Central Park is the largest park in Manhattan, 4 km long and 860 m wide. Frederick Olmsted's park was opened in 1873 and looks very natural, although the entire site has been redesigned. The contrast between skyscrapers and nature makes the Central Parks a magical place. Olmsted was commissioned to design the park in 1857 and traveled to Liverpool in 1859 to get ideas for the design of the park. He also visited Central Park in Wallasey near Liverpool, which was created in 1828. Central Park is home to the world-famous Metropolitan Museum and the Central Park Zoo. Around 20% of the park is water. John Lennon was shot dead in Central Park in 1980 by a mentally ill person. The place where the famous Beatle died is today the memorial "Strawberry Fields" with the inscription IMAGINE.

Central Park

www.centralparknyc.org

The hippest park in New York City is the High Line Park. In 1932 the elevated railway was built as a freight route to the "Meatpacking District", the last train traveled in 1980. From 1999 the disused elevated railway route was converted into a promenade and a park above the city. The first section of the High Line Park was opened in 2009. The entire 2.3 km route has been accessible as a park since 2014. The High Line Park was planned by the architects Diller Scofidio, who also designed The Shed. The High Line Park has now become a tourist magnet, the narrow path is too small for the many visitors. Exclusive residential towers and museums have settled along the elevated railway. The High Line begins at the Whitney Museum in the south and ends in the new district of the Hudson Yards in the north.

Gansevoort St bis 30th St.

Bryant Park is a nice place to sit in the middle of the city surrounded by trees. The park is named in honor of the writer William Bryant, who became famous for his work "Among the trees". Bryant Park is located just behind the New York Public Library. In summer the New Yorkers sit relaxed on folding chairs and drink their coffee in the sun.

6th Ave./W 42. Street

There is a small park with a fountain and lots of flowers on the triangular square between Broadway and Park Row. Here is the transition from the small houses of SoHo and TriBeCa to the skyscrapers of Down Town Manhattan.

Park Row

The guns of the former dutch settlement  of "Nieuw Amsterdam" gave their name to the park on the southern tip of Manhattan. From the boardwalk you will have a nice view over the bay to the "Statue of Liberty" and to Staten Island. At Battery Park there are also the piers of the Saten Island ferries and tourist boats. 

Battery Park

There used to be a large Pepsi factory on the East River in Queens. The bank front was transformed in 1998 into a park, only the huge Pepsi sign remained from the former soda factory. The Gantry Plaza State Park is a small but very nice park with a view of the Manhattan skyline and the UN headquarters.

Gantry Plaza State Park

Tennis fans know "Flushing Meadows" from the US Open. The park is also known for the "1964 World Exposition". One of the few remains is the skeleton of the "New York Pavilion", which was then home to a huge city model. Another relic of the "World Fair" is the globe "Unisphere". 

Meridian Road, Queens NYC

If you want to go from Manhattan to the sea, just take the subway towards "Coney Island". The former Island was connected to Brooklyn by landfills. Coney Island has a long, wide sandy beach on the Atlantic.

Coney Island