Wave Hill
Slow down among flowering garden rooms overlooking the Hudson River and Palisades.
Artwork inspired by John James Audubon
Wave Hill occupies a hillside estate in Riverdale, where intimate planted rooms open into long views across the Hudson to the Palisades. The pergola, Flower Garden, conservatory, and lawns reward an unhurried circuit rather than a race through a single showpiece. Its galleries and programs add an arts dimension, but the garden's transitions—from formal beds to shaded paths and open river outlooks—are the main experience.
Begin with the Great Lawn and make a loop through the Flower Garden before returning to a river overlook. The grounds usually open Tuesday through Sunday; individual buildings close earlier, and winter days are shorter. Admission is modest, with a free Thursday offer for individual visitors under current policy.
- Setting
- Hudson hillside
- Free window
- Thursday
- Neighborhood
- Riverdale
Quick guide
- Begin on the lawn
- Find the Hudson and Palisades outlook.
- Look through the beds
- The Flower Garden changes by season.
Know before you go
- Cross the lawn
- The river view reveals the estate's setting.
- Enter the Flower Garden
- Small plantings invite close looking.
- Find the conservatory
- Glasshouse access can vary seasonally.
- Pause at a terrace
- The Palisades frame the westward view.
Good to know
Indoor galleries and the grounds have different closing times; a free Thursday still merits checking today's rules.
Notice these
- Great Lawn
- Flower Garden
- Hudson overlook