"The new year arrived windy and freezing in Brooklyn, but bone-chilling weather couldn't stop tradition as thousands of people welcomed 2026 at the Coney Island Polar Bear Plunge. After a few years of warm weather, New Year's Day this year was bracing. When the plunge began at 11 a.m., temperatures hovered around 25 degrees Fahrenheit - with wind chill in the teens - and the Atlantic Ocean was a near-Arctic 39 degrees."
""I loved the energy this year because people were really committed because of the cold weather," he said. They were committed to a fresh start, too. "A lot of people had a rough 2025, and they couldn't wait to wash that off," Lustgarden said. "I heard that more than anything else. '2025 was the worst because of A, B, C ... and I just need this.'""
The new year arrived windy and freezing in Brooklyn, but tradition continued at the Coney Island Polar Bear Plunge. Temperatures hovered around 25 degrees Fahrenheit with wind chill in the teens and Atlantic water near 39 degrees. About 5,000 people took the plunge, a slightly smaller crowd than in past years, and the atmosphere felt electric. Many participants sought a fresh start after a difficult 2025 and wanted to "wash that off." Lifelong Brooklynite Adrienne Lerner took the plunge for a third time to begin the year with bravery. Some swimmers wore ostentatious costumes, including yin-and-yang fairy wings, and strong winds kept wings flapping.
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