The High Line
820 Washington St
New York, NY
A ribbon of garden and walkway floating above the West Side streets, built on the tracks of an old freight railway saved from demolition.
The High Line is a public park built in the sky, running along an abandoned elevated freight railway on Manhattan's West Side. For decades the old steel viaduct sat rusting and overgrown above the streets, slated for demolition, until neighbors fought to save it and turn it into something new. Today it is a narrow ribbon of garden and walkway floating above the traffic, one of the most influential parks built anywhere in a generation.
The design kept the spirit of the ruin it replaced. The plantings are wild and naturalistic, drawn from the hardy grasses and wildflowers that had colonized the tracks on their own, and the old rails still surface here and there through the paths. Walking it, you drift above the city among galleries and rooftops, with sudden framed views of the Hudson River and the streets below.
What Guests Love
- Walking a garden path high above the traffic, level with second-story windows
- Wild, naturalistic plantings inspired by the weeds that once grew on the old tracks
- Framed views of the streets, the Hudson River, and the city skyline
- Rotating public art, seating nooks, and a peek at the working railway bones underfoot
Worth Knowing
- It runs one direction as a linear path, so plan a walk from one end to the other
- It gets crowded on warm weekends; early mornings and weekdays are calmer
- The plantings change dramatically with the seasons, worth a return visit
- Access is by stairs and elevators at points along its length, and it connects to nearby museums and markets
Details
New York, NY
Learn about The High Line
From freight line to ruin
The railway was built in the 1930s to lift dangerous freight trains off the crowded West Side streets, where so many people had been killed by trains at grade that the avenue earned a grim nickname. Elevated tracks carried boxcars right into the upper floors of factories and warehouses, delivering meat, produce, and goods without ever crossing traffic.
As trucking took over, rail traffic dwindled, and the last train ran in 1980. The viaduct was left abandoned, and over the following years nature reclaimed it, with grasses, wildflowers, and even small trees taking root in the gravel between the rails. For a time it was a hidden, overgrown ruin known mostly to a few urban explorers, and the city moved toward tearing it down.
The fight to save it
In the late 1990s two neighborhood residents founded a group to save the structure, arguing that the wild landscape on top of it was worth preserving rather than demolishing. Photographs of the self-sown meadow floating above the streets captured imaginations and helped turn public opinion.
After years of advocacy, the city agreed to convert the viaduct into a park, and a design was chosen that would echo the accidental beauty of the ruin. The first section opened in 2009 to immediate acclaim, and the park was extended in stages until it ran the full length of the old line. Its success has since inspired similar rail-to-park projects in cities around the world.
The garden in the sky
The planting is the heart of the High Line. Rather than tidy flower beds, the designers filled it with tough perennials, grasses, and wildflowers meant to recall the plants that had grown wild on the tracks, a style of loose, seasonal planting that changes constantly through the year. The old rails were left running through and beside the paths as a reminder of what the place had been.
Along the way the walkway widens into overlooks, seating steps, and quiet nooks, and rotating public art and installations appear at points down its length. Because it floats a story or two above the ground, it offers a rare view of the city, level with windows and rooftops, with the Hudson River opening up to the west.
Seasons and walking it
The garden is a different place in every season. Spring brings bulbs and fresh green, summer fills it with tall grasses and bloom, and fall lights the grasses and perennials in warm bronze and gold. Even winter has a stark beauty, when the dried seedheads and grasses stand against the snow.
It works best walked end to end, a slow drift above the neighborhoods it connects, so allow time rather than rushing. Warm-weather weekends draw big crowds, so early mornings and weekdays are the calmest, and the many access points let you hop on or off near the museums, markets, and galleries clustered along its route.
Closest Boutels
The closest Boutel™ stays, so you can turn this stop into an overnight. Each is an independently owned, editorially selected place to stay.
Things to Do Near New York
Whitney Museum of American Art
At the south end
A landmark museum of modern and contemporary American art with terraces overlooking the Hudson and the High Line.
Chelsea Market
Along the route
A bustling indoor food hall and market in a former biscuit factory, packed with vendors and eateries.
Hudson River Park
A block or two west
A waterfront park and greenway running along the Hudson, with piers, lawns, and river views.