We hate to break it to you, but the glorious days of summer are counting down.
Don't fear though. You still have plenty of time to make this your best summer ever. And we mean ever.
So how can you still make this your best summer ever in New York City?
Well, you can eat a picnic in Bryant Park while watching Broadway stars sing. You can dip your feet in the water while watching a movie on an inflatable screen. You can kayak your way happily down the Hudson River.
Below, we've made a bucket list of 10 things you absolutely must do before Labor Day creeps up on us all. Let us know how many you've already crossed off your list.
1. Lounge on a beach
postcards_from_nyc Coney Island #coneyislandbeach #coneyisland #beach #nycbeach #sand #Brooklyn #water #nyc #newyork
What beach should you go to? Well, there's Rockaway beach. There's Coney Island. There's Jacob Riis Park.
We've also compiled a handy list of NYC beaches for you right here.
Don't let anyone convince you that you have to spend hours on a bus to the Hamptons or on a train to Long Island or New Jersey.
We have plenty of great beaches for sun, beers, and rays right here in the five boroughs.
2. Swim in a public pool
Maybe NYC public pools are crowded. Maybe they don't let you bring in electronics or newspapers. Maybe they make you bring your own combination lock.
All of that is better than sweating your tush off in your apartment, and even worse, sweating your face off in the street.
Swimming in an NYC public pool is essential to #EscapeTheBlaze. This summer's been hot already, and it's only going to get hotter. Rescue yourself stat by taking a dip in one of these free public pools.
3. See an outdoor concert
lexrush13 #CentralParkSummerStage headliner @jozifbadmon but @flatbushzombies and @theunderachievers absolutely tearing it down #clockworkindigo #RIPSteeze. @therealsteveisawesome
Whether you go see Central Park SummerStage, Broadway in Bryant Park, or Celebrate Brooklyn, NYC puts on a ton of free concerts during the summer.
So you're outside. The sun is beating on the back of your neck and the grass is warm beneath your feet. You're dancing, you're laughing, probably even singing along. You're jamming out.
And it's a wonderful, majestic summertime activity.
Plus, we pay way too many tax dollars not to get it back on the dope stuff the city wants to give us for free. You feel us?
4. Dip into a rooftop pool
NYC's rooftop pools are swankier, and more difficult to gain entry to than the public pools. Obviously.
If you want our pro-tip, do not try to swim in the pool at the Hotel Americano on a hot weekend day. The pool is tiny, and it's usually packed.
Pick a weekday, and snag brunch at one of these hotels. This step is essential. Most fancy rooftop pools will be very wary of swimmers who have not first purchased a meal at their restaurant.
After you're nice and satiated, take a dip in their fancy effing pool. Afterwards, brag to all your friends. It's as simple as that.
5. See an outdoor movie
Just do it.
Whether you get tickets with NYC Rooftop Film Club, Bryant Park Monday Night Movies, Summer on the Hudson, or Coney Island Flicks on the Beach, sitting outside and watching the drama unfold on a movie screen is amazing.
It's even more amazing when you're beside a river or ocean, the water is lapping against the shore, and you're relaxing on a blanket, enjoying a summertime breeze.
There are numerous outdoor movies to see this summer, and doing so definitely merits a check on the good old bucket list.
,6. Participate in the Central Park Water Fight
murugunathan #TBT One of my favorite events in #NYC, The #CentralParkWaterFight I looked forward to this event every year from the very first year I was there. It is a fun event held every year on the #GreatLawn For all age groups and with just one attitude #StayWet !! I have made a bunch of friends who have been going to this event diligently for the last 5yrs or so! Have fun guys! This year, I sit this one out... I'll be back! I hope!! Thank you Shir Stein for following me around with a camera while I soaked willing folks and getting some amazing shots! #Manhattan #CentralPark #goodtimes #waterfightnyc #ihangny
The water fight on the Central Park Great Lawn is a one day activity sort of deal.
So it's definitely a use-it-or-lose-it situation. Or, we mean, attend-this-event-or-lose-the-opportunity-to-cross-it-off-this-year's-bucket-list-situation.
It's on July 25th, and it's from 2 p.m to 5 p.m.
It will consist of hundreds of New Yorkers running manically around and spraying each other with spray guns. Bring your own spray gun, and enact revenge upon all those who cut you off on the sidewalk and didn't wait for you to get off the train before they got on.
Or, you could just stick to your crew and have fun spraying your friends.
Find out more information here.
7. Kayak on the East or Hudson River
Whether you attend the City of Water Day put on by the Metropolitan Waterfront Alliance (July 18th on Governor's Island), or kayak for free with the Downtown Boathouse or the North Brooklyn Boat Club, slicing through an NYC river on a kayak is rejuvenating.
It's also a summertime requisite. Who wants to spend the whole summer staring at how gorgeous the rivers are, but never use them for anything other than looks?
Since everyone knows they're way too dirty and way too dangerous to swim in, kayaking in these rivers is the next best way to get the best out of them in the summertime.
8. Ride the Staten Island Ferry
Staten Island is grievously underrated. So is its free ferry.
Remember that time when we said you had to drink on a boat in order for it to really be summer?
Well, one little-known fact is that there is alcohol for sale on the Staten Island Ferry.
The boat is free. The beers are $3 to $4, and the views are priceless. Get on this immediately before NYC realizes how amazing it is and starts charging.
9. Drink on a boat
What's more *summer* than drinking on a boat?
Drinking on a boat in the dead of summer would be almost too cliché to handle if it wasn't completely awesome.
There's the New York Water Taxi. There's the North River Lobster Company. There's The Frying Pan.
Regardless, the options for drinking on a boat this summer in NYC are numerous, and it barely counts as summer if you haven't guzzled a beer on a boat submerged in a river ten feet from the Statue of Liberty, in our opinions.
10. Visit Surf City
If you've never been to Jersey City (yes, we said it... Jersey), we have the perfect excuse.
If you love eating seafood, drinking, and laughing beside the New York Harbor, you need to take the path train to Surf City ASAP. Why?
Because this is a huge new bar, situated directly on the water. Everything about it screams summer. There are bonfires, lots of partiers, and lots of amazing food from Lobster Rolls to Baja Burgers to Crispy Calamari.
If you're sick of nightclubs where you're screaming to be heard and getting shoved to use the bathroom, come to Surf City for a rejuvenating, relaxed atmosphere.
If sitting with your feet in the sand beside a roaring bonfire, sipping a beer and gazing at Statue of Liberty and Manhattan skyline sounds like a good time to you, Surf City is where you need to be this weekend.
Check out 21 Iconic NYC Foods Every New Yorker Needs to Cross Off Their Bucket List. Like ASAP.