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Montauk Getaway - Part 1 - Travel Prep & Long Island Rail Road

12/3/2013

Our Thanksgiving Getaway to Montauk was such an adventure that I'm going to be splitting it up into a few posts. So here we go with the first installment!

I love traveling. SO much!! I've been to over 25 countries, have lived in Germany and Japan, pride myself on how many languages I can say "Hello" and "Thank you" in, love trying crazy food (um sting ray jerky and horse sashimi anyone!?). But, since baby's arrival there has been a serious lack of travel. Hubby has been working like a mad man, and I've been totally overwhelmed with taking care of the little one, growing my business and blog and other various endeavors, we've just not really had a chance to go anywhere! But, we had FOUR WHOLE DAYS at Thanksgiving, so I went to work hard researching.

My requirements:
1) Somewhere new and relatively exciting
2) Not too expensive
3) Not too far
4) Has an indoor pool
5) Is relaxing and a tad luxurious

Number 1, 2, and 3 eliminated going to visit any family (and we're going to be seeing them in a few weeks anyway). Number 2 eliminated flying anywhere, because, um, Thanksgiving prices are ridiculous!

For some reason, my mind kept going to The Hamptons. I've always wanted to go there, but haven't yet. And when I saw how dirt cheap the Long Island Rail Road was, I was sold. A hotel search found me a pretty good deal at the Montauk Yacht Club, (they have an indoor pool and BONUS they had a Thanksgiving dinner buffet and a children's Christmas party going on that weekend!). Bish bash bosh we were booked!!

Now, to pack >_< Last time I went anywhere (Boston with my sister's family), Kenzo was only 6 months and not eating real food or needing toys or shoes or anything. So, this time it's much more complicated. He's a REAL boy! I made a list and kept adding to it for a few days and thankfully we got everything the 3 of us needed into this itty bitty suitcase (and diaper bag, and basket under the stroller, haha)!

From Brooklyn (or Manhattan for that matter), the Long Island Railroad (or LIRR for short) is super easy. We just took the subway to Atlantic-Pacific, got our tickets from the vending machine, and hopped right on the train! We had one transfer at Jamaica Station, which was a great place to take a potty break and stock up on food and drinks (if you forget to bring your own). Oh, here's a tip for winter (and probably summer) - go wait inside the JFK Air Train terminal - it's climate controlled!!

The leg from Jamaica to Montauk was almost 3 hours but went pretty quickly. Traveling on Thanksgiving morning was quiet, as expected, and especially so in the handicapped car which we found to be the way to go when traveling with a stroller (it wouldn't have fit through the aisles on the regular cars)! It's nice and small - there are only 3 rows of double seats in the handicapped car, with 2 fold down double seats on the side.

There was another family that came in and joined us, with 2 girls (1.5 years and 5 years). They were going to the Hamptons to visit family whose backyard contained a pool and tennis courts. Yeah, sounds about right! The older girl loooooooved Kenzo and played with him a lot, and even tried to play with him while he was nursing under a cover, haha!! Here she is holding his hand:

Kenzo was such a trooper on the train! No problems whatsoever! We kept him on our laps and he just kinda chilled and played with us the whole time! Phew!! Still, we were relieved when we finally arrived and the fun could begin!! Mommy can't wait to jump in the pool and stuff her face at the Thanksgiving buffet!!!