{"id":231301,"date":"2026-05-14T12:53:18","date_gmt":"2026-05-14T12:53:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/231301\/"},"modified":"2026-05-14T12:53:18","modified_gmt":"2026-05-14T12:53:18","slug":"family-friendly-guide-to-governors-island-2026-brooklyn-bridge-parents","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/231301\/","title":{"rendered":"Family-Friendly Guide to Governors Island 2026 | Brooklyn Bridge Parents"},"content":{"rendered":"

Looking for a fun day outside with family and friends? Take a trip over to Governors Island. Whether you want to play at a playground, grab a meal, garden, view art, ride a bike, or learn about composting, Governors Island has something for everyone to enjoy. Our guide is full of spots to play, events not to miss, and delicious food to try!<\/p>\n

Getting there<\/p>\n

Governors Island is accessible via the South Brooklyn or Governors Island Shuttle NYC Ferry route<\/a>. Governors Island is also accessible by ferry daily year-round from the Battery Maritime Building at 10 South Street in Lower Manhattan. During the summer months, The Trust for Governors Island<\/a> also runs ferries from Red Hook and Brooklyn Bridge Park.<\/p>\n

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Getting around<\/p>\n

Governors Island is relatively flat and easily walkable. Feel free to bring over bikes and scooters, or rent a bike at Blazing Saddles<\/a> or check out a Citi Bike<\/a>. For adults, Blazing saddles offers Free Bike Mornings, a 1-hour free cruiser bike rental between 9:00am and 11:00am weekdays (excluding all holidays).<\/p>\n

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Playgrounds
\nThe Yard \u2013 Adventure Playground<\/a><\/p>\n

The Yard is an adven\u00adture play\u00adground, built and oper\u00adat\u00aded by play:groundNYC<\/a>, a\u00a0non\u00adprof\u00adit ded\u00adi\u00adcat\u00aded to trans\u00adform\u00ading the city through play. This ~20,000 sq ft out\u00addoor play envi\u00adron\u00adment is designed for chil\u00addren\u2019s self-direct\u00aded play, and mod\u00adeled after inter\u00adna\u00adtion\u00adal adven\u00adture play\u00adgrounds. Young peo\u00adple ages 5-19 play inde\u00adpen\u00addent\u00adly, under the super\u00advi\u00adsion of trained play\u00adwork\u00aders. They can build, climb, play dress up, paint, zip line \u2013 there are many ways of play\u00ading at The Yard, and chil\u00addren get to choose. Grown ups get to sit back on the lawn and let the chil\u00addren play! Under 5? Vis\u00adit their fam\u00adi\u00adly side! The Yard is open on Saturdays and Sundays from 12:00pm-4:00pm. A waiver<\/a> must be completed before playing and close toed shoes are required.<\/p>\n

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Hammock Grove Play Area<\/a><\/p>\n

Locat\u00aded on the south end of Liggett Terrace, Hammock Grove Play Area is a nature inspired playground with logs to climb, unique swings, and a large rope climber. Perfect for adventurous kids!<\/p>\n

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Slide Hill<\/a><\/p>\n

Locat\u00aded in the beau\u00adti\u00adful park\u00adland on the south\u00adern half of Gov\u00ader\u00adnors Island, Slide Hill offers a vari\u00adety of slides for visitors young and old! Slide Hill fea\u00adtures three short\u00ader slides, a fam\u00adi\u00adly slide built for two peo\u00adple to ride down at once, and a curv\u00ading, 57 foot-long, three sto\u00adry-high slide\u2009- the longest in NYC!<\/p>\n

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Water Area at Liggett Terrace<\/p>\n

Though small, the sprinkler at Liggett Terrace is the perfect place to cool off after playing on the island.<\/p>\n

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Activities and Events
\nWeekend Open Hours at Earth Matter | Beginning early May<\/a><\/p>\n

Come learning about composting on Saturdays with Earth Matter\u2019s Soil Start Farm program or on Sunday at their Composting Learning Center. Kids will have the opportunity to meet goats starting in June on Saturdays or chickens starting in May on Sundays! Join them on June 6th<\/a> to celebrate the open\u00ading of their new Com\u00adpost Learn\u00ading Cen\u00adter!<\/p>\n

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Grow NYC\u2019s Teaching Garden | Beginning May 9th<\/a><\/p>\n

The GrowNYC Teach\u00ading Gar\u00adden at Gov\u00ader\u00adnors Island is a\u00a0one acre urban farm that aims to engage, excite, and edu\u00adcate its vis\u00adi\u00adtors in all aspects of urban farm\u00ading. Week\u00adend pub\u00adlic pro\u00adgram\u00adming includes fam\u00adi\u00adly friend\u00adly activ\u00adi\u00adties such as scav\u00adenger hunts, self guid\u00aded tours, a\u00a0dig bed, gar\u00adden and art work\u00adshops, and more!<\/p>\n

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Gov\u00ader\u00adnors Island Arts | Beginning on May 16th<\/a><\/p>\n

Gov\u00ader\u00adnors Island Arts, the pub\u00adlic arts and cul\u00adtur\u00adal pro\u00adgram pre\u00adsent\u00aded by the Trust for Gov\u00ader\u00adnors Island, has announced their 2026 season. Every third Sat\u00adur\u00adday from May through Octo\u00adber, Gov\u00ader\u00adnors Island Arts presents spe\u00adcial free pro\u00adgram\u00adming designed to build com\u00admu\u00adni\u00adty and high\u00adlight the unique artis\u00adtic ecosys\u00adtem of the Island. Families especially do not want to miss Sal\u00adly Beau\u00adti Twin\u200b\u2019s House Crawl &\u00a0Parade, the eco-lumi\u00adnary art parade con\u00adclud\u00ading a day of art-mak\u00ading with par\u00adtic\u00adi\u00adpants show\u00adcas\u00ading cos\u00adtumes, pup\u00adpets, lanterns, and more cre\u00adat\u00aded August 15th.<\/p>\n

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Mubadala New York Sail Grand Prix | May 30th & May 31st<\/a><\/p>\n

Watch the world\u2019s best ath\u00adletes from 13 nations race 50-foot fly\u00ading boats at over 60 mph, set against NYC\u2019s icon\u00adic skyline. Get your tickets here!<\/a><\/p>\n

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The Governors Cup | June 6th & June 7th<\/a><\/p>\n

What began as a\u00a0fun idea: \u200b\u201cplay\u00ading soc\u00adcer on the beau\u00adti\u00adful grass of Gov\u00ader\u00adnors Island\u201d has grown to become NYCs most in-demand soc\u00adcer tour\u00adna\u00adment. The annu\u00adal event has grown to wel\u00adcome 100 teams, 1,000 play\u00aders, and many enthusiastic spec\u00adta\u00adtors over two days in June. Spec\u00adta\u00adtors may attend for free on game day, but by attend\u00ading assume all risks (e.g. stray balls, play\u00aders out\u00adside the field, etc.)<\/p>\n

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Free Learn to Ride Classes with Blazing Saddles | Starting June 14th<\/a><\/p>\n

There\u2019s no better place to learn how to ride a bike than scenic Governors Island! Blazing Saddles\u2019 free Learn to Ride classes are open to most ages and designed to help beginners build confidence in a safe, supportive environment. Classes are offered on select Saturday mornings from June through September. Find more info here<\/a> and be sure to register!<\/p>\n

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Sail4th 250 Grand Review of Tall Ships | July 4th<\/a><\/p>\n

Cel\u00ade\u00adbrate Amer\u00adi\u00adca\u2019s 250th anniver\u00adsary with the largest-ever flotil\u00adla of tall ships from around the world, cre\u00adat\u00ading a majes\u00adtic nau\u00adti\u00adcal spec\u00adta\u00adcle and an unfor\u00adget\u00adtable once-in-a-gen\u00ader\u00ada\u00adtion event on land, sea, and air. Across the region, includ\u00ading on Gov\u00ader\u00adnors Island, a rich tapes\u00adtry of events, fes\u00adtiv\u00adi\u00adties, and cel\u00ade\u00adbra\u00adtions will unfold\u2009-\u2009hon\u00ador\u00ading our shared his\u00adto\u00adry while edu\u00adcat\u00ading, enter\u00adtain\u00ading, and unit\u00ading communities.<\/p>\n

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Food
\nSix Coasts | Grand opening May 9th & May 10th<\/a><\/p>\n

Six Coasts by Smorgasburg \u00a0is a brand new Pan-American coastal bar on Governors Island, offering a taste from Nova Scotia to Baja to Bahia through seafood traditions, tropical cocktails, and culture. With seating for 100 and space for even more, Six Coasts is an ideal spot for group dining!<\/p>\n

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La Newyorkina at the King Avenue Food Court | Reopening May 24th<\/a><\/p>\n

Stop by for a delicious Mexican ice cream or popsicle in flavors like pink limeade, hibiscus, and passion fruit mango raspberry!<\/p>\n

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Makina Cafe on Colonels Row<\/a><\/p>\n

This Eritrean-Ethiopian Eatery is open daily on Governors Island from 9:00am-5:00pm. They have delicious options for children and adults, and be sure to try their rosemary fries!<\/p>\n

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Little Eva\u2019s in Liggett Terrace<\/a><\/p>\n

Open daily at 11:00am, Little Eva\u2019s serves fresh salads and bowls, fish and chips, and more. They also have plenty of shaded seating.<\/p>\n

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Check out more eateries on Governors Island here<\/a>!<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

Do you want all local parenting news in your inbox? Sign-up for our weekly newsletter\u00a0now<\/a>!<\/p>\n

Updated: May 6, 2026. Main Image: Hammock Grove Play Area<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Looking for a fun day outside with family and friends? Take a trip over to Governors Island. Whether…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":231302,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[36],"tags":[98,100,99,9,24,63],"class_list":["post-231301","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-brooklyn","tag-brooklyn","tag-brooklyn-headlines","tag-brooklyn-news","tag-new-york","tag-new-york-city","tag-nyc"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/231301","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=231301"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/231301\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/231302"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=231301"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=231301"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=231301"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}