Staten Island
The free ferry is the famous part. It shouldn't be the only part.
Almost every visitor rides the Staten Island Ferry, photographs the Statue of Liberty from the deck, and gets straight back on the returning boat without leaving the terminal. That's a reasonable use of a free 25-minute harbor cruise, but it means a whole borough exists ten minutes' walk away that nobody sees.
What's there: Snug Harbor, a former sailors' retirement home turned into 83 acres of botanical gardens including a genuine Chinese Scholar's Garden. The Staten Island Greenbelt, which is bigger than Central Park and actually feels like woods. Historic Richmond Town. A minor-league ballpark right by the ferry terminal with the best outfield view in baseball.
It is the quietest borough, the greenest, and the cheapest. It is also the least convenient, and that's the trade.
Staten Island by season
Where to go changes with the weather. All four are here; the one you're in is marked.
Spring
March – MaySnug Harbor's gardens come into their own and the Greenbelt trails dry out. The ferry deck is comfortable again after winter. This and fall are the two seasons that justify the trip properly.
Worth walking: St. George · Livingston · Todt Hill
Summer
June – AugustFree concerts and outdoor programming at Snug Harbor most weekends, minor-league baseball a short walk from the ferry, and South Beach and the boardwalk for a beach day with almost nobody on it. The ferry deck in summer at sunset is the whole city for free.
Worth walking: St. George · South Beach · Great Kills
Fall
September – NovemberThe Greenbelt is the best fall foliage walk in New York City and hardly anyone knows. Historic Richmond Town runs its heaviest programming in autumn. Crisp air on the ferry, low light on the harbor.
Worth walking: Todt Hill · Richmondtown · St. George
Winter
December – FebruaryBleak and quiet, which is the point for some people. The ferry still runs 24 hours and the harbor in cold clear air is spectacular. Snug Harbor's indoor galleries and the Chinese Scholar's Garden hold up in the cold.
Worth walking: St. George · Livingston
Free
Under $25
Guides for Staten Island
A day here, the free list, and the neighborhoods worth an afternoon.
- One day on Staten Island, starting with the free ferry
- Three days in New York beyond Manhattan
- Free things to do in New York City
- Free things to do on Staten Island
- St. George: the Staten Island ferry terminal and what's around it
- New York in spring: what's actually good in March, April and May
- New York in summer: beaches, free concerts and how to survive the heat
- New York in fall: the best season, and what to do with it
- New York in winter: the museums, the free skating and the empty parks
- Watching the New York City Marathon: where to stand and how to get around
Getting to Staten Island
The Staten Island Ferry from Whitehall Terminal in Lower Manhattan is free, runs 24 hours, and takes 25 minutes. No ticket, no booking — walk on. It is the single best free thing in New York.
Get to Whitehall on the 1 to South Ferry, or the R and W to Whitehall Street, or the 4 and 5 to Bowling Green.
On the far side, the S40 and S44 buses leave from the terminal for Snug Harbor, and the Staten Island Railway runs down the east shore. Buses and the railway take the same OMNY tap as everything else.