Manhattan · New York County
Riverside Park 79th Street Boat Basin
NYC Parks
- Location
- Riverside Park at West 79th Street, Upper West Side
- Size
- Part of Riverside Park acres
- Hours
- 6 AM - 1 AM daily
- Type
- NYC Parks
The 79th Street Boat Basin is a unique feature of Riverside Park where houseboats are permanently moored in the Hudson River, creating the only residential marina in Manhattan and one of the most eccentric living arrangements in the city.
The Boat Basin Cafe, a seasonal outdoor restaurant beneath the arches of the Riverside Drive rotunda, is one of the most beloved waterfront dining spots in Manhattan. The cafe overlooks the marina and the Hudson River, with New Jersey visible across the water.
The rotunda, a monumental stone structure built in the 1930s as part of Robert Moses' expansion of Riverside Park, creates a dramatic architectural framework for the marina. The arched tunnels beneath the rotunda provide covered pedestrian access to the waterfront.
The houseboat community at the Boat Basin has been a fixture of the Upper West Side since the 1980s, when a waiting list for the limited number of permanent slips began growing to years-long waits. Living on a houseboat in Manhattan is one of the city's most coveted alternative lifestyles.
The 79th Street Boat Basin provides the most unexpected waterfront experience in Manhattan: a community of houseboats, an outdoor cafe beneath stone arches, and a marina where residents live on the Hudson River in the middle of the Upper West Side.