5 Best Sights in Greenport, Long Island

A former Long Island Rail Road passenger terminal contains exhibits about lighthouses, ships, East End shipbuilding, and yacht racing. The museum also hosts events, including the annual Maritime Festival. Several times throughout the season, for an additional fee, you can take a 6-hour day cruise or a 3- to 5-hour sunset cruise passing by 4 to 6 lighthouses and stopping to visit the historic "Bug" lighthouse. There's also a separate 1½-hour excursion that goes only to the "Bug."

An institution on the North Fork since 1976, this casual yet lovely restaurant (definitely more than a snack bar) offers beautifully prepared authentic Greek specialties and fresh, local fish such as fluke—and the homemade lemonade is heavenly. The appetizer platter overflows with favorites like spinach pie, souvlaki (kebabs), and tzatziki (a yogurt-cucumber based sauce). Try the saganaki (broiled Greek cheese with lemon), for something different. For dessert, try the hard-to-pronounce but delicious galaktobouriko (custard pie with phyllo pastry). It's open from 7 or 8 am and closes at 9, 9:30, or 10 pm, depending on the day and season.

If you eat outside, you may want to bring bug spray.

You can still play "catch the brass ring" at this 1920s carousel, housed in a round, gleaming glass structure, the highlight of Greenport's renovated waterfront.

Housed in an 1892 freight station, the museum exhibits a Reading Railroad track car, a 1907 snowplow, and a 1925 Long Island Rail Road caboose. Admission includes a guided tour and admission and tour of the Riverhead site, where most of the train cars reside and much of the restoration work takes place. If you want to make a day of it, for an extra fee, ride the nearby LIRR for a tour of both sites.

You can see a blacksmith at work using traditional, antique tools at this historic shop behind the old schoolhouse in the center of town, and the artisan on site is enthusiastic about answering questions about his craft and the history of blacksmithing in Greenport. Housed in an old East Marion onion shack, the building is a replica of the original, destroyed by a nor'easter in 1992. You can purchase small, handmade items made here including wall hooks, and the proceeds help fund the site, which is part of the East End Seaport Museum.