Rhode Island · 12 Hotels Listed · Twelve Miles to Shore
Block Island
A Victorian sea-cliff outpost twelve miles from the mainland. No chains. No traffic. Just bluffs, beaches, and inns that have stood since the lighthouses were lit.
A Victorian sea-cliff outpost twelve miles from the mainland. No chains. No traffic. Just bluffs, beaches, and inns that have stood since the lighthouses were lit.
Ranked by overall occasion score. Every inn verified, priced, and visited in 2025–2026.
"The oldest hotel on the island and still its grandest. Wraparound porch above the Atlantic — the verandah view does the work no decorator could."
"Six acres on a hill above Old Harbor. Tasting menu on the porch as the sun goes down — the most quietly civilised dinner on the island."
"Sister property to the 1661 — same owners, more interior. Restored mansard rooms, Victorian dining room, and a small farm of llamas in the back."
"The grand front porch on Water Street — the social heart of Old Harbor since 1888. Step off the ferry, check in, and the holiday has begun."
"The pink Victorian above Crescent Beach. No televisions, no in-room phones — and that, in 2026, is a feature, not a flaw."
"The only marina-side resort on the island — pool, slips, and a livelier crowd. Where the sailboats tie up for the weekend, and so does Block Island Race Week."
"Ten rooms in a gingerbread Victorian, ferry slip just down the road. The smallest of the historic hotels, and the most genuinely quiet."
"Set back from the road, hidden behind beach plum hedges. For the guest who wants the island without the harbour crowd."
"Ten cottage-style rooms perched above the bluff, breakfast delivered in a basket. The closest thing on the island to disappearing."
Block Island is the rare American destination that makes a solo traveller feel deliberate rather than stranded. The ferry ride functions as decompression. Once on the island, no rental car is needed — bicycles, beaches, and bluffs do the rest. Our verdict: Sea Breeze Inn for the bluff-edge solitude, Hotel Manisses for the most restorative interior, and The Beach Plum Inn for the most genuinely hidden address.
Victorian rooms, walled gardens, Spring Street stillness. From $375/night.
Tucked behind hedges, away from the harbour entirely. From $285/night.
Block Island has been hosting anniversaries since the first lighthouses were lit in the 1870s — the kind of place where couples return on a five-year cycle and the same porch chair remembers them. Spring House Hotel is the iconic Victorian — verandah, ocean, history. The Atlantic Inn is the most romantic dinner address. 1661 Inn is the most refined — private whirlpools, harbour views, and the kind of breakfast that lingers past noon.
Our ranked list, with the one-sentence verdict on each.
The 1852 grand dame, the oldest hotel on the island and still the one with the longest porch and the best view.
An 1879 hilltop Victorian on six acres — the most romantic dinner table on the island, full stop.
Harbour views, peacocks on the lawn, and the only whirlpool tubs on the island that face the Atlantic.
Sister to the 1661 — restored mansard rooms, llama-grazed gardens, the most Victorian interior on the island.
The 1888 grand front porch on Water Street — the social heart of Old Harbor and a sixty-second walk from the ferry slip.
The pink 1876 Victorian above Crescent Beach — no televisions, no in-room phones, no apologies.
The marina-side option on New Harbor — pool, slips, and the heart of Block Island Race Week.
Ten rooms in a gingerbread Victorian on Water Street — the smallest of the historic hotels and the most quietly run.
Hidden behind the hedges away from Old Harbor — for the guest who wants the island, not the crowd.
Cottage-style rooms on the bluff, basket breakfasts, the closest thing on the island to disappearing.
The Block Island season runs Memorial Day to Labor Day, with the genuine peak falling between July 4th and the third week of August. June is the connoisseur's month — the wild roses are out on Mohegan Bluffs, the Atlantic has begun to warm, and the ferry crowds have not yet arrived in earnest. September is the shoulder month favoured by returning guests: the water remains warm into early October, restaurants relax their reservation policies, and rates ease back by twenty to thirty per cent. October brings Block Island Race Week to New Harbor for sailors, but most of the island has already begun closing for the season. By November, perhaps a third of the inns remain open; by January, the island is functionally closed to luxury travel and reopens only as Memorial Day approaches. The summer-only character is a feature, not a defect — it is what keeps the place uncommercial.
Old Harbor is where the ferry lands and where most of the historic hotels sit — The National, The Inn at Old Harbour, and The Surf Hotel are all walking distance from Water Street and the downtown shops. It is the correct first-time choice and the easiest base if you intend to walk everywhere. New Harbor, on the western side around Great Salt Pond, is where Champlin's Resort and the marinas live — quieter, more nautical, less foot traffic. Mohegan Bluffs, in the southeast corner, is where the Southeast Lighthouse stands and where the cliffs drop two hundred feet to the Atlantic — a few inns sit nearby, including Spring House Hotel and The Atlantic Inn. Sandy Point, at the northern tip, holds the North Light and the bird sanctuary; staying near the bluffs or the centre of the island places you within bicycling distance. Crescent Beach, the long sandy curve immediately north of Old Harbor, is the best swimming beach and where The Surf Hotel sits closest to the sand.
Block Island runs more expensive in season than its size suggests, because the inventory is finite and the season is short. Expect $275 to $325 per night at the smallest boutique inns in peak July and August, $345 to $445 at the better-positioned historic hotels (The National, Atlantic Inn, 1661 Inn), and $525 and up at Spring House Hotel for an ocean-view room. Suite rates at the top properties can reach $700 to $900 in peak weeks. June pre-season rates run roughly fifteen per cent below July; September shoulder rates roughly twenty to thirty per cent below peak. Most properties operate two or three night minimums on summer weekends and impose a four-night minimum across the July 4th and Labor Day weeks.
Getting to Block Island is part of the experience — and part of the planning. The Block Island Ferry from Point Judith, Rhode Island runs year-round (about an hour, with a high-speed option in summer); seasonal services run from Newport, Rhode Island as well. The Block Island Express ferry sails from New London, Connecticut in season, and Sea Streak operates a summer fast-ferry from Highlands, New Jersey. Reserve vehicle ferry tickets months in advance if you must bring a car — but most luxury travellers do not. The island moves on bicycles and walking; rentals are widely available at the harbour, and most inns are within twenty minutes' cycle of any beach. Block Island Race Week, in late June, sells out marina-side rooms a year ahead. For Spring House Hotel and The Atlantic Inn, book by February for July dates. For the smaller inns, by April. Confirm whether your room rate includes breakfast — at the 1661 and Hotel Manisses it does, at most others it does not.
Standard American tipping conventions apply. Restaurants: 18–20% on the pre-tax total, with 22% appropriate at the better dinner addresses. Bartenders: $1–2 per drink or 18–20% on the tab. Housekeeping: $5 per day at the smaller inns, $10 at Spring House. Bellman or porter (limited at most properties, given the modest scale): $2–5 per bag. Concierge for restaurant reservations or excursion bookings: $10–20 depending on difficulty. The taxi drivers and bicycle rental shops also accept tips, though the latter is uncommon. Service charges are not generally added to inn bills, so all gratuities are at your discretion.
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Tell us your occasion and we'll narrow it down. Solo retreat, anniversary, honeymoon, family holiday — Block Island has the right Victorian inn for each.
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