adult/child $9/4; h10:30am-
5:30pm, hours vary), the
fourth oldest still-active
lighthouse in the US. You
can camp a few miles
west of town at the dune-
swept Hither Hills State
Park (%631-668-2554; http://www.
nysparks.com; 164 Old Montauk
Hwy), right on the beach;
just reserve early during
summer months. Several
miles to the north is the
Montauk harbor, with
dockside restaurants and
hundreds of boats in the
marinas.
54 p55
The Drive » Backtrack the
way you came on the Montauk
Hwy through East Hampton,
Bridgehampton and Water Mill.
8 Southampton
The village of
Southampton appears
blemish-free, as if it
has been Botoxed.
At nighttime, when
clubgoers dressed in
their most glamorous
beach chic let their hair
down, it can feel as if
the plastic-surgery-
free are visitors in a
foreign land. However,
before wine-making
and catering to the
celebrity crowd became
the area’s two most
dominant industries,
it was a whaling and
seafaring community.
Its colonial roots are
evident at Halsey House,
the oldest residence
in the Hamptons,
and the nearby
Southampton Historical
Museum (%631-283-
2494; http://www.southampton
historicalmuseum.org; 17
Meeting House Ln; adult/
child $4/free; h11am-4pm
Tue-Sat), a perfect place
to learn more about the
region’s former seafaring
ways. It has a homey
collection of local relics
displayed in an 1843
sea- captain’s house, plus
Rogers Mansion, an old
sea-captain’s residence
full of whaling lore.
To learn about an
even earlier age of Long
Island’s history, head to
the Shinnecock Nation
Cultural Center &
Museum (%631-287-4923;
http://www.shinnecock.com; 100
Montauk Hwy, Southampton;
adult/child under 5 $10/free;
h11am-5pm Thu-Sun) at the
edge of the village. Run
by the Native American
group who live on an
800-acre peninsula
that juts into the bay,
the recently opened
site allows Shinnecock
members and visitors
alike to experience a
recreated Wikun (village)
c 1640–1750 with guided
tours, singing, dancing
and demonstrations of
traditional skills.
Its beaches – only
Coopers Beach (per day
$40) and Road D (free)
offer parking to non-
residents from May 31
to Sep 15 – are sweeping
and gorgeous, and the
Parrish Art Museum
(%631-283-2118; http://www.
parrishart.org; 279 Montauk
Hwy, Water Mill; adult/child
$10/free; h11am-6pmWed-Mon, to 8pm Fri) is
an impressive regional
institution. Its quality
exhibitions feature great
local artists and there’s
a cute gift shop stacked
with glossy posters of
famous Long Island
landscapes.4 p55
The Drive » The 95-mile drive
back to the city needs to be
timed properly – never during
rush hour or anytime on a
Sunday in the summer. Either
take I-495 west back towards
the city or Montauk Hwy to the
Southern Pkwy to the Belt Pkwy.9 Coney Island
This is about as far from
the Hamptons as you can
get, not geographically
but, well, in every other
way, and still be on Long
Island. Coney Island
became known as ‘Sodom
by the Sea’ by the end of
the 19th century, when it
was infamous as a den for
gamblers, hard drinkers
and other cheery sorts
you wouldn’t want to
introduce to Mom.
In the early 1900s, the
family era kicked in as
amusement parks were
built. Its most famous,
Luna Park, opened in
1903 – a dreamworld
with live camels and
elephants and ‘rides to
the moon’.
By the 1960s, Coney
Island’s pull had slipped
and it became a sad,
crime-ridden reminder
of past glories. A slow,
enduring comeback has
meant the emergenceNEW.YORK.TRIPS.2
.LONG ISLAND