If you are here, you probably already know what paragliding is. Maybe you are a city dweller and wonder where you can learn paragliding in New York City, or you are just a visiting pilot and want to know where you can fly. And if you ask Google, you will  find out that this is one of those things that Google knows nothing about. If you don’t want to write emails and make phone calls to dig down deeper, you are at the right place!

Ultralight aircraft rules in the US are the most liberal in the world (FAR Part 103). You don't need a license or registration(§ 103.7 Certification and registration.), but among other things:

• No person may operate an ultralight vehicle over any congested area of a city, town, or settlement, or over any open air assembly of persons.

• No person may operate an ultralight vehicle within Class A, Class B, Class C, or Class D airspace or within the lateral boundaries of the surface area of Class E airspace designated for an airport unless that person has prior authorization from the ATC facility having jurisdiction over that airspace.

The thing is, unlike in Lima(Peru), you can’t fly a paraglider in New York City. Even though you might find an empty beach in the off season, the whole city is a designated airspace.

Within a hundred miles radius, there are places where you can learn and fly. The city traffic is brutal, and hundred miles can be further than it should, timewise and moneywise, but for a true lover it is worthwhile.