You’re walking down a narrow, sand-dusted alleyway in Far Rockaway or Beach 108th, and suddenly the massive glass condos vanish. For a second, it feels like 1920. These tiny, salt-worn houses sit shoulder-to-shoulder, some painted neon pink and others rotting gracefully into the dunes. This is the bungalow Rockaway Beach NY scene, or at least, the ghost of it.
It’s weird.
New York City isn't supposed to have summer colonies that look like a forgotten film set from the Jazz Age. But here they are. Most people think "The Rockaways" is just a long stretch of boardwalk and a bunch of hipsters eating fish tacos at Beach 97th. They’re wrong. The bungalows are the actual soul of the peninsula, and honestly, they’re currently in a fight for their lives against developers and rising tides.
The accidental history of the bungalow Rockaway Beach NY landscape
Back in the day, specifically the early 1900s, Rockaway was the "Irish Riviera." People didn't have air conditioning. If you lived in a sweltering tenement in the Lower East Side, you’d do anything to smell the Atlantic. Thousands of these little shacks were built—fast and cheap—to house working-class families for the summer. At one point, there were over 7,000 of them. Imagine that. A literal city of dollhouses.
Robert Moses hated them.
The "Master Builder" of NYC saw these clusters as slums. He spent a good chunk of the mid-20th century tearing them down to build parks and massive housing projects. Then came the 1970s and 80s, where neglect did what the wrecking balls started. Now? There are only a few clusters left. The most famous ones are the Beach 108th to 109th Street clusters and the ones tucked away in Far Rockaway around Beach 24th to 26th.
They aren't just "houses." They are a middle finger to the grid system of Manhattan. In these colonies, the houses face each other across a common walkway, not a street. You can’t drive a car to your front door. You have to walk. You have to see your neighbors. You have to smell what they’re grilling for dinner. It forces a level of community that most New Yorkers would find terrifyingly intimate.
What it’s actually like inside one
Small.
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I’m talking 400 to 600 square feet. If you’re over six feet tall, you’re going to feel like Gandalf in a Hobbit hole. Most were never built for winter. They were "summer bungalows" with thin walls and no insulation. Over the years, owners have winterized them, adding heating and thick windows, but you can still feel the ocean breeze through the floorboards if the wind kicks up hard enough from the south.
Living here is a choice. You’re trading a dishwasher and a "normal" bedroom for the ability to hear the 5:00 AM surf report from your bed. You're trading privacy for the "Bungalow Bar" culture.
Why everyone is talking about Beach 24th to Beach 26th Street
If you want to see the bungalow Rockaway Beach NY aesthetic in its most raw, preserved form, you have to go to the Far Rockaway side. This isn't the trendy part. It’s quiet. The Beach 24th to 26th Street Bungalow Historic District is actually on the National Register of Historic Places.
Groups like the Beach 91st Street Community Garden and the Beachside Bungalow Preservation Association have been screaming for decades to keep these things standing. Why? Because once they're gone, they're gone. You can't build these anymore. Modern zoning laws won't let you put houses four feet apart from each other. Fire codes would have a meltdown.
These pockets are a miracle of survival. They survived the arson waves of the 70s. They survived the predatory lending of the 2000s. And they survived Hurricane Sandy, which is nothing short of insane considering they’re basically made of sticks and hope.
The Sandy Factor
When the ocean met the bay in 2012, the bungalows took the brunt of it. Some floated away. Literally. People found their kitchens three blocks down the street. But because these structures are small and often built on piers or simple foundations, they were surprisingly resilient. You could gut a bungalow and dry it out faster than you could a massive brick apartment building.
Post-Sandy, the vibe changed. Prices spiked. What used to be a $50,000 "fixer-upper" (that stayed in the family for generations) is now a $500,000 real estate play. It’s the classic NYC story. Artists move in because it’s cheap and weird, then the money follows the artists, and then the weirdness gets priced out.
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Where to find them today (before they’re gone)
If you're heading out there, don't just look for one spot. The bungalow experience is fragmented.
- The 100s Blocks: Between Beach 108th and Beach 109th. These are the ones you see in most photos. They’re tightly packed, colorful, and right near the ferry landing. It’s easy to walk through, but remember—people live here. It’s not a museum. Don't be that person peeking through the windows.
- The Far Rockaway District: Beach 24th to 26th. This is the "real" deal. It feels much more residential and secluded. You get a sense of the scale of what used to be there.
- Beach 90s: There are stragglers here and there. Some have been renovated into ultra-modern beach shacks that look like they belong in a Dwell magazine. Others are still covered in peeling lead paint and surrounded by overgrown hydrangea bushes.
The contrast is wild. You’ll see a brand new $2 million "modern" bungalow right next to a shack that looks like it’s being held together by duct tape and sea salt.
Is staying in one worth it?
You can find some on Airbnb or through local rentals, especially in the summer. But be warned: it’s loud. You will hear your neighbor’s conversation. You will hear their TV. You will hear their dog.
But you’ll also hear the bells from the church on the corner and the screech of the A-train in the distance. You’ll realize that for a hundred years, people have been doing the exact same thing: dragging a sandy chair out to the "court" (the shared walkway) and drinking a beer while the sun goes down. It’s a very specific kind of peace.
The controversy: Historic preservation vs. The housing crisis
There is a massive tension here. New York needs housing. We are in a crisis. Critics of the bungalow districts argue that keeping a bunch of one-story shacks on prime real estate near the beach is a waste of space. They want 10-story apartment buildings that can hold hundreds of families.
Preservationists argue that these bungalows are the only thing keeping Rockaway from becoming a generic wall of high-rises like Miami or Long Beach. If you take away the bungalows, you take away the "Rockaway-ness" of the place. You lose the history of the working-class vacation.
It’s a fair debate. Honestly, there is no easy answer. But if you walk through these courts on a Saturday in July, and you see kids running around in the shared alleyways while the older folks sit on their tiny porches, it’s hard to vote for the bulldozers.
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How to explore the bungalow Rockaway Beach NY area the right way
Don't just drive through. You can't see them from a car anyway because most are tucked away on pedestrian-only paths.
- Take the Ferry: It’s the best $4.00 you’ll spend in New York. You get the skyline views, and it drops you off right near the Beach 108th cluster.
- Walk the Courts: Look for the signs that say "Private Way" but generally, if you're respectful and quiet, walking through the public-facing courts is fine.
- Visit the Garden: The Beach 91st Street Community Garden isn't a bungalow colony, but it’s run by the same people who care about this aesthetic. It gives you a feel for the local grit.
- Eat Local: Go to the Rockaway Beach Bakery or Rippers. Support the businesses that stay open in February, not just the ones that pop up for the summer crowds.
The reality of bungalow Rockaway Beach NY life is that it's disappearing. Every year, another one gets knocked down for a "horizontal enlargement" or a total teardown. It’s a fragile ecosystem.
If you want to experience it, go now. Take the A train or the ferry. Walk the narrow paths. Smell the salt and the old wood. It’s the last piece of the old New York waterfront that hasn't been completely sterilized yet.
Actionable steps for your visit
If you're planning to check out the bungalows, do it with some intent. Start at the Beach 108th Street cluster right after getting off the ferry. Walk south toward the ocean, then cut across to the boardwalk. If you have time, take the bus or a bike down to the Beach 24th Street Historic District to see the difference in scale and preservation.
For those looking to buy or rent, check the "Rockaway Times" or local Facebook groups like "Rockaway Beach Civic Association." The best deals never hit Zillow; they stay in the "I know a guy" network. Be prepared for high flood insurance premiums—that is the tax you pay for living in a wooden box by the sea.
Respect the "quiet hours" in the bungalow courts. Because the houses are so close, sound carries like you're in a megaphone. If you're staying in one, keep your music low and your porch lights off late at night. The appeal of these places is the escape from the city’s noise, so don't be the one bringing the noise with you.