Take the High Line to relax

Pretty well all the standard landmarks of New York City are well known, writes Brian Byrne, but one which is among the newest is also one of the longest. And using it is free.

It's the High Line, a linear park built on a stretch of former elevated freight railway, and it offers a superb viewpoint of the city over some 16 blocks from Gansevoort Street to West 34th Street on Manhattan's West Side.

If you're in the mid-city, take the Red 1 line south to the 14th Street stop, then walk west until you see the stairway up to the former elevated line. Then take it leisurely to West 30th Street (or even West 34th if you want to see it all).

Saved from demolition by the work of two local residents with the help of Mayor Bloomberg's office, the High Line is planted with wild grasses and flowers, with chill-out areas all along its length where users can sit and watch lower New York flow by. Or have their lunch, listen to music, take in the city art pieces that are along the way.

A real antidote to the rush of Times Square.