Nassau County offers some of the most beautiful natural areas in New York State. New Yorkers frequently migrate here from the city during the summer months to enjoy the variety of state parks, beaches, and historical sites this county has to offer. We’ve compiled a list of some of our favorite destinations in Nassau County:
Jones Beach State Park
Jones Beach State Park is one of the most famous beaches on the East Coast. Stretching for 6.5 miles of white sand along the Atlantic Ocean, Jones Beach contains more than 2,400 acres of maritime environments. About 6 million people visit the beach on the south shore of Long Island each year, including some of our Long Island workers comp attorneys. A weekend trip to Jones Beach State Park is a great way to bond with your family while enjoying some of the most pristine beaches in New York.
We recommend checking out the west end of the beach, where you can find cleaner waters and fewer visitors. But there are so many activities to enjoy all across Jones Beach. Some of our favorites include:
- Northwell Health at Jones Beach Theater
- The boardwalk
- Theodore Roosevelt Nature Center
Belmont Park
Any lover of horse races who’s within driving distance of Nassau County should visit Belmont Park at least once. Belmont is known among horse-racing enthusiasts as “The Championship Track”, since nearly every major champion in modern racing history has competed on the racecourse – including every Triple Crown winner. Today, the park is home to the Belmont Stakes, which is the third leg of the Triple Crown.
Even if your family doesn’t appreciate horse-racing as much as you do, everyone can have a good time at Belmont Park. If you’re going to introduce your kids to horse-racing for the first time, this is by far the best option in the northeastern United States, as the state-of-the-art facility is filled with history.
Sagamore Hill
When Roosevelt was in office, Sagamore Hill was known as his “summer white house.” While growing up in Manhattan, his family frequently visited Oyster Bay, Long Island for summer vacations. Teddy grew to love this area of New York and purchased farmland there in his early 20s, thinking it would be the perfect place to raise his family.
Sagamore Hill is a must-visit for any history buff in the Nassau County or the Greater New York City area. This historic house was home to Theodore Roosevelt from 1885 until he passed away in 1919. Located on the North Shore of Nassau County on Long Island, this piece of American history is just 25 miles east of Manhattan. The home has been converted to the Sagamore Hill National Historic Site, including the Theodore Roosevelt Museum.
Old Westbury Gardens
History buffs can take a look into the late 17th and early 18th century at Old Westbury Gardens, a country house featuring English architecture, antiques, and decorative arts from that era. This is the former country estate of John S. Phipps and his wife Margarita Grace Phipps and was opened to the public in 1959. Today, the home is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The exterior parts of the property are just as beautiful as the interior ones, featuring 70 acres of landscaped gardens and 160 acres of fields and woodlands surrounding the estate.
Bethpage State Park
Spanning 1,477 acres on the border of Nassau County and Suffolk County on Long Island, Bethpage State Park is one of New York’s most popular state parks. The park is full of recreational activities that the whole family can enjoy, including tennis courts, picnic and recreational areas, a polo field, and five well-known golf courses. The Bethpage Black Course is perhaps the most famous, and was the location of the 2002 and 2009 U.S. Open Golf Championships.
