No one will be surprised to hear that we spent a weekend on Jekyll Island last month. It’s one of our favorite getaway spots, and we always love our visits to the the historic Jekyll Island Club Hotel. The Jekyll Island Club was once a private hunting retreat for some of America’s wealthiest families – the Morgans, Vanderbilts, Rockefellers, Pulitzers. But after a massive renovation in 1986, it’s now a hotel that even Almeidas can enjoy!

We’ve stayed in the The Clubhouse a few times, and love the sun porch off the front of the room. Located at the heart of the resort, it was built 1888 in the American Queen Anne style, and it’s absolutely beautiful! We’ve also enjoyed the Crane Cottage, which could more accurately be called the Crane Mansion because of it’s size and luxurious old-world style. (We take a family picture next to it each time we visit!) The cottage is known for its sunken garden, lush courtyard, and elegant fountains, and it’s considered the most lavish of the cottages on the island! This time we stayed in Sans Souci, a six-unit apartment building built in 1896, that was owned in part by J.P. Morgan. The building is considered one of the nation’s first condominiums, and we loved the way it’s been preserved over the years! Our room had a big porch overlooking the river where we we spent a lot of time sitting in the rocking chairs.

We spent an afternoon at the club pool, and an evening at Driftwood Beach. This hidden strip of beach is located on the north end of the island and is sometimes described as a tree graveyard. The pictures don’t even do it justice! The most recent hurricanes to hit the southeast did a lot of damage to this beach, but it’s still beautiful. We also enjoyed an entire day at the island’s water park, Summer Waves. We raced down the water slides, floated around Turtle Creek (lazy river style), and rode the waves in the Frantic Atlantic wave pool. One afternoon we were tired after all our exploring, so we hopped on a trolley tour and rode around the historic district. Kingston was pumped because we got to go inside Faith Chapel and two of the cottages that we haven’t been in before. He kept standing right in front of our tour guide and asking questions like, “Excuse me! Did this home originally have gas or electricity?” ha! Our guide was awesome and answered all of his questions with a smile!

We ate at our favorite restaurants on the island: The Wharf (On property and located right on the pier. This is a great place to eat outside while listening to live music and enjoy the menu that focuses on Southern favorites.), Driftwood Bistro (One of the strangest hole-in-the-wall spots with the BEST home-style dishes!), The Reserve (Our favorite breakfast/brunch place located inside the Westin Hotel. We always get the breakfast buffet on weekends!), The Pantry (Also on property and a great spot for coffee and quick to-go items.)

Jekyll Island continues to be one of our favorite spots for a quick getaway! If you haven’t been yet, check out The Jekyll Island Club rates for next week here. They’re some of the lowest I’ve seen in a long time!