Wave Hill is a 28-acre public garden and cultural center overlooking the Hudson River in the Riverdale section of the Bronx. This guide covers opening hours, ticket prices, transport and parking, accessibility, and practical tips for planning a visit — part of my wider New York City travel guides.
This guide was last checked in August 2026. A recent grant has made the Pergola’s walkways fully wheelchair accessible, not just the Pergola structure itself.
Quick facts
| Opening hours | Tue–Sun, 10am–5:30pm. Closed Mondays. Last entry 30 minutes before closing. |
| Ticket prices | Adults $10; students & seniors (65+) $6; children 6+ $4; free Thursdays; free for members. |
| Address | 4900 Independence Avenue, Bronx, New York 10471 |
| Nearest transport | Free shuttle Thursdays–Sundays from Metro-North Riverdale and the #1 subway at Van Cortlandt Park. |
| Typical time needed | Around 1.5 to 2.5 hours. |
Wave Hill opening hours: when to visit
The grounds are open Tuesday to Sunday, 10am to 5:30pm, and closed Mondays. Within that window, Glyndor Gallery and Wave Hill House close earlier, at 4:30pm, and the Marco Polo Stufano Conservatory closes at 4pm and also shuts daily from noon to 1pm; Glyndor Gallery similarly closes daily from noon to 12:30pm. Last entry to the grounds is 30 minutes before closing.
5 great New York City experiences to book
- 🕊️ Make sure you get into the 9/11 Memorial Museum by booking tickets in advance.
- 🗽 Take a boat cruise out to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island.
- ⛴️ Learn about NYC’s top buildings on an architecture-themed 1920s-style yacht cruise around Manhattan.
- 🌳 Take a pedicab tour around Central Park – and spot the hidden secrets on the way.
- 🍜 Taste the local flavours of New York on a Chinatown and Little Italy food tour.
Wave Hill ticket prices: how much does entry cost?
Standard admission is $10 for adults, $6 for students and seniors (65+), and $4 for children aged 6 and up; children under 6 and Wave Hill members enter free. Admission is free all day every Thursday (this doesn’t apply to organised groups).
Opening hours and ticket prices were checked on the official website and last updated in August 2026. Check the official site for current details.
Prices rise on premium event days, including Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, and Sunset Wednesdays, when adult admission is $15, students and seniors $10, and children $8.
How to get to Wave Hill: transport guide
Wave Hill is about 12 miles from midtown Manhattan. By Metro-North, take the Hudson Line to Riverdale Station, then either walk uphill for about 15 minutes or use the free shuttle. By subway, take the #1 train to its last stop, Van Cortlandt Park/West 242nd Street, where the free shuttle picks up outside the Burger King.
The free shuttle runs hourly, Thursdays through Sundays, connecting Wave Hill with Metro-North Riverdale, the #1 subway, and the Riverdale Park/Riverdale Country School parking area; it extends later during select evening events. By bus, the express BXM1 (East Side Manhattan) and BXM2 (West Side Manhattan) both serve Riverdale, and the BX7 or BX10 stop at West 252nd Street, a 6-minute walk from the front gate.
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Parking at Wave Hill
Onsite parking costs $10 for members and $13 for non-members; spending $100 or more in The Shop in a single transaction makes same-day parking free. If the onsite lot is full, the Riverdale Park Parking Lot is about two minutes away by car.
How long to spend at Wave Hill
This is not one of the biggest gardens in the US, like the Desert Botanical Garden in Phoenix’s Papago Park or the Atlanta Botanical Garden, but there’s enough to keep visitors occupied.
Most visitors spend around 1.5 to 2.5 hours exploring the gardens, Pergola and conservatory. The garden’s compact size makes it manageable for a shorter visit, while home gardeners and photographers often linger longer.
Accessibility at Wave Hill
Indoor spaces are fully wheelchair accessible, and the Pergola’s walkways are now fully accessible following a recent grant. However, parts of the wider grounds have organic, hillside topography that limits access in some areas. Manual wheelchairs can be borrowed, and special transportation is available for visitors with limited mobility, though not to every part of the grounds.
Inside Wave Hill: what to see
The Pergola, an Italianate structure on the edge of the Great Lawn, frames views across the Hudson River to the Palisades and is planted with tropical and annual containers through the warmer months. The Marco Polo Stufano Conservatory houses Wave Hill’s collection of more than 1,100 cacti and succulents, alongside the T.H. Everett Alpine House, where mountain plants grow both indoors and in handmade troughs on the terrace.
The Flower Garden shifts through the seasons with perennials, annuals, bulbs and shrubs inside a rustic wooden fence, while the hillside Wild Garden offers narrow paths and dramatic river views, inspired by the naturalistic planting principles of William Robinson. Glyndor House hosts rotating art exhibitions inspired by the grounds, and the gardens are also a well-known birdwatching spot, with 127 recorded species including bald eagles.
Practical visitor tips
| Tip | Detail |
|---|---|
| Timing | Visiting on a free Thursday is good value, though it can be busier than a paid weekday. |
| Crowds | The free shuttle only runs Thursday–Sunday, so a Tuesday or Wednesday visit by car tends to be quietest. |
| Layout | The Conservatory and Glyndor Gallery both close for an hour around midday, so plan around that if they’re a priority. |
| Entry process | Reservations aren’t required for general admission; tickets can be bought on arrival. |
| On-site logistics | The onsite parking lot is small — arriving by shuttle or free offsite parking at Riverdale Park is worth considering on busy days. |
Frequently asked questions about Wave Hill
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Is Wave Hill free? | It’s free every Thursday, and free for children under 6 and members at any time; otherwise standard admission applies. |
| Do you need to book tickets in advance? | No, advance reservations aren’t necessary for general visits. |
| Is Wave Hill open on Mondays? | No, it’s closed on Mondays; open Tuesday to Sunday. |
| Is parking free at Wave Hill? | No, onsite parking costs $10–$13, though it’s free if you spend $100 or more in The Shop the same day. |
| Is Wave Hill wheelchair accessible? | Indoor spaces and the Pergola walkways are fully accessible; some hillside garden areas are more limited. |
Things to do near Wave Hill
- Van Cortlandt House Museum: A colonial-era house museum in Van Cortlandt Park, at the same subway stop used to reach Wave Hill.
- Riverdale Park: A wooded park directly bordering Wave Hill’s grounds, with additional walking trails.
- The Cloisters: A Metropolitan Museum of Art branch focused on medieval art and gardens, in Fort Tryon Park, about a 30 to 40-minute drive south.
- Skyscraper Museum: A compact museum on New York’s high-rise architecture, roughly a 45-minute to 1-hour journey away in Lower Manhattan.
- Intrepid Museum: A retired aircraft carrier turned museum on the Hudson River, about a 45-minute to 1-hour journey away.
Alternative attractions to visit
- New York Botanical Garden: A much larger botanical garden elsewhere in the Bronx, near the Bronx Zoo, about a 30 to 40-minute drive away.
- Brooklyn Botanic Garden: A 52-acre garden next to Prospect Park, famous for its Japanese Hill-and-Pond Garden, roughly an hour’s journey away.
- Museum of the City of New York: A museum covering New York’s history, about a 30-minute drive away in Manhattan.
- Fraunces Tavern Museum: A small historic museum in a colonial-era tavern building, roughly a 45-minute to 1-hour journey away in Lower Manhattan.
- Prospect Park Zoo: A family-friendly zoo in Brooklyn’s Prospect Park, about an hour’s journey away.
More New York City travel
Other New York City travel guides on Planet Whitley include:
- New York City’s other parks: Roberto Clemente State Park, Riverbank State Park, Fort Tryon Park.
- Upper Manhattan attractions: The General Grant National Memorial and the Dyckman Farmhouse Museum.
- Bronx attraction guides: New York Botanical Gardens, Van Cortlandt House Museum, and Pelham Bay Park – including Orchard Beach and the Bartow-Pell Mansion.
- Brooklyn attraction guides: Brooklyn Children’s Museum and the City Reliquary Museum.
- Westchester Country attraction guides: Playland Park.
