Vinyl somehow has piqued my interest.

My wife loves the "idea" of having a turntable, but she maybe uses it 5-6 times a year.  Our 9 year old loves the idea as well, but he uses it even less.  Interestingly, some of our kids' friends know how to use a turntable - I was shocked when one boy was able to operate our fully manual Technics 1200 like it was nothing.

But overall, we only keep a turntable and a tape deck as a curiosity and a conversation starter now days - nobody else we know has anything one, and we know a lot of people. 

We hardly every use them anymore, though - and personally I would not buy either one if starting now.  But if I did - it would be a restored vintage direct drive Technics.

Your question can elicit a myriad of responses that would only confuse and confound you.  Elliott knows what he is doing and his recommendations above are good ones that you can trust.  Let him guide you, you will not go wrong.  Lets us know how you do as you progress.  BTW, I recommend you look at discogs.com for used records, buy from US sellers because of the tariff situation and stick with VG or better condition.

"Maybe because of the nostalgia"

Get a Fluance. Satisfy your curiosity. It's enough  for what you have.

You'll get endless recommendations that will have you more involved than necessary.

My last hiatus from vinyl was about 15 years ago. Instead of dumping my records I sold the table with the notion that it's a lot easier to buy a new turntable than hundreds of records...   I bought a new table in 2021,  just traded it toward a better one. 

My biggest mistake was giving away some great LPs when CDs came out.   I got back in 15 years later and when one of my kids broke a $400 stylus I needed to pack it up for a while again.... that was around 2010.  

I rarely buy new records , most are not that great.   I much prefer finding mint to Ex  condition used locally.    VG condition if its scarce 

Generally speaking I do not and could not recommend vinyl because I don't know anyone with a decent stereo worthy of a good table.

Like Audphile1  I also got my digital side to where it was pretty good sounding,  really good but sometimes I just prefer the LP version , so I upgraded my table.  Cartridge is next. 

Some have mentioned Fluance but personally I would go with a U-Turn 

Just a quick mention on my U Turn. When I received it the stylus was broken and the tracking counterweight’s dial had popped off. I’m guessing rough UPS handling. I immediately contacted U Turn and they were awesome. Super quick response and they quickly shipped out a new cartridge and weight. I offered to send the old parts back but they declined. Their customer service was very personable and top notch. They’re a newer, smaller company and were great to deal with. Just thought I’d mention that since customer service these days seems to be hit and miss.