Where is Fire Island?
Fire Island is located off the south shore of Long Island, highlighted in green on the map above. It is mainly accessible by ferry terminal located in Bay Shore.
It is possible to drive onto the westernmost point of the island into Robert Moses State Park via the Robert Moses Causeway; however, cars may not stay in the public lots past sundown and no cars are allowed into the towns (such as Kismet, where Seven Seas is located) during the summer.
The trip to Fire Island from Manhattan takes approximately 60 to 90 minutes. The island has only several hundred full-time residents, but the population swells thousands of summertime visitors and day-trippers each year. For lots of general information on Fire Island, its geography, history and other information, see the Wikipedia entry on Fire Island, New York.
Isn’t Fire Island for Gay People?
Contrary to popular belief, Fire Island is not gay. The island is 31 miles long and rarely more than a few hundred yards wide. It is characterized by 17 distinct communities, the vast majority of which are straight.
The hamlets of Cherry Grove and the Pines are famous getaway spots for the LGBT community and throw some must be seen events such as parades, street parties and fireworks displays each year; however, the remainder of the island is comprised of a mix of Long Island families and city dwellers in rentals and vacation homes. The sharehouse culture is strong across many of the communities and it is common to find sharehouses covering a wide variety of demographic ranges in most of the communities on the island. For specific info on the community where Seven Seas is located, see our page About Kismet.
So is this like the Hamptons, or what?
Barbara Hershey, Bruce Davison, Richard Thomas in Last Summer (1969), filmed on Fire Island by Frank Perry in the summer of 1968.
Not exactly. While Fire Island and the Hamptons share a similar aesthetic and natural beauty, the lifestyle, culture and people are more straightforward and laid back. Since this is an island with no cars, the type of schedule you might expect is going to be different and less hampered by traffic and parking. As a result, Fire Island is more laid back and less fancy. There are no designer boutiques and no velvet-roped bars, but unblemished beaches and wildlife abound. In Fire Island, once you arrive in town, you’ll likely enjoy the bars, restaurant and house parties all without traveling beyond easy walking distance.
The atmosphere is very casual, you will not need to change clothes to go out at night if you don’t wish. A casual, bohemian beach chic is very much the trendy look in Fire Island. Also, since there are 17 communities, they are each a little different. While we are of course partial to Kismet, you should look over the different communities that are available and make sure this sounds like you. For a list and description of each town see the list of destinations on FireIsland.com keeping in mind that this is no substitute for talking to real people about their experiences.
Is there a main road to get around?
Path to the Sunken Forest
No. Robert Moses’ plan to put a multi-lane freeway down the island never came to fruition. Instead, the communities are buffered from one another by large swaths of federally protected parkland. There are boardwalks and paved pathways that line each town and connect some towns to one another. If you want to explore the island for a day, the best way to do so is by bicycle.
If you want to take a quick trip to another town or attraction that is further away, such as the Sunken Forest, the fastest metod is by ferry or water taxi, boats that can be called to pick you up on the dock and whick you of to any other part of the island if you’re willing to pay.
