Astoria Park Tennis Courts

Astoria Park Tennis Courts offers 14 hard courts surfaced with DecoTurf, the same material used at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Flushing Meadows. The courts were fully resurfaced in summer 2016 following a $750,000 grant from the Thompson Family Foundation, and the renovation brought the facility up to professional-tournament-grade footing.

The courts sit at the southern end of Astoria Park in the Astoria neighborhood of Queens, tucked partially under the RFK (Triborough) Bridge. The commonly listed address is Hoyt Ave N and 21st St (also referenced as 18th Street and Astoria Park South). From the courts, players have an unobstructed view west toward the Hell Gate Bridge, the East River, and the Manhattan skyline, which makes this one of the more scenically striking public tennis facilities in the city.

The nearest subway is the Astoria Blvd station (N and W trains), approximately a 10-minute walk from the courts. NYC Ferry also serves the area, with a stop at 3-10 Astoria Blvd (service added August 2017). The courts have no lights, so play is limited to daylight hours.

Access requires an NYC Parks tennis permit during the official season, which runs from early April through the Sunday before Thanksgiving. This is an enforced, staffed facility, not a free walk-on site like some other city parks courts.

Season permit pricing: $100 for adults (ages 18 to 61), $20 for seniors (62 and older), and $10 for juniors (under 18). If you are not a permit holder, a day pass is available for $15. Outside the official season, the courts are accessible without a permit during the winter off-season.

Permits are available through the NYC Parks Department. There is no online court reservation system listed for this location beyond the permit purchase itself.

The 2016 resurfacing with DecoTurf directly mirrors the surface at the US Open venue, giving recreational players the rare opportunity to play on the same material as the professional tour. Virginia Wade, the 1977 Wimbledon singles champion, attended the ribbon-cutting ceremony in July 2016 when the courts reopened.

City Parks Foundation has operated free youth tennis lessons at this site for over 25 years. During the summer, more than 200 kids receive instruction there weekly, typically on Tuesday and Thursday mornings for ages 6 to 17. That longevity and scale makes Astoria Park one of the more significant youth tennis hubs in the outer boroughs.

A proposed seasonal bubble over some of the courts has drawn local opposition. If it goes ahead, it could reduce public court availability in the colder months, so it is worth checking before an off-season trip.

For more places to play, see the best public tennis courts in NYC or browse every court in the city. Then find a partner at your level on Doyouplay before you go.