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Halfway between the very lively Union Square and the adorable Madison Square Park, Gramercy Park is worth a visit because it is a real curiosity. Created in 1831 on an expanse of marshland, Gramercy Park is a private park closed to the public. It’s hard to believe it when you know it and I can assure you that you are even more dubious once in front of the high closed gates.
There, in the middle of Manhattan, here is an 8000 m² park reserved only for a privileged few. The park indeed belongs to the owners of the buildings and houses that surround the park. And to be entitled to a key allowing access to the park, you must live in one of these 39 residences and pay an annual fee of $350 per key.
The others must content themselves with observing the park through the gates. You will also come across quite a few New Yorkers walking their dogs or jogging on the sidewalk that runs along the park and very few strollers in the park itself.
Two private parks in New York
But as I see that you are still reading this article and that you are very interested in Gramercy Park, I am going to give you THE good plan to know 😉 If you do not know anyone who holds a key to the park, there is indeed a way and only one to enter the park: Gramercy Park is open once a year to everyone, on Christmas Eve. If you’re in New York for the holiday season, don’t miss this exclusive tour on December 24. Then, on December 25, the gates of the park will close for one year to ordinary visitors.
One last piece of information: there is a second private park in New York. This is the Sunnyside Gardens, inaugurated in 1926 in Queens and also reserved for the inhabitants of the district.
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