City Beaches Open Memorial Day & NYC Beach Bus Will Take You There From Park Slope

Memorial Day weekend marks the official opening of New York City beaches for the season, and right now the forecast doesn’t look too bad for a little sun and sand. And once again this year, if you’re in the neighborhood and want to get to the beach quickly but you don’t have a car, there’s a bus that will take you directly there.

NYC Beach Bus is back beginning Monday, May 26, running between the Barclays Center and Rockaway Beach and Jacob Riis Park. It runs on Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays, costs $9 one-way or $12 round-trip, and you get two free cans of Six Point beer to enjoy on the ride. Order tickets in advance online.

Unfortunately, there won’t be two direct bus options this year, as the other company, Rockabus, will not be offering rides to the beach this summer from its stops, which included Grand Army Plaza.

“Over the course of two summers, we dealt with a major natural disaster, tightened regulations that limited the types of buses we can use, and other challenges that are unique to seasonal businesses. Building Rockabus has been a learning process, to say the least,” reads a statement on their site. “And so because of the aforementioned challenges, as well as in the interest of expanding and enhancing our service, we have decided to not run the Rockabus this summer.”

So for now, you’ll have to rely on NYC Beach Bus, or public transportation, or making a friend who has a car. And for tips on how to get to some nearby beaches by public transportation, check out our beach guide.

Photo by NYC Beach Bus