Bronx

Canoeing the Bronx River

Guided canoe trips on a restored city river, from the forest by the Bronx Zoo down to the estuary.

The Bronx River through the trees at the canoe portage trail in the New York Botanical Garden — AmazingSpiderMan1962 · CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

The Bronx River is the comeback story of the city's waterways, and the Bronx River Alliance puts you on it in a canoe. Its guided public paddles run from May through October along the river's course through the borough, from the forested upper stretch near the New York Botanical Garden and the Bronx Zoo to the salt-tinged estuary at its mouth. Herons and shorebirds share the water with the trains rumbling overhead.

Trips vary by difficulty: estuary paddles from the Concrete Plant Park launch are intermediate trips for ages 14 and up, and upper-river trips are the advanced ones, with a carry around the botanical garden. The 2026 calendar still lists a guided lake paddle from the zoo's riverwalk on Saturday, October 24, and a free community paddle at Concrete Plant Park on Saturday, November 7. Boats, paddles and life jackets are provided. Registration opens two weeks before each trip and they fill quickly, so watch the events calendar. Wear shoes you can get wet.

More experiences like this

Bronx

Holiday Lights at the Bronx Zoo

A lantern safari through the zoo on winter nights, with light tunnels, ice carvers and a farmyard that stays open.

$$ · About two hours, longer if you arrive before dark.

Official site ↗

A New York skyline built from bark, seeds and leaves over a reflecting pool in the Haupt Conservatory at the Holiday Train Show — Courtesy of New York Botanical Garden

Bronx

The Holiday Train Show at the New York Botanical Garden

Model trains wind past nearly 200 New York landmarks made of bark and pinecones, inside a Victorian glasshouse.

$$ · About an hour in the conservatory; longer with the outdoor garden.

Official site ↗

Glacial rocks and marsh grass on the northern tip of Hunter Island in Pelham Bay Park, with Long Island Sound beyond — Peter Romano · Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

PELHAM BAY, BRONX

Hunter Island and Orchard Beach in Pelham Bay Park

Owls, glacial boulders and salt marsh on a wooded trail, reached along a 1930s crescent beach in the Bronx.

Free · Two to three hours for the beach promenade and the trail loop.

Official site ↗

Editorial draft — core details last reviewed October 19, 2026. Confirm practical details with the official site before you go.