Getting There

By Car -- The Long Island Expressway (I-495) is your quickest way through here, when it's not packed with traffic. Avoid rush hour at all costs!

By Train -- More than 85 million people ride the Long Island Rail Road (LIRR). For schedule and fare information, call tel. 516/822-LIRR or 631/231-LIRR or visit www.mta.info/lirr. The LIRR services 124 Long Island stations and makes more than 20 stops along the north shore, including Great Neck, Manhasset, Port Washington, Oyster Bay, Locust Valley, Glen Cove, Sea Cliff, Roslyn, Westbury, Hicksville, Syosset, Cold Spring Harbor, Huntington, Northport, St. James, Stony Brook, and Port Jefferson. Cab service is available at all stations; you can just show up and get a cab or check the LIRR website for phone numbers.

Getaway Trains -- From June to October, the LIRR offers 1-day getaways from New York City, which include train fare, connecting bus or ferry fees (if necessary), and entrance fees to attractions. Some are specialty tours of Long Island Wine Country, for example, or the Montauk Lighthouse. Others are beach getaways to places like Fire Island. One caveat: Be sure to return on the same day or you'll end up paying twice for the return ride. Visit www.mta.info/lirr/getaways for details.

By Plane -- LaGuardia and John F. Kennedy airports lie just over the Long Island Border in New York City. Long Island MacArthur Airport, situated mid-island in Islip (tel. 631/467-3210; www.macarthurairport.com), is served by Southwest (tel. 800/435-9792; www.southwest.com) and US Airways (tel. 800/428-4322; www.usairways.com).

By Ferry -- The Bridgeport & Port Jefferson Steamboat Company, 102 W. Broadway, Port Jefferson (tel. 631/473-0286; www.bpjferry.com), makes the 1 1/4-hour trip between Port Jefferson and Bridgeport, Connecticut, every 90 minutes from 6am to 9pm Monday through Thursday; Saturday service is similar, with one additional departure at 10pm; Fridays and Sundays have four more departures throughout the day. Car and driver cost is $51; foot passengers pay $17.

Visitor Information

The Long Island Convention & Visitors Bureau (tel. 877/FUN-ON-LI or 631/951-3440; www.licvb.com) has an office at 330 Motor Pkwy., Ste. 203, Hauppauge. It's open Monday to Friday from 9am to 5pm; call or visit for all the info you can handle.

Getting Around

A car is essential on Long Island. Avis (tel. 800/331-1212; www.avis.com) has offices in Massapequa, Huntington Station, Smithtown, Stony Brook, Lynbrook, Roslyn, Melville, Port Jefferson, and Port Washington; Budget (tel. 800/527-0700; www.budget.com) has offices in Farmingdale, Garden City, Hicksville, and Huntington Station; Dollar (tel. 800/800-3665; www.dollar.com) has offices in Ronkonkoma and Roslyn; and Hertz (tel. 800/654-3131; www.hertz.com) has offices in Ronkonkoma, Great Neck, Huntington, West Hempstead, Middle Island, Lynbrook, Centereach, East Northport, Farmingdale, and Hicksville.

Note: This information was accurate when it was published, but can change without notice. Please be sure to confirm all rates and details directly with the companies in question before planning your trip.