The Hamptons, marked

Prior to this summer, I’d only been to the Hamptons a handful of times, mostly in my early twenties, when I could afford half a bed in a weekend share house and not much else. I just got back from a full week out there with friends, and I was pleasantly surprised by how much I loved it. Everything below is either a place I tried this trip or comes recommended by close friends with taste. Credit where it’s due: my Substack friend Juliette Sibley gave me some incredible recommendations, and Sarah Jannetti’s guides have me convinced she’s eaten at every restaurant between Southampton and Montauk.

So here’s the whole week: a coastal hike that ends with a truly excellent poke bowl, a coffee shop inside a garden store, the best farm stands and farmers markets, boutiques to stop in, a dinner that feels like a beach club in the south of France, where to watch the sunset, how to beach without a resident sticker, and where to listen to live music with a mudslide.

Everything’s expensive. Find a friend with a house.

Hamptons group rentals on Airbnb: We stayed in a large home in East Hampton, and I loved the location, it made getting to most of the places on this list easy. If you’re traveling with a big group, Airbnb is the way to do it. Split eight or more ways, it always comes in cheaper than a set of hotel rooms.

If it’s just you and one other person, or a smaller group, hotels make more sense:

• Barlume Beach: a new hotel in Montauk with an Italian coastal restaurant, serving raw seafood and handmade pasta.

• LDV at The Maidstone: a historic inn on Main Street in East Hampton that recently reopened.

• The Roundtree: a boutique hotel in Amagansett, walking distance to the shops on Main Street.

• Gurney’s: the big Montauk resort, turning 100 this year, right on the water with a beach club you can visit even if you’re not staying there.

• Marram Montauk: a beachfront hotel in Montauk with a much quieter feel than Gurney’s.

• Hero Beach Club: a smaller beachfront hotel in Montauk, more low-key than Gurney’s or Marram.

Everything out here is expensive no matter which of these you pick, so if you have a friend with a Hamptons house, say thank you to them.

Set an alarm to beat the line.