Best New York Counties For Outdoor Activities: Report

Certainly one of the perks living of New York is having all the wonderful outdoor activities practically right outside your door. It's difficult to decide which part of the state has the most to offer, from Niagara Falls all the way down to the beaches of Long Island.

So Niche came up with a list of the Best Counties for Outdoor Activities in New York for 2019.

Not surprisingly, both the Hudson Valley and Long Island are well-represented at the top of the list.

To come up with the best counties, Niche considered the availability of parks, including nearby national and state parks and forests, the number of sunny days and average temperatures, nearby beaches and campgrounds and air quality, to name a few categories. Go here for more on Niche's methodology.

None of the counties in the state received a grade lower than B- for outdoor activities, and Niche excluded from the list the five counties that make up New York City.

Topping the list was Westchester County, which has the Hudson River on one side and the Long Island Sound on the other. Back to back at Nos. 2 and 3 are Suffolk and Nassau counties, which share Long Island Sound and the Atlantic Ocean.

Here are the top 15 counties according to Niche for outdoor activities in New York State, followed by their overall grade and the outdoor activities grade:

1. Westchester County: A/A
2. Suffolk County: B+/A
3. Nassau County: A/A
4. Dutchess County: B/A
5. Ulster County: B-/A
6. Orange County: B/A
7. Rockland County: A-/A
8. Rensselaer County: B/A
9. Warren County: B/A
10. Tompkins County: A+/A
11. Erie County: A-/A
12. Onondaga County: B+/A
13. Putnam County: B+/A
14. Sullivan County: C/A
15. Saratoga County: A/A

For the complete list of Niche's Best Counties for Outdoor Activities in New York for 2019, go here.