Central Park Experience: A Scenic & Historical Walking Tour

Experience the ultimate lower Central Park tour.  Whether a first-time or experienced visitor, you’ll make new discoveries in this urban masterpiece.  

Indulge in the spectacular scenery, hidden gems, history, and original motivations for creating the first large-scale public park in the United States.  Experience the park with a New York City historian and Licensed New York City Tour Guide with over twenty years of experience in educating and entertaining.   This walking tour traverses Central Park from 59^th Street through the Pool, Mall, Sheep Meadow, Bethesda Terrace, Angel of the Waters statue, Lake, Bow Bridge, Ramble, Belvedere Castle, and Shakespeare Garden.  You will also overlook the majestic Great Lawn, Delacorte Theater, and Turtle Pond.  Also learn about the pre-park history, including an African American and immigrant community that thrived before the park’s construction. 

You will be captivated as you . . . 

• Discover secrets of the park with a New York City historian and licensed tour guide with over twenty-five years of experience.
• Encounter breathtaking vistas of the Lake and Sheep Meadow
• Learn about Central Park’s fascinating history, the designers’—Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux— design and democratic motivations, and the ambitious fifteen-year construction.
• Walk through the exquisite Bethesda Terrace, Bethesda Arcade, as you encounter the glorious Angel of the Waters statue and Jacob Wrey Mould’s delicate stonecutting designs.
• See the Dairy, a Victorian structure first built in the 1860s, and the surrounding children’s mountain or “Kinderberg.”
• Delight in the spacious fifteen-acre Sheep Meadow and learn about the Southdown sheep that once grazed there.
• Stroll over the elegant cast iron Bow Bridge seen in numerous classic movies and television shows.
• Depart the chaos of the city as you walk through the tranquil and mystical Ramble.
• Stand before the Gothic Revival Belvedere Castle and take in impressive views of the spacious Great Lawn.
• Stroll along the Mall surrounded by rows of magnificent American Elms and pay homage to “Women’s Rights Pioneers.”
• Discover life before Central Park, including the remarkable African American and immigrant community named Seneca Village
  . . . and so much more!

This tour is for first-time and experienced visitors alike.  Rest assured, there’s much more to Central Park than meets the eye, and a guided tour is the best way to enjoy the 843-acre landscape!  Delights and surprises await you in the most famous and most visited urban park in the United States. 

NOTE: This tour does not visit Strawberry Fields, which is only nine blocks from where the tour ends.

TOUR NOTES:
The tour is conducted in the rain, snow, and shine.  Some locations may not be open or accessible depending on weather conditions and/or park closings.
The walk is approximately 3 miles and takes about 2.5 hours.  Dress for the weather and wear suitable shoes.  

The tour meets around 59th Street and Fifth Avenue.  The location and tour details will be sent after you register.

Best Central Park Walking Tour in NYC

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