Walking up to the street from the Vernon Boulevard-Jackson Avenue station, a stop on the 7 line in Long Island City, brings visitors into a vibrant business district in a once industrial area that has boomed over the past two decades with development.  

Nearby the stop is MoMA PS1 on Jackson Avenue, a contemporary art center founded in the 1970s in a former school building dating back to the 1890s. Ruba Katrib, director of Curatorial Affairs, said they take full advantage of the building, including the courtyard’s space for musical and other performances.  

“It’s a really unique space, artists love to work here, but I think also our visitors love to explore the building, and be in our unique spaces,” Katrib said.

Not too far from the art spot are five craft breweries within walking distance of the Vernon-Jackson stop. “All the different breweries that are here in Long Island City, we all have a different vibe, a different flavor of experience,” Chris Cuzme, brewer and co-owner of Fifth Hammer Brewing Co. on 46th Ave., said.

Cuzme explained a guide to getting around what some may call a “Long Island City beer trail.” 

“You could do it the way where you come from Vernon-Jackson to Rockaway, to Big Alice, to ICONYC, close it off at LIC Beer Project, or the other way around is a nice zig zag as well,” Cuzme said.

Visitors aren’t too far from also visiting the Long Island City Waterfront on the East River, with Gantry Plaza State Park — where the infamous Pepsi-Cola and the restored gantries are located. These are vestiges of the area’s industrial past, which were once used to load and unload rail car floats and barges.

The state park and the city’s Hunter’s Point South Park arguably have some of the best views in the town of the Manhattan skyline. A few blocks away, for some more culture, Culture Lab LIC is an art gallery and performance space.

“That’s our stage. We pull out the cars and then Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday we have concerts out here,” Edwardo Joseph Wheeler, executive director of Culture Lab LIC, said.

A trip to Vernon Boulevard-Jackson Avenue on the 7 train gives visitors plenty of options — a chance for art, music, a cold beverage and a look back at the neighborhood’s past.

“There’s a lot of really great new restaurants opening cafes, yeah there’s plenty to do and it’s easy to get to,” Katrib said.