Mount Loretto Unique Area

A picturesque brick building that actually predates the park. It was built in 1851 to serve as a munitions supply depot for the New York State National Guard, and was designed to look like a medieval fortress, with battlements overlooking the area. Today the building holds a refreshment stand and a small art gallery with rotating/seasonal exhibits.

Constructed between 1858 and 1862, the Reservoir is a vast urban lake that covers 106 acres of Central Park and is the largest body of water within Manhattan. Renamed the "Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis Reservoir" in 1994, the Reservoir is probably best known for the 1.58 mile track that runs around its edge and which is a favorite for joggers, who can both run and enjoy the spectacular views of the city skyline.

General Ulysses S. Grant and his wife are buried in this imposing mausoleum, the largest tomb in North America. If you come when it is closed, you can still see the impressive facade, but coming during open hours gives you the opportunity to view the murals, the tomb and various documentation inside. Across Riverside Drive, there is a viewpoint to look across the Hudson River, a museum, gift shop and restrooms.

Americana including Audubon’s watercolors of birds.

The Asia Society is a unique educational organization like no other in the area promoting relationships and understanding among and of leaders, people, and organizations of Asia. It features a vast array of Asian art including art, business, culture, and education, promoting collaboration and a new, progressive understanding of Asian relations. The opportunities for discovery here are endless, with lessons about art, calligraphy, language, literature, politics, and religion.

From its intersection with Park Row (just east of City Hall) you can walk (takes about 20-30 minutes each way), bike, or drive across the historic and iconic bridge to Brooklyn. The view from the bridge is quite lovely, with excellent views of Lower Manhattan and Downtown Brooklyn and good views of Midtown and the New York Harbor in the distance.

An elevated walkway and jetty provides access to the only natural salt marsh remaining in Manhattan, and expansive views of the Hudson River and the cliffs of Spuyten Duyvil in the Bronx across the river.

Containing artifacts spanning 4,000 years of art and Jewish culture, with a collection of 26,000 objects – paintings, sculpture, works on paper, photographs, archaeological artifacts, ceremonial objects and broadcast media. The museum also hosts the annual SummerNights concert series and the annual New York Jewish Film Festival.

A branch of the Smithsonian Institution, the Cooper Hewitt is devoted to over 240 years of contemporary and historic design, with changing exhibits.

So named in 1981 in memory of John Lennon, the former Beatle, who was murdered close by outside his home in the Dakota building. Lennon's widow Yoko Ono, who still lives in the Dakota, subsequently donated $1 million to upgrade the area with hundreds of tree and flower species, including strawberries. The area serves as a Garden of Peace and includes a memorial floor mosaic (donated by the Italian city of Naples) that says simply "Imagine", referring to the title of one of Lennon's evocative songs.

A 2011 addition to the Lower Manhattan skyline, this 76-story residential skyscraper by the noted Frank Gehry has a distinctive rippled, "wavy" facade that is quite eye-catching. It is best viewed from City Hall Park and the Brooklyn Bridge.

At the center of Central Park, the Great Lawn is a large clearing with lawns and ballfields, perfect for ballgames, sunbathing, and picnicking. Just to the east of the Lawn is the Obelisk, a 71-foot tall structure which is the oldest man-made object in the park, having been erected in Heliopolis, Egypt, around 1500 BC.

Get up close to over 200 lifelike wax figures of the biggest stars and icons in entertainment, sports and history.

A small park at the foot of Broadway which is the oldest public park in the city and is the site of the Charging Bull sculpture created after the 1987 stock market crash. Bowling Green is also the origin point for the Broadway ticker-tape parades; if you walk up Broadway, you can view plaques in the sidewalk honoring the people or events celebrated in these parades.

One of New York's most beautiful parks, an expanse of rolling hills high above the Hudson, contains some of the highest natural elevations on the island and is a great place to picnic or stroll in good weather and look at the great views of the New Jersey Palisades across the river.

Built in 1766, the chapel is an active part of the Parish of Trinity Church and is Manhattan's oldest public building in continuous use. It is the only remaining colonial church in New York City and was George Washington's place of worship after he was inaugurated as president. Since 2001, the chapel has been known for surviving the events of 9/11 without even a broken window - despite being across the street from the World Trade Center - and for its role as a place of refuge for the WTC recovery workers in the days that followed.

A museum dedicated to folk & self-taught artists.