What better way to start the new year than with a little travel inspiration? A few months back, I spent a few days in super cool Brooklyn, and I thought I’d share my favourite spots to eat and shop, as well as the incredible apartment I stayed in. This is the final city guide from my travels back in September.

Where to stay in Brooklyn

While planning my trip, I obviously trawled through Airbnb for hours, looking at all the amazing places I could stay, compiling lists of my favourite homes… many of them in Manhattan and Brooklyn were way out of my budget (hence why I ended up staying in a slightly grotty one in Manhattan) but I thought that for my last few days away, I should treat myself to somewhere I really wanted to stay.

I kept going back to browse Ehren’s warehouse apartment. There was so much stuff to look at, a cute little cat, and that view across to Manhattan… I was sold.

My host was away for part of my stay so I had to look after Cindy the cat – which was more of a bonus to me than a chore. The first night I was there, I sat watching the sunset over Manhattan. I wrote and wrote and wrote. I felt so lucky to be there.

When Ehren got home he was super friendly and chatty, and made the last couple of days so easy and nice. He was such an open person that it felt like I was staying with a (very attractive) buddy, rather than in a stranger’s home.

Where to shop in Brooklyn

There were a couple of interesting shops near where I was staying, but as you can see from my Google map of Brooklyn, a lot of them were in the heart of Williamsburg. I had some specific shops marked out, but discovered a bunch of other cool places while wandering about.

I didn’t make it to everything on my list, but all the ones I did get to were amazing. Most of them are vintage shops, as well as homeware, stationery & gift shops, jewellery and things. Desert Island is brilliant if you’re at all interested in zines, art books or comics.

Where to eat in Brooklyn

Motorino Pizza

Before I went away, I researched the best pizza in New York and found Motorino Pizza, and I’m really glad I added it to my list. The pizzas are so tasty, the staff are super friendly, and the interiors are pretty cool as well. To add to the niceness of it all, I contacted them a while after to try and get a specific t-shirt of theirs, and they sent it over in time for Christmas. Excellent people.

Willburg Cafe

It seems New Yorkers do eggs & avocado pretty bloody well, as I ate it for brunch numerous times. While heading to Williamsburg to do some shopping, I stopped in to Willburg Cafe for the perfect poached eggs. The cafe itself is really good, and inexpensive. They had a huge list of amazing sounding burgers written on the wall too.

Milk Bar

Milk Bar was somewhere I really wanted to check out – they make soft serve ice cream which tastes like the milk at the bottom of your cereal bowl. It’s super sweet – even more so if you add on sprinkles and toppings – but well worth a visit. Especially if it’s a really hot day, like it was when I went.

Pokito

For an early dinner on my last day – I was going to head to Pies ‘n’ Thighs – as recommended by many people, but it was closed. Across the road were a couple of places that looked nice – Summers, and Pokito. I chose the latter as the interior suckered me in.

It’s an unusual combination of Latin and Asian food, so you can expect things like guacamole, nachos, katsu, and green bowls, as well as cocktails. My katsu sando was SO tasty I didn’t want it to ever end. Definitely worth a visit, and I’m actually really glad the other restaurant was shut.

Those are all the places I graced in Brooklyn, and they should all be marked on my Google map here – I should probably do these maps for all of my city guides, right?

Brooklyn – specifically Williamsburg – is just as cool as they say, and should be on your list of places to go if you’re planning on heading over to New York. I only spent a really short time here, but could’ve easily stayed longer. I’d love to head to some bars and see more of what it’s like after dark. Maybe next time.

I’ve been thinking of writing a blog post about my general feeling about travelling alone, or maybe some tips for (females) travelling alone – is this something you guys would be interested in reading?