| Official Name: | Sunset Bay, New York |
| Settlement Type: | Census-designated place |
| Pushpin Map: | New York |
| Pushpin Label: | Sunset Bay |
| Pushpin Map Caption: | Location within the state of New York |
| Subdivision Type: | Country |
| Subdivision Name: | United States |
| Subdivision Type1: | State |
| Subdivision Name1: | New York |
| Subdivision Type2: | County |
| Subdivision Name2: | Chautauqua |
| Subdivision Type3: | Town |
| Subdivision Name3: | Hanover |
| Area Footnotes: | [1] |
| Area Total Km2: | 1.83 |
| Area Land Km2: | 1.72 |
| Area Water Km2: | 0.11 |
| Unit Pref: | Imperial |
| Area Total Sq Mi: | 0.71 |
| Area Land Sq Mi: | 0.66 |
| Area Water Sq Mi: | 0.04 |
| Population As Of: | 2020 |
| Population Total: | 470 |
| Population Density Km2: | 273.60 |
| Population Density Sq Mi: | 708.90 |
| Timezone: | Eastern (EST) |
| Utc Offset: | -5 |
| Timezone Dst: | EDT |
| Utc Offset Dst: | -4 |
| Elevation Ft: | 580 |
| Coordinates: | 42.5606°N -79.1317°W |
| Area Code: | 716 |
| Blank Name: | FIPS code |
| Blank Info: | 36-72246 |
| Blank1 Name: | GNIS feature ID |
| Blank1 Info: | 0966831 |
Sunset Bay is a hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) in the town of Hanover in Chautauqua County, New York, United States. The population was 660 at the 2010 census.[2]
Sunset Bay is adjacent to the Cattaraugus Indian Reservation. On the reservation, adjacent to Sunset Bay, was previously home to a community of approximately 80 non-native residents who leased vacation homes. The Seneca Nation in 2012 declared the longstanding presence of the non-native residents an "illegal occupation" and drove them out of Sunset Bay.[3]
Sunset Bay is located on the shore of Lake Erie in the northernmost point of the town of Hanover and of Chautauqua County. It is bordered on the northeast by Cattaraugus Creek, which enters Lake Erie just north of an embayment called Sunset Bay. U.S. Route 20 and New York State Route 5 pass through the community as Main Road. Just east of the community is a short connector road from US 20/NY 5 to Exit 58 on the New York State Thruway (Interstate 90). The city of Dunkirk is to the southwest of Sunset Bay, and Buffalo is to the northeast.
The nature of Cattaraugus Creek and its volatility leaves the hamlet prone to frequent flooding, especially in the spring.
According to the United States Census Bureau, Sunset Bay has a total area of 1.8km2, of which 1.7sqkm is land and 0.1sqkm, or 6.27%, is water.[2]