Last weekend we celebrated our 7th (yay!) anniversary with a trip to Jekyll Island where we stayed at the historic Jekyll Island Club Hotel and enjoyed every minute of it! From the moment we pulled onto the property, we were surrounded by beauty. The first thing we saw was the iconic turret on the clubhouse peaking out from the giant oak trees, then as we drove up the driveway we came upon a game of croquet on the front lawn. It was like a step back in time! Anderson and I don’t really consider ourselves history buffs, but as we toured the gorgeous grounds we couldn’t help our curiosity about the stately old buildings and the people who once stayed in them.

The Jekyll Island Club was once a private hunting retreat for some of America’s wealthiest families. You know, the Morgans, Vanderbilts, Rockefellers, Pulitzers. But after a massive renovation in 1986, it’s now a hotel that even Almeidas can enjoy! We stayed in the Crane Cottage, which could more accurately be called the Crane Mansion because of it’s size and luxurious old-world style. I love staying in old hotels and pretending we live there. Should I keep that to myself?! The hotel staff spoiled us with a huge basket of goodies that included some of the best cookies I’ve ever had. We said we were just going to try each of them and then all of the sudden they were mostly gone!

Before arriving on Jekyll Island, we had big plans to explore the surrounding islands during our stay, but we enjoyed the Jekyll Island Club property so much that we only left once! There was so much to do! We spent an afternoon at the pool, had a formal dinner in the Grand Dining Room, enjoyed breakfast (and snacks, and dessert!) at Club Cafe, walked around the property, and explored the old buildings. We did venture off in search of a two-person bike one afternoon. The club offers bike rentals, but I have a bit of an issue riding bikes and agreed to ride with Anderson ONLY if we could find a two-seater. So we found a rental place that had these crazy things that looked more like rickshaws than bikes and decided to go for it. We told the rental guy we wanted it for two hours and he LAUGHED AT US and assured us we only wanted it for one hour. And can I just tell you that after about 2 minutes I was ready to take it back? Ha! It was the hardest bike ride ever. I definitely recommend staying at the club and renting a bike there… even if you’re a terrible biker like me!

We’ll definitely return to the Jekyll Island Club Hotel and plan to bring Kingston along next time. There’s a lot for kids to do too! I’d also like to go explore more of the Golden Isles. Do you have any suggestions on where we should venture out? I know one thing for sure, next time I’m taking my chances on a regular bike!