What to do in New York when you love nature?

Treat yourself to a nature break in the middle of the jungle of New York skyscrapers is not easy… But it is possible! We take you for a walk in the green spaces of the most bubbling of American cities.

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New York, its buildings that rub shoulders with the skies, its crowded streets, its inhabitants in a hurry… Need a break? If you look a little, it is quite possible to get away from the New York frenzy and go green. Between parks and beaches, here are our favorite places to slow down during a city break in the “Big Apple”.

Obviously, we cannot tell you about New York parks without mentioning the most legendary of them. Amazingly, it’s relatively easy to get away from the crowds in Central Park, until sometimes managing to wander (almost) alone in the heart of the famous urban park. The 340 hectares offered by this immense rectangle of greenery in the middle of Manhattan are made up of several artificial lakes, lawns to indulge in outdoor sports and games, pedestrian paths, cycle paths for bicycles and rollerblades, two skating rinks in winter, but also a zone of protection of the wild life (one sees there rabbits, marmots, squirrels, raccoons, turtles). Finally, the park is considered a “sanctuary” for 270 species of birds. It is also located on the Atlantic route of migratory birds, which stop over there regularly.

Another very nice place in Manhattan, Riverside Park. This long park runs from 72nd Street to 159th Street and borders the Hudson River. Like Central Park, it was designed by landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted. This small strip of greenery is very popular with athletes, such as joggers and cyclists. Football, basketball and tennis courts as well as a skate park will also delight people who want to exercise. We also recommend that you go there for a drink and coffee and watch the setting sun reflected in the water. A beautiful moment!

We stay in Manhattan with one of the most pleasant walks in the borough, la High Line. This 2.3 km long suspended urban park, inspired by the René-Dumont Coulée verte in the 12th arrondissement of Paris, is built on a disused portion of the old overhead rail lines of the Lower West Side. It’s a perfect mix between nature and city! We stroll through a labyrinth of skyscrapers (it’s an opportunity to admire their architecture in detail, we brush past them) on a vegetated path strewn with plants, flowers, trees and vegetable gardens. The High Line contributes significantly to the restoration of nature in New York, providing shade, oxygen and habitats for various plants, fungi, microorganisms, birds and insects.

We change district to go to Brooklyn, and more precisely to Prospect Park, New York’s other green lung. This very pleasant park, less frequented than Central Park, shelters in particular the largest lake of Brooklyn, an immense meadow of 35 hectares (the longest urban space of the United States) and especially the splendid natural woods of Brooklyn where one can for example go horseback riding.

No question of sulking the Bronx! New York’s northernmost borough, often wrongly devalued, is home to New York’s largest park (three times the size of Central Park): the Pelham Bay Park. It is also one of the most peaceful! There is a huge forest, a beach (Orchard Beach) and even swampy coves. Ideal for a green trip out of the tumult of the city that never sleeps.

Le Forest Park, in Queens, it’s over 200 acres of trails, rolling hills, and oak and pine forests. A beautiful green setting to stroll and let off steam, the park is home to many sports fields.

Each “borough” having its own park, we end with the High Rock Park, located in Staten Island, the southernmost and most residential of New York boroughs. It is undoubtedly the quietest park, but also the furthest from tourist attractions. To get there, you take the ferry from Manhattan, at Whitehall Terminal, near Battery Park. This splendid park – our favorite – is dotted with ponds, marshes and six marked hiking trails. From the top of Moses Mountain, a hill nearly 80 meters high, there is a beautiful view of the park and, in the distance, of the neighboring state of New Jersey.

The beaches around New York

There are several urban beaches in New York – our favorites being Rockaway Beach in Queens and Coney Island in Brooklyn (with its famous funfair) – but when you get away a little, you discover truly wild beaches, and this less than two hours by car from Manhattan. We recommend the beaches of Long Beach, in Long Island, very pleasant and ideal for surfing – on the other hand very elitist, count around 15 dollars per person to access it – and those of Sandy Hook, in New Jersey, a set of three beaches where dunes and large expanses of sand mingle for more than 11 km (no restaurants or bars!).

>> Find in pictures our favorite places (+ all the practical information) in our slideshow!

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