The New York City borough of Queens borders Nassau County and the borough of Brooklyn. It has Historically been the most ethnically diverse community in all of New York City, which is reflected in its culture, cuisine and shopping. Although it is the fourth-largest city by area in the United States, Queens has a relatively low population density due to its large size. The three largest incorporated areas in Queens are Flushing (the location of LaGuardia Airport), Jamaica (the location of John F. Kennedy International Airport) and Elmhurst. Below are the top things to do in Queens that you might not find elsewhere.
Long island,
The long island sits between New York City and the Atlantic Ocean in Long Island. It is the second-largest of the five boroughs in New York City, after Manhattan. In Queens, Long Island has a few neighborhoods: Laurelton, Lindenhurst, Lido Beach and Rockaway as well as smaller communities such as Bellerose, Belle Harbor, Douglaston, Far Rockaway and New Hyde Park. Long Island City is located close to the river's mouth, along Newtown Creek and Flushing Creek where several kinds of fish are abundant. The natural environment of the region consists of swamps and mangrove forests.
Queens is an island, which is connected to Long Island by the Queensborough or 59th Street Bridge as well as the Whitestone or Whitestone Bridge. The longest bridge is the LaGuardia Airport Connector which connects Queens to LaGuardia Airport in Queens, Long Island City and Astoria, in order to speed travel between them.
Jamaica Bay
Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge is a 200-acre wetland located in the New York City borough of Queens. It is a water body of the Atlantic Ocean. Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge has a large biodiversity. It is home to at least 173 species of birds and over 250 species of plants including saltmarsh cordgrass and salt meadow cordgrass. Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge is located at the western edge of Jamaica Bay. The bay is a part of the New York Harbor and one of the four natural harbors on the East Coast of the United States.
The Jamaica bay water quality meets all state and federal water quality criteria. The bay has a relatively wide range of fish including Atlantic silversides, blackfish, orange roughy, and the ubiquitous Long Island Sound silverside.
The Jamaica Bay ferry docks at South Beach station in Liberty Avenue (in Elmont). The station is part of the Long Island Rail Road's Port Washington line. The car fare is $2.25 for seniors and disabled, $1.75 for children and persons 62 and over. The main ferry route is between Manhattan and Ronkonkoma. It is served by the eastbound express LIRR, with a train every 30 minutes, every day on the hour between 6 a.m. and midnight and an additional train in the middle of the night.
Douglaston
Douglaston is a suburban neighborhood located in the New York City borough of Queens. Douglaston is the name of a former Scottish Clan, who were long-time tree farmers across the area. Douglaston is also known as unincorporated Little Neck, which was named for a farm owned by James Little, who settled in central Nassau County in the mid-17th century.
Douglaston has a population of 5,489. The median sale price for homes is $1 million. There are currently 1,120 housing units in the neighborhood. The median household income is $73,356. Douglaston has few family-owned stores and restaurants. One exception is the local Indian grocery store called Gokul’s with a lunch buffet on Saturday and Sunday afternoons that includes homemade Indian dosa's and roti's as well as all of your favorite international cuisines such as Caribbean, Italian and Peruvian.