On Dec 5, 2013, at 7:18 AM, “A J” <xxxx@xx.xxx> wrote:
Hi Lynnie, I hope you are having the time of your life on your trip. The pictures are amazing. I can’t believe you’ve been gone for like 8 months already! You’ve really inspired me and Mitch to do some serious traveling of our own.
Speaking of which, we’ll be in NY the weekend before Christmas (I’m assuming you won’t be back yet, which is a bummer for us, but a good thing for you), but we’re looking to Air BnB a place in Brooklyn. Any suggestions on where to stay and where to avoid? XO, A
Re:
Well. It really depends what you want to do while you are in Brooklyn. And your budget. And if you want to go to Manhattan at all. I would recommend Park Slope, Williamsburg, Carroll Gardens/Cobble Hill… and maybe Dumbo or Clinton Hill. Those areas have a lot of commercial activity and good subway train access. Brooklyn is a city in its own right, so you could spend a week there without even entering Manhattan and have an awesome time!
- Williamsburg – Home of the hipsters. If this were in a different city, its nickname might be Little Manhattan. It rose in popularity a few years ago among the anti-yuppy crowd, so most of its residents were artsy, alternative youngsters. More recently, it’s become so expensive that it’s pricing those kids out. Plus, those kids are now grown-up, married and want kids, and they are fatigued by the new kids moving in looking for the scene that the old kids built. Nearer to the water, Smorgasburg is a daytime food faire on Saturdays, and Brooklyn Flea is in the same spot on Sundays. **see section 5 for exception. Overall, Billburg has a lot of great restaurants and shopping; downside is that there is really only one subway line (the L) that takes you into and out of the City. And all those hipsterlets…
- Park Slope – Filled with Cosby Family brownstones, tree-lined streets, and strollers, this is where grown-ups go to die… in heaven. There are lots of brunch spots and upscale boutiques. There is a modest-but-promising flea market on weekends along 7th Ave. The neighborhood reaches up to Atlantic Avenue, which is a major subway hub at Flatbush Ave. called Atlantic Terminal; incidentally, that’s where the new Barclay’s Center and BAM (Brooklyn Academy of Music) are. To the east is the park. I highly recommend you go to the meadow in Prospect Park any morning before 9 a.m. to watch dogs running and playing off-leash. I have never seen dogs big and small running freely in a bigger space – it’s absolutely magical. Overall, the pace here is more relaxed and suburban. Advantages are the central public transport, strong to very strong gastro scene, great shopping, nice walks and proximity to civic infrastructure like the Prospect Park, BAM, Barclays Center, etc. Downsides are that the streets are among the widest in Brooklyn and the buildings the biggest and squarest, making it less quaint, if you can call that a downside.
- Carroll Gardens/Cobble Hill – If you are looking for quaint, head to Carroll Gardens/Cobble Hill. This is full of older, colonial-era architecture: smaller, cobble-stoned streets; two-story brick-front row houses; revolutionary war re-enacters. Ha! Just kidding – that’s DC. Seriously, though, you will find this area to be more neighborhoody–there are decade-old, family-run delis, shops around the corner, local busy-bodies and the truly stylish. This is like the West Village of Brooklyn. It’s really sweet for brunching and cocktailing, and it has a reasonably lively, of not sophisticated, nightlife. It has a sleepy feel during the week, but that adds to its appeal. Some of the top-ranked restaurants in the City and country, like Battersby, are found in Cobble Hill… or Carroll Gardens. I get the delineation of the two areas mixed up. Anyway, upsides are definitely the picturesque, dainty streets and structures, the restaurants and the shopping. The downsides are that it’s a little less central and further from the park, etc. Nevertheless, several far-reaching subway lines pass through here, so you shouldn’t be more than one transfer away from most anywhere else.
- Dumbo/Boerum Hill/Brooklyn Heights – Others might raise an eyebrow that I lumped these together, but the areas are so small and in such close proximity that if you text while walking for more than five minutes, you are likely to stumble from one to the next. DUMBO stands for “Down Under the Manhattan Brooklyn Overpass.” This area used to be super industrial, and you can see that from the massive warehouse boxes turned into spectacular lofts. Etsy is headquartered here – ’nuff said. I haven’t spent a ton of time in this area at night; I think it closes up after dinner. I don’t know if I would recommend it to book lodging, but it’s a nice place to visit for a day. There are great views of Manhattan, you can catch a boat ride across the east river at the Fulton Ferry stop, you can walk to Brooklyn Heights for some gorgeous urban mansion ogling, and you have to get brunch at Vinegar Hill House. Also, I just heard that DUMBO is the first neighborhood in Brooklyn to offer free wifi access everywhere! I know. You love it already.
- Clinton Hill/Fort Greene – This is another up-and-coming neighborhood that has arrived by any realtor’s standards. Big brownstones, tree-lined streets, and stylish residents. It has a different feel than Park Slope, although it’s arguable that they offer similar neighborhood characteristics. This area is edgier, probably because anyone living here is more comfortable with risk and uncertainty–this area is only recently established as a go-to Brooklyn hood. Again, great restaurants and some very nice shopping, although spread out a little more. The commercial streets are around Lafayette Ave and Myrtle is also good. Brooklyn’s famous Brooklyn Flea market started in a school yard here on Saturdays, and moves to Williamsburg on Sundays. But in the winter, I think it moves. Clinton Hill/Fort Greene are less blessed with subway access, so it can be a hassle if you are staying in the more far-flung recesses of this neighborhood and trying to get to other areas of Brooklyn or Manhattan. But that’s what taxis are for.
- Prospect Heights/West Crown Heights – You’ve been to my house in Crown Heights. This is a great area for living, and is changing and improving quickly. It is a good choice as a base because it has central subway lines, and it’s near the Brooklyn Botanic Gardens, the Brooklyn Library, Brooklyn Museum and THE PARK! In addition, its restaurant scene is up and coming, and you cannot get a better breakfast sandwich than at Lincoln Station. I don’t know if I would suggest it as a first choice, though, since it’s further out and less known; but you wouldn’t be making a mistake if you did.
There are many other great neighborhoods in Brooklyn to explore that deserve mentioning: Greenpoint, Sunset Park, Red Hook, Bed-Stuy, Gowanus, Flatbush, Bushwick, Prospect Lefferts Gardens, Ditmas Park… But if I were going to prioritize, I would start with the ones I started with. That’s why I started with them – wink!
Let me know what you are specifically interested in regarding activities, food and other ways to spend money, or not spend money, and I can send some recos your way!
XXO, Lynn
