Things to Do in Riverhead

Colleen Barrow has spent her entire lifetime seeking out and memorizing the coordinates of the most scenic sights dotting British Columbia's Southern Gulf Islands. Rather than trapping them in a photo album or enormous snow globe, the local explorer shares her finds with guests through ITT Wilson's Tours. By partnering with Wilson's Transportation, Barrow coordinates luxury bus tours to castles, lighthouses, botanical gardens, and wineries. With many of the tours, guests receive a midday meal such as rustic oven pizza served at an apple-orchard picnic site, or mutton legs aged to perfection in a castle's meat cellars.

Your excursion begins at the Moab Adventure Center, from whence the fearless adventure-teers will transport you to a calm stretch of the Colorado River. You'll get all the necessary rafting gear before you hit the rapids on the rafting adventure of a lifetime. Over the two-day journey, you'll drift over 100 miles of the river, tucked 2,000 feet within breathtaking sandstone formations, canyon mazes, and natural rock arches carved from lingering long-melted glaciers. You'll come across ancient Native American ghost-towns and camp overnight on the banks of the Colorado, where guides will prepare a freshly cooked dinner complete with delectable dessert before you retire for the night (roomy tents and cozy, elevated cots are included). At the end of the second day, a Cessna 5–7-seater aircraft will take you on a scenic hour-long flight over Canyonlands National Park and back to the adventure center in Moab.

Designed by legendary fairway-carver Robert Trent Jones Jr., Long Island National Golf Club Riverhead's 18-hole course layout runs along 6,838 yards of rolling terrain wreathed by farmland and vineyards. Throughout the round, each hole plots a path through a sea of knee-high fescue grass that sways in the wind atop fairway side mounds, channeling the look of golf's seminal Scottish courses. Water comes into play on four holes, promising a grim fate for wayward balls that don't speak catfish. Rated the course's hardest hole, the par 5 18th offers a dramatic end to the round, as clubbers must blast the ball 590 yards over a treacherously narrow fairway to reach the green. Alongside the grassy monolith, soaring drives lift off from a gallery of hitting stalls at the driving range, where players can smooth out herky-jerky swings and make clubs do calisthenics in preparation for their round.

Those looking to upgrade their golf garbs or replace a club damaged in a street fight with a gang of croquet mallets can head to the pro shop, which peddles apparel and equipment from top brands including Titleist, FootJoy, and Adidas. Post-round hunger meets its match at Bogey's Grill, which serves up savory grill fare and icy drinks to weary linksmen.

Course at a Glance:

Designed by Robert Trent Jones, Jr.

18-hole, par-71 course

Length of 6,838 yards from the farthest tees

Four tee options

An 18-foot giraffe cranes its neck to look at passing visitors. Across the path, ring-tailed lemurs swing between the trees. Nearby, alligators thrash in a swamp, and ostriches strut through the grass. The animal handlers at Long Island Game Farm—comprising a team of veterinary students and environmental workers—care for these native and exotic species in re-creations of their natural habitats. On any regular day, they guide visitors past enclosures populated by aoudad sheep, cougars, zebras, and red kangaroos, and demonstrate the creatures’ eating habits through scheduled viewable feedings. They also let visitors feed giraffes, goats, and zebras by hand, and discuss each creature’s lifestyle without judging them by their nighttime hobbies.

A series of trails winds through woods and public picnic areas, leading to areas such as Bambiland—an enclosure for Mediterranean and native deer—and Old MacDonald's Farmyard, where visitors can bottle-feed baby animals and hang out with pigs, rabbits, goats, and ponies. Park staffers also help smaller visitors on and off the park’s carnival rides that include spinning teacups, a miniature train, and an antique carousel. In the summer, they further engage children in Camp Zoo, a one-week day camp during which an experienced instructor teaches participants about environmental conservation and divulges facts and gossip about various animals.

With more than 10 on-water activities, Hamptons Paddleboard lets its customers accomplish everything from catching fish to conquering crashing waves. Led by Captain Mike, a USCG Certified Master Captain with more than 15 years of experience, the team of CPR-certified instructors and captains help students traverse the Hampton's varied aquatic terrain. The crew can teach fledgling aquanauts to smooth out wobbles atop a paddleboard, ski along the water, or successfully snorkel the water's depths. Tours by paddleboard, kayak, or canoe are also available amid the warm, romantic glow of sunset.

Located amid Mashantucket's rolling hills in the middle of the Foxwoods Resort Casino, Comix treats laugh-seeking audiences to shows by the country's top touring performers. The club hosts national headliners, up-and-comers, and musical acts; its shows in the 1,400-seat Fox Theater give jokesters the chance to share their act with a larger but still intimate audience; and its shows in the 4,000-person MGM Grand Theater host such hilarity-generating superstars as Louis C.K., Jim Gaffigan, and Margaret Cho. Before shows, guests can take advantage of happy hour, perusing a menu of tasty appetizers and thirst-quenching drinks.