Madison Square Garden is popularly referred to as “The World’s Famous Arena” and rightly so because of the several events that have been held there.
The history of the Garden dates back to 1879, when the first Madison Square Garden was opened for business. The arena has since been extended to three other locations, with the fourth (and the current one) located at 4 Pennsylvania Plaza, New York City.
You may know Madison Square Garden for what it is – an indoor multipurpose arena. But, that is not all there is to the arena.
There are several interesting facts and things you probably don’t know about the Madison Square Garden.
Here are some of them:
- The four members of the Beatles have individually performed at the Garden. However, they all did not perform at the same time.
- John Lennon had his second to last performance at the Madison Square Garden in November 1974. He did that when he came out as a surprise guest to perform with Sir Elton John.
- Former Rangers captain and Hall of Farmer, Mark Messier inspired the round and oval shapes of the locker room for the New York Knicks and the Rangers. The idea was to make the room closely shaped in a way that the players would look into one another’s eyes. Mark believes that this practice would make it easier for the players to develop a sense of working together.
Madison Square Garden has a strict bag policy. There are no lockers or baggage storage facilities near the Garden.
This is because of the bag policy that restricts guests from coming into the arena with specific personal belongings, such as bags, luggage, umbrella, and coats.
You can only be allowed to come in with your purses and small pocketbooks.
Although there are no luggage storage lockers in the actual venue, you can still store your bags safely near the Garden. We have partnered with local shops and cafes to offer you affordable luggage storage near Madison Square Garden. Our Qeepl luggage storages cost only $5.90 per bag a day.
Guests are not permitted to bring outside food, such as beverages (bottles and cans) and food into the Madison Square Garden.
So, you want to eat and drink before making your way into the arena.
Looking for the best place to eat near the arena? Here are a couple of restaurants you will find near MSG:
- American Whiskey
- Pennsylvania 6
- Co. Pizzeria
- Lupulo
- Bette
- The Pennsy Food Hall
- Inakaya
- Turntable Chicken Jazz
- Varietal
- Porchlight
- Tipsy Parson
- Haymaker Bar and Kitchen
- Versa
- El Quinto Pino
- Butcher & Banker
- Impero Caffe
- Foragers City Table
Best Tourist Attractions near Madison Square Garden
Madison Square Garden is one of the favorite sites for locals and tourists. So, it is not surprising that thousands of people converge there to either watch professional basketball or ice hockey. Besides, The Garden is also home to artists who, often than not, sell out the tickets in the shortest time possible.
Yet, there are many other interesting sites to see near The Garden. Here are some of the alternative tourist attractions near Madison Square Garden:
- Visit Penn Station
- Old Navy
- Explore the Metropolitan Museum of Art
- Visit the Battery Parks City Conservancy
- Take a tour of the Brooklyn Brewery
- Visit Times Square
- Admire the Statue of Liberty
- Grand Central Bodywork
- Shop at upscale shops, such as Tiffany & Co. and Saks Fifth Avenue
Subway, bus, and train station are the transit options that have routes that pass near The Garden.
It will take you about 31 minutes to move by subway from Inwood, midtown Manhattan to Madison Square Garden.
If you are going by bus, it takes up to1 hour and 30 minutes to get to The Garden from Arthur Ashe Stadium, Queens.
And it takes about 91 minutes if you are coming by train from Meadowlands Arena, East Rutherford.
Madison Square Garden is an attractive place to visit when you are in a layover in New York City. Just take note of the tourist attractions we just mentioned and get secure bag storage for your bags with Qeepl.
This way, you will fully absorb yourself with the performance at the arena, knowing that your belongings are safe.