I think summer is one of the easiest times to find free things to do in the City – although, to be honest, it’s not that difficult all year.

Something about summer though makes me (and lots of others) want to explore. It also makes me want to get off my lazy behind and do something.

Which brought me to Brooklyn. I usually avoid Brooklyn like the plague (not that there’s anything inherently wrong with Brooklyn, and, honestly, there are plenty of cool things over there – the subway and I just never seem to get along when I heard out there).

I actually took this trip last fall, but when I did it, I thought, this place is so cool and half of the cool stuff is closed for the season, I’ll write about it this summer – and I’m glad I did because it turns out there’s even more here than I knew!

Pier 2 at Brooklyn Bridge Park has a roller skating rink (if you own your own skates – if not, the rental fee was really low, $5 or less) with various free admission times. I sort of expected a terrifying, sketchy drug haven, but it’s actually a gorgeous little skating rink right on the water, pumping upbeat tunes and with an altogether awesome vibe.

Not up for roller skating? There are also basketball courts, handball courts, shuffleboard and bocce. You may point out that there are basketball courts all over the city but these are excellent. They’re like indoor courts outside and so well maintained.

From June to September, the park also hosts a free exercise series with everything from yoga to dance to pilates. They even have ballet.

All that exercise tiring you out? Brooklyn Bridge Park also has rotating art installations along the walkways that you can check out. The current installation is Jeppe Hein’s 18 sculpture work called “Please Touch the Art”, which encouraged you to interact with the art.

Hit the park on Sundays at 11 AM between April and October and you can take a free tour where you learn about the history of Brooklyn’s waterfront, Brooklyn Bridge Park’s sustainable design and how the park was built.

Are you up for some classical music? Check out the Bargemusic site before heading over and you can catch a free classical musical concert at the park as well.

You can even kayak for free here from June through August. This cool activity is only available on Saturdays from 10 am – 3 pm and Thursdays from 5:30-6:45 pm. If you’re really into kayaking, you can check out several other free options in Manhattan right here.

So even though Brooklyn can be a bit of a hike, it’s worth it to spend a few hours checking out Brooklyn Bridge Park.

Two other fun free things to check out in NYC during the summer:

• #NYCWin: Free Kayaking
• #NYCWIN: Free Opera (just make sure you check the Met’s page for this summer’s schedule)