The Edge, at New York’s Hudson Yards, is the highest outdoor sky deck in the western hemisphere, but forget the views for now and come for the climb.
Starting November 9, thrill seekers can experience City Climb at Edge, which bills itself to be the highest open-air building ascent in the world. Yes, really. Those bold enough to try will have the opportunity to navigate a series of open-air platforms and stairs along the outside crown of 30 Hudson Yards, a 1,300-foot-tall skyscraper.
City Climb is located above Edge and includes platforms and stairways that range from almost 1,200 feet to 1,271 feet in the air. As expected, it’s designed with safety as a priority. “Everyone gets a thorough briefing, and our guides harness them onto the course with two cables that are attached to a trolley,” says Cassie Davidson, the vice president of marketing at Hudson Yards Experiences. “Climbers are very secure.”
The 90-minute to 2-hour adventure starts with guests, who are limited to eight in a group, climbing 32 steps from the Basecamp to the Cliff. Here, they’re already 1,190 feet from the ground and can look directly down at the street below. They then climb 161 more steps on a 45-degree incline to reach the Apex, a 1,271-foot-high point where they can actually hang over the platform and spend 45 minutes savoring the spectacular panoramas of the city before them. In all, they climb and descend 370 steps.
How can a celebration not figure in at the end?
City Climb caps off with a victory lap of Edge’s indoor/outdoor viewing areas. Guests can order champagne from the bar and make a toast or relax on the outdoor glass floor or skyline steps. Their adrenaline has been pumping for a while now, and it’s time to take a breath and slow down.
“City Climb quite literally shouts from the rooftops that tourism is back in New York City, and there has never been a more exciting time to visit,” says Jeff T. Blau, chief executive of Related Companies in a release. “This is an adventure unlike anything the city has seen before, and we are thrilled to welcome the world to an experience of a lifetime.”
City Climb costs $185 a person and includes entry into the Edge and a video of the climb.