Brooklyn City Guide (by locals!) ft. ROAM Luggage

Something you might not know about us is that we are both local New Yorkers! Gabi was raised in Brooklyn, and I am from Long Island but have lived in NYC for almost 10 years. Even though we have traveled all around the world, we still haven’t found a city that we love as much as our home, New York City. We have lived in Brooklyn together for almost 5 years, and we can’t imagine living anywhere else! There is so much to do in Brooklyn, and so many different neighborhoods & cultures to get immersed in. Keep on reading to hear our favorite neighborhoods of Brooklyn (from locals!) and our favorite things to do there.

 

Park Slope

two girls embracing on steps of brooklyn brownstone
girl looking at cherry blossoms in prospect park brooklyn
two girl standing in front of ginger's bar brooklyn

Park Slope has a special place in our heart because it’s the neighborhood we live in! What we love about Park Slope is there is so much to do, it’s in a great location, and you will get lost in its beauty. Park Slope is near the west side of Prospect Park, so you can head over there for a stroll, bike riding, or outdoor activities. The streets are also lined with historic Brownstones and cherry blossom trees in the Spring. But our favorite thing about Park Slope is the amount of things you can do in the neighborhood! There are tons of local restaurants, bars, and shops around every corner. The main streets are 5th Ave and 7th Ave, but you can find things to do down nearly every side street. Here are some of our favorite places in Park Slope:

  • Annie’s Blue Ribbon General Store - 232 5th Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11215

  • Bagel Pub - 287 9th St, Brooklyn, NY 11215 & 57 7th Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11217

  • Room 205 Cafe - 205 8th St, Brooklyn, NY 11215

  • Palo Santo (a restaurant inside a Brownstone) - 652 Union St, Brooklyn, NY 11215

  • Young Ethel’s (elevated dive bar) - 506 5th Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11215

  • Two Boots Pizza - 284 5th Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11215

  • Miriam - 79 5th Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11217

  • Miti Miti - 138 5th Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11217

  • Ginger’s Bar (lesbian bar in Brooklyn) - 363 5th Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11215

To see more of Park Slope, check out our YouTube guide below:

 
 
 

Williamsburg

You’ve probably already heard about Williamsburg, it’s one of the trendiest neighborhoods in all of New York City. It’s proximity to Manhattan is what drew people to the neighborhood (you can get to lower Manhattan in less than 3 subway stops), but over the years Williamsburg has also become hipster-heaven. There are local coffee shops on every corner, tons of thrift stores, and trendy eateries and bars. But since the neighborhood sits along the East River, you also have beautiful views of Manhattan and parks along the water. It’s rare that we think things live up to their hype, but Williamsburg actually does. Here’s our favorite things to do in the area:

  • Domino Park - 15 River St, Brooklyn, NY 11249

  • Oslo Coffee - 133 Roebling St, Brooklyn, NY 11211

  • The Butcher’s Daughter - 271 Metropolitan Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11211

  • The Charleston - 174 Bedford Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11211

  • Beacon’s Closet (thrift store) - 74 Guernsey St, Brooklyn, NY 11222

  • Lockwood - 485 Driggs Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11211

  • Modern Love (all vegan comfort food) - 317 Union Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11211

  • Marsha P. Johnson State Park - 90 Kent Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11211

 

Local Tip: One of the perks about living in Brooklyn for us is that we are super close to 2 international airports! JFK and LGA are both about 30-40 minutes away. We can get almost anywhere in the world we want to visit with a direct flight from one of those airports. And we obviously do not leave our Brooklyn apartment for a trip without our ROAM Luggage! We have been using exclusively ROAM Luggage for the last 2 years and we are absolutely obsessed! Our favorite part is that you can design & personalize your luggage on ROAM's website and choose from so many amazing color palettes. All of Roam’s products are handmade in the USA and we can attest that they are extremely sturdy! We have been on hundreds of flights over the last 2 years and our luggage us still in great shape. We also take our Roam luggages around NYC when we need to do a photoshoot or a little staycation. Make sure to check out Roam Luggage here.

 

Coney Island

coney island luna park
coney island parachute jump

Coney Island has been a staple on Brooklyn for over 100 years! Gabi was raised in the nearby neighborhood of Sheepshead Bay, so she visited Coney Island a lot growing up. My Grandmother also grew up visiting Coney island back in the 1940s, so this place is special to both of us. Coney Island is made of up two theme parks, the historical Dino’s Wonder Wheel Park and the more modern Luna Park. You can also walk along the boardwalk and swim at the beach! There is a lot of history surrounding Coney Island — from the Freak Show and custard, to the world’s first rollercoaster (that you can still ride by the way!) — and it’s definitely a must do if you’re visiting Brooklyn in the summer. Here are our favorite things to do at Coney Island:

  • Deno’s Wonder Wheel Amusement Park - 3059 W 12th St, Brooklyn, NY 11224

  • Luna Park - 1000 Surf Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11224

  • Coney Island Beach & Boardwalk - 37, Riegelmann Boardwalk, NY 11224

  • Sideshows by the Seashore - 3008 W 12th St, Brooklyn, NY 11224

  • Coney Art Walls - 3050 Stillwell Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11224

  • Brooklyn Cyclones @ MCU Park - 1904 Surf Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11224

  • Brooklyn Beach Shop - 1223 Riegelmann Boardwalk, Brooklyn, NY 11224

  • Nathan’s Famous Hot Dogs - 1310 Surf Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11224

  • Paul’s Daughter - 1001 Riegelmann Boardwalk, Brooklyn, NY 11224

To see more of Coney Island, check out our YouTube guide below:

 
 
 

Red Hook

two girls sitting in front of abandoned trolley in red hook
abandoned trolley red hook

Red Hook is a quaint Brooklyn neighborhood along the water. It still has cobblestone lined streets, and no subways go directly to the neighborhood which gives it that small-town feel. Walking around Red Hook is so different than walking around any other Brooklyn neighborhood — it’s eerily quiet and you won’t pass a lot of people on your journey. That’s one of the reasons why we love Red Hook so much — you are still in Brooklyn, but sometimes it feels like you are somewhere completely different. Here are our favorite things to do in Red Hook:

  • The Black Flamingo Cafe - 281 Van Brunt St, Brooklyn, NY 11231

  • Brooklyn Crab - 24 Reed St, Brooklyn, NY 11231

  • The Red Hook Winery - 175 Van Dyke Street Pier 41, Suite 325A, 11231

  • Steve’s Authentic Key Lime Pie - 185 Van Dyke St, Brooklyn, NY 11231

  • Louis J. Valentino Jr. Park & Pier - Ferris St &, Coffey St, Brooklyn, NY 11231

  • Red Hook Lobster Pound - 284 Van Brunt St, Brooklyn, NY 11231

To see more of Red Hook, check out our YouTube guide below:

 
 

This blog post was sponsored by ROAM Luggage. As always, all opinions are honest and our own. Some links on this post are affiliate links of which we receive a small commission, but the price is the same for you.