dennis

hello

my family and i want to go to the hamptons for a week, or ten days, in june/july 2001, and combine it with a trip to nyc.

we want to stay in a nice hotel or rent a nice house (there are four of us) in a nice area (upscale-ish).

how do we go about it? please send any advice or information you have.

also, what should we do when we get there if we want to be like real new yorkers holidaying on long island?

many thanks.

dennis

c'mon guys, someone must be able to help me, pleeeeeeeeeeese!

Lori

Ok I'll bite. At the risk of sounding rude, real New Yorkers do not vacation in the Hamptons. They are crowded, expensive, full of pretensious people, and there is traffic traffic traffic. There was an article in a local newspaper about how people who live year round in the Hamptons go out on Thursday or Friday am and stock up for the weekend and never leave their homes until Monday nite!!! Anyway, if you insist - there are really no 'nice' hotels in the Hamptons - by 'nice' I mean chains. No Marriotts, Hyatts, Hiltons, etc. Lots of small hotels. Probably the largest is the Southampton Inn in Southampton, which is nice, clean, and within walking distance of the village. There are no hotels on the beach unless you go to Montauk. Renting a house can be very expensive, especially in an upscale area such as East Hampton, Amagansett, Wainscott. I'm not even sure if you could rent for a week, usually the rentals are for the season - but it is worth checking out. You want to contact local real estate offices after November to see what they will have. The beaches are lovely, but you need town permits to park there. If not, they will run about $10-$15 a day just to park. I have found several 'non-public' beaches, but it is difficult to park, and they have no facilities such as bathrooms. Eating out is a favorite pasttime, but on weekends restaurants are extremely crowded. Make reservations as early as you can if you want to eat in the latest hot spots. I don't mean to discourage you, just telling the truth. The best time for the Hamptons, the fall. Good Luck!

Charles

Ok, I've been holding off to let the New Yorkers answer, but here's my opinion as someone who's spent a decent amount of time there. First, it would be fairly far down on my list of new England beach resorts to see - I really recommend Nantucket or the Vineyard over the Hamptons. Second, there aren't really that many hotels, as the previous poster mentioned. There are some Bed & Breakfasts, but most people stay in houses. And here is the really harsh part - you may not be aware of this, but summer rentals in the Hamptons can go for up to a million dollars a summer. A nice house in a nice area, if available by the week (unlikely) will go for $5,000 a week and up. Straight up. Most places rent by the summer, though - I'll be surprised if you find anything.

Finally, unless you are friends with people who go out there, there will be nothing to do except go to the beach (which is fine, but far from the best around). Most of the social life revolves around groups of friends out from the city. It's really not the ideal place to be a tourist.

That said, if you are still interested in going, post any further questions and I'll try to answer them.

Jessie

I'll second Lori's comments. The reason I didn't respond when I first read this question was that I wouldn't recommend that anyone take the trip you're planning. I think you'll be disappointed in the end. It's hard to book an 'easy' family vacation in the Hamptons, it's ungodly crowded in June/July around weekends, super expensive and not really a great tourist destination (including a rather snippy 'attitude' you'll likely run across).
How about combining Martha's Vineyard or Nantucket with trips to NYC (or Boston)?

dennis

thanks guys, keep them coming in, your advice is much appreciated.