You can receive most types of packages and deliveries in Ocean Beach.
First:
When you know in advance which carrier will be shipping something, you can send USPS to:
Your Name
P.O. Box [your box number]
Ocean Beach, NY 11770
For any other carrier (UPS, FedEx, DHL, delivery trucks, etc.), send to the freight address:
[Your Name] - Ocean Beach
99 Maple Ave
Bay Shore, NY 11706
If you don’t know whether a package will be sent via USPS, send it to the freight address. The USPS and ferry company recently worked out a deal in which USPS packages sent to the 99 Maple Ave address will now usually be forwarded correctly, but don’t count on this.
The Ocean Beach Post Office is a fully featured USPS location with everything you’d expect: stamps, greeting cards, shipping supplies, money orders, etc.
Freight deliveries made before about 9:30 AM typically get sent over same-day. UPS/FedEx packages rarely make this cutoff, so plan for one extra day to receive them.
If you have any packages coming, you’ll get an itemized email at 10 AM on the day they’re arriving.
You pick them up at the freight house in the Ocean Beach ferry terminal during their posted hours that change throughout the season, but are typically in the early afternoon. More info here.
Freight costs are automatically billed to your credit card. You can see charges and manage payment options in the customer portal.
Typical freight costs are under $5 for small packages, $5–10 for medium to large packages, and upwards of $15 for very large or heavy packages. Larger items, such as furniture, may be around $30.
You can contact the freight department for current pricing.
Amazon makes this very easy if you follow this procedure:
This gives perfect separation nearly 100% of the time: everything USPS will go to the Post Office, and everything else will go to freight.
You may optionally set your PO Box as your default Amazon address. As you shop, it’ll tell you in the sidebar whether something will ship to it, in case you want to know ahead of time and make different choices. Often, different listings for the same item will have different shipping options.
Amazon’s delivery-date estimates on USPS are usually wrong — most USPS items show up much sooner than their estimates.
USPS returns work as you’d expect, with the added benefit that our Post Office staff is far friendlier than any other place I’ve ever lived.
For freight returns, simply hand the freight-house staff any UPS or FedEx package with a prepaid label during their open hours. You’ll be charged for return freight (usually the same cost as the delivery charge). They’ll send it back on the next boat (usually the next day) and will give it to the next UPS or FedEx driver for you.