FOR every New Yorker who is in their beach house by May 1 sending out invitations to frigid springtime barbecues, there are hundreds of us who sit at home, preferring the option of not going anywhere to stressing out over how to escape on the weekends.
No car? Check. Too cheap to rent one? Check. Not wanting anything to do with any airports if it’s just a weekend? Check again.
In case you never noticed, we here in New York have these things called “railroads.” We also have these things called “bus lines.” These mysterious modes of transport have these things called scheduled departures. You should really investigate them some time.
If your Memorial Day weekend was mostly memorable for the brunch line you waited on at Schiller’s, we’re talking to you. Make this the summer you stop making excuses for languishing in the heat at home. None of this, “But it’s so quiet here in August!” nonsense.
Here, six breaks where pretty much all you have to do is show up at the right terminal or station, and you’re on your way. We promise.
GET HIGHLANDS
What’s the deal: Head for the Jersey Shore – without sitting in Parkway traffic.
Get there: Take a day-trip to the beach at Sandy Hook on the modern SeaStreak fast ferry, just 35 minutes from Wall St. or East 34th Street. It’s $32 bucks roundtrip leaving Manhattan at 8 a.m. and 10:30 a.m., returning at 3:15 p.m. and 5:15 p.m. (seastreak.com).
Stay over: Spending the weekend is a better bet for real relaxation – the Seastreak, while primarily a commuter service to the area, operates weekends to and from Highlands. Here, check into Sandy Hook Cottage (from $159, with breakfast, sandyhookcottage.com).
This comfortable and quite friendly B&B is steps from the entrance to Sandy Hook Gateway National Recreation Area – and Gunnison Beach, the most popular “clothing optional” strip of sand in these parts.
Right nearby, visit the Twin Lights National Historic Landmark, a lighthouse that permits climbing to the top for a 360-degree view, often all the way to Jones Beach on Long Island.
Fill your belly with fresh seafood at Doris n’ Ed’s, tequila shots at Chilangos and Italian faves over at the tiny Bay Avenue Trattoria (bayavetrattoria.com).
Info: highlandsnj.com
GET WET, GO WILD
What’s the deal: There’s churning water and wet fun on Pennsylvania’s Lehigh River every weekend, especially on Dam Release weekends (May 26-27, June 9-10 and 23-24, July 7-8 and 21-22, and Aug 4-5 and 18-19), when rafts collide and splash fights with bailing buckets are the norm.
Get there: Susquehanna Trailways leaves Port Authority Bus Terminal at 7:30 a.m., arriving in the quaint Victorian town of Jim Thorpe in time to get yourself outfitted with a paddle and lifejacket and on the river before noon (susquehannabus.com). Take a taxi the seven miles to Pocono Whitewater to gear up. Groups of four or more can call ahead for a ride (poconowhitewater.com).
Stay over: Stay over at The Inn at Jim Thorpe (from $125 on weekends, innatjimthorpe.com). You’re only a paddle swack from antiques boutiques, the funky Sunrise Diner, the Harleys parked in front of JT Steak and Ale, and the new, after-hours Martini Bar at the Black Bread Café. Rent a mountain bike at Blue Mountain Sports, go sightseeing on a vintage steam train, the Lehigh Gorge Scenic Railway, or hit up a concert at Penn’s Peak, where country stars like Lonestar rotate with big city faves like The Machine (pennspeak.com).
Info: visitjimthorpe.com
A LITTLE BIT OF LUXE
What’s the deal: Forget for a moment that you aren’t in hedge funds. Greenwich, Connecticut is so close and yet so far – perfect for getting away fast. Luckily, it is also home to one of New England’s most likeable hotels, The Homestead Inn, an 18th-century manse turned into a four-star find on three acres of manicured lawns and gardens down in an atmospheric, harbor-adjacent residential area (rooms from $300, homesteadinn.com).
Get there: Take MetroNorth to the Greenwich station, then a five-minute, five-dollar taxi (mta.info). Greenwich Taxi will have cars at the station when your train arrives; to get back have the hotel arrange transport, or call [203] 869-6000).
Staying over: Choose from one of the Homestead’s 18 plush rooms and suites (the main house’s rooms have a nicer feel) and book dinner at chef/owner Thomas Henkelmann’s eponymous eatery, with its 800-bottle wine list and modernized French menu. Walk off the courses in the neighborhood or hop a cab to the compact downtown, browsing local boutiques like Gaby and Plaza Too, which sit alongside Tiffany and Baccarat. Take the ferry from the park to Great Captain’s Island and Island Beach – $6 for non-pass holders – to enjoy the good life, at least the out-in-the-Long-Island-Sound version of the good life.
Info: greenwichct.org
LIVE LIKE A KING
What’s the deal: Feel like royalty for the weekend in Philadelphia, where they’ve gone gaga for gold – as in Tutankhamun and the Golden Age of the Pharaohs. King Tut’s baubles and babes are on display at The Franklin Institute Science Museum through September 30 (fi.edu). Tickets are timed; the best deal is $25 for 4-9 p.m., when it’s also less crowded. Take the Tut Trolley ($2 per ride) either to the Penn Museum for a sister exhibit on Egypt, or to the Independence Visitor Center and a peek at our own country’s history – Independence Hall and the Liberty Bell.
Get there: Couldn’t be easier – hop Amtrak at Penn Station to Philadelphia’s 30th Street Station, where cabs are lined up and waiting for you (amtrak.com).
Staying over: Where else but the Four Seasons, sitting across the street from King Tut (from $290 on weekends, fourseasons.com)? Here, the spa will fix your tired feet with an arnica aromatherapy massage, and you’ll sleep like a king.
Info: foreverindependent.org
A DAY IN NATURE
What’s the deal: Don’t have time for a lengthy getaway?
Set aside an afternoon and evening to head up to Westchester’s Lenoir Preserve, a 40-acre forest-like park overlooking the Hudson River, on the Yonkers-Hastings border. Asian gingkos, Pacific Firs and tulip trees make this a vital rest stop for scores of migrating birds.
The Hudson River Audubon Society maintains a feeding station, there’s a butterfly and hummingbird garden, and miles of shaded walking trails (hras.org).
Getting there: Take MetroNorth to Hastings. Rivertown Taxi will take you to the woods, and pick you up when you’re done, if you ask nicely ([914] 478-2222).
Stay a little longer: Have dinner steps from the station at Buffet de la Gare for Alsatian-style boulliabaise (buffetdelagare.us). Or, linger around for the sunset on the patio at Harvest on the Hudson and dine on pastas and fresh veggies from the restaurant’s own garden (harvest2000.com).
More information: tourism.westchestergov.com
DOWN BY THE RIVER
What’s the deal: The Hudson River town of Cold Spring was named by General George Washington, who was looking for a location to build an army training school, drank from the cold spring he found here, and, the rest, as they say, is history.
(The plaque telling the story is at the MetroNorth station, a few paces from the Hudson River, across which is the military academy that Washington wanted to build. It’s called West Point, you may have heard of it.)
But you’re not here for history – you’re here to get out on the water. Hudson Valley Outfitters at 63 Main has guided kayak trips to Constitution Marsh, adjoining West Point (hudsonvalleyoutfitters.com).
Staying over: Have moules et frites at Brasserie Le Bouchon, in a Revolutionary-Era building, Cathryn’s Tuscan Grill, which smokes its own tomatoes for sauces, or at Depot, a burger joint in the original 1893 station built by Cornelius Vanderbilt for his New York Central line. All three are on Main Street.
Walk to the Foundry School Museum, the town’s old schoolhouse, for weaponry exhibits.
Stay overnight at the Hudson House Inn, directly on the water, open since 1832 when it was a steamship stop (weekends from $165, hudsonhouseinn.com).
Info: travelhudsonvalley.org