50+ Free Things to Do in New York City
One of the best things about New York City is you can actually travel there for cheap. Believe it or not there are well over 50 free things to do in New York City, but this is our curated list of the best things you can experience for free. You don’t have to go out to eat for every single meal in order to capture the feeling of the city or pay for expensive tickets for tourist attractions. It’s all about knowing what streets to walk in what neighborhoods, where to find the best skyline views, the iconic NYC scenes, and the energy you can soak up from each area of the city.
This is a genuinely curated list by us and what we have done to experience New York City for free. We will break it down by parks, waterfront views, iconic walks, bridges, best neighborhoods to soak in, museums that are free and which ones offer free days/hours, iconic landmarks you can’t miss, street art, our favorite markets to visit, and viewpoints.
You can download our free Google Map of all of these locations here and save it for your trip!
Parks, Green Spaces, + Gardens
1
Central Park all 843 acres of it (we’ll get a little more specific)
2
Sheep’s Meadow, Central Park, lay in the grass with the skyline right in front of you
3
Bethesda Fountain, Central Park, catch the bustle of performers and view of the water
4
Bow Bridge, Central Park
5
The Ramble, Central Park, wander the tree covered paths and catch glimpses of the special nature of the park
6
Conservatory Garden, Central Park, a formal garden tucked into the northeast corner that feels like a picturesque tiny courtyard with a little fountain and gorgeous flowers
7
Washington Square Park is the most alive park in the entire city, you can sit anywhere and watch people or enjoy yourself for hours.
8
Tompkins Square Park, East Village, a great park to rest after wandering the East Village
9
Seward Park, Lower East Side, one of the oldest parks in the city
10
Hudson River Park
11
Bryant Park, Midtown
12
Columbus Park, Chinatown feels like you are actually in a park in Chinatown, you’ll know what we mean
13
Elizabeth Street Garden, SoHo. The most underrated beautiful garden park to sit and relax, quaint and perfect
14
Alphabet City Secret Garden, East Village, technically not directly in East Village but fun to walk down to this little secret garden with a treehouse
15
The Liz Christy Community Garden, East Village: the oldest community garden in New York City
16
Prospect Park, Brooklyn
17
East River State Park, Williamsburg
Waterfront Walks
18
Walk the Brooklyn Bridge Park waterfront or just a portion of it
19
Walk Hudson River Park specifically the Roosevelt Park area
20
Walk the East River waterfront path in Williamsburg
21
Walk the Brooklyn Heights Promenade, one of the best skyline views in the city
22
Walk the Hudson River Greenway
Iconic Walks & Bridges
23
Walk the Brooklyn Bridge: Start Manhattan side for the best views back at the skyline
24
Walk the High Line end to end. This is a former elevated railway turned walking park above Chelsea, beautifully manicured with amazing views
25
Walk the Manhattan Bridge pedestrian path before or after wandering Chinatown
26
Stand at Washington Street and Water Street in DUMBO for the iconic Manhattan Bridge view you’ll quickly recognize
Neighborhoods to City-Soak
27
Wander the West Village and pretend you’re in Sex and the City
28
Walk the cobblestone streets of SoHo in the morning before it gets crowded, you’ll come back for one more peek because it is that good
29
Explore DUMBO after coming off the Brooklyn Bridge
30
Walk Bedford Avenue in Williamsburg, this is a stretch of boutique shops and trendy restaurants
31
Wander Chinatown specifically Canal, Mott, Bayard streets. Also fun to come back at night to see the lights of the little restaurants, and an affordable place to eat
32
Explore the East Village starting on St. Marks and browse any and all of the shops
33
Walk around the Bowery on a Saturday to catch some free pop-ups
34
Visit Times Square at night
Museums + Art
Always Free:
35
The National Museum of the American Indian
36
Leslie-Lohman Museum of Art: the first LGBTQIA+ art museum in the world highlighting queer art and culture
37
Museum of the City of New York, gorgeous lobby, historically deep in the knowledge of New York and a must visit if you genuinely love this city or history in general
Free on specific days or times:
38
Bow Bridge, Central Park
39
The Ramble, Central Park, wander the tree covered paths and catch glimpses of the special nature of the park
40
Conservatory Garden, Central Park, a formal garden tucked into the northeast corner that feels like a picturesque tiny courtyard with a little fountain and gorgeous flowers
41
Washington Square Park is the most alive park in the entire city, you can sit anywhere and watch people or enjoy yourself for hours.
42
Tompkins Square Park, East Village, a great park to rest after wandering the East Village
43
Seward Park, Lower East Side, one of the oldest parks in the city
44
Hudson River Park
Landmarks
45
Go inside the main concourse of Grand Central Station and walk around this is timeless NYC
46
Visit the New York Public Library and walk up the steps
47
Walk the streets of SoHo and admire the cast iron buildings
48
Walk toward the Flatiron Building for the real shot
49
Walk Park Avenue just because you can
50
Sit on the steps of the Met and soak it all in
Street Art
51
The Bowery Wall is one of the most iconic rotating mural installations in the city, always something new
52
Freeman Alley off the Bowery is a narrow alley covered in graffiti and street art, easy to miss if you’re not looking for it
53
Public art installations along the High Line
Markets
54
Union Square Greenmarket is one of the best farmers markets in the city, free to walk through
55
Grand Bazaar NYC, Upper West Side on Sundays year-round on Columbus Avenue between 76th and 77th, 200+ vendors of vintage, antiques, art and handmade goods
56
Ludlow Flea, Lower East Side located at 159 Ludlow Street, vintage and second-hand curations in an open area between buildings, very small but mighty
57
Brooklyn Flea, DUMBO on Saturdays and Sundays under the Manhattan Bridge archway, April through December, absolute must stop
58
The vendors outside the Met on Fifth Avenue, fun to buy souvenirs from
Viewpoints
59
The Brooklyn Heights Promenade
60
DUMBO waterfront at Brooklyn Bridge Park
61
Williamsburg East River waterfront
62
The Staten Island Ferry is completely free, unobstructed views of the Statue of Liberty and the Manhattan skyline
58
The vendors outside the Met on Fifth Avenue, fun to buy souvenirs from
You can download our free Google Map of all of these locations here and save it for your trip. Happy city-soaking!
