Snug Harbor Cultural Center
Eighty-three acres of Greek Revival buildings and botanical gardens — a former retirement home for sailors, now the cultural heart of Staten Island, with free events most summer weekends.
- What it costs
- The grounds are free to walk. The Chinese Scholar's Garden and some museums charge a small admission. Many concerts and festivals are free.
- Best in
- Spring, Summer, Fall
- Where
- 1000 Richmond Terrace, Staten Island, NY 10301
- Official site
- snug-harbor.org
What it was
Sailors' Snug Harbor, founded in 1833 as a retirement home for "aged, decrepit and worn-out sailors" — the first institution of its kind in the United States, funded by a shipping fortune.
It grew into a self-contained village with its own farm, hospital, chapel and cemetery. The row of five Greek Revival temple-fronted buildings along Richmond Terrace is a National Historic Landmark and one of the finest groups of Greek Revival architecture in the country.
The sailors left in the 1970s. The city bought the site and turned it into a cultural center.
The Chinese Scholar's Garden
One of only a handful of authentic classical Chinese scholar's gardens in the United States — built by artisans from Suzhou using traditional methods and materials shipped over for the purpose.
Courtyards, a koi pond, a bamboo forest path, a waterfall, and eight pavilions, all composed so that each turn reveals a framed view. It is small, it charges a modest admission, and it is the single best thing on Staten Island.
The rest of the site, and the free events
Also here: the Staten Island Botanical Garden including a rose garden and a healing garden, the Staten Island Children's Museum, the Newhouse Center for Contemporary Art in the old dormitories, a working farm, and the Noble Maritime Collection.
Snug Harbor runs a heavy programme of free outdoor events, especially in summer — concerts on the lawn, festivals, and community days. It is the hub for most of what happens on Staten Island, so check the calendar before you pick a date; going on an event day roughly doubles the value of the trip.
Getting there
Take the Staten Island Ferry to St. George, then the S40 bus from the terminal — about 10 minutes. Total from Lower Manhattan is roughly 50 minutes and it's the standard route.
The S44 also serves it.
The bus takes the same OMNY tap as everything else, and the ferry is free, so the whole trip costs one fare.
Getting around once you're there
The main lawn, the paths between the Greek Revival buildings and most of the gardens are flat and step-free. The Chinese Scholar's Garden has thresholds and some uneven paving by design. Both ferry terminals are accessible.