The Best Beach Hotels to Book in Rhode Island

This boujee surfer-chic hotel is an ideal rest stop whatever the season – every one of its 16 rooms has a fireplace and heated bathroom floors. Situated just one street away from Narragansett Beach and the Point Judith Lighthouse, you don’t have to walk far to feel the ocean breeze. Pool more your flex? The Break’s pool is outdoors, heated and open all year. Top it off with an espresso martini from the hotel’s acclaimed restaurant, Chair 5, ordered straight to the pool deck.

Built in 1800 and originally a thriving Rhode Island beach hotel for New York City singers and artists, the recently renovated Shelter Harbor Inn proudly displays its past with on-site musical events and themed decor throughout. Situated within three acres (1.2ha) of lush greenery, you can also work up an appetite with a couple of sets on the outdoor tennis court. There’s no better place to sate that hunger than at the Farmhouse Kitchen + Bar – the contemporary American restaurant specializing in farm-to-fork dining.

With views overlooking the beautiful Crescent Beach, the Block Island Beach House offers the only beachfront hotel rooms on Block Island. The decor throughout is attentive – beachfront abodes are design-led, bold and vintage-influenced, while the new Gables suites (across the road from the main house) exude calm through neutral tones. Thirsty? Sip the hotel specialty frosé on one of the House Beach Bar’s contemporary beach sofas and wonder how you’ll ever leave.

Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the Rhode Island beachfront hotel Harborside Inn could not be closer to the sleepy thrills and spills of Thames Street – Block Island’s main drag. It looks over the Old Harbor and is literal steps from the beach – while the independent shops, restaurants and movie theater are all within a popcorn’s flick away. Intrigued to see how the other half live? Take a three-block walk to Bellevue Avenue and take in the ornate mansions that span the centuries.

This skyline-dominating mansion has a privileged spot on Newport’s Cliff Walk, which takes in the area’s mansions and wildflower spotted shoreline. Escape holiday crowds in Chanler’s manicured gardens that offer widescreen ocean views. The 20 bespoke rooms encourage opulence without the stuffiness – an ethos shared by Cara, the Forbes four-star signature restaurant at the hotel. It offers blind five-course or eight-course tasting menus that combine modern European fare with hyperlocal ingredients.

The Castle Hill Inn was built in 1875 and combines 19th-century hospitality with new world comforts like a boutique spa, where you can submerge yourself in luxury products composed from organic American ingredients. The varying room decor reflects the environment – the best views in town are the beach cottages overlooking a cove from atop sand dunes on the hotel’s private beach. Whichever room you take, you won’t be stumped for natural environs – this Rhode Island beachfront hotel is situated on its own 40-acre (16ha) peninsula.

This newly built beachfront hotel in Rhode Island is situated in pretty Middletown, just 3mi (5km) from Newport – the area’s shopping, dining and cultural hub. The hotel is a honeypot for tennis fans, thanks to being walking distance to the International Tennis Hall of Fame – with its interactive museum, outdoor courts and six indoor courts. Prefer a more sedate break? Order an unctuous lobster roll and a chilled Narragansett Lager at Johnny’s Restaurant & Patio.

With the harbor’s buzzing thoroughfare of yachts and cobbled streets literally steps from this Rhode Island beachfront hotel’s door, you are reliably close to the action. The heated indoor saltwater pool and sauna can offer a little escape for those in need. Flagship restaurant Saltwater offers a “serious casual” approach: expect modern all-day dining and drinks, with deconstructed New England clam chowder the most local of delicacies.

This opulent Victorian manor house has been updated with eclectic details inspired by the life and work of 20th-century painter Beatrice Turner. Gas fireplaces are in every room – although turned off June-October – where you’ll also find luxury bath products made by Lather, plus kimono robes for every guest. Looking for some entertainment? Thames Street’s buzzing bars and restaurants serving local seafood fare are a 20-minute stroll away.