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Coney Island is the counterweight to Manhattan: a wide beach, a nearly century-old wooden roller coaster and a boardwalk that smells of hot dogs and salt, out on the southwestern edge of Brooklyn on Lower New York Bay. It is an easy subway ride from Midtown and one of the best half-days New York gives you for the price of a train fare.
We at Travelmyth, the hotel search engine that ranks stays by your interests and needs across 60 stay categories, put this guide together for the day you want the opposite of skyscrapers: sand, rides and a hot dog on the boardwalk. Here is what to do, how to get there, and how long to give it. It is a companion to our wider guide to things to do in New York City.
The main amusement park at Coney Island is Luna Park, and its signature ride is the Cyclone: a wooden roller coaster that opened on June 26, 1927, designed by Vernon Keenan, with a 2,640-foot track, speeds up to 60 miles an hour and an 85-foot plunge. Nearby, at Deno's Wonder Wheel Amusement Park, the Wonder Wheel is a 150-foot eccentric Ferris wheel whose cabins are not all fixed to the rim; some slide along rails between the hub and the edge as the wheel turns, which is either the fun part or the alarming part depending on your nerves. The rides are seasonal, busiest in summer, so check the parks' calendars before a shoulder-season trip.
The Riegelmann Boardwalk has been the heart of Coney Island since it formally opened in 1923, a broad historic promenade with the beach and Lower New York Bay on one side and, along its central section, the amusement area on the other. The beach is free and public, good for a swim or a walk, though swimming is allowed only when lifeguards are on duty, from 10am to 6pm during beach season. The boardwalk is where the whole scene plays out: the food, the arcades, the people. Walk at least the central section between the amusement parks and the aquarium.
You cannot do Coney Island without a hot dog, and the place for it is Nathan's Famous, whose original and best-known stand sits at the corner of Surf and Stillwell Avenues. It is also the home of the annual Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest, held right there every July 4, a genuine spectacle if you happen to be in town for it. The rest of the year it is simply the classic Coney Island hot dog, best enjoyed as part of a walk along the boardwalk.
If the rides and the beach are not enough, the New York Aquarium is right here in the neighborhood. With both indoor and outdoor exhibits, it is a useful option if the weather turns and a good choice for families, so it folds neatly into a Coney Island day.
Coney Island is the end of the line, in the best way: the D, F, N and Q subway trains all serve the Coney Island–Stillwell Avenue terminal, and from several Midtown stations you can make the journey without changing trains. Budget roughly 45 minutes to an hour each way depending on where you start. It is one of the best-value big days out in the city, just the subway fare and whatever you spend on rides and food once you are there.
A half-day is enough for the boardwalk, a couple of rides and a hot dog; a full day makes sense in summer if you want the beach, the aquarium and time to do nothing in particular. Go on a warm weekday if you can, when crowds are often lighter and queues for the Cyclone and the Wonder Wheel tend to be shorter.
Most travelers visit Coney Island as a day trip from Manhattan or elsewhere in Brooklyn rather than staying out here. Base yourself where the rest of your trip is and ride the subway down for the day. On Travelmyth you can filter New York stays by the features that matter to you, such as a beachfront setting, a family-friendly property or a boutique-style stay, and combine two of those filters at once to narrow the long list to the handful that fit how you travel.