Old Bethpage Village Restoration is an outdoor museum type of place on Long Island, think of visiting Walnut Grove from Little House on the Prairie. The village offers a variety of buildings where you can learn about mid-19th century village life - like running a local store, hat making, or running a farm.
It's a nice place, but I'm not in love with it. I liked it more the first time I visited. There was talk of closing it because of budget issues. As a history buff, I think that would be a shame. Here is what I don't like about it - it's a village which means it's quite spread out. It's a long walk to the village from the entrance and then everything there is fairly spread out. While I understand that this is a part of village life, it's a lot of walking in the direct sunlight and on a hot day it makes it a long day. I've been there twice and felt drained when I left both times. What is good about it is seeing how people lived 100+ years ago. Also, they have a lot of nice events - period baseball games, civil war battlefield reenactments, and other period things. If you're interested in going I would highly suggest going on a day when there is an event scheduled as it will make your visit worth while. I do see some more promise at the village, there are quite a few buildings that haven't been developed yet. Unfortunately, I wonder if they will ever have the money to actually develop them.
It's a nice quaint place, good for children and families. Once you pay for admission their are little costs inside the village - unless you want to buy a drink, cookies, or candies in the period shops. I suggest wearing sneakers as the paths are dirt, apparently they didn't pave them in the 1800's.
