840 Best Sights in New York, USA

Greek Revival architecture finds expression in this 1833 chapel atop a bluff facing the Hudson River. Passing sailors have long taken pleasure in the landmark, originally built to support the spiritual lives of West Point Foundry workers. Initially a Catholic church, the nondenominational chapel now hosts ecumenical services, weddings, and other events. The chapel has no set open hours, but the facade is worth a look, and the columned porch is a great place for river gazing.

A visit to the painstakingly restored home of the DeLong family—who lived here from 1860 to 1910—gives you a glimpse of life in the 19th-century Adirondacks. Guided tours of the house are available Tuesday through Friday and Sunday 1–4 and Saturday 10–4. Changing exhibits showcase regional history, and an extensive photo collection displays the work of Seneca Ray Stoddard (1843–1917).

The lighthouse stands about a mile south of Lake Ontario, giving you an idea of how the landscape has changed since the 40-foot-tall stone structure was erected in 1822. In the 1960s a group of local high school students saved the structure—the second-oldest American lighthouse on Lake Ontario—from rumored demolition.

It all began in 1874, when John Heyl Vincent, a Methodist minister, and Lewis Miller, an industrialist, set up a training center for Sunday-school teachers here. The Chautauqua Institution rapidly grew into a summer-long cultural encampment. More than 2,000 events take place here in summer, including lectures, art exhibitions, outdoor symphonies, theater, dance performances, opera, and open-enrollment classes.

The village has small winding streets lined with gas lights and beautiful Victorian houses, which are often outfitted in bright colors, turrets, multiple gables, and gingerbread trim. The Miller Bell Tower is the most recognizable landmark on the lakeshore and has become the symbol of the institution; tunes are played three or four times a day, and the Miller Bell is rung manually 15 minutes before amphitheater lectures and evening programs.

Seats for the Chautauqua Symphony Orchestra and other large events held at the 6,500-seat Chautauqua Amphitheater are on a first-come, first-served basis. Musicians as diverse as Peter, Paul, and Mary; 10,000 Maniacs; Glenn Miller; and Natalie Cole have performed in the theater, which has a roof and houses an enormous pipe organ. Norton Memorial Hall, a 1,365-seat art-deco building, is where the Chautauqua Opera Company presents four English-language operas each season.

The institution's recreational activities complement its cultural opportunities. You may fish, swim, play tennis, golf, or rent sailboats, motorboats, or canoes from the concessions on the lake. The village, a National Historic District, also includes B&Bs, hotels, inns, guesthouses, apartments, and condominiums, as well as several restaurants and eateries. You may use a car when dropping off and picking up your luggage, but otherwise car usage is extremely limited here. Lots near the entrance gates offer daily and long-term paid parking. A free shuttle bus and tram travel through the campus during the season. Narrated bus tours of the grounds are available.

This sports-and-entertainment complex along the Hudson River between 17th and 23rd Streets, a phenomenal example of adaptive reuse, is the size of four 80-story buildings laid out flat. There's pretty much every kind of sports activity happening both inside and out, including golf (check out the multitier, all-weather outdoor driving range), sailing classes, ice-skating, rock climbing, soccer, bowling, gymnastics, and basketball. Plus there's a spa and elite sport-specific training. Chelsea Piers is also the jumping-off point for some of the city's boat tours and dinner cruises.

Kids can learn about Mohican life or bees and pollination through the interactive exhibits here, which cover science, history, and art.

In this five-story exploratorium, children ages one to seven are invited to paint their own masterpieces, float boats down a "stream" (seasonal), rescue animals with Dora and Diego (in an exhibition created in collaboration with Nickelodeon), and walk through or crawl under larger-than-life contemporary sculptures at Inside Art. In the immersive, comic book–inspired Superpowered Metropolis exhibit, a trio of lively pigeons—Zip, Zap, and Zoom—guide you through a 1,500-square-foot space equipped with interactive features like a climbable, two-story tree house. Special exhibits are thoughtfully put together and fun. Art workshops, science programs, and storytelling sessions are held daily.

At this museum with hands-on exhibits geared for kids three to ninash in a model diner.

The CMA encourages children ages 1 to 15 to get creative through a variety of mediums. Along with the requisite children's museum offerings like pencils, chalk, and paint, you'll find a clay bar; a media lab with mounted cameras and a recording studio; a small slide and colorful ball pond that kids can play in; an airy exhibition space with rotating exhibits (and workshops inspired by exhibits); a permanent collection of children's art from more than 50 countries; and classes in ceramics, origami, animation, filmmaking, and more. Check the website for a busy calendar of events.

Here, as their motto says, learning begins with play. This is a perfect place to let kids run off some steam on a rainy day, or just to take a break from the beach. There's a fire engine replica, painting room, library, climbing ship, and a separate play area for toddlers. A mini-golf course is open in season, weather permitting. There are plenty of educational and fun classes and events on the calendar too, including the Summer Family Concert Series in August.

At the New York outpost of this famous auction house, you could easily spend an hour or more wandering the free, museumlike galleries filled with impressive works of art, estate jewelry, furniture, and other rarely displayed objects that are usually housed in (and, most likely, soon to be returned to) private collections. One of the first items to be auctioned here, when it opened in 2000, was the "Happy Birthday" dress worn by Marilyn Monroe when she sang to President Kennedy (it sold for more than $1.2 million). Yes, the auction house has come a long way since James Christie launched his business in England by selling two chamber pots, among other household goods, in 1766. The lobby's abstract Sol LeWitt mural alone makes it worth visiting the 310,000-square-foot space. Hours vary by sale, so call ahead to confirm.

You might have to share a bench in this tiny park with George Segal's life-size sculptures of a lesbian couple: titled Gay Liberation, the white-painted bronzes were cast in 1980 but not installed until 1992. Standing next to them is a gay male couple, captured mid-chat.

East of Cold Spring, in Carmel, the largest indoor statue of the Buddha in the Western Hemisphere resides at the Chuang Yen Monastery. Standing 37 feet tall, it is surrounded by 10,000 Buddha figurines on a lotus terrace in Great Buddha Hall.

American architect Henry Hobson Richardson, who also developed the state's capitol, designed this 1881 Romanesque revival–style structure. A 49-bell carillon, one of about 200 in the country, was added in 1927.

What once marked the northernmost point of Manhattan today houses the office of the mayor and serves as a gathering place for demonstrators and the news crews who cover their stories. This is the one of the oldest City Halls in the country, a striking (but surprisingly small) building dating from 1803. Free tours are available  weekly---just sign up in advance online and arrive early to check out the fantastic exterior details. Inside, highlights include the Rotunda where President Lincoln lay in state in 1865 under a soaring dome supported by 10 Corinthian columns; the Victorian-style City Council Chamber; and the Governor's Room, an elegantly preserved space with portraits of historic figures, as well as a writing table that George Washington used in 1789 when New York was the U.S. capital.

Subway tokens, Statue of Liberty figurines, and other artifacts you might find in a New York City time capsule crowd the displays of this quirky, community-run museum inside a former bodega. While exhibitions rotate, one that's found permanence is of actual children's letters addressed to Spider-Man, sent to his comic book address in Queens. 

Robert R. Livingston Jr. (1746–1813), who helped draft the Declaration of Independence, was just one of the illustrious Livingstons who made their home on this estate between Tivoli and Hudson. The stately white house reflects the changes made by several generations: it was burned by the British during the Revolutionary War and rebuilt in the late 1700s on the original foundations. The rooms are furnished with family heirlooms and include splendid examples of decorative objects and of cabinetmaking.

Seyval blanc is the specialty of this family-run operation housed in an 1800s converted barn. The owner, when he's around and about, conducts tours himself, displaying wit, style, and a passion for wines and winemaking.

The house, built between 1783 and 1790, contains the Hurley Heritage Society Museum. It includes a good collection of Revolutionary War materials, and has changing exhibits about local history. Walking- and driving-tour brochures are available in its front lobby.

Eight outdoor tanks at this educational center hold the largest collection of native freshwater fish, turtles, and amphibians in New York State. For a fee, visitors can try their hand at trout fishing. It's 1½ mi from downtown Cold Spring Harbor.

One of the highlights of this museum's permanent exhibits exploring Long Island's whaling industry is a fully equipped 19th-century whaleboat. Whaling implements, paintings, scrimshaw, and ship models are also on display.

The building that houses the museum and the offices of the Columbia County Historical Society was a Masonic temple and dates from 1916. You can trace your roots with the help of staff and extensive genealogical archives, peruse period postcards, and see fine examples of period furniture.

The smell of its bread baking is so good that Columbus Baking Co. could charge admission. On a side street in Syracuse's Little Italy section, the bakery has just one product and makes it 10 paces from where customers buy it.

People-watching and/or eating takeout lunch are the things to do in this park. Swing by in the morning, and you'll see men and women practicing tai chi; the afternoons bring intense games of cards and mah-jongg. In the 1880s, a neighborhood-improvement campaign brought about the creation of the park, which was, in the mid-19th century, the site of the infamous area—ruled by dangerous Irish gangs—known as the Five Points because it was the intersection of Mulberry Street, Anthony (now Worth) Street, Cross (now Park) Street, Orange (now Baxter) Street, and Little Water Street (no longer in existence).

This 2½-mile beach, flanked by the Riegelmann Boardwalk and the amusement park rides beyond, has become an essential part of New York legend. Although open (and visited) year-round, the beach really heats up in summer, when it can feel like the entire population of New York is out sunning and swimming. In winter, you'll see Russian, Eastern European, and Central Asian inhabitants of neighboring Brighton Beach strolling the boardwalk in their Sunday best. Moreover, the annual Polar Bear Plunge on January 1 sees thousands of revelers greet the new year by diving into the frigid waters of the Atlantic. Run by the Coney Island Polar Bear Club ( www.polarbearclub.org), a winter bathing club founded in 1903, it's free and open to everyone as long as they've registered on the website—although donations are highly encouraged at registration, to benefit local nonprofits and the community. Amenities: toilets; food and drink. Best for: swimming; people-watching.

The cast of talented freaks and geeks who keep Coney Island's carnival tradition alive include sword swallowers, fire-eaters, knife throwers, and contortionists. Every postmodern show is an extravaganza of 10 different acts to fascinate and impress. Next door is The Coney Island Museum with a large collection of artifacts celebrating the history of this legendary amusement area. The vibe continues at the Freak Bar, offering beverages and pinball. Museum and bar open year-round.

Italian gardens, ponds, fountains, and statuary punctuate wide lawns at this park in the heart of the city. Fifty cents buys you a ride on a carousel with 28 horses that were carved and painted about a century ago.