Having aesthetically pleasing and architecturally impressive stops is important. No, it shouldn’t come at the expense of timely trains and safe and functioning tracks, but appreciating one doesn’t mean you have to excuse the other. So, we’ve decided to highlight 15 of the most beautiful subway stations in New York City. Check them out below!
1. 34th Street Hudson Yards (Manhattan, 7 Line)
The 34th Street Hudson Yards Station opened in 2018 and features beautiful glass mosaic artwork.
2. Gun Hill Road Station (Bronx, 5 Line)
The glass mosaic “My Sun (Mi Sol), My Planet (Mi Planeta) and My City (Mi Ciudad)” by artist Andrea Arroyo pays an ode to her theme of sun, planet, and city. The glass work and bright colors bring lively color to the station, especially on a sunny day.
3. 105 Street (Brooklyn, L Line)
“Crescendo” via artist Michael Ingui was created in 2007 using brilliant green and blue colors giving a can’t-miss pop of color in this Brooklyn station.
4. 28th Street Station (Manhattan, 6 line)
28th Street is a beautifully floral station that reopened in January 2020 after extensive renovations. The flowers are meant to represent the blooms of Madison Square Park.
5. City Hall Station (Manhattan, Closed)
City Hall Station was constructed in 1904 and closed soon after in 1945. It is only accessible with a membership to NYC’s Transit Museum.
6. Fulton Center (Manhattan, 2, 3, 4, 5, A, C, J, Z Lines)
The Fulton Center is one of the newest and most modern of all the stops in the city. It almost feels like you’re in a massive dome telescope or futuristic observatory.
7. 138 St-Grand Concourse (Bronx, 4, 5 Lines)
Mosaic “Day Into Night Into Day” by Amy Pryor is a depiction of the shifting hours of daylight and darkness over the four seasons.
8. Bedford Park Blvd-Lehman College (Bronx, 4 Line)
“Community Garden” is a glass mosaic that was completed in 2006 by artist Andrea Dezsö.
9. The Oculus Transportation Hub at The World Trade Center (Manhattan, PATH)
The Oculus is an iconic NYC structure that’s absolutely stunning, whether you’re inside or out. This hub is not only a meeting point for so many trains, but it’s also home to plenty of shops and is located next to the WTC.
10. 81st Street-Museum of Natural History (Manhattan, B, C Lines)
The “For Want of a Nail” mural has been up at the Natural History Museum subway stop since 2000. It’s a beautiful reminder about the existence of our oceanic friends.
11. 163 St-Amsterdam Av (Manhattan, C Line)
“Ciguapa Antellana, me llamo sueño de la madrugada. (who more sci-fi than us),” glass mosaic artwork by Firelei Báe includes two platform wall murals and two mezzanine level murals as an ode to her Caribbean cultural heritage.
12. Broadway Station (Astoria, N, W Line)
This gorgeous laminated glass artwork has a stained-glass feel and reflects beautiful colors onto the station platform on sunny days.
13. 59th Street-Columbus Circle (Manhattan, between the 1 and A, B, C, D Lines)
This porcelain tile mural wall is located in the walkway between the 1 line and the A,B,C,D lines in Columbus Circle. Created in 2009, artist Sol Lewitt’s “Whirls and Twirls” is still one of the most beautiful and whimsical subway creations in the city.
14. Far Rockaway-Mott Avenue (Queens, A Line)
“Respite” is an abstract landscape of birds perched on outstretched branches by artist Jason Rohlf bringing brightness, beautiful color, and stature to the subway station.
15. Bay Parkway (Brooklyn, F Line)
Leslie Wayne created “Neptune’s Garden” for the Bay Parkway station in 2018. Wayne considered the public’s shared interests for the environment and surrounding water, and so she created this as a tribute to this enjoyment and the ocean’s beauty.