So you’re looking for more travel things to do on Long Island? I have the perfect Gold Coast Mansion of Long Island for you. If you have to visit one mansion on Long Island, then I highly recommend it to be the Vanderbilt Mansion, Museum & Planetarium.
This post is all about travel things to do on Long Island, specifically:
Vanderbilt Mansion, Museum & Planetarium, 180 Little Neck Road, Centerport, NY 11721.
Their Mission:
“The Suffolk County Vanderbilt Museum — a unique combination of mansion, marine and natural history museum, planetarium and park — is dedicated to the education and enjoyment of the people of Long Island and beyond. This mission shall be achieved through the thoughtful preservation, interpretation and enhancement of the Eagle’s Nest estate as an informal educational facility. Many exhibition and program themes focus upon Long Island’s Gold Coast Era. Programs also concentrate on William K.
Vanderbilt II’s desire that his marine, natural history, and ethnographic collections promote appreciation and understanding of the marvelous diversity of life, other cultures, and scientific knowledge. Planetarium programming, more specifically, focuses on scientific knowledge and seeks to capture Mr. Vanderbilt’s sense of adventure and exploration through state-of-the-art entertainment.”
My Mission:
As part of my mission to explore the planet I live on, traversing historical sites always opens up the world and this adventure is what extravagance is made of! As such, I spent the entire day exploring the grounds, touring the mansion and habitats/exhibits, and watched a planetarium show (you will need more than a day to explore it all) – it was exceptional. My tour guide even started to call me Mrs. Vanderbilt because I fit right in, lol! A girl could dream right?
Touring the Grounds:
Historic Mansion – The elegant Vanderbilt Mansion, listed on the National Register of Historic Places, is a time machine that takes visitors back to Gold Coast life of the 1920s through 1940s. William K. Vanderbilt II’s (1878-1944) natural-history and artifact collections galleries are located in the 24-room Mansion. The Turntable Gallery exhibits his 1928 Lincoln touring car, a rare 1909 Reo Gentleman’s Roadster, and memorabilia from the legendary Vanderbilt Cup Races.
Charles and Helen Reichert Planetarium/Observatory – Visitors can experience the visual wonders of the universe. The advanced Konica Minolta Infinium star projector, full-dome video, surround-sound, and laser-light show system create an immersive experience. A new solar telescope offers safe viewing of the sun. On Friday evenings (weather permitting), visitors can explore the night sky through the Vanderbilt Observatory’s 16-inch Meade telescope.
Memorial Wing – On his circumnavigations of the globe in the 1920s and 1930s, Mr. Vanderbilt collected thousands of fishes, birds and invertebrates for his expanding Museum. At that time, many of the marine specimens were new scientific discoveries. The Museum’s natural-history galleries also feature hundreds of ethnographic artifacts from the world’s cultures.
Marine Museum/Hall of Fishes – Mr. Vanderbilt, passionate about the oceans and their creatures, traveled the globe and brought back thousands of exotic fish. Scientists traveled with him to collect, study, and preserve the specimens. By 1922, he opened his marine museum, the Hall of Fishes, to the public.
Habitat and Stoll Wing – In the 1920s, William Vanderbilt hited scientists and artists from the American Museum of Natural History to create the Habitat. Its nine remarkable dioramas depict animals, birds and fisfh in their natureal surroundings. The centerpiece is a suspended 32-foot whale shark, the world’s largest taxidermied fish. The adjacent Stoll Wing, with eight wild-animal dioramas, was added in 1970. These gallaries present the wild animals of every major habitat on earth, from islands and rainforests to grassland and Polar regions.
Carriage House/Learning Center – Mr. Vanderbilt, an early race-car driver, kept his automobiles in a stylish, four-bay garage now called the Carriage House – home to the Vanderbilt Learning Center and to theatrical productions by the Carriage House Players.
Visit Vanderbilt Museum’s website to learn about general admission, mansion tour, estate walk and talk tours, daytime planetarium shows, nighttime planetarium shows, memberships, discounts and more. I bought an annual membership and am looking forward to more explorations!
Check Groupon for deals, sometimes there’s a sale!
Are you going to visit? Are you intrigued? Let me know in the comments!
Happy exploring 🖤
This post is all about travel things to do on Long Island, specifically:
Vanderbilt Mansion, Museum & Planetarium, 180 Little Neck Road, Centerport, NY 11721.
Toya is a model, actress, and lawyer who enjoys sharing her life experiences. She shares her experiences on travel things, adventures, products/services and reviews everyday lifestyle moments. She inspires her readers to get out and live their lives to the fullest!
