Chelsea

Back in the early 2000s clusters of art galleries took advantage of the warehouse spaces near the West Side Highway. Now, Chelsea houses the most valuable contemporary art in New York, where stalwarts such as David Zwirner, Gagosian, Pace, Gladstone, and Hauser & Wirth routinely sell works valued at 1 million USD and above. Despite their steely exteriors and blank-stare gallerists at the front desk, Chelsea galleries are free and open to the public (proviso any private events), and often boast adventurous programming. Thursdays still remain opening nights for new exhibitions – see if you can swing by and join in the wine-swilling fun.