Basic Information
Date of trip: 05/10/2020
Difficulty level: easy
Location: the South Fork or Southeastern end of Long Island, NY, which is part of Suffolk County
Parking: on streets
Map of the Hamptons
Getting to the Hamptons
The Hamptons can be accessed by car or the Long Island Railroad.
Background
The Hamptons are made up of the beach towns Southampton and East Hampton. These two towns consists of villages and hamlets, which each have a separate zip code and school district.
Considered mostly as vacation getaway for the rich and famous, the Hamptons has many year-round residents. Real estate prices rank among the highest in the United States. The area is featured in many movies and television shows.
The Hamptons stretch about 50 miles from Westhampton to Montauk. They are known for their beautiful beaches, art galleries and studios, designer shopping, restaurants, exclusive clubs, and celebrities.
Before becoming a popular destination for the wealthy in the late nineteenth century, the Hamptons were an agricultural and fishing community.
Our Impressions
After coming off the high from our previous unique adventure in Fire Island, we decided to venture out even further into Long Island, to the Beverly Hills of NY, the Hamptons. It is not a place that we would normally visit both due to the annoying commute from NYC and the ridiculously high prices. However, since the roads were still fairly traffic-free and the streets virtually crowd free due to the pandemic, we figured it was worth exploring.
Even though it was very beautiful, we were a bit disappointed with the Hamptons. The towns felt like 5th Avenue at the beach. We thought it was overrated and not that impressive. Of course, our opinion may be a little skewed and unfair as we were comparing it to the simple and vintage feel of Fire Island, which we fell in love with.
We did enjoy strolling through the streets, parks, and waterfronts, which were deserted and void of the usual hustle and bustle.
We made friends with some interesting ducks that were fearless of people.
On our way back, we stopped by the adorable village of Sag Harbor, which is exactly what we were looking for. We had an unexpected unique experience picking snails with the Asian fishermen at Sag Harbor.
All in all, the Hamptons is a great summer destination if you are looking for a luxurious beach vacation. If, however, you prefer something unique and simple, your best bet is Fire Island.
