Far western end Fort Tilden Beach

Jamaica Bay Unit Home Page | Fort Tilden Home Page

If you want to get away from the crowds at Jacob Riis Beach next door, give the beach at Fort Tilden a try. It’s simply tougher to access, which keeps 95 percent of the people off of it. All of the parking lots at Fort Tilden require some sort of permit, so for most people this means parking at Jacob Riis and walking or biking at least a half mile to begin escaping the crowds (parking fees apply at Jacob Riis Park from Memorial Day to Labor Day).

Rules for using Fort Tilden beach

A concrete path that flanks the Atlantic Ocean runs the length of Jacob Riis Park before ending at 169th Street, the road that serves as the boundary between the Jacob Riis and Fort Tilden beaches. Another concrete path called Shore Road runs about halfway down the Fort Tilden beach, but there is no direct connection to it from where the pavement ends at 169th Street. For those biking from Jacob Riis Park, once at 169th Street you can either push your bike a quarter mile through the sand until connecting with Shore Road, or take a right on 169th Street and then the first left onto the paved Davis Road, which connects to Shore Road.