Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
How Long to Spend There
It's easy to amuse yourself along the boardwalk and environs for 2 or 3 hours. Anything longer probably requires a
beach towel and a page-turner.
What to Bring
If you're planning on a dip, a bathing suit and towel are the obvious needs. There are public restrooms, cabanas for
changing, and showers for shedding salt water. Even if you're going to keep to the streets, bring sunscreen because
there's light aplenty reflecting off the sand and sea.
Best Times to Go
Morning's calm is nice. Midday summer days can be brutal and hectic. Late afternoons the crowds start to disperse
and the light is lovely.
Tip
The big holiday weekends bring in special events, but they also bring the biggest crowds. If you're not in the mood
for the crush, go on a weekday, or keep to the fringes, which are less populated. In the nonsummer months, the
amusement parks are closed and the boardwalk is almost empty, but the experience can be peaceful and replen-
ishing.
After a few weeks or months of city living, trapped in the concrete canyons, it's easy to forget that New York City grew high and fast be-
cause of its access to water. New York Harbor stays close to the public consciousness, but too many overlook the Atlantic Ocean, which
is just a subway ride away. When you feel like traveling to a distant place but don't want to invest more than a couple of Metrocard swipes,
Coney Island is hard to beat. In summer, the area becomes a blue-collar resort, with salsa bands and volleyball games and screaming
kids on the rides. As with all of Brooklyn, it's the furthest thing from monolithic. Tourists, hipsters, and elderly immigrant locals all overlap
on the beachfront benches. Giuseppe Cautela wrote in 1925, “When you bathe in Coney, you bathe in the American Jordan. It is holy
water. Nowhere else in the United States will you see so many races mingle in a common purpose for a common good.” Yes, there's a
major spruce-up taking place to go with a new $250-million subway terminal, but Coney is still a long ways away from shedding its diverse
and gritty charm.
1
The Beach
The Atlantic up close is hard to beat and the broad beaches here are a nice spot to start a tour. Get good and hot
in the sun and then go for a dip. The water is not the cleanest, but just follow the lead of the other souls out there
bobbing in the waves. On a hot day it's particularly refreshing. A few blocks to the east of the former Astroland
and the subway station, the bodies thin out quickly and you can find wide-open stretches. If you're unwilling to
track sand back in your shoes, a stroll along the boardwalk offers endless tattoo-admiring entertainment.
2
Mealtime
The options for cheap beach food in Coney Island are almost limitless. Fried clams, fried dough, french fries, and
soft-serve ice cream are among the highlights.
• On July 4th at high noon, hefty Americans and rail-thin Japanese fight it out in the annual Coney Island
Hot Dog Eating Contest. For $3.75 a pop you can hold your own minicontest at
Nathan's Famous
(
718/
946-2202;
www.nathansfamous.com
)
, which still sells some million dogs a year here. The stand at 1310 Surf
Ave., at Stillwell Avenue, is still on the same spot where Nathan Handwerker originated the business in 1916.
(A second location is on the boardwalk.)
•
Ruby's,
1213 Boardwalk West, near Stillwell Avenue (
718/ 372-9079;
www.rubysconeyisland.com
)
, a
louche bar that dates back to 1934, recently survived an eviction scare. They've refurbished their family-run
beachfront bar, with $4 burgers and $5 beers highlighting the menu.
• As appealing as fried food on a picnic table just of the beach can be, it's worth noting that one of New York's
best
pizzas
is just a few blocks away. At 1524 Neptune Ave., between 15th and 16th streets,
Totonno's
(
