New York City has been called the Capital of the World. There are so many exciting things to see and do in the city. Unfortunately, it can also be one of the most expensive cities to live in or visit. That makes it tough for those of us in the academic sector who don’t make Wall Street salaries. However, come the hot summer days, there is a wide range of outdoor activities that are either free or inexpensive.

Source: Wikipedia

Probably the most well known are the free concerts at the Great Lawn in Central Park. The New York Philharmonic will present its usual two concerts this year: on July 14 and July 17, 2009. Concerts start at 8:00 p.m. and there are fireworks afterwards. These concerts are famous for people picnicking on the Great Lawn, usually with wine and cheese. Enter the park at 79th or 85th Streets and Fifth Ave. If you are more interested in hearing the concert, arrive early to get a place up front. The more serious picnickers are toward the south end. More information about these concerts can be found here .

Another great Central Park event series is SummerStage. At Rumsey Playfield, this is a series of a wide range of music, dance, and spoken work productions. Most events are free, but there are a few benefit concerts put on throughout the summer. This year the Metropolitan Opera gives free presentations in Central Park’s Summer Stage on Monday, July 13, and at East River Park on Friday July 31. The headliners this year include Ziggy Marley, the New York Pops, and Comedy Central. Enter the park at 69th Street and Fifth Avenue and follow the path to Rumsey Playfield. For some of the more popular artists, a line forms in front of the gate well beforehand. There are bleacher seats in back, with Astroturf up front, sometimes setup with folding chairs. You can bring in food, but no glass bottles. There are food vendors inside. For a complete schedule, see here .

One of the best Central Park activities is Shakespeare in the Park. Produced by the Public Theater and presented at the Delacorte Theater, this year’s play will be Twelfth Night from June 10 through July 12. Tickets, although free, can be obtained by standing in line in front of the Public Theater the morning of the play, or in front of the Delacorte Theater from 1:00 p.m. These are very good productions which usually draw a crowd. The complete schedule can be found here .

Lincoln Center hosts some very fun and inexpensive events in the summer. Lincoln Center Out of Doors presents a range of international music and dance events, with some special events for children. This series is free and runs from August 5 through 23 this year. Midsummer Night Swing is a run of dance events with everything from salsa to disco from July 7 through July 25. There are group dance lessons at 6:30 p.m. and live music at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $15 and can be purchased on the day of the event or online. Both series are on the Josie Robertson Plaza at Lincoln Center and more information can be found here .

Source: Wikipedia

HBO sponsors a summer film series at Bryant Park. On Monday nights, the movies this year range from Hitchcock’s The Birds, to Rocky. Blankets and food are allowed. The lawn opens at 5:00 p.m., but there is usually a crowd gathered well in advance to get a spot. The movies begin at sunset, and they show an old Warner Brothers cartoon beforehand. People will cheer for Porky Pig’s famous sign off. (…That’s all folks!). The complete schedule is at www.bryantpark.org. At both, the Central Park Great Lawn concerts and Bryant Park, it is traditional to have some members of your group arrive early to secure a spot, and have some predetermined arrangement of balloons or a flag for the rest of the group to find.

Another great venue is Hudson River Park. It runs for five miles and hosts a plethora of summer events, all of which are free. The Moon Dance series features a live band on Friday nights, ranging in style from swing to tango. On Pier 54, on West 14th Street, dance lessons are given at 6:30 p.m. and the bands start at 7:00 p.m. The RiverRocks series, also on Pier 54, focuses on up-and-coming musicians. The River Flicks events feature two series of outdoors movies. The Wednesday night movies are held on Pier 54 from July 8 through August 19. The theme this year is I Know What You Saw Last Summer including such great movies as The Dark Knight and Vicky Cristina Barcelona. The Friday night movies are more family oriented, including such fare as The Wizard of Oz and Star Wars: The Clone Wars. These are shown on Pier 46, at Charles and West Streets. Both movies series start at sunset. Free popcorn is available if you get there early. Some seating is provided, or you can bring a blanket to sit on. The RiverFlicks events are usually not as crowded as the Bryant Park movies. The Hudson River Park Trust also hosts several other series of free summer events, more information can be found here .

The River-to-River Festival, meant to boost the downtown economy, hosts almost 500 different free cultural events June through September. They host a variety of artists; from Arlo Guthrie to a showing of the movie West Side Story. Information about these many events can be found here .
There is a series of free concerts on Roosevelt Island .

Two good Web sites to find information about these and other events in the city are: www.newyorkled.com and newyork.citysearch.com. The NewYork led site also includes a complete calendar of the city’s many street fairs. With all of these options available, one can have a great summer in the city without going broke.

(Please note: this is an update of an article that originally appeared in Natural Selections in June 2006)