The Wheatleigh
The Wheatleigh
Castle Hotel & Spa
Castle Hotel & Spa
Jedediah Hawkins Inn
Jedediah Hawkins Inn
Hotel Fauchère
Hotel Fauchère
The Roxbury
The Roxbury
The Graham & Co.
The Graham & Co.
La Maison Blanche
La Maison Blanche
Ruschmeyer’s
Ruschmeyer’s
Topping Rose House
Topping Rose House
The Mayflower Grace Hotel
The Mayflower Grace Hotel
Absence makes the heart grow fonder — sometimes you have to leave the places you love. And though we love New York from the heart, we could occasionally use a break from the frozen hellscape that is our home this time of year. To preserve mental health, and in recognition of leisure driving’s modest comeback, here are ten weekend ideas within three hours’ drive from midtown Manhattan:
1.
Castle Hotel & Spa
Tarrytown, Hudson Valley — In terms of vineyards and medieval monuments, the Hudson certainly doesn’t compare with the Loire, but it’s been immortalized by its fair share of great storytellers. Washington Irving’s The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, brought to the screen by none other than Tim Burton, was written right here in Tarrytown. Citizen Kane features brilliant aerial shots of Kykuit, John D. Rockefeller’s famed mansion situated on the highest point of nearby Pocantico Hills. And finally, on a hill overlooking the valley, one finds the Castle Hotel & Spa , a Norman-style edifice complete with crenellated towers, arched windows, award-winning cuisine, and extensive spa services. Your court awaits.
Estimated travel: 45 minutes from Midtown via I-87 North.
2.
Hotel Fauchère
Milford, Pennsylvania — Pennsylvania’s long stretches of woods and fields recall family outings where bored youths pass the hours on the road by counting cows and license plates. At first glance, the Hotel Fauchère seems just another old-timey roadside attraction: aging porch, rocking chairs in a row, stars and stripes flapping idly in the wind — Americana at its best. Yet inside, the rustic cliché gives way to modern, elegant interiors and the best in contemporary hospitality. Giant portraits of Lennon and Warhol wink from behind the cocktail bar. Sometimes it’s good to revisit the classics.
Estimated travel: 90 minutes from Midtown via I-280 West.
3.
Jedediah Hawkins Inn
Jamesport, Long Island — Country roads, flowering vines, farm-to-table fare — Long Island’s North Fork represents the beachgoing rural ideal far better than occasional weekends at the Hamptons. Here, just minutes from Peconic Bay, the Victorian gem that is the Jedediah Hawkins Inn attracts fans of rest, reading, and eating alike. Happily, the charm doesn’t dim in the winter months — the fireplace at the foot of your bed and the pervasive scent of freshly baked bread will see to that.
Estimated travel: 95 minutes from Midtown via I-495 East.
4.
The Wheatleigh
Lenox, Berkshire Mountains — The Wheatleigh, a stately country mansion in the heart of the Berkshires, was once a wedding gift from a New York banker to his beloved daughter. The property exudes an aura of romance as only Florentine palaces can; no coincidence, given that 150 Tuscan artisans made the trip to New England in 1893 to participate in the project, adapted from blueprints for a 16th-century palazzo. The result: a symphony in beige and cream, and a restaurant that’s well worth the trip by itself.
Estimated travel: 2 1/2 hours from Midtown via the Taconic State Parkway.
5.
The Roxbury
Roxbury, Catskill Mountains — Destination vacation resort of the postwar boom and necessary stop for millions of summer campers, the Catskills are back in fashion — and with them, petite post-colonial gems like the Roxbury. It’s less than three hours from Manhattan by car, but it may as well be light years: an acid trip in Wonderland, the Roxbury’s themed rooms cover everything from Indiana Jones to Star Trek, space opera to pop Aztec. This is your spot if you don’t mind a tropical aquarium alongside the shower or a disco ball presiding over your bed.
Estimated travel: 2 hours 40 minutes from Midtown via I-87 North.
6.
The Graham & Co.
Phoenicia, Catskill Mountains — Another Catskills favorite, and a hit with stylish Brooklynites, Graham & Co, a twenty-room former motor lodge turned rustic biker-boutique, occupies a gorgeous plot of land next door to Woodstock. What to expect: free fixies, an open pool all summer, shared bonfires, zero cell service, and a serene mountainscape broken only by birdcalls and gurgling rivers. The natural habitat of the folk hipster, if you can bear to pull the plug.
Estimated travel: 2 hours 15 minutes from Midtown via I-87 North.
7.
Ruschmeyer’s
Montauk, Hamptons — Montauk’s chic-cred goes back quite a while — nostalgia junkies still thrill to tales of the Rolling Stones or Andy Warhol in the Hamptons — and it shows no signs of stopping. Ruschmeyer’s plays right into that grand tradition, comfortably preserving a lifestyle somewhere between Wes Anderson and an upscale college roadtrip. Think of it as a retro summer camp for adults: teepees, swings, garden torches, picnic tables, and table tennis await the thirtysomething who’d rather keep the dream alive.
Estimated travel: 2 hours 45 minutes from Midtown via I-495 East.
8.
La Maison Blanche
Shelter Island, New York — If you prefer a monogrammed, decadent escape with boarding-school friends and champagne service by the pool, forget Shelter Island. And forget La Maison Blanche. Here at the very tip of Long Island, far from the Gatsby fantasy of the Hamptons, this recently renovated eight-room inn is as comfortable as it is unpretentious. Like you, the (notable) neighbors appreciate calm, tranquility, and the fact that their island is inaccessible to cars.
Estimated travel: 2 hours 50 minutes (including ferry) from Midtown via I-495 East.
9.
Topping Rose House
Bridgehampton, Hamptons — On the other hand, sometimes high-end Hamptons is just what the doctor ordered, and you can’t do much better in that regard than Topping Rose House, an upscale Greek Revivalist cocoon for those looking to maintain Manhattan-level luxury. You won’t be roughing it, of course, but this concentrated dose of pampering is sure to cure you of your NYC-itis, at least for the weekend.
Estimated travel: 2 hours 45 minutes from Midtown via I-495 East.
10.
The Mayflower Grace
Washington, Connecticut — And finally, perhaps the truest escape within a day’s travel from New York: 50 painterly acres of old-growth woods and manicured gardens, home to four storybook country-house hotel buildings. The Mayflower Grace Hotel exists in a(n) (e)state of its own, off-limits to even the faintest hint of traffic or tourism. This is where you go to witness the very best in period architecture and contemporary design sensibilities combine forces. New England’s finest, indeed.
Estimated travel: 2 hours from Midtown via I-684 North.
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