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It’s not too late for East Coasters to plan a Memorial Day trip. These 12 options aren’t cheap (prices range from $195 per night to $935 for an over-the-top Hamptons home), but they’re worth it to kick off summer in style.
Montage Palmetto Bluff
The Montage Palmetto Bluff resort in South Carolina (just a short drive from Savannah) overlooks the pristine salt waters of the May River. There’s lush greenery everywhere, Spanish moss dripping from low-lying oak branches, waterfront views, signature Southern architecture, and so much more on offer at this property. With its newly renovated 200 guest rooms, suites, and cottages, this plantation-style hotel has a massive pool, water activities, luxe spa, and many restaurant offerings on site—it’s the perfect Southern sojourn.
477 Mount Pelia Road, Bluffton, South Carolina From $590; montagehotels.com/palmettobluff
Winnetu
Winnetu Oceanside Resort at South Beach in Edgartown, Massachusetts, is family-owned and styled after the traditional grand New England seaside resorts. The property features 58 suites, studios, and private cottages—many of which have unobstructed ocean views—and offers yoga and fitness classes, beach access, and shuttles to town.
31 Dunes Road, Edgartown, Massachusetts From $195; winnetu.com
The Cliff House
The Cliff House in Ogunquit, Maine, is a quite literal manifestation of its name: Set on the edge of the Atlantic on the coast of Southern Maine, this hotel provides views of the Maine coastline like nothing you’ve ever seen. The newly-renovated 130 accommodations give you a front seat to stunning views of the ocean. Cliff House is minutes away from Ogunquit Beach, has both indoor and outdoor pools, and offers guests access to the Cape Neddick Golf Club.
591 Shore Road, Cape Neddick, Maine From $579; destinationhotels.com/cliff-house
The Reeds at Shelter Haven
The Reeds at Shelter Haven in Stone Harbor, New Jersey, originally opened in 1912, and thanks to new ownership the hotel relaunched in 2013 as a 37-room year-round resort. Each room features a rustic coastal design with 11 suites that include fireplaces and mini kitchens. Guests can take advantage of the hotel’s Beach Butler service, which ushers guests to and from the ocean in an electric car fully stocked with every beach amenity they could possibly need.
9601 Third Avenue, Stone Harbor, New Jersey From $459; reedsatshelterhaven.com
Hidden Pond
Hidden Pond is a peaceful 60-acre property of cottages, low-slung bungalows (all with private terraces, fireplaces, and outdoor showers), and an eco-friendly spa located a mile from the beach in Kennebunkport, Maine. The resort offers an array of classic summer activities: swimming in the two pools or ocean nearby, hiking, biking, and kayaking. Their onsite Earth restaurant is an intimate eatery featuring a seasonal menu sourced from the onsite gardens overseen by James Beard award-winner Ken Oringer.
354 Goose Rocks Road, Kennebunkport, Maine From $549; hiddenpondmaine.com
Wauwinet
Tucked in the northeast shores of Nantucket, The Wauwinet offers luxury rooms and four charming cottages, all outfitted with custom furnishings. This hotel offers all the best of seaside living including private beaches on both the Atlantic and Nantucket Bay, complimentary bicycles with which to explore the best of the island, and boat rides on the Wauwinet Lady. There’s an award-winning wine cellar at Topper’s, the hotel’s restaurant, and eco-tours of the iconic landscape at Coskata-Coatue Wildlife Refuge starting Memorial Day Weekend.
120 Wauwinet Road, Nantucket, Massachusetts From $485; wauwinet.com
Gurney’s Newport Resort & Marina
Featuring a newly refreshed lobby and guest rooms by design group Petermax, a new marina, and expansive pool deck and pool club, Gurney’s newest outpost in Newport, Rhode Island, will offer undisturbed views of Narragansett Bay. With its 257 rooms and suites, four restaurants, fitness center, and spa, Gurney’s Montauk Resort & Seawater Spa owners George Filopoulos and Lloyd Goldman are breathing life into the former Hyatt Regency just in time for Memorial Day Weekend.
1 Goat Island, Newport, Rhode Island From $299; gurneysresorts.com/newport
Chatham Bars Inn
Originally built in 1914 as a semi-private hunting lodge for Boston vacationers, Chatham Bars Inn quickly developed into one of Cape Cod’s most elegant destinations. With numerous opportunities to explore the Cape through fishing expeditions and morning harbor cruises, whale-watching trips, and access to a private quarter-mile beach, it’s easy to see why.
297 Shore Road, Chatham, Massachusetts From $755; chathambarsinn.com
The Arnold House
The Arnold House is a Catskills getaway where historic charm is coupled with curated design. Featuring natural cork floors, antique furniture, and vintage fixtures in the bedrooms, this hotel has accommodations ranging from standard twin rooms to a restored private lakehouse perfect for a small family. Guests can dine at The Tavern, where the ingredients are locally-sourced and the jukebox and pool table add to the relaxed, homey feel of the place.
839 Shandelee Road, Livingston Manor, New York From $209; thearnoldhouse.com
White Hart Inn
The White Hart Inn in Salisbury, Connecticut, is a design-focused Appalachian hotel run by Redbook Magazine editor Meredith Rollins and her husband Conley. The couple decided to purchase and renovate a former historic hotel after falling in love with it on a visit. What they’ve created is both an homage to the property’s history—with impeccably-designed rooms that very much feel like a charming antique inn—and a step towards the modern.
15 Undermountain Road, Salisbury, Connecticut From $300; whitehartinn.com
White Fences Inn
Innkeepers Liz and Eric Brodar found the perfect Hamptons location for White Fences Inn: a spot close to the town of Southampton and Flying Point Beach. The bed and breakfast occupies a home that dates from 1740, but the structure has really been updated; Boston-based designer Erin Gates decorated the rooms, and top-notch amenities include an electric car charging station, Frette and Matouk linens, Malin & Goetz toiletries, Nespresso coffeemakers, gas fireplaces, and volcanic stone soaking tubs and heated concrete floors in the bathrooms. Complimentary passes to the Wolffer Estate Vineyard and Parrish Art Museum are on offer.
371 Montauk Highway, Water Mill, New York From $325, whitefenceswatermill.com
Inn at Windmill Lane
A visit to The Inn at Windmill Lane in Amagansett, Long Island, is like staying at the Hamptons home of a very well-to-do friend. The homey, tranquil property features seven individual suites in its main building and three private gated cottages in a perfectly-landscaped garden. Its newest accommodation, the 21 House, is an immaculate 3,800-square-foot, four-bedroom private home with four wood-burning fireplaces and a private spa and gym. The linens are Matouk, and the mattresses and pillows are King Duxiana, so it may be hard to get out of bed, and each accommodation has at least one wood-burning fireplace.
23 Windmill Lane, Amagansett, New York From $935; innatwindmilllane.com
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