What makes The Hamptons’ allure so timeless? This frequent visitor explains

The Hamptons might be known for its mega mansions, glamorous residents and see-and-be-seen mentality. But its idyllic landscape, village charm and dynamic dining scene make it forever priceless – whether you’re in the clique or not

Tucked near the eastern end of Long Island, the Hamptons have been the storied getaway for New York’s elite for well over a century. Their caché must be understood in large part by their relationship to Manhattan. With sweeping beaches and pretty villages, they’re a sort of antidote to the hot and hard-boiled intensity of the city. When New Yorkers arrive ‘out east’, they feel like they’ve escaped and can breathe again.

Still, too many people try to duplicate their New York City life in the Hamptons. Some fuel their Manhattan aggressions by building more and more mega mansions, or opt for guerrilla shopping and bad driving. But, with its magical light and sea breezes, its gardens and fresh produce, the Hamptons do seep into the psyche of even the most hardened urban warriors. There’s a reason people want to escape here, even if they’re too cool to admit it.

Village life

So, what are The Hamptons? The name collectively refers to a necklace of historic villages about 150 kilometres from New York City, each with its own character and vibe. Closest to Manhattan, Southampton is the epicentre of ‘old money’, with high privet hedges and alleys of plane trees shielding large estates. Further east, the villages of Water Mill, Bridgehampton and Sagaponack are flanked by enormous mansions and horse farms that dot former potato and corn fields all the way to the sea.

Set beside windmills, an historic farmhouse and a white-swan-dotted town pond, East Hampton has become the locus of labelled luxury that caters to a clientele of tech billionaires, hedge-fund mavens and the Hollywood elite. On Long Island Sound, the year-round community Sag Harbor has a more old-fashioned ‘salty dog’ village feel (it used to be a whaling town), while eastwards, along the ocean, Amagansett is coming into its own with inns and bars, and boutiques in white wooden cottages framing a grassy tree-shaded common. At the eastern tip of Long Island, Montauk is more about retro motels, marinas, dive bars and seafood shacks catering to a younger hipster and surfer crowd.

On show

Each summer season, there’s always a parade of new restaurants and bars, the latest ‘it’ boutiques and more gigantic mansions. Yet, despite its reputation for showy consumption and a see-and-be-seen mentality, much of The Hamptons’ appeal is priceless. It’s still possible to walk along endless ocean beaches of fine white sand; shop at farmers’ markets brimming with just-picked corn, plump peaches and rich ripe tomatoes; and cycle along country lanes rimmed with roses.

And while there is a timeless quality to the landscape, it wasn’t always glamorous. Settled in the 1600s by Puritan farmers and fishermen on Montauket and Accabonac Native American land, this low-lying peninsula thrusting into the Atlantic Ocean was a whaling centre before New York society claimed it as a summer retreat in the late 1800s, building grand cedar-shingled estates and riding horse buggies to the beach.

Vistas of diaphanous light across dune grasses and seascapes have long attracted artists including America’s most famous Impressionist painter, Childe Hassam, who arrived at the turn of the 19^th century. Indeed, the Hamptons’ long-standing role as muse to artists, writers and other creatives has always added a certain frisson that often rescues the scene from celebrity banality. In the mid 1940s Jackson Pollock moved to a farmhouse in the Springs area of East Hampton, where he created his abstract expressionist drip paintings. His studio can still be visited, not far from Accabonac Harbor.

The art of the matter

Other artists followed ,including Willem and Elaine de Kooning, Robert Motherwell, Andy Warhol, Eric Fischl, Chuck Close and Cindy Sherman. Writers such as John Steinbeck, Truman Capote, Edward Albee, Kurt Vonnegut, George Plimpton and Peter Matthiessen lived here as well. And actors, directors, and musicians including Alec Baldwin, Robert Downey Jr, Robert Wilson, Billy Joel, Beyoncé and Jay-Z also call this home, at least part of the time.

It makes for an interesting line-up at the annual East Hampton Artists and Writers Charity Softball Game, which raises funds for local non-profits. And then there are the musicians who might turn up for an unannounced jam at the funky Stephen Talkhouse in Amagansett or on stage at East Hampton’s Guild Hall. And the local luminaries that host an exhibition at the Herzog & de Meuron-designed Parrish Art Museum in Water Mill.

It’s still possible to walk along endless ocean beaches of fine white sand, shop at farmers’ markets brimming with just-picked corn, plump peaches and rich ripe tomatoes, and cycle along country lanes rimmed with roses.

During the day, explore those pristine stretches of sand that appear to stretch into infinity with not a single high-rise in sight, thanks to all the grand beachfront estates. If you like your beach experience with cabana and champagne service attached, head out to the Beach Club Gurney’s in Montauk. It’s directly in front of Gurney’s Resort and Spa, where you can dine afterwards on the deck overlooking the waves.

When night falls, the stars come out to play. The restaurant and bar scene is, as expected, one where spots are worth jostling for. In Sag Harbor, grab a seat on the plant-framed deck of The American Hotel to watch the world go by – or enjoy the finest wine list in the Hamptons in the clubby bar. Go Japanese at Sen, New American at Page, and southern Italian at Tutto il Giorno, run by Gabby Karan de Felice (fashion designer Donna Karan’s daughter) and her Italian husband Gianpaolo de Felice. East Hampton’s long-time hotspot is Nick & Toni’s Tuscan-style farmhouse, while Jean-Georges at The Topping Rose House in Bridgehampton is the coastal-casual outpost of Michelin-starred chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten.

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WHILE YOU’RE HERE

You may not be able to resist a little retail therapy, for the people-watching alone. Top of the list is a boutique courtesy of stealth-wealth gurus Ashley and Mary-Kate Olsen: drop in on their Amagansett outpost of The Row. Luxe labels Gucci, Louis Vuitton and Ralph Lauren have colonised East Hampton, but look also for cool independent stores curating designer gear from around the world. There’s Sunshine Amangansett for beachy gear from female artisans, London-based ME+EM capsule classics, Veronica Beard’s American sportswear, French stalwarts Isabel Marant, and Bonpoint for chic kids. Sag Harbor features Road to Nowhere’s sustainable clothes for men and women as well as Californian brand Dôen.

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GOOD TO KNOW

Parking permits are required on all the Hamptons beaches and only a handful of them have daily, rather than seasonal, permits. Your solution is to stay at a chic country inn, like The Roundtree Amagansett, which not only offers sleek shingled cottages and villas that are dotted around spacious shady gardens, but also those all-important beach car-parking permits, plus free beach chairs, umbrellas and coolers as well as groovy cruising bikes. theroundtreehotels.com

The fastest and most luxurious way to get to the Hamptons is via a 40-minute helicopter transfer. Next best is the Blade Hamptons Streamliner, a first-class luxury bus transfer with the amenities of a private jet, including spacious seats, cashmere blankets, hot towels, free alcoholic drinks and healthy snacks as well as a wellness kit that includes a range of skincare products. blade.com