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Miles of ocean beaches, pools, a boardwalk with games, miniature golf, and entertainment are all part of this exceptional recreational center on Long Island’s south shore. A great day’s outing from the city.

An escapist’s dream. No cars are allowed on this tranquil island off Long Island, rimmed with 26 miles (42 km) of beach. Visitors get around on foot or bike, and shop or dine in tiny, village centers.

Celebrity-watching is a favorite sport in the sophisticated Hamptons on eastern Long Island, where society and entertainment names gather to enjoy the miles of beach and beautiful old colonial towns such as Southampton and Easthampton.

With the Atlantic Ocean beaches stretching the length of the state, the New Jersey shore is ideal for families. It offers lively boardwalks, laidback beach escapes, and Victorian towns like Spring Lake and Cape May, filled with romantic inns.

F. D. Roosevelt’s estate and presidential library, the lavish Vanderbilt mansion, a chance to preview the work of future great chefs at the Culinary Institute of America, and scenic river views are among the lures of this Hudson River valley town. By car, Rhinebeck, 10 miles (16 km) away, is a good overnight base.

This bucolic enclave of hills, streams, covered bridges, and mellow stone farmhouses offers visitors cozy, country inns, fine dining, choice antiquing, and gallery hopping. New Hope, a charming art colony, is the place to stay.

Home to one of the oldest and most elite universities in America, Princeton is also a lovely town filled with fine 18th-century homes. On campus are Nassau Hall, the 1783 U.S. Capitol, and a museum of sculpture.

Boasting Independence Hall, colonial neighborhoods, a lively riverfront, and more than 100 museums, including some noted collections of Impressionist art, Philadelphia is a great addition to a visit to New York.

The 100-acre Caramoor estate, in northern Westchester County, includes a museum of room settings brought from European palaces, and a Venetian theater that hosts an outdoor summer music festival.

Kykuit, the Rockefeller mansion overlooking the Hudson River, is the major draw, but Tarrytown also offers Philipsburg Manor, a restored Dutch farm estate. A little farther south in Irvington is Sunnyside, home of author Washington Irving, and Lyndhurst, palace of financier Jay Gould.