Completed in 1873, Central Park was designed to provide New York with 341 hectares (843 acres) of rural paradise in what was, at the time, the out-of-the-way northern reaches of Manhattan. Now, located almost in the dead centre of New York due to urban expansion between 59th and 110th streets, Central Park is very much an integral part of the city’s landscape. Apart from being a refreshing area of greenery in the middle of a very dense and busy city, Central Park has a cultural side, with public programmes offered by the Central Park Conservancy, as well as a small zoo, a dairy, fountains and an ice-skating rink. The park has featured in many films over the years and is also home to statues of famous people (real and fictional), including Ludwig Van Beethoven, Alice in Wonderland, Hans Christian Anderson and Robert Burns. It is also home to the Strawberry Fields Memorial, dedicated to the late John Lennon who was shot dead in the city on December 8 1980. The park attracts joggers, rollerbladers and buskers every day, as well as thousands of tourists who come to see the most famous urban park in the USA.

Central Park Conservancy, 14 East 60th Street, New York, NY 10022, USA
Tel: (212) 310 6600
Website: www.centralparknyc.org

Air: New York La Guardia International Airport, New York John F Kennedy International Airport. Rail: Train: Grand Central Station. Underground: A, B, C, D, N, R, 4, 5 or 6 trains to Fifth Avenue or 59th Street/Columbus Circle. Road: Bus: Public services.

New York State Division of Tourism
PO Box 2603, Albany, NY 12220-0603, USA
Tel: (518) 474 4116 or (800) 225 5697 (toll free USA, Canada and US External Territories). Fax: (518) 486 6416.
Website: www.iloveny.com
New York State Department of Economic Development (Tourism Division)
Media House, 4 Stratford Place, London W1C 18T, UK
Tel: (020) 7629 2720. Fax: (020) 7629 2758. E-mail: info@nyseurope.com
Website: www.empire.state.ny.us

United States of America