Free Things to Do on Vacation in New York

excerpted from http://www.nycvisit.com

Tours & More

Alliance for Downtown New York leads a free 90-minute walking tour that includes Wall Street every Thursday and Saturday at noon. Meet at the front steps of the U.S. Custom House (One Bowling Green); no reservations are necessary. For information on the tours, call 212/606-4064.

Central Park Conservancy Tours allow visitors to discover the park's history, ecology and design on free, volunteer-led walking tours that have themes such as "Waterways and Vistas" and "A Road Once Traveled."

Grand Central Partnership leads a tour year round of the Grand Central area, exploring architecture and social history, on Fridays at 12:30pm. Meet at Altria on the southwest corner of 42nd Street and Park Avenue. Reservations are not necessary. The Partnership also has a free lunchtime summer concert series.

The New York Road Runners Club leads free walks through Central Park for people 60 and over every Tuesday and Thursday at 10am. Tours depart from the NYRRC kiosk inside Central Park at East 90th Street and Fifth Avenue.

The Union Square Partnership conducts a free 90-minute tour each Saturday of historic and beautiful Union Square, home to New York City's premiere farmer's market and the famous equestrian statue of George Washington. Meet at 2pm by the Lincoln statue near the Pavilion building on the 16th Street transverse of Union Square Park. For more information call 212/460-1204.

The Times Square Alliance leads "Times Square Expose", a one-and-a-half hour tour of Times Square Fridays at noon. Meet at the Times Square Visitor Information Center: Seventh Avenue between 46th and 47th Streets.
Museums/Cultural Institutions

Enjoy toy boats and soldiers, trophies, old Monopoly games, paintings and more at the Forbes Magazine Galleries (62 Fifth Avenue at 12th Street, 212/206-5548). The galleries are open Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday 10am–4pm.

The Hispanic Society of America is a beautiful, free museum and reference library housing the most extensive collection of Hispanic art and literature outside of Spain and Latin America. Works on display include those by Goya, El Greco and Velasquez. Visitors may also peruse photographs, textiles and decorative arts.

New York Unearthed is the only museum dedicated to New York's archaeological heritage. Visitors can piece together 6,000 years of New York history through dioramas and archaeological artifacts. Free at all times. Located at 17 State Street (opposite Battery Park). Open Monday–Friday, 12 noon–5pm.

Explore Native American arts, artifacts, film and photography at the National Museum of the American Indian. Free at all times. One Bowling Green, 212/514-3700.

The monumental Beaux Arts New York Public Library has varied special exhibitions. Free at all times.

The free Queens Botanical Garden is set on 39 glorious acres of Flushing Meadows-Corona Park. For general information, call 718/886-3800.

An outdoor museum on the East River in Long Island City, Queens, the Socrates Sculpture Park has giant sculptures and a waterfront view of Manhattan. Free at all times. Open 365 days a year from 10am to sunset. 718/956-1819.
Free/Pay What You Wish During Certain Times

Enjoy folk paintings, furniture, pottery, quilts and other decorative arts from the 18th century to the present at the American Folk Art Museum which is free 5:30–7:30pm on Fridays.

The Bronx Zoo is pay-what-you-wish Wednesday.
Explore the beauty of the Brooklyn Botanic Garden free all day Tuesday and Saturday 10am–noon.

The Brooklyn Museum of Art is free 5–11pm the first Saturday of every month. Explore 4,000 years of Jewish history at The Jewish Museum which is free Saturday 11:00am–5:45pm.

The Museum of Arts and Design is pay-what-you-wish Thursday 6–8pm.

The New York Botanical Garden is free all day Wednesday and Saturday 10am–noon.

From Labor Day through Memorial Day, the New York Hall of Science offers free admission on Fridays 2pm–5pm and Sundays 10am–11am.

The Frank Lloyd Wright–designed Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum is pay-what-you-wish Friday 5:45pm until closing (with the last ticket issued at 7:15pm).

The regular garden at the Staten Island Botanical Garden is open from dawn until dusk at no charge, though its Chinese Scholar's Garden has an admission fee.

Enjoy spectacular Hudson River views from Wave Hill, the acclaimed public garden and cultural institution overlooking the Hudson and Palisades, which is free all day Tuesday and Saturday mornings 9am–noon year round. Additionally, from December through February, admission to Wave Hill is free at all times.

The Whitney Museum of American Art is pay-what-you-wish admission Fridays 6–9pm.

Many museums have tours of their exhibits, live music, movies and lectures that are free with suggested museum admission. Contact the museums directly for updated schedules. A sampling: part of the American Museum of Natural History, the stunning Rose Center for Earth and Space hosts "Starry Nights", a fun-filled evening of jazz, tapas, and drinks on the first Friday of every month (6–8:45pm). The Metropolitan Museum of Art offers many gallery talks and films that are free with suggested admission.

Attractions

The interactive 6,200-square-foot SoHo Scholastic Store is fun for kids of all ages. Free Saturday events include author readings and character visits.

The world’s only NBA Store, located on Fifth Avenue and 52nd Street, offers numerous free, live events year round including NBA and WNBA player appearances and presents the NBA Store Concert Series featuring some of today's hottest artists. The 35,000-foot store also features a half-court with regulation-size basketball hoop where fans of all ages can test out their skills at any time.

Visit the Sony Wonder Technology Lab, where high-tech, interactive exhibits abound.

Check out the famous buildings and architecture. Some notable buildings to seek out: Chrysler Building (405 Lexington Avenue), Citigroup Center (153 East 53rd Street), Lipstick Building (885 Third Avenue), Empire State Building (350 Fifth Avenue, 212/736-3100), Grand Central Terminal (42nd Street and Park Avenue) Rockefeller Center (47th–51st Streets and 5th–6th Avenues, 212/332-6868), Seagram Building (375 Park Avenue), Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum (1071 Fifth Avenue, 212/423-3500).

The city also has many magnificent places of worship that are architectural marvels. Explore the biblical garden and children's sculpture garden, as well as the church itself at Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine (1047 Amsterdam Avenue). Also uptown, the breathtaking and enormous Riverside Church has the world's highest (400 feet) carillion tower. In Midtown, take in the beauty of the Gothic St. Patrick's Cathedral (Fifth Avenue and 50th Street).
Events

Many free events happen outside in warm weather, particularly in the parks. With NYC as America's greenest city, there's plenty of space to lay down a lawn chair and soak in some culture along with the sun.

Revel in the best classical music, jazz, drama, opera and dance that New York has to offer at free warm-weather performances in the city parks by the New York Philharmonic, The Metropolitan Opera, Shakespeare in the Park and many more (City of New York Parks and Recreation Special Events Phone Line, 888/NYPARKS). Central Park Summerstage (212/360-2777) holds wonderful performances of all kinds in Central Park June through August.

Looking for fun and inexpensive entertainment? You can see live blues for free at Lucille's Grill, a restaurant inside BB King Blues Club & Grill in Times Square.

Can't decide which Broadway show to see? Check out Broadway on Broadway (888/BROADWAY), a free concert in the beginning of September featuring musical numbers from nearly all of the current Broadway shows as well as previews of upcoming shows.

Picturesque Bryant Park hosts free concerts, outdoor movies and other special events in warm weather.

Come out for the Museum Mile Festival, during which museums on this stretch, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Slomon R. Guggenheim Museum, are open free 6 to 9pm, takes place the second Tuesday in June along Fifth Avenue from 82nd to 104th Streets. These blocks on Fifth Avenue are closed to traffic so that musical performers and other entertainers may take over.

The South Street Seaport hosts many free events, including outdoor concert and performances.

Special indoor and outdoor events take place downtown, south of Chambers Street, throughout the year; many are free. From concerts to exhibits, tours to film screenings, the Alliance for Downtown New York is a great source for downtown events and information.
Views

Walk across the footpath on the famous Brooklyn Bridge for a fantastic view of the Manhattan skyline and Brooklyn, and then walk along the Brooklyn Heights Promenade.

Take a cruise on the free Staten Island Ferry, which goes between Manhattan and Staten Island, and see the lower Manhattan skyline, harbor and Statue of Liberty.

In the shadow of the spectacular Brooklyn Bridge, the South Street Seaport encompasses a cobblestoned historic district, a museum, harbor sails aboard 19th-century schooners and more than 100 shops, cafes and restaurants.

Let us know about your own experiences visiting these places and/or any other free things that you have found for this destination. Include a comment in the comments section below so that others may learn from your experience.