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Chelsea

Galleries, Piers and the First Oreo

41stops
6.1miles
3h 29mwalking
$2.99in the app

Chelsea is named after a country estate. In the 1750s a retired British officer named his farm here after the Royal Hospital Chelsea in London, and his grandson later carved it into streets. Then came the railroad, the docks and the factories: this is where the Oreo was invented and where the great ocean liners tied up. When industry left, the art world moved into the empty garages and warehouses west of Tenth Avenue, and today Chelsea has more art galleries than anywhere else on earth. This walk takes you along the Hudson River, through Chelsea Market and the gallery blocks, past the hotel where rock stars and writers lived and misbehaved.

Nearest subway
18 St 12 · 1 min walk to the start
Map of the Chelsea walking route with its 41 stops
The route of the Chelsea walk. Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors.

The first 3 stops

Try these stops for free in the app. The full stories and directions are waiting for you there.

  1. 1Former Barneys

    Start your journey at the former home of Barneys New York, the store that began a few steps away on Seventh Avenue in 1923 as a discount men’s shop and grew into a temple of designer fashion.

  2. 2The Donut Pub

    The Donut Pub has been frying doughnuts on this corner since 1964, and it is open around the clock.

  3. 3Museum of Illusions

    At the Museum of Illusions, nothing is what it seems.

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38 more stops to discover

Unlock Chelsea in the app for $2.99 for the full 6.1 mi route: every stop's photos and stories, and GPS guidance that tells you when you've arrived.

Download on theApp StoreGet it onGoogle Play
Also on this walk: Little Island, Chelsea Market, The Hotel Chelsea and more

Sights

  • 303 Gallery
  • Agora Gallery
  • Chelsea Piers Golf Club
  • Cunard White Star Pier 54
  • David Zwirner Gallery on 19th Street
  • David Zwirner Gallery on 20th Street
  • DIA Chelsea
  • Einstein Mural by Kobra
  • Gagosian Gallery on 21st Street
  • Gagosian Gallery on 24th Street
  • Gansevoort Beach
  • Gotham Comedy Club
  • Hauser & Wirth on 22nd Street
  • High Line Nine
  • Hudson River Park
  • Jim Kempner Fine Art
  • Little Island
  • Mount Rushmore Mural by Kobra
  • Pace Gallery
  • Pier 57 & Pier 57 Rooftop Park
  • Poster House
  • Taglialatella Galleries
  • Tanya Bonakdar Gallery
  • The General Theological Seminary
  • The Hotel Chelsea
  • Whitney Museum of American Art

Food and drink

  • Chelsea Market
  • El Quijote
  • Empire Diner
  • Frying Pan NYC
  • LOS TACOS No.1
  • Olly Olly Market
  • Smacking Burger
  • Starbucks Reserve Roastery

Shops

  • 192 Books
  • Artist & Fleas Chelsea
  • Diane von Fürstenberg Flagship Store
  • Printed Matter

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Chelsea · $2.99 in the appGet the app