Sports · checked 12 October 2026

Play outside in New York

Pickleball and tennis on the city’s courts and in the clubs, and surfing at Rockaway — with the permits, prices and a live wave report.

Pickleball in New York8 free · 4 paidNYC Parks lists 68 pickleball courts at 11 parks, all drop-in. Five of the parks need no permit at all; on the other six the courts are shared with tennis, so a tennis permit applies in season. Indoors, a handful of clubs in Brooklyn and Queens rent courts by the hour and sell open-play sessions.Read the guide →Tennis in New York5 free · 3 paidFrom April to November you need an NYC Parks permit to play on a city court: $15 for a single hour, $100 for the season. Hudson River Park’s courts need none. In winter the city courts close and play moves under bubbles and indoors, at hourly rates.Read the guide →Surfing in New York2 spots · 3 schools · live wavesNew York has exactly one legal place to surf: two stretches of Rockaway Beach, a subway ride from Manhattan. Fall brings the best swells and empty lineups; from November you will want a thick wetsuit, gloves and booties. Below: where, how to get there, who teaches, and what the buoys are reading now.Read the guide →

The ocean right now

Live from NOAA buoys · updated every 30 minutes

15 nm SE of Breezy Point
New York Harbor entrance
4.9 ft
10s period · from SE · water 65°F
Mon 1:50 PM
Buoy 44065 ↗
30 nm south of Islip
Long Island
6.2 ft
9s period · from SSE · water 64°F
Mon 1:40 PM
Buoy 44025 ↗

Significant wave height out at the buoy (the average of the biggest third of waves) — not the face height on the beach.

Surf forecast · NWS New York (Upton)

The NWS surf zone forecast for New York is seasonal: the last routine one went out on 27 September 2026 and it resumes on 27 May 2027. Until then, the buoys are the live reading. NWS page ↗

Buoy data: NOAA National Data Buoy Center. Forecast: National Weather Service New York (Upton).

15 court details we couldn’t confirm — answer what you know →

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