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Chinatown & Civic Center

Dumplings, Courthouses and Old Five Points

32stops
3.0miles
2h 05mwalking
$2.99in the app

This walk joins two worlds that sit side by side. Civic Center is where New York governs itself: City Hall, the courts and the towers of government, built in marble and granite to impress. A few blocks east, Chinatown begins, one of the oldest and largest Chinese communities outside Asia, with fish markets on the sidewalks, dim sum parlors, herb shops and temples. In between lies the ground of the old Five Points, once the most notorious slum in America. You’ll walk from the seat of power through one of the city’s most crowded neighborhoods, eating dumplings, buns and ice cream along the way.

Nearest subway
City Hall NRW · 1 min walk to the start
Map of the Chinatown & Civic Center walking route with its 32 stops
The route of the Chinatown & Civic Center 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. 1City Hall Park

    Start in City Hall Park, which has been the town square of New York since the 1600s, when it was a common pasture on the edge of town.

  2. 2Woolworth Building

    When the Woolworth Building opened in 1913, it was the tallest building in the world, at 792 feet, and it kept that title until 1930.

  3. 3New York City Hall

    New York City Hall, completed in 1812, is the oldest city hall in the United States still used for its original purpose.

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29 more stops to discover

Unlock Chinatown & Civic Center in the app for $2.99 for the full 3.0 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: Doyers Street (Murder Alley), Nom Wah Tea Parlor, The David N. Dinkins Manhattan Municipal Building and more

Sights

  • African Burial Ground National Monument
  • Church of the Transfiguration
  • Collect Pond Park
  • Columbus Park
  • Confucius Plaza
  • Doyers Street (Murder Alley)
  • Edward Mooney House
  • Five Points
  • Kimlau Square
  • Mahayana Temple Buddhist Association
  • Manhattan Bridge Arch and Colonnade
  • Museum of Chinese in America (MOCA)
  • New York Chinese Community Center
  • New York County Criminal Court (Night Court)
  • New York County Supreme Court
  • The David N. Dinkins Manhattan Municipal Building
  • Thomas Paine Park

Food and drink

  • K.O. Burger
  • Mei Lai Wah Bakery
  • Nom Wah Tea Parlor
  • Shu Jiao Fu Zhou
  • Spongies Café
  • Super Taste
  • Taiyaki NYC
  • The Original Chinatown Ice Cream Factory
  • Wah Fung No. 1 Fast Food
  • Wo Hop

Shops

  • CityStore
  • Lin Sister Herb Shop

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Chinatown & Civic Center · $2.99 in the appGet the app