Coney Island...is it worth the time?
 

I guess the old movies moved me. Would it be worth my time to lose half a day? I heard there has been extensive renovation, true?

Is it worth the time? It depends on what you were hoping to find there.

From midtown Manhattan, be prepared to spend about an hour on the train each way to get there, so weigh that in making your decision.

The renovation has not started. In fact Astroland will be open one more season.

The Mets have a farm club that plays in a short season league and is a spectacular palce to see a ball game. The Cyclone will re-open in the Spring.

The carousel is closed. Eventually some fo the horses will be on display at the base of the parachute jump.

Many businesses are shuttered but Nathan's is alwasy open and on a hot 4th of July weekend there could well over 500,000 people on the beach.

There is no way Coney Island is worth the time. That area has not gotten any better over the years.

Will

Thx for this post - I was wondering about that too for our July 4 weekend trip.

Is it worth it going for July 4? Not interested in watching the hotdog eating contest nor the "freak show". Since the exhibits are owned separately, it doesn't seem like a lot of info is available on what there is to do there. The ferris wheel was the only thing that caught my attn.

Enjoy-la!

If you are used to the sterility, efficiency, and happy face of Disneyworld, you will be severly dispapointed.

It is more honky tonk.

Unless you have a couple of weeks in NYC it's not worth the time. It has NOT been renovated - but there are plans to do so.

It will take at least an hour on the subway to get there - and the activities/amusements are closed most of the year. They are open every day in the summer and on weekends only for about a month before and after.

Thank you all for your comments. I think I'll check out a local bar instead :)

Ditto - enjoy-la!

How long is your trip? What would you do for that half day instead? - in other words what would you have to give up to go there? What are your expectations? If you are looking for a modern amusement park with sleek rides (like you can find at any six flags, etc) then no, I don't think it would be worthwhile at all. But you said old movies move you. Coney Island still retains enough of it's old self that it's kind of cool to go there and have a look see. It will take you an hour each way on the subway though. If this is your first trip to NYC I probably wouldn't bother. Alternataively if you really will just hang out in a local bar for that half day then I'd definitly go. You can go to a bar anywhere. Here are some photos I took last June (on a weekday). www.pbase.com/annforcier/image/84273962

isabel, thx a mint for the pics link. Interesting to see.

I was only joking about being in a bar for half the day, esp since DH doesn't drink...LOL!

We're arriving after work Wed. July 3 for a late supper, and then leaving Sunday. It'll be our 4th trip to NYC since 2001; all about 4 days long each but taken in T'giving, Christmas, & Feb so we've been able to a lot of the other standard attractions already.

DH & I hope to see/explore:
- Mamma Mia, Spamalot and Avenue Q/Wicked. However we will probably only be able to see MM & Spamalot since we want to watch the July 4th fireworks. If there were a matinee on July 4th, we'd be delighted to see that instead of Coney Island. What are the chances of a matinee showing on Fri, July 4th?

- Ellis Island, first ferry on Thu
- Broadway show Thu evening
- was thinking of going to CI on Friday morning
- pop into Guggenheim on Fri eve
- join in July 4th festivities/watch fireworks Fri night
- Central Park (Sat morning)
- walk the Brooklyn Bridge (Sat afternoon)

Any thoughts?

Enjoy-la!

I think your posted itinerary looks good. I think Coney Island on July 4th will be fairly crowded - don't know if that would add or detract from the ambiance. Another fun thing to do on a nice summer day is the Water Taxi. It goes from about 42nd street on the west side around to about 42nd on the east with numerous stops and you can get on and off as often as you like. They have a web site so you can see the exact route and stops. If you do go to Coney Island it's worth a few extra minutes to walk around the Brighton Beach area (you can walk there from CI, it's at the far end of the boardwalk. They have shops that sell fantastic pastries. It's under the El.

I saw your pics for B-Beach and was wondering if we would get there by walking from CI but didn't want to be a pest and post another question...LOL! So thx a mint for your extra info - makes a visit to CI more likely.

I hadn't heard of the water taxi and will look into that too. We're looking fwd to finally visiting NYC when it's not cold. Thx for all your help!

Enjoy-la!