The High Line Park is approx. 1.45 miles or 2.33KM and takes about 30min to walk and opened all year ’round including the Winter. It’s an old elevated railway line dating back to 1934 and it was built to transport goods to the different deposits that were located along the western part of the Island.
Over the years the use of the trains decreased and being replaced by trucks and for that reason, these railroads fell into disuse. Finally in the late 80’s, the last train transited these roads to transport frozen turkeys for Thanksgiving. Unfortunately, Mayor Giuliani before leaving his post, wanted to demolish it (one of his many bad decisions) but luckily it didn’t happen!
In 2004, Bloomberg allocated $ 50 million to develop the park and by 2009 the first phase was ready. Today, more than 6,000,000 tourists visit it every day, transforming it into one of the must-see attractions in the city. An elevated walkway that goes from Gansevoort Street in Meatpacking to the new real estate and touristic development of Hudson Yards on 34th Street.
From the park, you’ll get amazing views that you won’t see from anywhere else; with beautiful flowers in the spring and summer among the many skyscrapers and steel and brick settings.
The park has several entrances with stairs and lifts available for everyone. Besides observing how the neighborhoods changed over the years , you can also find beautiful graffiti in the buildings that border the High Line.
If you do not want to visit the whole railroad or have a limited time, I recommend doing it from the beginning in the south to 23rd street where they have a descent and from there take the bus that goes down the street 23 that will bring you to the subway station.
