The Battery was the first New York City public park to introduce a planted landscape without fences or an admission fee, and its perennial gardens are free to walk through. For children, the centre of gravity is Battery Playscape, laid out as five ecology zones: the Bluff with its granite slides, the Riverbed and Marsh with salt-tolerant gardens, elevated tree houses and sand and water play, and the ShowBox theater, open every day for spontaneous youth performances, improv and puppet shows. In the Playscape, mirrored Shade Clouds protect children from the sun while the tree canopy grows in, and wheelchair transfer platforms sit at the low and medium slides and in the Riverbed, with a ramp up to the accessible Cliff House.
Nearby, the SeaGlass Carousel is an aquarium-themed ride where you sit inside a giant fish, and the adjacent Battery Woodland is open ground for running around. Not every part of the park is open in every season, and the Bosque Fountain is currently closed for maintenance, so what you find depends on when you come.
The park is also a departure point, not the destination itself: the free Staten Island Ferry leaves from Peter Minuit Plaza, and Statue Cruises ferries to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island leave from The Battery every day except December 25.
Family FAQ
How much does The Battery cost?
The park, its gardens and the ShowBox theater in Playscape are free, with no admission fee.
Are there height or age limits at The Battery?
On the SeaGlass Carousel, riders under 42 inches must sit on the lap of a supervising adult.
