This industry is inhumane. Please consider this before you ride them. Horses have died and pedestrians and drivers have been injured. The horses are treated as cars and not living beings that feel pain. Please look at their eyes and do the right thing by them. Contact Mayor Bloomberg and inform him how wrong this industry is to exist in NYC traffic.

All over the city and around Central Park

I agreeI disagree

1.  
2. Send to friends

My four-year-old daughter and I found ourselves living it up in New York recently when we joined my husband on a business trip. We had a great time eating out, exploring the city on open-top bus tours, and doing museums and Broadway shows, but some of the best things we did really were free (or at least nearly free). Here are my top ten things to do with kids for next to nothing in NYC…

1. Lay out a blanket in Central Park (picnic optional) and soak up the atmosphere. The huge expanse of grass at the Great Lawn is a favourite spot and great for games too.

2. Visit Belvedere Castle in the middle of Central Park at 79th Street. It is the highest point of the park with great views, a visitor centre, walking tours and free educational programs.

3. Attend Saturday morning story time for children of all ages in Central Park at the Hans Christian Anderson Memorial (mid-park from East 73rd entrance. Check for times at www.centralparknyc.org).

4. Visit one of the spectacular toy shops: Toys-R-Us in Times Square or FAO Schwartz (the corner of Fifth Avenue and Central Park South) which has a giant electronic keyboard built into the floor upstairs that children can play with their feet. You can easily spend an hour or more exploring and trying out the display toys without buying a thing.

5. Take the Staten Island ferry. Day or night this is one of the best free (or paid for) boat rides in the world. It takes about half an hour each way. You can get straight off and back on again or spend time on the dockside at Staten Island looking at the distant Manhattan skyline. The ride gives spectacular views of the downtown skyline and the Statue of Liberty, all lit-up to magical effect at night.

6. If it’s a quiet stroll you’re after and you find yourself in Brooklyn, take a walk along the Brooklyn Seafront for a great view of Manhattan and the Brooklyn Bridge. (And if you do want to spend a few dollars there is a great ice-cream parlour there too.)

7. Stand in the middle of Times Square for ten minutes and don’t forget to look up.

8. Stand just about anywhere and play how many yellow cabs can you count in a minute?
And if it’s summer…

9. Summerstage (held at Rumsey Playfield near 72nd Street and Fifth Avenue) and Shakespeare in the Park (at the open-air Delacorte Theater near the W81st Street entrance to the park) are two of the most popular summertime programs and both are free. Top-shelf acts and great performances.

10. Fancy a dip? There are 14 miles of public beaches in four of NY’s boroughs: Brooklyn, Bronx, Queens, and Staten Island. Contact General Parks and Recreation Department Information at www.nycparks.completeinet.net for more info.

General info at www.nyctourism.com
Central Park info at www.centralparknyc.org
Summerstage info: www.summerstage.org
More info on Shakespeare in the Park can be found at: www.publictheater.org

I agreeI disagree

1.  
2. Send to friends

Free plays with a high standard of acting talent seeking exposure and discovery, great atmosphere and the chance to see future and current stars pitting their skills against the bardic benchmark.

Delacorte Theatre in Central Park
www.publictheater.org/view.php?mode=eventdisplay&eventid=210

I agreeI disagree

1.  
2. Send to friends

A running track (1.58 miles) follows the edge of the reservoir (now officially the Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis Reservoir) and lets you experience the same views as Dustin Hoffman in the opening sequences of Marathon Man - the skyline of buildings that surround the park.

No worries about muggers - forget those scenes from Death Wish - you'll always have the company of other runners, even in the snow.

The reservoir is located in Central Park between 86th and 96th

I agreeI disagree

1.  
2. Send to friends

If you are a birdwatcher, you will love Central Park. There is a 37-acre area called The Ramble (just south of the Belvedere, shown on the maps on signposts and free from Central Park information booths), full of wildlife.

Take binoculars and a camera, and try to find a stream as this is where the birds feed and bathe.

Only starlings and sparrows will be familiar to Europeans.

Bird books are available from Borders etc., otherwise you won't know what you're seeing. We enjoyed it for three hours and never made it to the Met that day!

More info from the park Conservancy office in the Belvedere.

Central Park, roughly at 76th St level

I agreeI disagree

1.  
2. Send to friends

What better way to see the weird and wonderful sights of Central Park on a beautiful sunny day? We had planned to go rollerblading but didn't have the gear or the skill.
We hired 'cruiser' bikes from the boathouse for $9 per hr and proceeded to cruise around the car free one way road that takes you on a tour around the whole park.

It was just glorious. Not too energetic or time consuming. It took about 40 minutes at a gentle pace. It was on a sunny Saturday so we got to see every sort of New Yorker and tourist doing what they wanted to do - playing baseball, 'football', chilling out, frisbee, juggling, dancing, shouting, singing, getting married, sailing, people watching and on and on.
It was the highlight of our trip.

The Boathouse is in the Central Park on the East side between 74th and 75th streets.

I agreeI disagree

1.  
2. Send to friends

Empire/ Fulton ferry state park - The most dramatic views in the city, situated on the waterfront underneath the coming together of the Brooklyn and Manhattan bridges in DUMBO, Brooklyn - surrounded by old industrial buildings - The drama is heightened by the subways rolling over the Manhattan bridge - used in numerous films eg The French connection

York St subway station on the F line

I agreeI disagree

1.  
2. Send to friends

I really recommend hiring bicycles to get the most out of an hour in Central Park. Hire from the Loeb Boathouse is $9 for an hour on a "cruiser" which is a bike without gears (or actually brakes, but don't let that put you off!). You will also need to leave something like a passport or a driver's licence as a deposit. There's a good path around the outside of the Park, which is about 8 miles (apparently). There is one awful hill at around 103rd street, but once you're over that (I pushed my bike up), you're away. It's a great way to see all the sights of the park, without taking up an entire day - the full circuit took us about an hour. Finish off with a frozen lemonade from one of the stands by the Bethesda Fountain -you'll deserve it!

Loeb Boathouse, Central Park (roughly in the middle of the Park, at about 72nd Street)

I agreeI disagree

1.  
2. Send to friends

It is the best place for completely chilling out and people watching. I've been there in the summer and in the fall and both those times of year it is beautiful. I would now love to see it in covered in snow. It's a great place to sit with a book or your journal on a sunny day and it's a great place just to wander around and watch people rollerblading and seeing some of the strangest buskers I have ever seen. You forget you are in the city, but there are some fantastic views of the skyscrapers of New York from the park reminding you that, as peaceful as it is, you are still in one of the busiest cities in the world. Check out the fantastic view from the Wollman Ice Rink. It is very easy to lose yourself for an entire day just chilling out in Central Park.

I agreeI disagree

1.  
2. Send to friends

Watch the world go by and, if you have the courage, challenge for a game of chess. It is a chilled out park and people watching is the best pastime here. New Yorkers in a nutshell. After spending hours being nosey head down to John's Pizza on Bleeker Street (five minutes away).

When I went to NY I was visiting my partner and all his colleagues said this was the best pizza to be had. I enjoyed it (held to Sicily making the best pizzas but hey-ho) but definitely was part of the NY experience. Gets very busy so be prepared.

MacDougal Street and then a walk down Bleeker Street for dinner.

I agreeI disagree

1.  
2. Send to friends

If the weather's dry - especially on a Sunday - seek out the bike hire stand near the Boat House restaurant in Central Park and for just $9 an hour you can feel like a New Yorker. Traffic is banned on Sundays so it's just you - and the joggers, horse drawn carriages, 'serious' cyclists and other brave souls - seeing the splendour of the green heart of Manhattan. At a steady pace even someone over 50 and unfit can do a full easy circuit of the entire park - though you may want to walk it up Big Hill!

www.centralparknyc.org South end of the Park, not far from The Carousel, Sheep Meadow, Strawberry Fields etc.

I agreeI disagree

1.  
2. Send to friends

Yes, it's a cemetery, but it was also the first park in New York. It's beautiful and you can see the Statue of Liberty and the Empire State Building. Not only is it great for walking, but you can see amazing sculptures and mausoleums.

It's in Brooklyn. Take the R Train to 25th Street Station, Walk East 1 block to Green-Wood at 5th Avenue & 25 Street.

I agreeI disagree

1.  
2. Send to friends

It's smaller than Central Park, but with fewer visitors you get more space per person. Plus is was designed after Central Park and many people think it's a better design.

Lots of subways stations are near it: Prospect Park and Parkside Avenue stops on the Q line are good.

I agreeI disagree

1.  
2. Send to friends

Near the Boating House you can hire bicycles. A really good way to have a look at the whole park. More hilly than you might think though!

www.centralparkbiketour.com/ for online booking

I agreeI disagree

1.  
2. Send to friends

A sculpture garden on the roof of the museum, missed by the vast majority of visitors. Go not for the art but the view: a gorgeous panorama of Central Park and the sumptuous buildings that surround it, from just above the tree line.

1000 Fifth Ave at 82nd Street. Take the elevator at the back of the Museum. (Best ask a guard.) Open Spring, summer, and early fall.

I agreeI disagree

1.  
2. Send to friends

Along with the chess players and the students there was for the longest time a man who seemed to hug people for living.

West 4th Street and MacDougal; www.pps.org/gps/one?public_place_id=7

I agreeI disagree

1.  
2. Send to friends

Nothing beats Central Park. You can rollerblade, row, jog, visit the zoo, stroll, see Shakespeare or just disappear. I've strolled and disappeared but I've heard the other stuff is lovely.

I agreeI disagree

1.  
2. Send to friends

Yes, there are excellent beaches not far from the city and I don't mean the Hamptons. July/August is very hot and following the locals is a good idea. Long Beach is a pretty town by the sea with a long boardwalk, good swimming and surfing (non-residents pay $6 entry), and Jones Beach State Park ($8 parks entry fee) has 6 miles of seafront, 2 bathhouses and tons of amenities (but bring your own food).

Both feature white dune sand, blazing sun (remember the sunblock!) and safe swimming with lifeguards during the summer.

Long Beach: Catch the Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) from Penn Station to Long Beach, then walk to boardwalk;
Jones Beach: Catch the LIRR (Babylon branch) to Freeport, a special bus service, or drive

I agreeI disagree

1.  
2. Send to friends

In winter, the pond in Central Park is turned into an ice skating rink (skate hire is available). Even if you don't want to skate, the viewing platform above the rink is highly recommended - the skyline in the background is familiar from many films.

Central Park, Manhattan

I agreeI disagree

1.  
2. Send to friends

The Cherry Lawn, the Rose House, Daffodil Hill, the Bonsai Collection, and the Japanese Garden are just some of the highlights of this element of Brooklyn's Culture Park across Flatbush Avenue from the massive Prospect Park (designer Olmstead, annoyed by the Metropolitan Museum in his Central Park, wanted Prospect Park uncompromised by huge buildings). The Brooklyn Museum and Brooklyn Public Library are adjoining. This is a fantastic visit, incredible in the spring. Admission is $5, students $3, kids under 16 get in free.

1000 Washington Avenue, Brooklyn - B or Q train to Prospect Park station. (The B train does not run on weekends.) 2 or 3 train to Eastern Parkway

I agreeI disagree

1.  
2. Send to friends