by: Nadia Shaw

Central Park was the first landscaped public park in the United States. The park covers 843 acres and is 1.317 square miles. The park is full of beautiful nature and many attractions.

Central Park is an iconic part of New York, so it’s no wonder that it’s been used as a filming location on countless movies throughout the 20th and 21st centuries. Sharp-eyed movie fans will have noticed it in classics like When Harry Met Sally, Enchanted, Elf, Home Alone 2, I Am Legend, Friends and The Avengers. It’s not uncommon to spot a film crew in one corner of the park when you visit.

Central Park was built on an area with large protruding amounts of bedrock, which gave the park’s early designers plenty of trouble when they began to landscape the area. Almost half a million cubic yards of rock had to be blown up, dug out and removed.  Central Park is filled with unusual monuments, such as Belvedere Castle.

It was built from Manhattan schist and the castle sits on top of Vista Rock, the second highest natural point in Central Park. In 1919 it was converted into a weather station, but today it’s mainly used as a beautiful lookout point, with stellar views over the rest of the park.  

Without strolling the Central Park, your trip to New York is incomplete, so here’s a comprehensive guide on all you need to know about Central Park New York; all that you should do and how you can go about doing them.