The actual history
As recently as the 1990s, the neighbourhood functioned as an active meatpacking district, with refrigerated trucks and wholesale operations running through the night. The cobblestones weren't put there for aesthetics — they're original, worn smooth by a century of heavy vehicles. Most of the former packing houses are now restaurants, boutiques, and hotels.
The High Line's southern entrance
The most-used entry point to the High Line sits at the Gansevoort Street end of the Meatpacking District, which makes the neighbourhood a natural starting point for a walk that runs north through Chelsea. See our things to do guide for the full High Line overview.
What it's actually like now
Expensive restaurants, high-end fashion flagships, and hotel rooftop bars aimed squarely at a spending crowd. Genuinely buzzy at night; relatively quiet during the day outside of tourist foot traffic to the High Line. The Whitney Museum of American Art sits at the neighbourhood's southern edge and is worth a visit regardless of what you think of the rest of the block.
Getting there
The A/C/E trains (14th St) and the L train (8th Ave) both drop you within a short walk. It connects directly on foot to Chelsea to the north and the West Village to the east.