There are cities you visit — and cities you truly live inside. New York, for those in the know, falls firmly in the second camp. With an insider's eye courtesy of The Cultivist, this curated 72-hour guide invites you beyond the expected into the galleries, ateliers, and hidden spaces where Manhattan’s cultural pulse beats strongest.

For those who travel not just to see the world, but to live inside it, Exclusive Resorts Members can access even deeper cultural experiences curated through our partnership with The Cultivist. Private viewings, behind-the-scenes access, and once-in-a-lifetime artistic encounters await — because in a city like New York, insider access makes all the difference.

Day One: Downtown, Designed to Perfection

Begin in SoHo, where cast-iron architecture meets conceptual minimalism. At Judd Foundation (101 Spring Street, necessary to book a tour in advance), you'll encounter Donald Judd’s vision exactly as he intended: a holistic, almost spiritual integration of art, space, and design. In one of the first cast-iron buildings of SoHo, every piece of artwork, every chair, every placement reflects Judd’s meticulous mind. While his own work anchors the space, treasures from friends like Dan Flavin and Frank Stella make this visit even richer.

Afterward, pop into The Future Perfect (8 St Lukes Pl), a design-forward gallery just a 15-minute walk away for a jolt of contemporary creativity.

If you’re craving a midday pause, stroll to the MoMA Design Store (81 Spring St) for a curated take-home souvenir, or visit Manuela (130 Prince St), which offers a bright, lush space to refuel. This welcoming neighborhood restaurant and bar is where great contemporary art and food combine to create a convivial atmosphere and sense of abundance. Named for Manuela Wirth, who co-founded Artfarm with her husband Iwan Wirth, the ethos here speaks to the conviction that art and life are indivisible.

Keep the sensory mood alive at The New York Earth Room (141 Wooster Street), Walter De Maria’s quietly astonishing permanent installation: 250 cubic yards of earth spread across a SoHo loft. Silent, still, and stubbornly strange, it remains one of downtown’s best-kept meditative secrets. The work is intentionally sensory and meditative — it’s silent, still, and completely immersive. As a rule, photography is not allowed inside, encouraging quiet contemplation without distraction. Visitors often describe it as a surreal, almost otherworldly moment of calm in the midst of downtown Manhattan’s bustle.

Before dinner, venture to Hauser & Wirth (134 Wooster St) for an ever-rotating, boundary-pushing exhibition — and maybe stop by various boutiques in the neighborhood if you're in the mood for a fashionable detour.

Head east to Eel Bar (252 Broome St) for oysters and martinis in a moody, minimalist space that feels straight out of a noir film, or west to Zimmi’s (72 Bedford St), where global flavors and a downtown crowd collide. Looking for something a bit more classic? Estela (47 E Houston St) offers inventive small plates and an effortlessly cool vibe that’s stood the test of time.

Day Two: Uptown Icons, Reimagined

Today, head uptown, where history feels alive inside Manhattan’s grandest spaces. Step into the Frick Collection (1 E 70th St, skip the line with pre-reserved tickets), freshly reopened after a major renovation that took five years — and revealed for the first time the private upstairs residence of Henry Clay Frick. Don’t miss the Fragonard Room, one of the museum’s most celebrated highlights, featuring ‘The Progress of Love’ series by Jean-Honoré Fragonard. Uniquely positioned as a house museum, The Frick blends the intimacy of a private home with the scale and caliber of a major cultural institution. Its collection rivals that of much larger museums, with masterpieces by Rembrandt, Goya, Turner, and Vermeer. Opening in June 2025, Vermeer’s Love Letters will bring together a rare selection of works centered on themes of letter writing, romance and domestic interior — marking a major moment in the Frick’s new exhibition calendar.

Recharge with Viennese classics at Café Sabarsky inside the Neue Galerie (1048 5th Ave, skip the line with pre-reserved tickets), where the strudel is as fine as the Gustav Klimts lining the walls.

Not far away, Salon 94 (3 E 89th St) awaits. This stunning neo-Renaissance townhouse, transformed into a contemporary gallery by the late architect Rafael Viñoly, continues to host some of the most innovative shows in the city. Recently showing a solo exhibition by Kennedy Yanko, followed by Vibrations from Alev Ebüzziya Siesbye (May 9 – August 8, 2025) — a long-awaited return to New York for the Turkish ceramicist, who hasn’t exhibited in the city in nearly 25 years. At 86, Alev has spent a lifetime shaping bowls and refining them to a meditative perfection. The gallery continues to present bold and boundary-pushing exhibitions that blur the lines between art, design, and architecture.

When you're ready for more, enjoy a leisurely stroll through the Upper East Side to the Asia Society Museum (725 Park Ave, skip the line with pre-reserved tickets) — their curated global collections are often an underrated gem. Or, simply walk down Fifth Avenue and let Museum Mile's grandeur wash over you.

As the sun sets, settle into The Mark Restaurant by Jean-Georges (25 E 77th St) — an uptown icon in its own right, offering understated luxury a stone’s throw from the museums.

Day Three: Creative Futures

Your final day in the city embraces what’s new — and what’s next. Begin in NoHo at the newly opened Atelier Jolie (57 Great Jones Street), the brainchild of Angelina Jolie herself, housed in a building with a rockstar past. Once Andy Warhol’s, then Jean-Michel Basquiat’s studio, this space now serves as a hub for creativity: exhibitions, artist residencies, and even a chef-driven café, Eat Offbeat, a New York City-based collective of culinary talents from countries such as Syria, Russia, Sudan, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Morocco, Iran, Afghanistan, and Venezuela, celebrating global cuisines prepared by refugee and immigrant chefs. The energy here feels tangible — a future classic in the making.

Right next door, pop into Venus Over Manhattan (39 Great Jones St) for a dose of emerging artistic talent. Just a few blocks away, The Brant Foundation (421 E 6th St) showcases contemporary heavyweights in a stunningly restored former Con Edison substation — a must-see for modern art lovers. Then, if you're traveling with family (or your inner child), make your way downtown to Mercer Labs (21 Dey St) — a multi-sensory museum offering mind-bending immersive experiences.

Finish your artful escape the New York way: an unhurried dinner at one of the city’s hidden culinary gems, Il Buco (47 Bond St), an atmospheric downtown favorite, where rustic Italian fare and candlelight set the perfect final scene. After all, in a city where every street corner doubles as a canvas, the greatest masterpiece is simply exploring it well.

Editor’s Note: This curated itinerary was created exclusively for Exclusive Resorts in collaboration with The Cultivist — the premier global arts club — to unlock insider access to New York City's most extraordinary cultural experiences.

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