East River Park

This is a review of the full size soccer field (surrounded by the track) at East River Park. This is one of the worst soccer fields in America. It’s an old artificial turf field that has never been maintained, updated, repaired, or replaced. Every 5 feet is torn up and exposed. You can easily hurt yourself running around. There are no security cameras or personnel here and thefts occur daily.
This field is a total embarrassment to the city of New York. It’s a blight on the city. Who knows where all the tax and permit dollars go? Obviously not here.
Mayor de Blasio and Parks Commissioner Mitchell J. Silver need to get their act together and overhaul this field/​park immediately!!!

This was the perfect end to my day walking around Williamsburg in Brooklyn. There are lovely views of the Manhattan skyline from the waterfront here, places to sit, and playgrounds for kids. I will say, though, that the park did not seem well maintained. The grass was patchy and dying, the concrete portion of the walkway was cracked and ruined, and there was quite a lot of trash. But once you get to the waterfront, it’s so scenic that I didn’t mind.

Access the soccer and softball fields via Houston St. Otherwise, the next closest pedestrian access over the FDR is by the Williamsburg Bridge. Great cycling and running paths along the East River.

I’ve lived just a half-​block from the East River for 7 ½ years, but I’m embarrassed to admit that I hadn’t walked along this section of the river until today. I walk all over Manhattan all the time, but meanwhile… one of my neighbors suggested a longish walk (from Grand Street to 23^rd Street and back) for three of us. It was a glorious sunny/​brisk afternoon and I was an immediate convert to East River Park. The views, the architecture, the bridges, the fascinating-​looking clouds, the lovely foliage (of which there were even some beautiful bushes still in bloom); it’s all «up close» when seen from that vantage point and it renewed my ongoing love for our wonderful city. The three of us plan to do this every week and I really look forward to it.

the grounds and track are great. Nice view of the river.
seems to have occasional maintenance problems. rest rooms are closed most of the time.
There are 10 – 15 taps in the park and none of them have been working for a couple of weeks.
a lot of park staff planting trees and grass everyday.
hello… humans need water too! especially if they’ve been working out for a few hours.

I spent a large portion of my childhood watching the East River Park being renovated. It was a dump before. There’s a great path for walking and biking with nice views and the fields and courts are well kept. It does flood very easily with heavy rain. There’s still some renovations going on further south and yeah, there’s still some areas that are a bit sketchy and smell funky, but what park doesn’t have that?

Great park.
1) Excellent view of the Williamsburg bridge.
2) Great place to run or walk.
3) Well maintained and clean.

I would have loved this park more, if I had not seen Gantry state Plaza Park. But the view of the east river from the park is beautiful. You can also spot Roosevelt Island and tram from a distance!

The park, in addition to the path that extends from Stuyvesant Cove all the way down to Pier 17, is my favorite place to run. There’s an intersection of folks from all walks of life here, from school children playing baseball and adults playing intramural soccer games, to shirtless men doing pull ups on monkey bars and families having BBQs. You can run along the path, which has been beautified in recent years with added shrubbery and metal slatted lanes that overlay the edge of the river. There’s also a few tennis courts and a 400 meter track. Further south you’ll find a few sprinklers, which can serve as a great relief on hot days for kids… and grownups… and dogs. The park is never overcrowded and is well lit at night. I’ve never felt unsafe.

This is just for the tennis courts, not the rest of the park.
The East River Park Courts are the worst tennis courts in the city. There are cracks in the courts that have been half-​heartedly filled in with cement, the bathrooms and drinking fountain don’t work (the two port-​a-​potties get full at the end of the day), there are holes in the nets, and they have a couple of grumpy park service people who switch off watching the place who aren’t that interested in doing their jobs, but even they agree that the situation sucks. The one good thing is there are 12 courts, so you can often (not always) find a court without waiting.
A summer pass costs $ 200 to the public courts in NYC (a day pass is $ 15), but you wonder what the money’s going for, since they clearly haven’t spent any money on these tennis courts in a year.
There’s an online petition to try and get something done about this:
If you can’t pay $ 200 for a pass, one good thing is the park people usually take off by 6pm, so no one checks after that. For people like me that have paid, that’s a bummer because the courts are crowded, but, on the other hand, it is kind of nice to see so many people playing.
I’ve played at Astoria Park in Brooklyn, Crotona Park in the South Bronx, the Central Park courts, Kelly Park in Brooklyn, and Lincoln Park Terrace in Brooklyn, and they’re all better, particularly Central Park (really nice place, clay courts — the problem there is, it’s crowded so you have to reserve in advance and you’re limited to an hour at most times) and particularly Crotona Park (lots of courts, clean, and that area of the Bronx is nicer than most of Manhattan).

I didn’t get to explore this park all that much, but the areas that I did explore seemed very nice. There are great views of the main bridges and a great view of Brooklyn. There are also plenty of waterside benches and quite a few recreational areas. This was a decent spot to watch the 4^th of July fireworks at, but it didn’t provide the greatest view.

I was looking for a clean, bright, open space for my routine jog/​run, and this place was absolutely perfect. It’s not crowded, you get a gorgeous view of the bridges, and a light breeze from the water keeps you nice and cool.

One of my favorite places to exercise.
Whether you want to go for a walk, run, bike or simply just relax, this is a great park to do so. It also offers beautiful views, especially in the warmer months.

I used to come here regularly when I was younger.. It’s been over 10 years but I finally made it back. I decided to start the couch to 5k program and could not think of a better place to train than East River Park.
The park runs along the FDR and provides an awesome view of the East River and BMW bridges. I haven’t run since high school so training has been brutal but the lovely views are definitely welcome as I find anything and everything to focus on other than my heartbeat in my throat and burning thighs.
There is also a track, soccer field, kids playground, tennis and basketball courts and padded outdoor area where I see guys doing body weight exercises on the bars. Plenty of benches and a restroom area on 6^th St.
Whether you want to get your sweat on or just go for a scenic stroll, East River Park is the place to be.

Best running track outdoors in the city. the atmosphere and the price cant beat by any gym. because its free!

This is one of the nicest parks in NYC second to Central Park and Hudson River Park. Bikes, jogging, walking, skating, dog walking, sports, BBQ. Anything you can think of. Located under the Williamsburg bridge in lower east side. Great views of the Brooklyn bridge, Manhattan bridge, and Williamsburg Bridge. Enjoy a nice day here or a few hours there is plenty to do and see !

This is my running track! I always start from the lowest point of the park and run all the way up on the East River. The park itself is amazing– there are walking and biking/​running paths. The views are beautiful here. There isn’t a lot of light here at night which is when I’ve been running lately.
Lots of benches!
This is also a great location to just enjoy a brisk walk when it’s a nice day out. Very soothing views of Queens /​Brooklyn.

Wow I have lived in New York for some time now and I can’t believe I never made it here, until today. I love that there is always something new to explore here.
I started at the lowest point of the park and ran up close to 42^nd St. Not sure if it is still East River Park once you get past 30^th St. though. Who knew there is a British International School around 30^th St.
OK, I digress. The park rides parallel to the FDR and has breathtaking views of the East River. A nice distraction while you huff and puff away. Tons of running tracks embedded within the park. Just keep running and you’ll find a track to loop around.
There are also plenty of seats so if you get tired or need to stretch, you can take a break. Also I saw many water fountains, but not sure if they have been turned on yet.
There are tons of runners here, so you can wave at them, give them high 5’s or just ogle all the nice legs passing you by. I’m not a pervert seriously, but when you are running, your brain tends to focus on everything to distract you from the physical work.
I definitely enjoyed the run and glad it’s pretty close to the new ‘hood. I can run either direction along the East River and find solace in a breathtaking run.
I love you NYC. I see why people pay ridiculous amounts of money for rent just to be here. After all, how great is it to finish your run and see the Statue of Liberty in your horizon? There’s no place like home.

Who doesn’t love a scenic bike/​running/​walking path made just for the pedestrian/​non-​drivers? I’m a huge fan of this path since it starts around 35^th and runs all the way down to Brooklyn Bridge. I would estimate it’s about 5 miles each direction which is a decent length of path for even the long runner.
On this route you can run under the Manhattan and Brooklyn bridges which is quite fantastic and it’s extremely scenic the entire route since it’s right along the water. There’s views galore and I can’t help but stop for some photo ops along the way. BRING YOUR CAMERA!
For those who have run along the Hudson, you don’t get the sunset but you do separate away from the roads and more parks along the way for baseball, soccer, basketball, football, track training… There are lots of options. Plus, there’s benches, tables and BBQ pits if you want to just stop at a specific destination.
I’m a fan!

One of my favorite places to run in all of NYC. I may be a little biased because I live on the eastside but in actuality the reason I come back for more is because it reminds me of the training sequence between circuits in Mike Tysons Punch Out. Running along the East River with my trainer biking ahead of me, the east river at 9 o’ clock and the Statue of LIberty straight ahead. If I run far enough I get to taste freedom, it is such an empowering feeling to run under all these big important bridges and landmarks Williamsburg Bridge, Brooklyn Bridge, Chinatown and Pier 17 all on the way to my end goal of Battery Park.
That run makes me realize why I love this city so much, in literally 3 – 5 miles there are tons of distinctly different neighborhoods that are amazing on their own but form this awesome melting pot of NYC. Keep on running.