I have waited for this day my whole New York life.

I finally got to go on a tour of the old, abandoned City Hall Station beneath NYC. Everyone has heard about it. The only glimpse you can get of it is when you stay on the downtown 6 train and look out the window as it loops around to become an uptown train.

The station opened in 1904 and it’s located right underneath City Hall Park and from certain areas in the park (that are now blocked off to the public), you can look down and see through the tops of the skylights in the station.

It closed in 1945 due to the increased subway ridership that led to longer trains, and thus longer platforms. The City Hall station (built on a tight curve) would have been difficult to lengthen, and it was also fairly close to the far busier Brooklyn Bridge-City Hall station so the closure made sense at the time.

SIDE NOTE: I feel like I’m slowly realizing this in real time, but like… am I… into… history? When the hell did that happen?

The station was designed by Rafael Guastavino and is so unexpectedly refined for a subway station with its Romanesque Revival architectural style. (Yes I looked up what the name of the style is.)

Tours are arranged through the New York Transit Museum (you have to become a member for access to ticket sales), but it’s very much worth the price. Tickets go on sale usually twice a year for different blocks of time and absolutely always sell out.

This is, by far, one of the coolest things that you can see in New York. Equally as incredible as it was to walk around inside the crown of The Statue of Liberty.

It really did feel like walking into a time machine that shows you what old New York City would’ve felt like. Just an incredible experience.

I know that I only bought my New York Transit Museum membership solely for this tour, but of all the clubs to become a member to - this one really feels like a good fit for me. So excited to hear about what other tours will be offered throughout the year.