Massapequa, NY is a village in the town of Oyster Bay and Nassau County, NY. The village is located on the south shore of Long Island. It is in close proximity to New York City and Fire Island. I have passed through Massapequa before going to Fire Island but never stayed. Excited to go see our friends Jeff and Kelle who invited us up for the Fourth of July in Massapequa, New York, the plan was to visit Fire Island, take the boat out and visit the wineries of Long Island.
We get up there and our friends picked us up at JFK and took us to an Italian restaurant for dinner. AMAZING! You just won’t find Italian food like this in Florida….. at least where I live. The portions were huge and cooked to perfection. My piece of veal was more than half of my plate! This trip was before my blog was started so unfortunately I have no pics of the food!
Our First Morning in Massapequa!
We settle in and go to bed. I wake up and head to the back patio to enjoy the water. They live on a canal and there were beautiful swans with their babies everywhere I looked. The mornings are cool and quiet. Every morning their oldest boy would ride his bike to a local bakery to get us a hot breakfast. Long Island was not at all like I imagined and exactly what I needed escaping from the Florida heat!
Every morning I got to hang out with my buddy Hudson, sit by the water and check out the swans.
The Massapequa Parade!
I love this little town! Massapequa reminds me of my childhood! Growing up in the northeast we had the same type of Fourt of July parade with all of the kids on their bikes. Americana at its best. I don’t know if it is just too hot in Florida but many northerners who move here say we do not celebrate the way that they do up north. I loved how the individual neighborhoods came together so the kids could participate.
We sat on our lawn chairs and enjoyed the show while families celebrated the Fourth of July by participating in the parade! Everyone paraded down the road with their kid’s bikes and wagons. Then the Massapequa Fire Department brought a fire truck and had the sirens and lights blaring.
The Fourth of July Fireworks at Biltmore Beach Club, Massapequa, NY
Living by the bay in Massapequa and having a boat allowed us to be able to take the party to the boat and celebrate the Fourth of July while on the water. We packed up our picnic basket with some wine and headed out to the cove. As we went down the canal every house in Massapequa had a party with friends and family to enjoy the holiday.
Their community was impressive. Everyone is so friendly and the neighbors spend a ton of money on fire works. One reported that he spent over $60,000 that year. We piled all of the kids into the boat and made our way to the cove in front of Biltmore Beach Club and waited for the show to begin.
Neighbors were in a competition of who had the best show. Surrounded by fireworks from every angle made it comparable if not better than any municipal display. Behind us in the distance Fire Island had their own show which we could see while watching the Fourth of July show in Massapequa.
If you go to Long Island try to fly into Islip. JFK is generally a nightmare. There are great homes for rent all over Long Island on the home rental sites like Airbnb.
There is a huge sense of community and they love to celebrate. Fourth of July is a great time to visit. The weather is perfect and the people really get into the spirit of the holiday.
Click here to see Fire Island and the rest of our trip!
