Lake Placid, New York City and more: 3 getaways to take this weekend from Long Island
Visitors to Lake Placid can watch ski jumpers soar at the Olympic Jumping Complex, part of the Olympic legacy from the Winter Olympic Games held here in 1932 and 1980. Credit: Lake Placid | ROOST
Early November days bring early Santa and more.
A few hours: a date with Santa
Too soon? Not on the East River waterfront where starting Nov. 8, Santa’s Winter Wonderland returns to Manhattan’s Pier 15 with a wealth of holiday displays, entertainment, dining options and yes, guaranteed meet-and-greets with Santa daily. Stroll the grounds dotted with holiday trees and giant snow globes, ride a carousel, play games and head to the fire pit for s’mores-making, or reserve one of several heated glass houses and dine on a prix fixe menu with items for both adults ("Festive Fish and Chips") and kids ("Comet’s Chicken Tenders," "Blitzen’s Buttered Pasta"). And if things get too harried, consider taking refuge at the bar, where boozy hot chocolate awaits.
A whole day: Walk like an Egyptian
New York is richly endowed with Egyptian treasures of all sorts, enough to justify a daylong visit or more. Start with Horizon of Khufu, an immersive experience in midtown Manhattan that uses VR technology to take visitors back 4,500 years to the funeral of King Khufu, a journey that includes "visits" to the pyramids at Giza, a chance to decipher hieroglyphics and more. After that, head to the Metropolitan Museum, home to 30,000 pieces of Egyptian art, where you can embark on a self-guided tour of the reign of Tutankhamun, thrill to the magnificent Temple of Dendur and more. (Don’t miss William the Hippo, a 4,000-year-old blue hippopotamus sculpted out of clay and the museum’s unofficial mascot.) Round out your day with a trip downtown for some Egyptian fast food at Zooba — hawawshi burgers, dukka fries and the like — or even better, head to Queens and the Little Cairo eateries of Steinway Street in Astoria. The variety of Egyptian riches there includes heavenly feteer at Mum Feteer, exquisite tagines at Sabry’s and AbuQir, where you can choose your own seafood adventure from the delicacies on ice.
A few days: Lake Placid
Upstate’s winter playground Lake Placid is a blast in autumn as well, particularly Nov. 7-10, when it plays host to shorts and features at the Lake Placid Film Festival. Outdoor fan favorites, meanwhile, include the Cliffside Coaster, which follows the path of the 1980 Olympic Sliding Track and is the longest of its kind on the continent, the Olympic Ski Jumping Complex, where you can take a gondola ride and elevator up to the starting gate for stunning views, or visit the training site for USA Luge, which offers both tours of the facility and rides down refrigerated start ramps. Foodies in need of a fix might seek out a bistro meal at Salt of the Earth or a fine-dining one at The View, while accommodations run the gamut from the luxurious Mirror Lake Inn — home to The View — to the economical Rodeway Inn, whose appeal includes an indoor pool and rooms hovering around $100 a night.
Newsday writer and restaurant critic Scott Vogel aims for a refreshing, gimlet-eyed take on the Long Island food scene, often while drinking a refreshing gimlet.
