The Vessel, Hudson Yards: A Guide to New York's Most Controversial Landmark

Hi, I'm Ino.

Walking north along the High Line, the neighborhood changes gradually — galleries give way to newer buildings, the street grid widens, and eventually the elevated track deposits you into a different kind of New York entirely. Hudson Yards is the city's newest major district, built on what was once a sprawling rail yard on the west side of Manhattan. At the center of its public plaza stands something that doesn't look like anything else in the city.

The Vessel is a 150-foot copper-colored structure made entirely of interlocking staircases. From a distance, it looks like a giant beehive, or perhaps an elaborate piece of metalwork from another era. Up close, it looks like nothing you've seen before.

The Vessel from the plaza — 154 flights of stairs arranged into a 150-foot copper-clad structure at the center of Hudson Yards.

What the Vessel Is

The Vessel was designed by British designer Thomas Heatherwick and opened in March 2019 as the centerpiece of Hudson Yards' public plaza. Heatherwick drew inspiration from the ancient stepwells of India — large, ornate structures built around descending staircases that serve as both functional water reservoirs and communal gathering spaces. The result is a 16-story honeycomb of 154 flights of stairs, 2,500 individual steps, and 80 landings, with the total length of the staircase exceeding one mile. The structure narrows at the base — just 50 feet wide at ground level — and expands outward as it rises, reaching 150 feet wide at the top.

The exterior panels are clad in copper-toned steel, which reflects the surrounding plaza, the sky, and the people moving around it. On a clear day, the surface functions almost like a mirror — the buildings, trees, and passersby all appear in distorted, warped form across its facets. The steel components were fabricated in Monfalcone, Italy, and transported by ship to the Hudson River docks. The final cost of construction is estimated at $200 million.

Looking straight up from the base — the copper panels reflect the plaza, the surrounding buildings, and everyone moving through the space.

Closed, Then Reopened — What Happened

The Vessel drew enormous crowds after opening and quickly became one of New York's most photographed landmarks. But within its first two years, four people — all under the age of 25 — died by suicide at the structure during an 18-month period ending in July 2021. Following the fourth death, the structure was closed indefinitely while the developer, Related Companies, consulted with suicide prevention experts and engineers on a long-term safety solution.

The closure lasted nearly three years. In October 2024, the Vessel reopened to the public with significant structural changes: floor-to-ceiling steel mesh barriers were installed across all four stairwells and adjoining platforms, preventing access to the open edges while still allowing views through the mesh. The top level remains permanently closed. The lower levels — where most of the climbing experience takes place — are now fully accessible again.

When I visited, the Vessel was still closed. The plaza itself was open and free to walk through, and the exterior was fully visible — but there was no way to enter. If you're planning a trip now, the situation has changed: you can go inside.

The Vessel at dusk — the copper panels shift in tone as the light changes, reflecting a distorted version of the towers and plaza below.

Note: The Vessel reopened in October 2024 after nearly three years of closure. Tickets start at $10 and can be booked at vesselnyc.com. The top level remains closed, but the lower levels are accessible. If you visited before the reopening and were turned away — as I was — it's worth going back.

Inside the Mall While You Wait for Dark

The Hudson Yards Shops — the large mall directly adjacent to the plaza — is one of the more useful places to spend time in New York if you're waiting for the light to change. The Vessel looks different at every hour of the day, and dramatically different once the internal lighting comes on at night. The strategy that makes the most sense is to arrive about an hour before sunset, see the structure in daylight, then step inside the mall until full dark, and come back out for the evening version.

The mall itself is anchored by high-end retailers — Neiman Marcus, Dior, Cartier, and others — but also has more accessible shops spread across multiple floors. For international visitors, one genuinely useful fact about shopping in New York State: clothing and footwear items priced under $110 per item are exempt from sales tax. This applies per individual item, not per transaction total — so two $100 shirts are both tax-free, but a single $115 jacket is taxed in full at the combined New York State and City rate of approximately 8.875%. It's worth checking price tags before you buy.

Ladurée at Hudson Yards — the Parisian patisserie's glass-and-gold storefront on the main concourse.

Ladurée at Hudson Yards

Ladurée was founded in Paris in 1862 and is credited with inventing the modern macaron as we know it — the double-shell sandwich cookie filled with ganache or buttercream, in the pastel colors that have become its signature. The Hudson Yards location occupies a corner of the mall concourse, fitted out in the brand's characteristic pale green, black-and-white checkered floors, and gold-trimmed display cases.

The display case holds the full macaron range — organized by color in rows, with flavors running from rose and pistachio to salted caramel and blackcurrant violet. Alongside the macarons are rectangular individual cakes: the Ispahan (rose, lychee, and raspberry), the Mango Yuzu, the Chocolate Caramel Hazelnut, and the Vanilla Pecan. Individual cakes are priced around $9.50 each. A box of macarons starts from around $21 for a small selection.

The Ladurée display case — macarons organized by color, alongside rectangular cakes priced around $9.50 each.

I ordered two rectangular cakes to go — a pink one with a texture suggesting raspberry or strawberry with passionfruit, and a bright yellow one that turned out to be the Mango Yuzu. Both came nestled in a white box with the gold Ladurée monogram seal on each piece. The outer coating on each cake is a thin layer of chocolate or glaze that keeps the shape intact; inside, the texture is mousse-like and cold, with a clean, distinct flavor that doesn't taste artificial. The Mango Yuzu in particular was sharp and bright — the yuzu citrus came through clearly against the sweetness of the mango. Neither cake was too sweet for its size, which is the mark of the category done well.

A table inside the store made it a reasonable place to sit and recover from a day's walking. The mall is air-conditioned and quiet relative to the streets outside.

Two cakes to go — the pink one with a raspberry-passionfruit glaze and the bright yellow Mango Yuzu, each with the gold monogram seal.

The Vessel at Night

When the sky shifts from blue to deep navy and the plaza lights come on, the Vessel becomes a different object entirely. The copper surface that spent the day reflecting clouds and passersby goes dark, and the internal lighting along the staircase edges turns on — warm amber lines tracing the geometry of each level from the inside out. What looked like a solid structure in daylight reveals itself to have depth and layering at night.

Looking up from the base at dusk — two Hudson Yards towers frame the Vessel from above, the straight lines of the buildings pressing against its curves.

The contrast between the two versions — reflective and cool in daylight, warm and geometric at night — is the main reason the Vessel rewards a longer visit. The daytime version is a photograph of whatever is around it. The nighttime version is just itself.

The Vessel at night — internal amber lighting traces the geometry of each level, turning the structure into something entirely different from its daytime self.

Ino's Practical Tips for the Vessel and Hudson Yards

Getting there
The Vessel is at the center of the Hudson Yards Public Square, between 10th and 11th Avenues and 30th and 33rd Streets in Manhattan. The most direct subway is the 7 train to 34th Street–Hudson Yards station, which exits directly into the plaza. You can also walk from the southern end of the High Line, which connects directly to the plaza at the north end.

Tickets and entry (post-October 2024)
The Vessel is now open to visitors. General admission starts at $10 for a flex ticket, which allows entry at any time during the day. Timed entry tickets are also available through vesselnyc.com. The top level remains permanently closed. An elevator is available for visitors who cannot use the stairs — check the website for accessibility options and pricing. Strollers must be left at the base of the structure.

Photography
Tripods are not permitted anywhere on the Hudson Yards plaza, which is private property. Handheld photography is fine. For the most interesting shots, try looking straight up from the base during the day for the mirror reflection effect, and return after dark for the lit staircase geometry.

Daytime and nighttime — see both
The Vessel looks completely different depending on the light. The recommended approach is to arrive about an hour before sunset, spend time with the daytime exterior, step inside the mall during the transition hour, and return to the plaza once it's fully dark. The internal lighting is worth waiting for.

New York clothing tax exemption
If you're shopping in the Hudson Yards mall, New York State and New York City exempt individual clothing and footwear items priced under $110 from sales tax. This applies per item, not per total purchase — so multiple qualifying items are each tax-free, but a single item priced at $110 or above is taxed at approximately 8.875% on the full amount. Check the price tag on individual items before paying.

Tip: Arrive around an hour before sunset. See the Vessel in daylight, then spend the transition hour inside the mall — the Ladurée at Hudson Yards is a reasonable stop for a sit-down break. Come back out once the plaza lights are on. You'll see two completely different structures for the time investment of one visit.

Wrapping Up

The Vessel is one of those New York landmarks that resists easy summary. It's an expensive, somewhat controversial structure built on a site developed largely with public money — and for three years it was closed entirely, a 150-foot reminder of what happens when a public space isn't designed with human safety as a first principle. The reopening, with its mesh barriers and closed top level, is a compromise. It's not the original experience. But the structure itself — the geometry, the reflections, the nighttime lighting — still does what good public art is supposed to do: it changes depending on where you're standing and what time of day it is.

If you're walking the High Line north from Chelsea Market, Hudson Yards is the natural end point. For a view of New York from much higher up, One World Observatory offers a different kind of perspective entirely. And if you want to see the skyline from the water for free, the Staten Island Ferry remains the best deal in the city.