Each year, the public has two days to take a peek inside many of New York City's architectural gems that are typically behind closed doors.
Open House New York, which Scott Lauer founded after volunteering with Open House London, has been doing the annual "open house" weekend since 2003. This year on Oct. 17-18, the public can experience "an unparalleled citywide cultural event" that "showcases hundreds of NYC’s most architecturally and culturally significant spaces and places, many not usually open to the public, in neighborhoods throughout the five boroughs."
The event is free, but some of the participating venues require advance reservations that can be made starting at 11 a.m. ET on Wednesday, Oct. 7.
Not all the properties require a reservation. Check the full list for details for each space.
Lauer began the organization as a "small grassroots non-profit dedicated to educating the public about New York City’s architecture and design," however the popularity of the event has led to exponential growth. Open House New York is part of Open House Worldwide, which counts 25 members, including London, Dublin, Melbourne, Tel Aviv and many more.
In New York City, the spaces are not limited to what you may typically imagine as a historical space -- the event also shines the spotlight on new, exclusive places like multi-million-dollar condos that will soon be seen only by their owners.