Lake Ronkonkoma, NY Outdoor Activities

A featured instructor for ESPN Radio and Long Island Golfing Magazine, teaching professional Peter Stern assists students with game improvement through lessons held at Indian Head Golf Park. Peter instills the fundamentals of a proper golf swing, which hold up from tee to green with a focus on helping pupils replicate perfected mechanics long after the lesson ends. While the body learns to become one with the club, a video camera records the session so that students can see weak points for themselves rather than trading bodies with a misunderstood sibling. All lessons evade the elements either in Peter’s indoor studio or outdoor covered teaching booth.

Built to replicate the Suzuka Circuit racetrack in Japan, the 632-meter track at Musselman Honda Circuit challenges roadsters of all sorts to master its seven turns. Whether drivers jump behind the wheel of a 9-horsepower P1 fast kart or behind the wicker picnic basket attached to the front of a motorcycle, the dirt track cushions tires during competitive pursuits and practice sessions alike. The multifaceted raceway accommodates a wide range of driving pursuits throughout the week, including driving education classes, cycling, and handicapped-accessible adaptive karting.

Hampton Luxury Liner ferries its passengers around in a lavish motorcoach that boasts five flat-screen TVs, complimentary WiFi, and an on-bus library. The luxury buses travel to destinations ranging from the Hamptons to Atlantic City, with specific stops at wineries, resorts, and casinos. Reclining leather seats with space for laptops and maximum leg extension typify the cushy interior, and each road cruiser also comes equipped with a snack bar, library, and refrigerator, useful for storing steaks to distract the thousands of chasing dogs such a luxurious bus usually attracts.

The phosphorescent indoor landscape at Monster Mini Golf immerses putters in an eerie universe that inverts the sun-soaked cheer of conventional courses. Rimmed in glowing barriers, 18 holes lure swingers of all sizes to challenge their coordination and resolve in the face of winged monsters, scowling animated trees, a creepy clown, and their opponents' shockingly dazzling smiles. Sheltered from searing rain and howling wind, the indoor course enables play around hazards such as a spell well and luminous, ghostly windmill at any time of the year. An in-house radio station and DJ mask the sound of pounding hearts with lively beats and course commentary, and golfers looking for additional glory can win prizes by participating in regular contests or at the on-site arcade.

Practice is the foundation of golf. Without it, the game can be frustrating, eventually sending golfers' into a fragile state of agitation. Knowing how important practice is, Indian Head Golf Park's instructors and staff focus their efforts on helping golfers improve their game. At the park's well-lit driving range, staff members keep golfers well stocked with buckets of range balls to blow off steam as they aim for the ball-retriever cart. Instructor Bob Greenstein works with students during private lessons to fine-tune their swings, and he hosts junior golf camps during summer to introduce youngsters to the game.

Typically, you can only see Central Park, the Statue of Liberty, and Yankee Stadium in less than an hour while leafing through a stack of New York postcards. However, Zip Aviation confounds expectations, whisking tourists over those landmarks and more on one of three helicopter tours in 12–30 minutes. Helmed by a team of pilots with an impeccable safety record, the tours grant passengers a bird’s-eye view of the city aboard either their AStar or Bell helicopters, which have never once caused sea sickness. The aviation company complements its sightseeing excursions with an array of other transit services, including private charters and special-event transportation options.