Central Park

Location

New York
United States
40° 46' 53.2236" N, 73° 58' 0.5772" W
US
General info: 

A perfect getaway from the New york city crowds, traffic and noise. If NY gets too intense, get reloaded here and continue with batteries full. Actually this is exactly what it was originally planned for when it was opened in 1857 and it still serves it´s purpose perfectly.

The central park is the place for many different kinds of sports from Birding to Boating and from volleyball to tennis and rock climbing. Most common sight are the joggers and runners who populate the 6 miles (9.7 km) long Park Drive. Central Park has two ice skating rinks, Wollman Rink and Lasker Rink, which converts to an outdoor swimming pool in summer. The great lawn must be one the most famous lawns in the world. This green pasture of 55-acres is a wonderful place to have a picnic on a spring afternoon or to catch some rays in the summer sun.

There is also a zoo in central park that is home to an indoor rainforest, a leafcutter ant colony, a chilled penguin house, and a Polar Bear pool. It is much smaller however than the massive Bronx Zoo.
The lake in the middle of the park is named the Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis Reservoir. This favorite jogging spot of Jackie O, Bill Clinton, and a number of other influential people was originally providing clean water for the city. This function is not carried out today, but the Reservoir does offer runners one of the best views of the city skyline.

The park receives approximately thirty-five million visitors annually, making it the most visited urban park in the United States. The area of the park is 843 acres (3.41 km2; 1.317 sq mi) and the real estate value of Central Park was estimated to be and unbelievable $528,783,552,000 in December 2005.

Getting there: 

Easiest is to use the subway. There are numerous subway stops in the Central Park area:
N, R, W Trains:
Located at 59th street
2, 3 Trains:
Located at Central Park North/110th street
B, C Trains:
Located at 110th street, 103rd street, 96th street, 86th street, 81st street, and 72nd street
A, B, C, D, 1 Trains:
Located at 59th street/Columbus Circle

Costs: 

The park is free of charge. It is not allowed to overnight in the park.

Interesting places nearby

Spring Mountain Ski Area has a vertical drop of 450 feet. You will find nine runs serviced by six lifts that include one triple and three double chairlifts. There are 45 skiable acres.

Seven Springs presents 31 slopes and trails on 285 skiable acres with terrain gentle or daunting enough for skiers of any level. This is a complete, four-seasons resort, one of the largest and most popular in the region.

Shawnee Mountain Ski Area has earned a reputation for aggressive snowmaking and quality grooming. Located in the heart of the Pocono Mountains, Shawnee offers day and night skiing, snowboarding and a tubing park.

Shawnee Peak is celebrating their 75th year of skiing and riding in Maine, making it the longest operating Mountian in the state.

Ski Roundtop has around 600 skiable acres. Tubing and a snowboarding park are available.

BASE: 800ft
SUMMIT: 1400ft
VERTICAL DROP: 600ft

NO. OF. LIFTS: 8
Gondolas: 0
Chairs: 5
Surface: 3

Royal Mountain Ski Area, located in Caroga Lake, NY, is a small ski area with 13 ski trails served by 3 lifts. The Ski Area is an easy hour and a half drive from Albany, and 4 hours from New York City.