As tour guides for Los Angeles, 99% of our energy and focus is going to be on our great city, as well as the amazing surrounding areas like Beverly Hills, Bel Air, Santa Monica, Malibu and Hollywood. We want to make sure guests LOVE our town as much as we do… but we too love to travel, so every now and then we’ll share our experiences on this blog about cities, venues, restaurants and things to do outside of our general circumference.

Freehand New York Hotel

A few of us recently traveled to NY to see our friend Tuc Watkins in The Boys in the Band on Broadway (shows available through at least August 11^th, 2018!). We stayed at a fantastic hotel called Freehand New York. After a long flight, and what felt like an equally long taxi ride into the city, we were greeted by an amazing staff that immediately took care of our luggage with a smile, and an eager sense to make sure we were comfortably acquainted with our new residence for the next six days. We made our way to the front desk and had an awesome introduction to Justine, who is the Assistant Front of House Manager. She too made us feel right at home.

Flatiron District

The Freehand NY Hotel is perfected centered in the Flatiron District. One can walk to must-see sights like Union Square, The Empire State Building, Madison Square Garden, and even Central Park. Walking is recommended since you’re also just around the corner from Eataly NY, and you’ll need a way to burn off those wine/cheese/pasta/gelato calories.

Speaking of food, you really don’t need to leave Freehand. Their offerings are spectacular. Just about every day we ate breakfast, lunch or dinner in the ground floor restaurants like Simon and The Whale, or Smile to Go. Of course, we had a nightcap every evening at Broken Shaker on the rooftop. The space comes with handcrafted cocktails and unbelievable views of the Manhattan skyline. As a guest of the hotel, you get VIP access to this hotspot.

Delicious Eats at Freehand NY

We thank Bryan and Jeni from Raven and The Willow Photography for turning us on to this (currently) under the radar hotel. Bryan once worked alongside us at Glitterati Tours of Los Angeles, and he is now back in The Big Apple. He and Jeni recently spent a staycation here, and couldn’t stop raving about the property.