Spring has finally sprung, meaning you have no excuse to just sit around and watch Netflix all day. There are so many things that you can do on a nice Spring day. New York City makes it so easy to get out of the house and try something new, but sometimes you just don’t know what’s out there. These five places might be a good place to start.

1. The Brooklyn Botanic Gardens

The Botanic Gardens in Brooklyn is a perfect way to take advantage of the spring. It’s a public garden located near Grand Army Plaza (right next to the Brooklyn Museum). It’s 52 acres of beautiful trees and sweet smelling flowers. It’s such a great place to be in the spring because everything is blossoming, and it’s not so horrible to walk around because it’s not too hot yet. One thing they are known for is their magnificent lovely cherry blossom trees, which bloom at around this time. It’s very easy to get to by subway, and admission is only $6 for students.

2. NYC Highline

The NYC Highline is another great place to spend the day. It’s a 1.45-mile-long linear park that was built on an old railroad track. Being elevated, it has some awesome views of the city, and it is usually not overly crowded. On your walk around the Highline there is some  interesting-looking street art on the buildings and also some street performers playing music or putting on a show. If you get tired from walking around there are places where you can stop and get some ice cream for the rest of your walk. It’s open from 7:00 am – 10:00 pm, and doesn’t cost a penny.

3. A Park

There are so many parks in NYC. There are little ones and big ones, crowded ones and discrete ones, and all the ones in between that are all really fun and beautiful. There are also so many things that you can do in a park. You can exercise, have a picnic, go to a playground, ride your bike, kick a ball around, or even just take a walk and enjoy the weather and all the different things happening around you. You also can have access to lots of different fun activities (depending on the park). For example, in Prospect Park you can ride the carousel, or even go down by the Lake and rent paddle boats!

4. The Zoo

Though some people think the zoo is for little kids, it’s fun for all ages. The zoo can be a really great way to look at some cool animals while being outside, but also having easy access to the indoors, and being able to see even more awesome animals! There are three major zoos in the city: The Prospect Park Zoo, the Central Park Zoo, and the Bronx Zoo. They are all great and relatively easy to get to. Admission for each of these vary. The cheapest is the Prospect Park Zoo ($8), and the most expensive is the Bronx Zoo ($33.95). There is also the other option of going to the Central Park Zoo, which is $12, but no matter where you go, you’re guaranteed to have a great time (as long as you love animals, of course).

5. Walking around

I’ve recently found myself walking aimlessly around the city with some friends, and realizing how few places I’ve been around the city. A really nice way to spend a spring day is walking around a place you’ve never been and exploring (while trying your best not to get lost). You’ll find that even though it seems boring and takes a lot of energy, it’s a really great way to get out of the house and experience something new. What I really enjoyed was walking down by the water, because it provided for a lot of great views over the water. It was very open, not like a crowded NYC sidewalk, and there were benches that you could sit down at and look at the water. When my friends and I got tired of walking, we stopped at a little diner for lunch. It was like sightseeing in my own city. You don’t know how much is out there that you’ve never actually gotten the chance to explore.

Springtime is one of the best times to be outside, because the weather is perfect and everything around you is blooming. You shouldn’t miss it because you have to catch up on TV or are too lazy to go outside, because staying inside is what winter is for. The five things above are just a few things that you can do to take advantage of the wonderful spring weather, but I’m sure that whatever you do, you’ll be able to fall in love with the springtime.