Prospect Park

Overview

Prospect Park is Brooklyn's 585-acre masterpiece of landscape design, created by the same designers as Central Park (Olmsted and Vaux) and considered by them to be their superior work.

Highlights

• Long Meadow: A sweeping, unbroken 90-acre grassy meadow — the longest in any US urban park — perfect for picnics, sports, and kite-flying.
• Prospect Park Lake: A 60-acre lake where you can rent pedal boats, fish, or simply watch herons and turtles from the shoreline.
• The Ravine: Brooklyn's only remaining forest, a wild, densely wooded area with waterfalls and streams that feels completely removed from the city.

History

Designed by Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux between 1866 and 1873, the pair considered it an improvement on Central Park. Olmsted called the Long Meadow "the finest in all his works."

Visitor Tips

• Saturday Farmers Market: The Grand Army Plaza entrance hosts Brooklyn's biggest farmers market on Saturdays year-round.
• Lakeside Rink: In winter, the Lakeside facility offers ice skating; in summer, it transforms into a splash pad and roller rink.
• Duration: 2–3 hours.