Experience Tribeca

Tribeca: A Neighborhood Guide

Tribeca is the neighborhood at the southern tip of Manhattan, running from Canal Street down to Chambers Street and from Broadway west to the Hudson River. Smyth Tribeca sits inside it at 85 West Broadway, two minutes from the Chambers Street subway and about eight minutes on foot from Brookfield Place and the Oculus.

It is the part of Manhattan where cast-iron storefronts and 19th-century warehouses turned into lofts, galleries and some of the city’s better restaurants. It is quiet at night in a way Midtown is not, it is walkable to almost everything downtown, and it is where people stay when they want New York without the crush of Times Square.

Where Tribeca starts and ends

The name is short for Triangle Below Canal, and the boundaries are looser than the name suggests. In practice Tribeca runs from Canal Street south to Chambers Street, and from Broadway west to the Hudson. The eastern edge blurs into the Civic Center around City Hall, and the southern end meets Battery Park City at Chambers and West Streets.

What that means for a stay: the streets are wide, the blocks are short, and you can cross the whole neighborhood in about fifteen minutes on foot. West Broadway, where our entrance is, runs through the middle of it.

Getting to Tribeca and getting around

Tribeca is one of the better-connected neighborhoods downtown, and most guests arrive by subway.

• Chambers Street (1, 2, 3) is about two minutes from the door, at West Broadway and Chambers.
• Chambers Street (A, C) is roughly three minutes, one block east on Church Street.
• City Hall (R, W) is about four minutes.
• Brooklyn Bridge–City Hall (4, 5, 6) is about six minutes.
• Fulton Street, the largest station downtown, serves the A, C, J, Z, 2, 3, 4 and 5 and connects to the Oculus and the PATH to New Jersey. About eight minutes.

From the airports: a taxi from JFK runs 45 to 75 minutes depending on traffic, and the AirTrain plus the A train is the cheaper route into Fulton Street. From Newark, take NJ Transit to Penn Station and then a downtown train, or a taxi through the Holland Tunnel. LaGuardia is a 30 to 50 minute drive outside rush hour. If you are driving in, park nearby rather than circling; the neighborhood is one-way streets and low on street parking.

What Tribeca is known for

• The architecture. Cast-iron facades, converted warehouses and lofts with freight elevators. Much of the neighborhood is a historic district.
• The Tribeca Festival, held each June, which brings film premieres and a crowd that books the neighborhood out early.
• Brookfield Place, a seven-minute walk, with the Winter Garden, shopping and a waterfront terrace.
• The Oculus and One World Observatory, both within about ten minutes on foot.
• Washington Market Park, the neighborhood’s playground and green space, and Pier 25 on the Hudson with a playground, mini golf and a seasonal beach.
• Restaurants. Tribeca has one of the densest concentrations of serious kitchens in the city, from Locanda Verde to the newer spots on Greenwich and Duane.

Walk times from our door

Everything below is walking distance from 85 West Broadway, measured door to door at an ordinary pace.

• Chambers Street station (1, 2, 3) – 2 minutes
• City Hall Park – 5 minutes
• Brookfield Place and the Winter Garden – 7 minutes
• Oculus and Fulton Street – 8 minutes
• Washington Market Park – 9 minutes
• One World Observatory – 10 minutes
• SoHo, at Spring and Broadway – 12 minutes
• Pier 25 on the Hudson – 15 minutes

For the rest of the neighborhood, see things to do in Tribeca and where to eat and drink.

Who Tribeca suits

Families do well here: Washington Market Park, the Pier 25 playground and the wide, low-traffic streets are all within a short walk, and the Oculus puts the whole city a train ride away.

Business travellers like it for the same reason locals do. The Financial District is a ten-minute walk, City Hall is five, and the neighborhood is quiet enough to work in the evening.

If your trip is built around Broadway and Times Square, Tribeca is the wrong base: it is a 20 to 25 minute ride uptown. Guests who split their stay between downtown and Midtown usually tell us they wish they had spent more nights here.

When to visit

Spring and autumn are the best walking months. Summer brings the piers, the film festival in June, and the highest room rates of the year. Winter is quieter and cheaper, with Brookfield Place and the Oculus close enough to cross between without spending long outside. If you are coming for the festival, book well ahead; the neighborhood fills and rates climb.

Staying in Tribeca

Smyth Tribeca has rooms and suites with terraces, Smyth Tavern and Galerie Bar on the ground floor, and a fitness centre. See rooms and suites for layouts and capacities, or current offers if you are flexible on dates. To ask about a specific stay, contact the hotel directly.

Frequently asked questions

Is Tribeca a good area to stay in New York?

Yes, if you want a quiet, walkable base downtown with easy subway access. It suits families and business travellers better than travellers whose trip is centred on Midtown.

Is Tribeca safe at night?

Tribeca is a well-lit residential neighborhood with restaurants open late. As anywhere in Manhattan, use ordinary city sense after midnight.

How far is Tribeca from Times Square?

About 20 to 25 minutes by subway on the 1, 2 or 3 from Chambers Street, or 15 to 25 minutes by taxi depending on traffic.

What is the closest subway to Smyth Tribeca?

Chambers Street on the 1, 2 and 3 lines, about two minutes’ walk from 85 West Broadway.

What is there to do in Tribeca with children?

Washington Market Park, the playground and mini golf at Pier 25, the waterfront at Brookfield Place, and the Oculus, all within 15 minutes on foot.