Coney Island

Coney Island has been snatched from the jaws of death and has a whole new lease on life. After a complicated passage, which included its near-demise, a developer buying the land on which the park resides, then selling it to New York City, which, in turn, sold it to yet another developer, this fabled Brooklyn institution re-opened Memorial Day in 2010, as it has for so many decades. But don’t expect an exact replica of the Coney Island of old. Some rides and attractions remain—the harrowing Cyclone roller coaster ride, for example and the Wonder Wheel—but there are 19 new rides that made their debuts in 2010. What used to be Astroland is now dubbed Luna Park (www.lunaparknyc.com), after Coney Island’s famous precursor, a vast, glittering playland that opened in 1903 and closed in the 1940s. The new developer’s representative promised the new rides would “flip you, launch you, drop you and splash you.” The best amusement of all, however, is still the people-watching. Maybe because it is at the extreme edge of New York City, but Coney Island attracts more than its share of the odd, freaky, and funky. It’s here where Nathan’s Famous hot dogs holds its annual hot-dog-eating contest on July 4 at noon; where the entertaining Mermaid Parade spoofs the old bathing-beauty parades in the late spring; and where members of the Polar Bear Club show their masochistic gusto by taking a plunge into the icy ocean on January 1. The best time to visit is between Memorial Day and mid-September, when the rides and amusement park are open. Bring your bathing suit and test the waters.

If you are here in the summer, or even if you are not, I recommend a visit to Coney Island just to see it; and you can always visit the nearby Coney Island Museum, 1208 Surf Ave. (tel. 718/372-5159; www.coneyisland.com). Open Saturdays and Sundays noon to 5pm year-round, here you will find relics from Coney Island’s heyday as the premier amusement park in the world. Check out an original “steeplechase horse,” vintage bumper cars, or fun-house distortion mirrors. And for a mere 99¢, even if all you want to do is use the clean bathroom, the museum is a bargain.

Note: This information was accurate when it was published, but can change without notice. Please be sure to confirm all rates and details directly with the companies in question before planning your trip.

Back to Top