Adventureland on Long Island celebrates 62 years of family fun

EAST FARMINGDALE, New York -- The mom-and-pop amusement park is a staple of American suburban life, a connection to cherished memories and an incubator of new ones, a place where the biggest ride is the feeling of nostalgia you get there.

Adventureland in East Farmingdale, New York, is celebrating its 62nd anniversary this summer, and while much of Long Island has changed around it, the park is still its comforting familiar self, even as it, too, has grown along with the community that loves it so.

The feeling is mutual.

"Long Island, we love being here, we love being part of your family memories," said Jeanine Gentile, the manager of Adventureland. "The beauty of Adventureland, the family traditions ... it's generations of fun."

The park opened in 1962, built on land that was once a chicken farm, a reminder of Long Island's agricultural roots.

Alvin Cohen was the founder, a former Garment District worker who saw an amusement park in an unlikely place, as Newsday reported.

He built what was once called Adventureland 110 Playland, a much smaller park in the earlier years.

When the Long Island Expressway arrived in Suffolk County, growth accelerated at the park.

After Gentile's family bought it, they focused on expansion and enhancing the experience, with the size of the park doubling.

For upside-down thrills, check out the MoonChaser, along with the "great staples" like the Ferris wheel, the water rides, the Frisbee, the Turbulence coaster (the kids we spoke to especially liked that ride) and the Rattlesnake.

For those whose stomachs can't tolerate rides, diversion awaits at the arcade, or grab a snack, everything from hamburgers to hot dogs and Philadelphia cheesesteaks - carnival comfort food.

The summer season at Adventureland begins June 26, with the hours of 11 am to 10 pm daily through Labor Day weekend.

"Each season is better and better, and we're just so excited," Gentile told Localish.