Where to Beat the Heat

Heat and humidity getting you down?

Short of parking yourself on top of a block of ice, here’s where to beat the heat for FREE at NYC parks and beaches, outdoor pools which have just reopened for the season, and cooling centers for the poor and vulnerable without air conditioning, and more tips on stay cool without heating up your budget.

Where to find spray showers in NYC Parks

Spray showers operate on days when the temperature hits 80 degrees or higher, so you can cool down while having a blast. 

Spray showers are in park playgrounds, so you’ll be sharing the spray with giggling toddlers and their older siblings. Bring your own towel.

Search for spray showers by borough or zipcode on this NYC Dept of Parks link 

• Direct link to spray showers in Manhattan.
• Direct link to spray showers in Brooklyn.
• Direct link to spray showers in Queens.
• Direct link to spray showers in Bronx.
• Direct ink to spray showers in Staten Island.

Best NYC beaches by subway

NYC Outdoor Swimming Pools Re-Open

NYC has reopened eight of its 53 outdoor swimming pools.

• Mullaly Pool in Concourse, Bronx
• Kosciuszko Pool in Bed-Stuy, Brooklyn
• Sunset Pool in Sunset Park, Brooklyn
• Wagner Pool in East Harlem, Manhattan
• Liberty Pool in Jamaica, Queens
• Fisher Pool in East Elmhurst, Queens
• Lyons Pool in Tompkinsville, Staten Island
• Tottenville Pool in Tottenville, Staten Island

An addition group opens on Saturday, August 1. 

See the list here, including links to the pools and pool rules.

Take the ferry to the beach

Seastreak travels daily between Manhattan and Sandy Hook on the Jersey Shore.

NYC Waterfront parks with cool breezes:

• Brooklyn Bridge Park
• Riverside Park, Manhattan
• Marine Park, Queens
• Randall’s Island Park
• Domino Park, Queens
• Governors Island

NYC Cooling Centers

FREE air conditioned cooling centers are open in all five boroughs for those who do not have air conditioning or adequate fans or ventilation.

Find cooling centers in all five boroughs

Cooling centers include libraries, community centers, senior centers and NYCHA facilities all can be used as potential cooling centers, including wheelchair accessible locations.

NYC also has created a $55 million program to provide more than 74,000 air conditioners to New Yorkers who are 60 years old and older and have income below 60 percent of the state median income, and do not have air conditioning at home. 

Eligible New Yorkers will be identified by NYCHA, DFTA, HRA and HPD, and city case managers will reach out directly to income-eligible seniors. Approximately 22,000 of these air conditioners will go to NYCHA residents, and installations for these air conditioners will begin next week.

NYC is providing $35 million in funding, including $10 million from NYCHA, and the City thanks NYSERDA for committing another $20 million.

NYC Heat Wave history

It’s officially a heat wave when the temperature reaches at least 90 degrees for three consecutive days.

Between 1876 and 2011, there were 263 heat waves in New York City, according to the National Weather Service.

New York City’s longest heat wave lasted 12 days. It started on Aug. 24, 1953, and ended on Sept. 4.  Temperatures reached 100 degrees, and then 102 degrees, before waning.  On six of those days, the temperature was 98 degrees or higher. 

Here’s the National Weather Service page for all NYC heat waves on record.

This article was first posted on NYC on the Cheap in 2016 and is updated annually, including for Summer 2020.

Photo courtesy LA Times