Governors Island is angling to be your new late-night hangout. First, Friday night ferry service was extended through 10 p.m. on Memorial Day Weekend for the rest of the summer, and beginning July 7 they’re doing the same on Saturday nights — all the way until 11 p.m.
You’ve got Grey Goose to thank for sponsoring the late-night ferry service. It actually began the first weekend of June, but the only venue remaining open was Island Oyster, the chic outdoor cocktails-and-oysters waterfront bar facing Lower Manhattan, where you can toast with a special Grey Goose Fair Winds Fizz cocktail.
As of July 7, you’ll have access to the rest of the island, too. Several of the food and drink vendors at Liggett Terrace and Soissons Landing East have also added late hours, and you’ll be able to pedal rental bikes minus the usual pedestrian traffic around the peaceful Hills and among the island’s historic homes.
How to get to Governors Island on late nights
You’ll have to catch the ferry from Manhattan’s Battery Maritime building (10 South St.) to make the eight-minute journey to Governors Island — there’s no late-night service from Brooklyn. Grey Goose is even waiving the usual $3 round-trip fee for the ferry, providing free departures at 6:30 p.m., 7:30 p.m., 8:30 p.m. and 9:30 p.m. Return trips are on the hour from 8 p.m. until 11 p.m.
Even before it became a late-night hangout, 2018 has already been a big year for Governors Island. They’re hosting not one but two giant public artworks by Jacob Hashimoto, added an “ice” skating rink, opened a taco stand right on the harbor, opened a glamping site and started their first-ever monthly outdoor movie nights curated by the Film Society of Lincoln Center.
The next screening is Desperately Seeking Susan on Tuesday, July 13, with a special pre-show performance inspired by the film starting at 6 p.m. — attendees are even encouraged to come in costume, so maybe wear your dancing shoes.
As of 2017, Governors Island is open through Halloween (with tons of festive events). Adding these new late nights, which run through Sept. 1 on Saturdays and Sept. 14 on Fridays, is another step to its mission to become a year-round destination.
