Visiting LI...

[fatwoul]

I'm visiting Long Island for a couple of weeks in the second half of April.

What's going on there at the moment? What is there to do and see?

Thanks guys

 

[JasonCT]

If you enjoy wine there are many boutique vineyards on LI that provide all kinds of tastings and wine related events.
Not sure if they are all in full swing yet but worth some looking into.

 

[mike]

Depends what you're interested in...

you'll need to rent a car to get around Long Island.

http://www.americanairpowermuseum.com/Website/Index.aspx

I was just in the area this week and was pleasantly surprised this old record store is still around! It's just down the road from the Airpower Museum...

http://www.whirlindisc.com/

Also not too far away and retains it's original 50's charm without being kitschy....

http://allamericanhamburger.us/

And there's this place not too far away you might try to locate called NewYork City that in my mind, is a welcomed change to spending too much time on Long Island I grew up on the island, the chip on my shoulder remains firmly planted lol

 

[dhermann1]

The lifeline for bored Long Islanders: The Long Island Railroad. LIRR. Penn Station, The City!
It's a shame how the suburban sprawl has flooded Long Island and wiped out so much of the Island's original character.
I've always felt that culturally, old Long Island had as much of an affinity for New England as for New York. Carl Yastrzemski, who played for the Sawx of Boston, grew up a potato farmer's son on Long Island, but his accent could be equally New England as New York. The North fork, at the east end, seems to me to have held onto its identity the most. You might try a trip out to Orient Point.
There are a couple of beautiful old estates out there (Mike: can't remember the names). Locust Valley is an elegant enclave of "Olde Money", and Theodore Roosevelt's home Sagamore Hill, in Oyster Bay, is very much worth a trip.
And of course there's Fire Island and the Hamptons . . . . .

 

[mike]

Do you mean this place?

http://www.oheka.com/

I got a tour of the place once and it was jaw dropping! Supposedly, the original owner had lions he kept in the basements. And had tunnels built to help him escape either to the water or rail road station just in case the Nazi's invaded Long Island!

 

[JasonCT]

The further from NYC (east) the nicer LI becomes.

You may also want to take a ferry from Orient Point to CT there you can visit the worlds largest casino if you are so inclined. Nice day trip.

 

[Miss_Bella_Hell]

The only thing going on in Long Island is whatever's going on in NYC. Unless it's beach weather, in which case there is more to be done. The wine on L.I. is mostly mediocre (new vines), but there is one decent vineyard called Wolffer. If you'll have a car you can stop there on the way to the Hamptons/Montauk. Most of the others are on the North Fork. Even without great wine though a tour of the North Fork vineyards is fun. http://www.liwines.com/default.ihtml?page=vineyards

I am very willing to show you my favorite thrift shops, and perhaps point you in the direction of Fatburger, which is mostly a West Coast institution but blessedly there's one near me in Massapequa. Where are you staying?

 

[fatwoul]

Thanks for your suggestions and help, everyone. Car hire will definitely be helpful, and while I am tea-total, the people I'm with might well be interested in wine.

...Where are you staying?

We're going to be in North Bay Shore from 13th to 24th April. We might also travel up to Boston for a couple of days, and do the tourist thing and visit Salem.