Long Island Visit For a Family Function
If I told you that I booked the Hilton Long Island in Huntington, New York because of the great customer reviews, I’d be lying.
Let me give you the backstory. I was travelling with my mother so she could attend the Christening of her new great granddaughter. We flew from Orlando International Airport (MCO) to John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK). At JFK, the rental car places are not directly in the airport. Instead, you have to walk a long way through the airport with all of your luggage, board the Airport Tram, and take the tram a few stops to where multiple car rental places are located. Well, that is way too much walking for my mother. I had a better idea. We would take a taxi from JFK to our hotel on Long Island and then rent a car somewhere nearby.
To my surprise, while looking at nearby rental car facilities, the Hilton Long Island/Huntington hotel in Huntington, New York, has an AVIS RENTAL CAR location IN THE LOBBY. Talk about convenient!
So, YES, I booked this hotel only because it had an Avis Car Rental right in the lobby of the hotel.
Location of the Hilton Long Island/Huntington Hotel
While we were attending our family function in the nearby town of Farmingdale, we had also planned to visit locations on Eastern Long Island and all the way to the west towards New York City. The location of the Hilton Long Island/Huntington hotel provided easy access to the Long Island Expressway making our travel plans more convenient. The Long Island Expressway runs from the Hamptons in the east to New York City to the west. The Hilton Long Island/Huntington hotel is approximately a 45-minute drive (New York traffic is unpredictable) from the airport.
Accommodations at the Hilton Long Island/Huntington Hotel
We had the choice of standard rooms or suites. There were other family members also staying at the Hilton Long Island/Huntington hotel, so we opted for a standard room but to make it more fun, we selected adjoining rooms. Accessible rooms are also available.
Our connecting rooms each offered two double beds. The room décor is dated, nothing to speak of but at least it was clean, quiet, and comfortable. And the room amenities were standard with basically the beds, a couch, desk area, television, mini fridge, bathroom, and a digital key. The view out the room’s window was the parking lot.
Amenities at the Hilton Long Island/Huntington Hotel
You can take a swim in the hotel’s indoor heated pool, a beautiful tropical oasis brightly lit with huge windows, all year round. The outdoor pool is open Memorial Day to Labor Day. Either pool provides a nice place to relax on the poolside lounges provided.
Surrounding the hotel’s outdoor pool are sports courts so bring your tennis rackets. You can also work out in the hotel’s 24-hour fitness center and take advantage of the modern exercise machines, free weights, and other equipment.
Hotel amenities include:
:: Free self-parking
:: EV charging
:: Onsite dining
:: Lobby bar
:: Coffee bar area
:: Indoor pool
:: Outdoor pool
:: Fitness center
:: Tennis
:: Meeting rooms
:: Guest services
:: Non-smoking rooms
:: Digital Key
:: No pets except service animals
If you choose to venture out around the Hilton Long Island/Huntington hotel, you can take advantage of the hotel’s free weekday shuttle bus service that runs within a five-mile radius.
The Hilton Long Island/Huntington hotel is popular for weddings, social functions, and business conferences. The hotel offers more than 30,000 square feet of meetings/event space. There was a business conference occurring for a few days while we were guests at the hotel, but it did not impact our stay whatsoever.
Dining on Long Island Offers the Most Delicious Food Options
When you visit Long Island, you’ll notice a huge variety of local restaurants, pretty much every culinary type that you could think of. As former Long Islanders, the diners, bagel shops, bakeries, and Italian Restaurants are some of our favorites. We lost count on how many slices of New York pizza and New York bagels we ate during our Long Island visit.
Aside from eating out, the Hilton Long Island/Huntington hotel offers a huge lobby bar and very good dining options conveniently located onsite, each a unique offering.
The Atrium Bistro Restaurant had a comfortable open setting with lots of tables and booths. An American style menu offers everything from Cobb Salad to sandwiches to hot wings. For a fee, you can also enjoy the breakfast buffet.
When staying as a hotel guest or simply visiting the Huntington area, you must dine at the Nanking Asian Fusion restaurant inside the Hilton Long Island/Huntington hotel. This unique dining establishment blends Indian, Chinese, and Thai cuisine … truly amazing selections of dishes on the menu. Try a little from each cuisine like the Asian Sesame Chicken with Fried Rice, Indian Butter Chicken, and Pad Thai Noodles.
Things to Do Nearby
Our visit to Long Island was a busy, non-stop itinerary filled with family, food, fun, and lots of special visits. However, there is so much to do on Long Island and that includes the Huntington area near the Hilton Long Island/Huntington hotel.
Consider these local attractions:
:: Adventure Land
:: Caumsett State Park
:: Cinema Art Center
:: Cold Spring Fish Hatchery & Aquarium
:: Crab Meadow Beach
:: Golf courses – too many to name
:: The Heckscher Museum of Art
:: Old Bethpage Village Restoration West Hills County Park
:: Walt Whitman Historic Site
:: Walt Whitman Shops
:: White Post Farms
Hilton Long Island/Huntington Hotel
So, now that you know that I booked the Hilton Long Island/Huntington hotel only because it had an Avis Car Rental right in the lobby of the hotel. Do I recommend the hotel? Yes, I do. It’s a little dated, but there was lots to like.
The most impressive parts of the Hilton Long Island/Huntington hotel were the huge open lobby with bar, the indoor pool area, and the restaurants. The hotel was clean and the room, although not overly fancy as other hotels we stay in. It wonderfully served the purpose of acting as our home hub to relax, sleep, and regroup until the next family get together began. The location of the hotel made it so easy to get where we needed to go or visit our favorite restaurants.
However, the star of this trip was renting a car from Avis Rental onsite in the lobby of the hotel. Pick up and drop off simply meant going out to the hotel’s parking lot. It can’t get any easier than that. That amenity was appreciated more than you’ll ever know.