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2 hours covers most of the island but you have to realize that if you live in the city, you wont need a car, so you'll save on that expense so that might be a better option. Otherwise, Manorville, and Mattituck are 2 choices that I would suggest for you. Manorville has areas that look like golf course communities in Florida, while Mattituck has relaxed areas and it is close to wine country, and the yearly strawberry festival.
Hello - I am planning an early retirement and I am curious about Long Island. I love NYC and know that I can't afford to live there. Can someone recommend a town in Long Island that is safe, around 2 hours to the City, very walkable (to the train and great restaurants, grocery) and housing prices under $500,000? I am also very interested in a community that promotes biking with dedicated bike lanes, hiking and great access to the outdoors. Thanks in advance for your help.
Unfortunately Long Island is car dependent suburban sprawl except for 3 or 4 boring strips of town that lie in "Main Streets" that happen to be just as entangled in endless highways unfriendly to pedestrians or bicycles, though there are some hidden areas with bike pathways but they seem to be only leisurely-
Wantagh- There is an amazing bike path (that isn't for commute but for leisure) that goes all the way to Jones beach. As for walkability to stores and whatnot, I'm not TOO sure I've never had the privilege to live in a coastal Long Island community, you'll have to look more into it.
Great River- In Islip some properties blend into the Heckscher park that has endless bike trails. But again its leisurely and you won't find a convenient area walkable without having to cross endless intersections of high speed traffic.
Pretty much anywhere else that fits your request for walkable areas falls short on bicycle infrastructure. Long Island is eons behind matching its pace with a human pace, instead, we just all flock to the beach by car to escape the daily grind and suffocation in suburbia. ;/
Good luck though, sadly most of America isn't on par with the pace of life satisfactory to humans like many European towns and world class cities like NYC.
Patchogue is undergoing a revitalization. It has a nice downtown and a train station. Real estate is still affordable.
I second glen cove.
Patchogue is diverse too, it gets plus points for that!
It has a nice vibe but the downtown falls off abruptly on the north to south basis. ;/ Some of the developments are shocking though! It's like the most built up area in Suffolk seen some of the new rentals?
-edit but it isn't a town to be active really, is it?
Sure, it has a lively downtown, but it doesn't have that many great outdoorsy locations to let go, does it?
He also failed to mention, is it a house, condo or coop he is looking for.
Also what type of outdoors? Beach, Mountains etc.
Two hours is a huge distance to Manhattan. He wont be making that trip to often. He could be living in Hunte Mountain or Montaulk or even Philly and Catskills and be two hours away.
A two hour trip is four hours round trip that is crazy.
One other good choice is North Fork on LI, low taxes, lots to do and Jitney Bus to Manhattan nearby runs all year.
Other fun choice is a nice small coop in Long Beach for like 150k then spend 350K for a small weekend place in the North Fork.
That is what a retiree I know has and loves it, a little of both.
Just wanted to mention Long Beach - it's extremely bike-friendly, and one of the few places on LI where it's easy to bike to places you actually need (grocery store, pharmacy, etc.) rather than places like Patchogue/Babylon/etc. where "Main Street" is dominated by restaurants and kitschy shops that, while nice, don't exactly work for people just trying to run errands on foot or by bike the way you would if you lived in NYC.
Hello - I am planning an early retirement and I am curious about Long Island. I love NYC and know that I can't afford to live there. Can someone recommend a town in Long Island that is safe, around 2 hours to the City, very walkable (to the train and great restaurants, grocery) and housing prices under $500,000? I am also very interested in a community that promotes biking with dedicated bike lanes, hiking and great access to the outdoors. Thanks in advance for your help.
I would suggest Minneapolis, MN. It has everything, in abundance, for which you're looking.
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