Spring break road trips from Long Island without the crowds

Shake off winter's snowstorms and blues with a spring break reset. Forget traditional favorites like Miami, Daytona Beach and Cancun. Instead, opt for a respite without the crowds. Skip the long lines at the airport and enjoy a scenic drive to destinations worth visiting.

Pack your bags and plan your spring break adventure. 

Explore the outdoors in Accord, New York

DRIVING DISTANCE FROM LONG ISLAND: About 2½ hours away 

If you and your significant other, or you and your guy or gal pals, are looking for an intimate country refuge, put INNESS hotel on your radar (10 Bank St., Accord, 845-377-0030, inness.co; room rates start at $560). The setting is pastoral Ulster County. Choose between cabins or rooms in the farmhouse. Spend time on the golf course, hiking, playing tennis, swimming in the saltwater pool, at the spa, in the gym or taking yoga and movement classes. The area is home to farms, markets and the Shawangunk Mountains for rock climbing, biking and hiking.

Go camping in Saugerties, New York

DRIVING DISTANCE FROM LONG ISLAND: About 2½ hours away 

For a big adventure the entire family can enjoy, head to AutoCamp in the Catskills (882 Rte. 212, 866-921-7440, autocamp.com; room rates start at $169 a night). Take your pick of accommodations: custom-designed Airstreams, cabins, base camp suites and luxury tents. Here, nature is the main attraction, with mountains, nature trails, forests, hiking, lawn games and fire pits for s'mores. Otherwise, big fun is to be had riding rented bikes, enjoying game nights, yoga, kids arts and crafts and live music in the clubhouse.

Explore the town's boutiques, the Saugerties Lighthouse (168 Lighthouse Dr., 845-247-0656, saugertieslighthouse.com; summer tours suggested donation of $10 for adults and $5 for kids) and Opus 40's (opens in April 4; 356 George Sickle Rd., 845-246-3400, opus40.org; $20) 60 plus acres of meadows, forest trails, historic buildings and sculptures.

Head to a kid-friendly museum in Lehigh Valley, Pennsylvania

DRIVING DISTANCE FROM LONG ISLAND: About 2½ hours away

The Lehigh Valley is ideal for family fun, whether it's outdoor adventures, history lessons or the array of attractions. Make Allentown your base in the Valley. Check out the Allentown Art Museum (31 N. Fifth St., Allentown, 610-432-4333, allentownartmuseum.org; free) and the America on Wheels Museum to soak up the automotive history and marvel at vintage cars and motorcycles (5 N. Front St., Allentown, 610- 432-4200, americaonwheels.org; $20, $12 ages 5-17). Another favorite is the Da Vinci Science Center, with its interactive exhibits and events (815 Hamilton St., 484-664-1002, Allentown, davincisciencecenter.org; $24). A must-try is the onion rings and hamburgers at Wert's Cafe (515 N. 18th St., Allentown, 610-439-0951, wertscafe.com).

Wander to nearby Easton for rock climbing and zip-lining at Hangdog Outdoor Adventure (opens April 18; 410 Cedarville Rd., Easton, 484-255-0070, hangdoglv.com; adventure course is $49.95 for two-hour climbing experience) and visit the Crayola Experience (30 Centre Sq. Cir, Easton, 610-515-8000, crayolaexperience.com; tickets start at $30.99) where your kids can create their own crayons and more. Stay at the Renaissance Allentown Hotel (12 N. Seventh St, Allentown, 484-273-4000, marriott.com; rooms start at $197 a night.); it's close to the PPL Center (701 Hamilton St., Allentown, 610-224-4625, pplcenter.com). See if you can catch a hockey game or a concert there. The hotel's Dime restaurant is known for serving up goodies like merlot-braised short ribs and seafood paella, so after a long day, what to do about dinner is easily solved. 

Check out the nightlife in Providence, Rhode Island

DRIVING DISTANCE FROM LONG ISLAND: About 3½ hours away

While you might think of Providence as a perfect friends getaway in summer or fall, it's pretty special in spring, too. Late March is lively with the Providence Culinary Collective, a four-day food and wine festival and the Lil Rhody Laugh Riot comedy festival on March 26-29. What might take you by surprise is the nightlife. Providence has more nightlife establishments per capita than New York City. Providence also takes cuisine seriously. Don't miss the 2026 James Beard semifinalist restaurants Oberlin (266 Westminster St., 401-588-8755, oberlinrestaurant.com) and Nick's on Broadway (500 Broadway, 401-421-0286, nicksonbroadway.com).

No worries; you can say goodbye to those calories while strolling the riverwalk and Cobble Hill with its historical architecture and murals. A good, centrally located place to stay is Aloft Providence Downtown (191 Dorrance St., 401-252-0710, marriott.com; Room rates start at $264 a night) where you're close to the Roger Williams Park Zoo (1000 Elmwood Ave., 401-785-3510, rwpzoo.org; $25, $19 ages 2-12), the Providence River and more.

Walk the boardwalk in Wilmington, North Carolina

DRIVING DISTANCE FROM MELVILLE: About 12 hours away

FLIGHT TIME FROM MACARTHUR AIRPORT: About 1 hour and 50 minutes away 

You can fly Breeze Airways from MacArthur Airport to Wilmington, North Carolina in under two hours. Or, make it a memorable family road trip and drive the roughly 12 hours to get to Wilmington from Long Island. Wilmington is family-friendly, with its World War II history, such as the Battleship North Carolina and three uncrowded island beaches (Wrightsville Beach, Carolina Beach and Kure Beach; fee for parking), where kids can hunt for shark teeth on guided kayak tours. Take in Airlie Gardens (300 Airlie Rd., 910-798-7700, airliegardens.org; $10, $3 ages 4-12) with its 75,000 azaleas in bloom during spring and the North Carolina Aquarium at Fort Fisher (900 Loggerhead Rd., Kure Beach, 910-772-0500, ncaquariums.com/fort-fisher; $15, $13 ages 3-12). Another plus: Wilmington won't break your budget. Have a good time for less. As for where to stay, consider Hotel Ballast on the riverfront (301 N. Water St., 910-763-5900, hilton.com). Rooms start at $159 a night.