Free Things to Do in New York: 11 Genuinely Free Picks

The best free things to do in New York are the Staten Island Ferry, Central Park, Brooklyn Bridge Park, the High Line, the Bronx Museum of the Arts and three National Park Service sites in Lower Manhattan: Castle Clinton, Federal Hall and the African Burial Ground. Each costs nothing to enter according to its own official site, with a few small catches noted below.

New York is expensive, but the city's best views, history and art do not all come with a ticket. Here is what is free, what only looks free, and a route that strings the best of it into one day.

How did we choose these free picks?

Every pick passed an official-site check for cost. We started with a list of well-known New York places and checked each one against its own official website for two things: is it open, and what does it say about cost. A place made the list only when an official page said it is free, listed no admission fee, or named a specific free day or hour. We left out anything where the official site was unreachable or silent. Where a page lists no entry fee but never uses the word free, we say so. Every pick is inside the five boroughs of New York City.

Are the big landmarks free?

Mostly no. Central Park is the one headline name you can enter without paying; the Empire State Building, the Statue of Liberty and The Metropolitan Museum of Art all cost money for most visitors.

• Central Park, Manhattan: The Central Park Conservancy's visit pages list hours (6:00 am to 1:00 am, 365 days a year) and no admission charge. See the full entry below.
• Statue of Liberty National Monument, Liberty Island: The National Park Service says it does not charge an entrance fee to visit the museums on Liberty Island and Ellis Island, but a ferry ticket from Statue City Cruises is required to get there. The NPS lists adult tickets at $26, with children under 4 free. Fee Free Days and park passes do not cover the ferry.
• Empire State Building, Midtown: The official site states plainly that there is no free admission to the observation decks. Tickets start at $46 and every visit needs a timed reservation.
• The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Upper East Side: Not free for most visitors. The Met's admission page lists general admission at $30 for adults, $22 for seniors and $17 for students, and says children 12 and under are free. New York State residents pay what they wish, but the Met says you must pay something, so it is cheap rather than free. Confirm the current rules at metmuseum.org before you go.

If your goal is to stand near a famous New York monument for nothing, use the picks below instead.

What are the best free things to do in New York?

1. Staten Island Ferry (Lower Manhattan to St. George, Staten Island)

The Staten Island Ferry is free to ride. The New York City Department of Transportation says so in one line: it is free to ride, every day, year-round, and the trip takes about 25 minutes. Schedules can change, so check the official timetable before you go. Ride out, then turn around at the terminal in St. George and ride back for a round-trip harbor cruise at no cost.

2. Central Park (Manhattan, 59th to 110th Streets)

Central Park covers 843 acres and sees 42 million visits a year, according to the Central Park Conservancy. It opens at 6:00 am and closes at 1:00 am, every day of the year. The Conservancy's pages list no entry fee; the only cost we found is the Central Park Zoo, which is a separate ticketed attraction. Walk in from Fifth Avenue near the Upper East Side museums or from the west side and let the paths decide the rest.

3. Brooklyn Bridge Park (Dumbo and Brooklyn Heights, Brooklyn)

Brooklyn Bridge Park says it is open seven days a week, 6 am to 1 am, and its homepage states: Entry is Free. Pier 5 is open 6 am to 11 pm, and the park's Environmental Education Center keeps limited afternoon hours Thursday through Sunday. The lawns and piers sit under the bridge and face Lower Manhattan, which makes it our favorite free skyline view in New York. Pair it with a walk through Dumbo.

4. The High Line (Chelsea, Manhattan)

The High Line, the park built on an abandoned elevated railroad in Chelsea, is free to walk. The park's own site describes it as public space it works to keep free for everyone, and it offers free docent-led tours on select days. Hours are typically 7 am to 10 pm from April 1 to November 30 and 7 am to 8 pm from December 1 to March 31. Entrances include 30th Street at Hudson Yards.

5. The Bronx Museum of the Arts (Concourse, the Bronx)

The Bronx Museum of the Arts at 1040 Grand Concourse is the one art museum on this list that is free every day. Its visit page says admission to the museum and all its exhibitions and events is always free for everyone. It is typically open Wednesday to Sunday, 11 am to 6 pm, and closed Monday and Tuesday, plus federal holidays and exhibition changeovers. During renovation work on its South Wing, the museum directs visitors to its north entrance on Grand Concourse, so check the visit page before you go. The museum sits in Concourse, near Yankee Stadium.

6. African Burial Ground National Monument (Lower Manhattan)

The African Burial Ground National Monument, at 290 Broadway, does not charge an admission fee for its visitor center or its outdoor memorial, per the National Park Service. Both are typically open Wednesday through Sunday, 10:00 am to 4:00 pm, and closed on Thanksgiving, Christmas Day and New Year's Day. The outdoor memorial is at the corner of African Burial Ground Way and Duane Street. It is a quiet, serious stop in the middle of the courthouse district of Lower Manhattan.

7. Federal Hall National Memorial (Wall Street, Manhattan)

Federal Hall National Memorial at 26 Wall Street has no entry fee, the National Park Service confirms. The catch: the interior is not always open, so check the NPS alerts before you plan around it. When it is closed you can still see the exterior and the statue of George Washington out front. The self-guided exhibits take about 30 minutes; check the National Park Service site for ranger-led tour options.

8. Castle Clinton National Monument (Battery Park, Manhattan)

Castle Clinton National Monument sits inside Battery Park at the southern tip of Manhattan, and the National Park Service says there is no fee to enter. The listed hours are 7:45 am to 5:00 pm daily, and the site closes only on Thanksgiving and December 25. You can walk into the old harbor fort and look around without buying anything, though the site may close in bad weather.

9. Wave Hill (Riverdale, the Bronx)

Wave Hill, the public garden and cultural center at 4900 Independence Avenue in the Bronx, is free on Thursdays. Its visit page lists Thursdays as free admission all day, though that does not apply to organized groups. On other days adults pay $10, students and seniors 65 and over pay $6, and children 6 and up pay $4. The grounds are typically open Tuesday to Sunday, 10:00 am to 4:30 pm, with last admission at 4:00 pm in winter. Hours shift by season, so check the visit page.

10. Governors Island (New York Harbor)

Governors Island is a 172-acre island about 800 yards from Lower Manhattan, open daily year-round. The ferry is the cost, and it has a free window: all passengers ride free on Saturdays and Sundays before 11 am, with the free departures from Manhattan running 7:00 am to 10:30 am. Otherwise a round-trip adult ticket is $5, and some groups (including children 12 and under, adults 65 and over, and IDNYC holders) ride free. Ferries from Brooklyn are seasonal and stop in winter, so in the off-season leave from the Battery Maritime Building at 10 South Street in Lower Manhattan. The island's own site does not state an entry price, so treat the ferry fare as the only cost.

11. Gantry Plaza State Park (Long Island City, Queens)

Gantry Plaza State Park, at 4-44 47th Road in Long Island City, is open daily from dawn to dusk, and its official page lists no entry fee. It faces the Midtown skyline across the East River and keeps the old industrial gantries as a backdrop. The spray pad runs in summer only.

What about places that are cheap but not free?

Pay-what-you-wish is cheap, not free. Brooklyn Botanic Garden in Brooklyn lists winter weekdays, November through February, as pay-what-you-wish; standard adult admission at the box office is $22, and children under 12 and members are always free. In November and December it is typically open Tuesday to Sunday, 10 am to 3:30 pm. The Met works the same way for New York State residents: pay what you wish, but pay something.

Can you spend a whole day in New York for free?

Yes: this one-day route through Lower Manhattan and Brooklyn costs nothing. It works best Wednesday to Sunday, because the African Burial Ground is closed Monday and Tuesday. Everything on it is free.

1. 8:00 am: Walk through Battery Park to Castle Clinton National Monument, which opens at 7:45 am.
2. 9:00 am: Ride the Staten Island Ferry out and back, about 25 minutes each way.
3. 11:00 am: Walk up to Federal Hall National Memorial on Wall Street. If it is closed, photograph the Washington statue and keep moving.
4. 12:30 pm: Head to the African Burial Ground National Monument at 290 Broadway, and arrive before the 4:00 pm close.
5. Late afternoon: Cross to Brooklyn and finish at Brooklyn Bridge Park for the skyline at sunset. The park stays open until 1 am.

Swap in the High Line on a different day if you want a Chelsea afternoon, and check Wave Hill's Thursday free day if you are heading to the Bronx.

Insider tips

• Use the Staten Island Ferry as your free harbor tour, and ride back on the next boat rather than getting off.
• Before you take the ferry to Governors Island, check the time: Saturday and Sunday departures from Manhattan before 11 am are free.
• Never plan around Federal Hall's interior without checking the National Park Service alerts first.
• The High Line offers free docent-led tours on select days, so check its visit page before you go.

For more places to start from, browse our New York area guides or the Midtown page.

Last verified: November 2026.

Frequently asked questions

What are the best free things to do in New York?

The Staten Island Ferry, Central Park, Brooklyn Bridge Park, the High Line and the Bronx Museum of the Arts are the strongest free picks. Three National Park Service sites in Lower Manhattan, Castle Clinton, Federal Hall and the African Burial Ground, also charge no admission.

Is Central Park free?

Yes, the Central Park Conservancy lists no admission fee for the park, which is open from 6:00 am to 1:00 am every day of the year. Individual attractions inside it, such as the Central Park Zoo, charge their own admission.

Is the Statue of Liberty free?

No. The National Park Service charges no entrance fee for the museums on Liberty Island, but you need a ferry ticket from Statue City Cruises, listed at $26 for adults 13 and up. Children under 4 ride free.

Is the Empire State Building free?

No. The Empire State Building's official site says there is no free admission to its observation decks, and all visits need a timed reservation. Tickets start at $46.

Is The Metropolitan Museum of Art free?

Not for most visitors. The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York lists general admission at $30 for adults and free entry for children 12 and under, and New York State residents may pay what they wish as long as they pay something. Confirm current rules on the Met's official site before you go.

Is the Staten Island Ferry really free?

Yes. The New York City Department of Transportation says it is free to ride the Staten Island Ferry, which runs every day, year-round, and takes about 25 minutes each way.