Address: 1000 Washington Avenue, Brooklyn, US
Website: www.bbg.org
Phone: 718 623 7200
“Gorgeous” and “soothing” are Tia Williams’ go-to descriptions of this 52-acre, indoor-outdoor park in the heart of Brooklyn. The Brooklyn Botanical Gardens (BBG) receives most of its visitors on sunny springtime afternoons, but a variety of indoor spectacles—such as the greenhouses and the special viewing rooms for academic experts—are open year-round. What’s more, despite the gardens’ worldwide renown (BBG is considered the foremost spot for viewing cherry trees outside of Japan), the gardens are surprisingly peaceful. Case in point: “I once wrote an entire manuscript here,” says Williams.