Fire Island National Seashore
Immerse yourself in an enchanting collage of coastal life and history. Rhythmic waves, high dunes, ancient maritime forests, historic landmarks and glimpses of wildlife, Fire Island has been a special place for diverse plants, animals and people for centuries. Far from the pressure of nearby big-city life, dynamic barrier island beaches offer solitude, camaraderie, and spiritual renewal.
About 1 hours from New York and 1.5 hours from Hartford by car.
Alerts
- ClosureNPS ↗Talisman-Barrett Beach Dock Closed for 2026 Season; Services Limited
Due to damage from winter ice, the Talisman-Barrett Beach dock is closed. NPS staff are evaluating options for repairs. There is no timeline for restoration. Boaters should plan to anchor in the bay to access the site. Be advised that the area is extremely shallow. Restroom maintenance will be limited during this time and visitors must pack out all trash and belongings.
- CautionNPS ↗West Nile Virus detected in Mosquito Samples at Watch Hill
West Nile Virus has been detected at Watch Hill from mosquito samples collected on September 22, 2026. Increased surveillance of mosquitoes in the area will continue. It is recommended visitors limit or forego outdoor activities between dusk and dawn.
- InformationPossession or use of marijuana inside Fire Island National Seashore is prohibited.
While New York provides for regulated possession and use of marijuana, it remains an illegal drug under federal law and enforced within National Park units.
Fees & passes
Free. No entrance fee here.
Hours
| Fire Island National Seashore | Daily · All Day |
When to go
July draws the most visits here and January the fewest, averaged over 2021 to 2025.
Campgrounds
| Backcountry Camping in the Otis Pike High Dune Wilderness ↗ | 36 sites | |
| $25 a night · Primitive wilderness ("backcountry") camping is available year-round. The Otis Pike Wilderness is divided into east and west camping zones. · 36 reservable, 36 first-come | ||
| Watch Hill Campground | 28 sites | |
| The campground at Watch Hill is opened seasonally. Camping is typically available from at mid-May to mid-October. · Books through lovefins.com | ||
Every campground here has its own page on Campsite Atlas, with site counts, hookups, rig limits and booking windows. All of them on one page → How park camping works
Visitor centers
- Fire Island Lighthouse ↗Passport stamp
The Fire Island Lighthouse is on the western part of Fire Island National Seashore, adjacent to Robert Moses State Park. The Fire Island Lighthouse area offers exhibits, a nature trail, interpretive programs and curriculum-based fourth grade education programs (school groups by reservation only).
- Wilderness Visitor Center ↗Passport stamp
The Fire Island Wilderness Visitor Center includes a ranger contact station, 360-degree view of barrier island, Eastern National sales outlet, and exhibit space. Permits for recreational driving and waterfowl hunting are issued in season and park ranger-led programs are offered year-round.
- Watch Hill Visitor Center ↗Passport stamp
The Watch Hill area offers a visitor center, family campground, ranger-led interpretive programs, a 175-slip transient marina with water, electric, and pump-out station; a small convenience store, restaurant, self-guiding nature trail, restrooms, and lifeguarded beach (summer only).
- Sailors Haven Visitor Center ↗Passport stamp
In addition to a one and a half mile long boardwalk trail through the Sunken Forest, a globally rare maritime holly forest, Sailors Haven also offers a visitor center; snack bar/convenience store/gift shop; picnic tables and grills; lifeguarded beach (summer only); a 45-slip public marina with…
- William Floyd Estate ↗Passport stamp
The William Floyd Estate, which was authorized as an addition to Fire Island National Seashore in 1965, is located on the mainland of Long Island in Mastic Beach. Visitors can explore the Estate grounds, trails, outbuildings and a cemetery. The Old Mastic House is open for tours May-September.
Explore
Things to do
- Burma Trail
Burma Trail is a seven-mile-long footpath that spans the Otis Pike Fire Island High Dune Wilderness Area from Watch Hill to Smith Point and allows access to Fire Island's Wilderness for hikers, photographers, birders, campers, anglers, hunters, and…
Opens on the Park Service site - Backcountry Camping in the Otis Pike Wilderness1-4 Days
The Otis Pike Fire Island High Dune Wilderness offers a wilderness experience like no other. Backcountry camping is one of the best ways to experience it.
Opens on the Park Service site - Fishing Fire Island
Fishing on Fire Island is a fun and easy way to experience the park. Learn more about fishing regulations before heading out.
Opens on the Park Service site - Boating Fire Island
Fire Island National Seashore is one of the best, and most affordable places to boat around Long Island. Two large marinas are available with a range of amenities.
Opens on the Park Service site - Birding at Fire Island
Situated along the Atlantic Flyway, Fire Island is a prime location for birdwatching. Spot year-round, nesting, and seasonal migrants from the oceans, dunes, forests and fields of Fire Island National Seashore.
Opens on the Park Service site - Tour the Tower!
Climb Long Island's tallest lighthouse.
Opens on the Park Service site
Films
National Park Service productions, public domain.
News
- West Nile Virus detected in Mosquito Sample at the William Floyd Estate ↗2026-08-05
West Nile Virus has been detected in a mosquito sample for the first time this year at the William Floyd Estate at Mastic Beach in Fire Island National Seashore.
Map
Interactive map by the National Park Service
Historic landmarks nearby
Public land nearby
Distances are approximate. Wilderness Atlas publishes a center point and an acreage for each area rather than a boundary, so each area is treated here as a circle of the same size and the figure is the gap to that circle.
Guidebooks for the Mid-Atlantic
We earn a small commission if you buy through these links. It does not change what we list.
Titles come from Open Library's catalog, matched by subject.
Reference
Wildlife
Seen this monthGreater Yellowlegs 7× · Mute Swan 7× · Lesser Yellowlegs 3× · Bald Eagle 2× · Eastern Screech-Owl 2× · Belted Kingfisher 1× · Humpback Whale 1× · Red Fox 1×Research-grade observations within 25 km, last 30 days, via iNaturalist
Full checklist: 339 birds, 38 mammalsHide
Raptors & owlsAmerican Kestrel · Bald Eagle · Barn Owl · Broad-winged Hawk · Cooper's Hawk · Eastern Screech-Owl · Golden Eagle · Great Horned Owl · Long-eared Owl · Marsh Hawk · Merlin · Northern Saw-whet Owl · Osprey · Peregrine Falcon · Red-shouldered Hawk · Red-tailed Hawk · Rough-legged Hawk · Sharp-shinned Hawk · Short-eared Owl · Snowy Owl · Turkey Vulture
Waterfowl & wadersAmerican Bittern · American Black Duck · American Coot · American Wigeon · Barrow's Goldeneye · Black Rail · Black-crowned Night-Heron · Blue-winged Teal · Brown Pelican · Bufflehead · Canada Goose · Cattle Egret · Clapper Rail · Common Goldeneye · Common Loon · Common Merganser · Double-crested Cormorant · Eared Grebe · Eurasian Wigeon · Fulvous Whistling-Duck · Glossy Ibis · Great Blue Heron · Great Cormorant · Great Egret · Greater Scaup · Green Heron · Green-winged Teal · Harlequin Duck · Hooded Merganser · Horned Grebe · King Rail · Least Bittern · Lesser Scaup · Little Blue Heron · Long-tailed Duck · Louisiana Heron · Mute Swan · Northern Pintail · Pied-billed Grebe · Red-breasted Merganser · Red-necked Grebe · Red-throated Loon · Ring-necked Duck · Ruddy Duck · Sandhill Crane · Snow Goose · Snowy Egret · Tundra Swan · Virginia Rail · White Ibis · Wood Duck · Yellow Rail · Yellow-crowned Night-Heron
Shorebirds & seabirdsAmerican Golden-Plover · American Oystercatcher · American Woodcock · Arctic Tern · Audubon's Shearwater · Baird's Sandpiper · Bar-tailed Godwit · Black Skimmer · Black Tern · Black-bellied Plover · Black-headed Gull · Bonaparte's Gull · Brown Booby · Buff-breasted Sandpiper · Caspian Tern · Common Murre · Common Snipe · Common Tern · Cory's Shearwater · Dunlin · Forster's Tern · Glaucous Gull · Great Black-backed Gull · Greater Shearwater · Greater Yellowlegs · Gull-billed Tern · Herring Gull · Hudsonian Godwit · Iceland Gull · Killdeer · Laughing Gull · Leach's Storm-Petrel · Least Sandpiper · Least Tern · Lesser Black-backed Gull · Lesser Yellowlegs · Little Gull · Long-billed Dowitcher · Long-tailed Jaeger · Magnificent Frigatebird · Manx Shearwater · Marbled Godwit · Northern Phalarope · Parasitic Jaeger · Pectoral Sandpiper · Piping Plover · Pomarine Jaeger · Purple Sandpiper · Red Phalarope · Ring-billed Gull · Roseate Tern · Roseate Tern (subspecies) · Royal Tern · Ruddy Turnstone · Sabine's Gull · Sanderling · Sandwich Tern · Semipalmated Plover · Semipalmated Sandpiper · Short-billed Dowitcher · Solitary Sandpiper · Sooty Shearwater · Sooty Tern · Spotted Sandpiper · Stilt Sandpiper · Thick-billed Murre · Upland Sandpiper · Western Sandpiper · White-rumped Sandpiper · Willet · Wilson's Phalarope · Wilson's Plover · Wilson's Storm Petrel
Gamebirds & dovesBobwhite · Mourning Dove · Ring-necked Pheasant · Rock Dove
WoodpeckersCommon Flicker · Downy Woodpecker · Hairy Woodpecker · Red-bellied Woodpecker · Red-headed Woodpecker · Williamson's Sapsucker · Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
Hummingbirds & swiftsChimney Swift · Ruby-throated Hummingbird
Also on the checklistAcadian Flycatcher · Alder Flycatcher · American Crow · American Goldfinch · American Pipit · American Redstart · American Robin · American Tree Sparrow · Atlantic Fulmar · Baltimore Oriole · Bank Swallow · Barn Swallow · Bay-breasted Warbler · Bell's Vireo · Belted Kingfisher · Bicknell's Thrush · Black Scoter · Black-and-white Warbler · Black-billed Cuckoo · Black-billed Magpie · Black-capped Chickadee · Black-legged Kittiwake · Black-throated Blue Warbler · Black-throated Gray Warbler · Black-throated Green Warbler · Blackburnian Warbler · Blackpoll Warbler · Blue Grosbeak · Blue Jay · Blue-gray Gnatcatcher · Blue-headed Vireo · Blue-winged Warbler · Boat-tailed Grackle · Bobolink · Brant · Brewer's Blackbird · Brown Creeper · Brown Thrasher · Brown-headed Cowbird · Canada Warbler · Canvasback · Cape May Warbler · Cardinal · Carolina Wren · Cedar Waxwing · Cerulean Warbler · Chestnut-sided Warbler · Chipping Sparrow · Chuck-will's-widow · Clay-colored Sparrow · Cliff Swallow · Common Eider · Common Gallinule · Common Grackle · Common Nighthawk · Common Redpoll · Common Yellowthroat · Connecticut Warbler · Cordilleran Flycatcher · Dark-eyed Junco · Dickcissel · Dovekie · Eastern Bluebird · Eastern Kingbird · Eastern Meadowlark · Eastern Phoebe · Eastern Towhee · Eastern Wood Pewee · European Starling · Evening Grosbeak · Field Sparrow · Fish Crow · Fork-tailed Flycatcher · Fox Sparrow · Gadwall · Gannet · Golden-crowned Kinglet · Golden-winged Warbler · Goshawk · Grasshopper Sparrow · Gray Catbird · Gray-cheeked Thrush · Great Crested Flycatcher · Great Skua · Gyrfalcon · Hermit Thrush · Hooded Warbler · Horned Lark · House Finch · House Sparrow · House Wren · Indigo Bunting · Kentucky Warbler · King Eider · Lapland Longspur · Lark Bunting · Lark Sparrow · Least Flycatcher · Lincoln's Sparrow · Loggerhead Shrike · Long-billed Marsh Wren · Louisiana Waterthrush · Magnolia Warbler · Mallard · Mourning Warbler · Myrtle Warbler · Nashville Warbler · Northern Mockingbird · Northern Parula · Northern Rough-winged Swallow · Northern Shoveler · Northern Shrike · Northern Waterthrush · Olive-sided Flycatcher · Orange-crowned Warbler · Orchard Oriole · Ovenbird · Palm Warbler · Philadelphia Vireo · Pine Grosbeak · Pine Siskin · Pine Warbler · Prairie Warbler · Prothonotary Warbler · Purple Finch · Purple Martin · Razorbill · Red Crossbill · Red Knot · Red-breasted Nuthatch · Red-eyed Vireo · Red-winged Blackbird · Redhead · Rose-breasted Grosbeak · Ruby-crowned Kinglet · Ruff · Rusty Blackbird · Saltmarsh Sharp-tailed Sparrow · Savannah Sparrow · Say's Phoebe · Scarlet Tanager · Scissor-tailed Flycatcher · Seaside Sparrow · Smith's Longspur · Snow Bunting · Song Sparrow · Sora · South Polar Skua · Summer Tanager · Surf Scoter · Swainson's Thrush · Swamp Sparrow · Tennessee Warbler · Traill's Flycatcher · Tree Swallow · Tufted Titmouse · Veery · Vesper Sparrow · Warbling Vireo · Western Kingbird · Western Tanager · Whimbrel · Whip-poor-will · White-breasted Nuthatch · White-crowned Sparrow · White-eyed Vireo · White-throated Sparrow · White-winged Crossbill · White-winged Scoter · Wilson's Warbler · Winter Wren · Wood Thrush · Worm-eating Warbler · Yellow Warbler · Yellow-bellied Flycatcher · Yellow-billed Cuckoo · Yellow-breasted Chat · Yellow-throated Vireo · Yellow-throated Warbler
Small mammalsEastern cottontail · Meadow jumping mouse · Meadow vole · White-footed Deermouse · masked shrew
Marine mammalsAtlantic white-sided dolphin · Blainville's Beaked Whale · Bottlenose Dolphin · Common Minke Whale · Cuvier's Beaked Whale · Gervais' Beaked Whale · Gray seal · North Atlantic Right Whale · Pantropical Spotted Dolphin · Risso's Dolphin · Short-beaked Common Dolphin · True's beaked whale · blue whale · fin whale · harbor porpoise · harbor seal · harp seal · hooded seal · humpback whale · killer whale · long-finned pilot whale · pygmy sperm whale · ringed seal · sei whale · sperm whale · striped dolphin
PredatorsAmerican Mink · Long-tailed weasel · North American River Otter
Hoofed mammalsWhite-tailed deer
BatsNorthern Bat
Also on the checklistVirginia opossum · beluga
Activities
Activity guides for this park Birdwatching in the national parks · Camping in the national parks · Fishing in the national parks · Stargazing in the national parks · Wildlife watching in the national parks
All 17 activitiesHide
Weather & climate
Spring: Temperatures may range from high 30s to low 50s (F). Rain and sun are equally common. Summer: Temperatures usually range from 65 F to 90 F. Fall: Temperatures from 70 F in early autumn to 40 F later in the season may be expected. Winter: Temperatures in the 30s (F) are common, with below freezing temperatures possible.
Questions people ask
Does Fire Island charge an entrance fee?
No. Fire Island is free to enter.
Source: National Park Service
Is Fire Island open year-round?
Yes. The grounds are open 24 hours a day, year-round.
Source: National Park Service
Can I camp in Fire Island?
Yes. The Park Service lists 2 campgrounds in Fire Island: Backcountry Camping in the Otis Pike High Dune Wilderness and Watch Hill. 2 take reservations through Recreation.gov.
Which Fire Island campgrounds have showers, hookups, or a dump station?
Showers: Watch Hill.
Source: Campgrounds
Do Fire Island campgrounds book through Recreation.gov?
Not all of them. Watch Hill takes reservations through lovefins.com.
Source: Campgrounds
Is anything closed at Fire Island right now?
3 active alerts as of October 14, 2026: West Nile Virus detected in Mosquito Samples at Watch Hill; Talisman-Barrett Beach Dock Closed for 2026 Season; Services Limited; and more.
Source: Alerts
How busy is Fire Island?
305,520 recreation visits in 2025, number 150 of 387 units that report visitation.
Source: Most visited parks
Is there cell service at Fire Island?
At the park's reference point, FCC coverage maps show Verizon 5G, AT&T 4G LTE, and T-Mobile 5G. Coverage inside the park varies by location.
Source: FCC Broadband Map
What is the weather like at Fire Island?
Spring: Temperatures may range from high 30s to low 50s (F). Rain and sun are equally common.
Source: Weather & climate
Follow this park
- Alerts feed (RSS)
- Every active Park Service alert for this unit, one item each, rebuilt with the nightly data refresh.
- Add dates to your calendar (.ics file)
- Fee-free entrance days that apply here and each published hours exception, as all-day events.
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