Parks and the outdoors in Albany

9 parks, gardens, beaches and walks in and around Albany.

Ranked with the travel guide's picks and well-known places first.

Drink
Common Roots Albany Outpost
Dine with a few beers. The building itself is the old Albany Pump Station, which used to pump the water from the Hudson River up to the reservoir, so the building has a ton of atmosphere and history. A local favorite - no trip to Albany is complete without a visit here.
Do
Corning City Preserve
Trails for biking, skating, jogging and walking in the 5-mile long park along the Hudson River, with picnic areas and a boat launch.
Buy
Crossgates Mall
Otherwise referred to as "the mall," it's the biggest shopping center in the region and at one point was among the top ten largest shopping malls in the United States. The best spot to park is by Best Buy, which is in the center of the mall. Flagship stores include Macy's, JC Penney, a Forever 21 superstore, Best Buy, H&M, Borders and the Apple store. Crossgates has a Regal Cinemas complex with 17 standard stadium-seating theaters and one IMAX Experience theater. Because local hooligans, after 4PM on Friday and Saturday you must be 18 or older to enter the mall unsupervised, with the exception of the movies.
See
Lark Street
A center of Albany youth culture and an interesting place to visit. Lark Street is between Washington Park and the Empire State Plaza and is the main drag for a vibrant residential neighborhood. In September, Lark Street hosts one of Albany's most treasured events, "Larkfest", a popular street fair.
Do
Mohawk Hudson-River Bikeway
A 86-mile-long trail for biking, walking, jogging or skating which starts in the Corning Preserve in downtown Albany, right along the Hudson River, and stretches out to Rotterdam Junction in Schenectady County.
See
Washington Park
A delightful, and for the most part safe, park (care should be taken at night). In the park's center is the Park Playhouse, which offers free, good musicals and plays throughout the summer. May offers "Tulip Fest" a nod to Albany's Dutch heritage that consumes Washington Park with (mostly) tulips as well as a craft fair.
Do Not mapped
Public concerts
Held at the Empire State Plaza, Washington park and in the Corning Preserve/Albany Riverfront Park on the Hudson River during the summer.
Do Not mapped
Huck Finn's Playland
small amusement park designed for younger ages primarily.
Do Not mapped
Playhouse
Plays held at the park playhouse during the Summer.

Listings from the Wikivoyage guide to Albany (CC BY-SA 4.0).