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New York is officially entering its most emotionally optimistic season: beach season.
Starting Saturday, May 23, all New York City public beaches will reopen for the summer, meaning the annual migration from subway platform to sandy towel is about to begin. And honestly? After the winter and spring New Yorkers just survived, it feels deserved.
The big headliner, as always, is Brooklyn’s legendary Coney Island and Brighton Beach stretch, where the vibe remains wonderfully unhinged in the best possible way. You’ve got the Cyclone, Nathan’s, boardwalk performers, beach volleyball and enough people-watching material to sustain the group chat for weeks. Brighton Beach, meanwhile, offers a slightly calmer energy with excellent Eastern European food and a more local feel.
Out in Queens, Rockaway Beach once again claims its title as the city’s coolest shoreline. It remains the only legal surfing beach in New York City and the boardwalk scene has evolved into a full summer ecosystem of taco stands, beach bars and skaters. Nearby Jacob Riis Park continues to draw massive crowds with its Art Deco bathhouse, sprawling sands and social-party atmosphere.
If your ideal beach day involves fewer Bluetooth speakers, Staten Island quietly delivers some of the city’s most underrated waterfront escapes. South Beach and Midland Beach have long boardwalk walks and sweeping Verrazzano views, while Cedar Grove Beach and Wolfe’s Pond feel more like hidden coastal towns than New York City beaches.
Then there’s Orchard Beach in the Bronx (the city’s historic “Riviera”), which brings sports courts, food vendors and one of the liveliest public beach scenes anywhere in the five boroughs.
Getting there, as always, is part of the ritual: the D, F, N and Q trains will once again fill with sandy flip-flops heading toward Coney Island, while the A train to Rockaway transforms into New York’s unofficial summer shuttle service. The NYC Ferry’s Rockaway route may still be the most civilized way to begin a beach day anywhere in the city.
A few things to know before you sprint into the Atlantic: the NYC Health Department continues to monitor water quality throughout the season, with beaches classified as open, advisory or closed depending on conditions. Advisories mean swimming is discouraged, while closures prohibit entering the water entirely. Officials recommend checking the city’s Beach Water Quality Map or signing up for NotifyNYC beach alerts before heading out.
Still, barring the occasional rainstorm or rough surf advisory, summer in New York officially begins the second your feet hit that sand.