!
Restaurants & Bars
This is one of Taylor’s go-to Italian restaurants. It’s located in the West Village, and Taylor was most recently spotted here in May 2025. We were able to get a seat at the bar without a reservation (though we did have to wait 30 minutes as it was a Saturday night). If you can get reservations, I highly recommend doing so!
We didn’t spot Taylor at Via Carota, sadly.
Just the starters . . . so delicious!
Located in Midtown, Monkey Bar is where Taylor was spotted dining in May 2025 with Selena Gomez. It was the day after she announced that she bought back her masters, so I assume they had a lot to celebrate! We just had espresso martinis at the bar (as we had already eaten dinner at Via Carota), but I loved the vibe.
We loved the vibe at Monkey Bar!
Taylor and Travis dined here in October 2023 before Travis’s cameo appearance on SNL, so you know we had to hit it up! It’s also right down the street from the Park Hyatt, so the location couldn’t have been more convenient for us. I recommend making reservations at least a couple of weeks ahead of time if you want to dine here.
We dined like Taylor & Travis at Nobu!
Taylor spent a girls’ night here in September 2023 with Sophie Turner after Joe Jonas filed for divorce. Temple Bar is known for its martinis, and they did not disappoint! It’s right around the corner from BondST (where we had dinner), so it was the perfect stop for a pre-dinner cocktail.
I’m a sucker for a lemon drop martini, and Temple Bar’s was delicious!
After enjoying a cocktail at Temple Bar, we walked over to BondST for dinner. Taylor was spotted here in December 2024 on a double date with Travis, Jack Antonoff, and Margaret Qualley. I actually preferred the sushi here to what we had at Nobu! The seared salmon belly nigiri? Holy ground. The tuna tarts also deserve their own All Too Well 10-minute version.
I can see why Taylor loves BondST so much! 🤤
We couldn’t pass up a chance to visit the “dive bar on the East side” referenced in Taylor’s song, “Delicate.” They even have a “Handsome Devil” cocktail (rumored to be inspired by the Cruel Summer lyric, “He looks up, grinnin’ like a devil“).
We had to check out the “dive bar on the East side….”
Taylor hasn’t been spotted here in over a decade, but the viral Suprêmes? They hit different. We tried lemon berry and chocolate (they also had pistachio)—definitely a “Sweet Nothing” turned Sweet Everything.
Pistachio, lemon berry, and chocolate Suprêmes.
Landmarks
Cornelia Street
If you’re a Swiftie, this one should be pretty self-explanatory! Taylor not only used to live at 23 Cornelia Street between 2016 and 2017, she also wrote a song named after it for her album, Lover. And of course, we’d never walk Cornelia Street again . . . except to take selfies with fellow Swifties outside.
Selfies outside Taylor’s old townhouse on Cornelia Street were a must.
Taylor recorded Lover, Folklore, Midnights, and rerecorded Fearless, Red, Speak Now, and 1989 here. The documentary, Miss Americana, also features several scenes of her recording music at Electric Lady Studios. You can’t go inside, but it’s a fun place to walk by and take a picture!
Outside Taylor’s NYC recording studio!
This bookstore is featured in All Too Well: The Short Film. They even have a cute little footprint marker where Taylor stood! They also had a whole display of Taylor Swift books, stickers, journals, etc. It was a fun stop!
Yes, that’s Taylor with red hair 🙂
Don’t miss this marker!
Taylor’s Penthouse
In 2014, Taylor bought not one but two adjacent penthouses at 155 Franklin Street. Three years later, she bought the townhouse next door at 153 Franklin Street. In 2018, she purchased an additional loft on the second floor of the building at 155 Franklin Street. She’s slowly but surely turning these buildings into her own compound! It was fun to see it all and take some photos outside!
153 Franklin Street on the left (with its paparazzi-proof garage), and 155 Franklin Street to the right of it.
One of the most fun things we did while in NYC was get Tay-toos! This was actually my first tattoo ever! I searched Instagram for a tattoo studio in NYC for a Taylor Swift tattoo, and I stumbled upon the perfect studio. I mean . . . the owner is a Swiftie and regularly hosts flash Swiftie tattoo days . . . could it BE any more perfect? You can check out some of their Swiftie-inspired designs at that link.
Jes (the owner) made us feel so comfortable. She turned on a Taylor Swift playlist, brought out her Taylor Swift cardboard cutout, and we had the best time! She listened to what we wanted and tweaked everything so it was perfect. I cannot recommend her or Haven tattoo studio enough! I decided that after following The Eras Tour around the world, I should get some lyrics to commemorate that time, so I got “it was rare, i was there” in script near my ribcage (All Too Well is also one of my favorite songs—the 10-minute version, of course). Now I have a permanent reminder of her amazing tour and of our incredible trip to NYC!
Taylor herself hung out with us while we got our tattoos.
My first Tay-too (and tattoo, for that matter)! Jes was the best <3
Bottom Line
Taking a Taylor-inspired trip to New York City was one of the best ideas I’ve had in a long time. What made it even better? We spent $0 on our luxury hotel stay which left a lot of money in the budget to enjoy some of Taylor’s favorite spots. I hope you find this Swiftie’s Guide to New York City helpful for your own trip to the Big Apple! Having this itinerary will make you a planning mastermind.
So grab your points, call your besties, and plan your own Swiftie getaway—because New York City, you belong with me.
Related Posts
Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed or approved by any of these entities. American Express is a Travel Mom Squad advertiser, but we always show the best public offer even when we don’t earn a commission. Terms Apply.
Leave a Reply
Advertiser Disclosure: Travel Mom Squad has partnered with CardRatings for our coverage of credit card products. Travel Mom Squad and CardRatings may receive a commission from card issuers. This compensation may impact how or where products appear on this site. Travel Mom Squad has not reviewed all available credit card offers on this site.
Editorial Note: Opinions expressed here are author's alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, hotel, airline, or other entity. This content has not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of the entities included within the post.
be the first to comment
Responses are not provided or commissioned by the bank advertiser. Responses have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by the bank advertiser. It is not the bank advertiser’s responsibility to ensure all posts and/or questions are answered.