New York, naturally by Merle Wilkening | 5th June, 2025 | Destinations, Lifestyle

Home to roughly 8.3 million people, New York City is the most populous city in the U.S. – a vibrant melting pot that boasts hundreds of museums and hosts legendary events such as New York Fashion Week and the Met Gala. The unique energy of this metropolis is simultaneously inspiring and overwhelming.

Drop your gaze from the spectacular buildings that seem to pierce the sky and a very different aspect opens, revealing quiet sanctuaries in which to escape the hustle and bustle. The roof garden of the Metropolitan Museum of Art is airy and delightful at any time of the day, as is the inviting 2.3-kilometer High Line, a public park built on a former railway track. You can also enjoy a picnic with a breathtaking view of the skyline on Governors Island in New York Harbor or spend the night there glamping in a luxurious tent.

Looking down at New York from a bird’s eye perspective, you immediately spot the city’s green lung – Central Park in Manhattan, like a rectangle snipped from the surrounding cityscape and filled in with green. The park, which extends for four kilometers from 59th to 110th Street and covers an area of more than 340 hectares, has roughly 18,000 trees. Each year, it draws 42 million visitors – to celebrate a wedding in front of famous Bow Bridge or take a boat ride on the lake. Central Park also boasts kilometers of footpaths and cycle paths and every November, it’s the finish point for the world’s biggest marathon. Some of the paths lead to secluded places like the Shakespeare Garden, where bronze plaques bear quotes from the poet’s works that contain a reference to plants. The New York Botanical Garden is situated further north, in the Bronx. Established at the end of the 19th century, it is known for its exhibitions on nature and plants as they appear in art.

The city’s public parks and wooded areas are not just good for rest and recreation, but are crucial for the climate: Roughly 8,000 hectares of natural areas store 1.2 million tons of carbon dioxide every year, capture rainwater, filter toxins out of the air and cool the city during the hot summer months. The NYC Parks department has planted nearly a quarter of a million trees since 2016. The goal is to enable at least 85% of city residents to reach a park on foot by 2030. Gramercy Park, for instance, which was laid out in 1830, is private and only open to residents of the surrounding buildings and hotel guests with a key.

Popular initiatives aimed at making the city more sustainable include the Liz Christy Community Garden, which was founded in 1973 as New York’s first community garden, and the Bronx Green-Up, which transforms derelict lots into vibrant green spaces and offers gardening workshops. So there’s more to New York than concrete and glass. As it constantly reinvents itself, the city demonstrates how nature and urban living can go hand in hand.