How to plan an affordable weekend getaway from NYC to Pittsburgh?

• Honestly the cheapest way to get to Pittsburgh would be by bus. Considering I’m a typical New Yorker, I don’t have a driver’s license and I really don’t like to depend on folks to drive me to places. After doing some research, I noticed that the cheapest days/time to visit Pittsburgh when traveling from NYC would be on a Saturday morning and returning from Pittsburgh to NYC would be on a late Monday afternoon. Now if you book in advance such as three weeks or so before your travel dates then you can score a round trip bus ticket through Mega Bus for about $20 including tax and service charges. How about that?!! The con side of this is that you’ll be on the bus for about 7 hours and trust me the ride goes by quickly if you keep yourself occupied by either reading a book, catching up with your blog, sleep or just listening to some good music on your iPhone/iPod/iPad or etc.

Where to stay in Pittsburgh?

Day 1 in Pittsburgh:

• I’d arrived in Pittsburgh around 7:15 PM on a Saturday evening and it was all my fault cause I missed my bus out of NYC by 2 minutes and had to wait an additional two hours for the next bus.

• As soon I arrived to the hotel, I’d checked in and freshen up a bit and went for drinks and dinner at “The Yard Gastropub.” Definitely try their local craft beer….I feel as though food and drinks were so inexpensive in Pittsburgh.

• I’d then returned to my hotel and had a quiet and relaxing night.

Day 2:

• I’d went again to Walnut Street the next day and this time decided to have brunch at “Shady Grove” – highly recommend trying their waffles and fried chicken.

• Then I took an Uber to the Carnegie Museum of Art and literally stayed there for about 5 hours exploring the art exhibits.

• After that I went to the museum’s cafe which was stunning and had one of their local craft beer and charged my phone.

•  Less than a block away I stopped by this local bar “Union Grill” and had a couple of their local craft beer going for $4 per/pint along with some delicious chicken fingers and they served fresh popcorn. I stayed there for a few hours relaxing.

• Then I took an Uber back to fifth avenue where my hotel was about 22 blocks away from “Prince of India” – I had a delicious and inexpensive Indian dinner – they had an incredible happy hour special and a buffet.

Day 3:

• I slept in late and this time around I decided to enjoy my hotel. Tic tock – I had to check out at noon.

• Took an Uber to Duquesne incline – where you must visit when in Pittsburgh to experience the most beautiful view of the city and of course the popular bridges.

•  After that I’d recommend walking downhill to Shiloh street where you can enjoy an inexpensive meal, drink or snack.

• I had lunch at Sesame Garden, which was delightful.

• Then I purchased a ticket for the incline/train transfer for $3.50. Good deal as I was able to go back down to street level and take the T train back to the city where I got my bus going to NYC.

Overall I had a great time in Pittsburgh as a solo female traveler. Lovely, cute and affordable city. I hope my blog was helpful with planning your trip to Pittsburgh. Please do not hesitate to reach out to me if there are questions. Happy Travel!