The Queens beaches span a beautiful stretch of NYC’s coast – a sliver of Queens sandwiched between Jamaica Bay on one side and the Atlantic Ocean on the other. 

• The Rockaways: the lovely Rockaways are accessible by subway, so if you can fit your pup on your lap or in a carrier, hop on the A train!
• Jacob Riis: Hands down the best choice if you have a car. The parking lot is convenient and huge.
• Fort Tilden: This is the most beautiful and remote, but also the most difficult to access. It is worth walking from Jacob Riis to enjoy the natural beauty of this place though!

If you want to stay closer to home, you need go no further than Prospect Park. These swimming spots are open all year round, but be careful in cold temperatures. Getting toes wet at the sandy beach is a different story than full-on swimming in one of these lakes. 

• Prospect Park Dog Beach: We love this spot all year round. It’s small but lovely, and dogs are invited to play and swim off-leash here at any time of day or year.  There is no sand or sea – it’s a pond – but it is always fun.  
• The Peninsula: Our pups love swimming here in the big lake, but recently we have seen more signs about leashing dogs. There seems to be some confusion over whether dogs are actually allowed off-leash at the Peninsula, but we’ll keep checking for updates!