25 Best NYC Gala Venues for a Memorable & Meaningful Fundraiser [2023]

Governor’s Island

This luxury camping resort is just a mere eight-minute ferry ride from downtown Manhattan and makes a memorable venue for a fundraiser. Set in nature, yet very close to the city, the space is perfect for outdoor activities and a tented evening under the stars.

Consider the interactive outdoor activities, lush natural setting, and magical sunset that this nonprofit gala offered guests.

Collective Governors Island can accommodate up to 64 seated guests and 199 standing guests.

Meatpacking District

This loft-like venue offers flexibility with an open space that’s perfect for cocktails and mingling or a formal sit-down gala dinner — all in the Little Flatiron Building.

This South Bronx United fundraiser was perfectly placed in the space, which was filled with art and natural light.

Triangle Loft can accommodate up to 150 seated guests and 310 standing guests.

Midtown East

With a unique and totally customizable lighting scheme and top-notch a/v, this sleek venue makes it easy to host a memorable gala. Plus, you can personalize the ceiling tiles with streaming messages about your cause.

See how this lively gala benefiting the Louis Armstrong Center for Music and Medicine brought a full band and professional dancers into the venue for a unique fundraising experience.

SPACE54 can accommodate up to 265 guests.

Hell’s Kitchen

Located in Time Warner Center, this venue offers a club-like cool space with epic views of iconic NYC buildings. The customizable space is perfect for any gala theme you can dream.

It was a fitting venue for this chic, futuristic gala, “The Sky’s The Limit” Benefit, as guests were able to look out of the grand windows above Central Park, surrounded by New York’s incredible skyscrapers.

Ascent Lounge can accommodate up to 400 seated guests and 500 standing guests.

Midtown East

Marina Luri, Owner and President of Marina Luri Events, an expert in gala planning, shares that The St. Regis Hotel is “a quintessential New York venue – classic and beautiful with impeccable service.” With multiple ornate spaces to choose from, there’s luxury at every turn.

The St. Regis Hotel can accommodate up to 220 guests.

Midtown

Luri of Marina Luri Events recommends the space “because it has the most amazing views, and it’s so iconic.” Top-notch service and stunning cityscapes make this a memorable gala space.

We adore how this glamorous gala for Wish Upon a Wedding filled the elegant space with tropical-inspired elements including colorful hibiscus florals, patterned tablecloths, and elegant crystal chandeliers.

The Rainbow Room can accommodate up to 300 seated guests and 600 standing guests.

Midtown

It’s nice to celebrate philanthropy in a space that is an active member of a community also providing services. Plus, this venue offers five beautiful historic spaces for gorgeous galas.

The New York Public Library’s Spring Dinner, an annual fundraiser that highlights the Library’s investment in lifelong learning, made clever use of all-white books and pages to further the theme of the event held in the epic Celeste Bartos Forum space.

The New York Public Library can accommodate up to 425 seated guests and 750 standing guests.

Chelsea Piers

This waterfront loft offers 10,000 square feet of flexible event space with luxurious details like hardwood floors, period lanterns, and a glass-enclosed terrace. It’s a beautiful blank space for any and every gala theme.

This wow-worthy gala for Wish Upon a Wedding — an organization that grants weddings and vow renewals to couples facing serious illness or a life-altering circumstance — featured a Moroccan-inspired menu and an evocative entrance.

The Lighthouse can accommodate up to 800 guests.

Central Park, Midtown

The variety of spaces at this museum make it perfect for hosting a memorable gala year after year — in a grand, landmarked building. Brett Galley of Hollywood POP Gallery especially loves the Temple of Dendur and the Great Hall for galas.

Host to the nation’s most famous fundraiser, the buzzed-about MET Gala, the space merges high-fashion and high-art in much-anticipated style. In fact, PartySlate’s coverage of the event is our most-engaged with social content every year!

The Metropolitan Museum of Art can accommodate up to 550 seated guests and 1,000 standing guests.

Upper West Side

As the first museum in New York City, this venue boasts a storied history and central location that makes it perfect for a memorable nonprofit gala. Better yet, proceeds from their space rentals support their programming, thus doubling the good you are doing.

This remarkable gala for the people who do galas, Non-Profits Night Out, made beautiful use of the epic space with lavender uplighting and luxe lounge areas.

New-York Historical Society can accommodate up to 400 seated guests and 1,200 standing guests.

Chelsea

Industrial architecture meets modern amenities in 22,000 square feet of production-worthy space in a desirable area. Its 18-foot ceilings offer lots of room to honor partners and donors alike.

This benefit afterparty provided a spot for getting down after doing good. The western theme remade the party-ready space.

Chelsea Industrial can accommodate up to 600 seated guests and 1,200 standing guests.

Ellis Island

This once-immigration station is now a stunning event venue with built-in significance. A quick ferry ride will transport guests in more ways than one for a guaranteed memorable experience.

This centennial gala for the National Park Conservation Association offered a sit-down dinner, photo spots galore, and entertainment that wowed.

Ellis Island & Statue of Liberty can accommodate up to 1,200 guests.

Midtown

This venue hosts one event at a time (even though it features multiple spaces), meaning you will get the team’s full attention. Its 70-foot ceiling has an ornate stained glass skylight that brings historic glamour to every affair.

This patriotic gala for The Wounded Warrior Project used themed lighitng projections on the epic domed ceiling of the landmark space.

Gotham Hall can accommodate up to 600 seated guests and 1,200 standing guests.

Midtown West

Galley of Hollywood POP Gallery recommends this space, and we understand why: it is grand and elegant in equal measure, yet the historic space boasts cutting-edge a/v and creative catering.

This beautiful nonprofit gala used innovative lighting and screens programmed to share gala messaging while guests enjoyed fine dining.

Ziegfeld Ballroom can accommodate up to 730 seated guests and 1,500 standing guests.

Lower Manhattan

The former Bowery Savings Bank, a landmark building designed in 1895, boasts a coved ceiling, corinthian columns, and mosaic marble floors — a grand space for your grand gala.

This glamorous gala featured aerial performers (a perk of towering ceilings), lavender lighting, and delectable catering.

Capitale can accommodate up to 700 seated guests and 1,500 standing guests.

Hell’s Kitchen, New York

This venue features floor-to-ceiling windows that flood the space with natural light and showcase 360-degree city views.

This elegant gala honoring the Most Powerful Women in Banking utilized the space’s top-notch a/v to infuse the space with vibrant lighting and clean sound.

The Glasshouse can accommodate up to 1,850 guests.

Midtown East

Luri of Marina Luri Events loves “all the Cipriani venues because no matter which one you choose, you get a landmark space, excellent food, and an amazing staff.” This location features a four-story banquet room that is perfect for memorable gala lighting and surprise entertainment.

See how this colorful gala for Lenox Hill drew all eyes upward with a stunning, water-themed installation.

Cipriani 42nd Street can accommodate up to 1,800 guests.

Central Park, Midtown

Luri of Marina Luri Events recommends the space, saying, “Who doesn’t love to be in the middle of Central Park surrounded by lush greenery and the sea lions?”

This elegant gala for the Wildlife Conservation Society filled the space with unique white leaf installations and violet florals.

The Central Park Zoo can accommodate up to 700 seated guests and 2,000 standing guests.

The Battery

Careful renovation has preserved the epic historical details of this space — the newest of Cipriani’s renowned group of beautiful and flexible event venues.

This colorful gala, benefitting the Hudson River Park Friends, dazzled with richly hued florals, vibrant lighting, and delicious dishes.

Cipriani South Street can accommodate up to 2,180 guests.

Upper West Side

With name recognition and classy caché, this venue offers an iconic spot for your fundraising gala. You can’t beat its flexibility with so many spaces of varying sizes, as well as outdoor spaces for gathering.

This entertainment-rich gala for the New York Philharmonic celebrated the reopening of the newly renovated David Geffen Hall — a space perfect for all kinds of galas.

Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts can accommodate up to 2,732 seated guests and 3,600 standing guests.

Times Square, Midtown

Well-located in Times Square, this venue offers a staggering 48 spaces for gathering, as well as a team that includes carpenters and photographers. Even the largest spaces manage to feel intimate.

This anniversary gala for NASCAR Foundation decked the space with glam vibes and vivid lighting.

Marriott Marquis, New York can accommodate up to 2,000 seated guests and 3,000 standing guests.

Central Park, Midtown

This venue’s unique spaces offer impressive event backdrops steeped in education. We particularly love the Milstein Hall of Ocean Life, which is one of the larges spaces in NYC for a sit-down dinner event and also features a model of a 94-foot blue whale.

American Museum Of Natural History can accommodate up to 1,000 seated guests and 3,000 standing guests.

Lower Midtown

Its 75-foot hand-painted ceiling offers natural acoustics as well as rigging points so you can get innovative with your gala décor, lighting, and even entertainment.

Galley with Hollywood POP Gallery recommends this space — and, in fact, held this gorgeous gala for Save the Children in the ballroom. They made the affair unique with creative entertainers and an iconic London phone booth photo spot.

Hammerstein Ballroom at The Manhattan Center can accommodate to 3,500 guests.

Hell’s Kitchen

A mainstay of New York’s seaport for more than 30 years, the Intrepid is an iconic space in which to host a gala. From viewing fireworks on the flight deck to dining alongside an airplane, there are plenty of opportunities to make your gala memorable.

This “Salute to Freedom” fundraising gala leveraged a creative lighting scheme to distinguish varied parts of the evening’s program.

Intrepid Sea, Air, & Space Museum can accommodate up to 1,500 seated guests and 5,000 standing guests.

Hell’s Kitchen

More than a convention center, this venue is remarkably self-sustainable and boasts a wildlife sanctuary — making it a perfect gala spot for nonprofits that support environmental causes and more. We especially love the opportunity to watch the sun set from its 45-foot floor-to-ceiling, glass-enclosed windows overlooking the Hudson River.

This purpose-driven benefit for the Robinhood Foundation featured oversized elements found in classrooms as a unifying décor element that tied to the nonprofit.

Javits Center can accommodate up to 3,000 seated guests and 8,000 standing guests.