Experience the Block Island way of life. Stay at an authentic, old island boarding house for the local fishing community at Sea Breeze Block Island.
We stepped into our bedroom on the second floor after a hot and humid afternoon biking through the rolling hills of Block Island. We opened up the windows and a cooling sea breeze began to fill the room. The room began to cool instantly. Pat and I looked at each other within minutes and both said, “That sea breeze feels amazing.” I closed my eyes and tasted the salty-fresh sea breeze as it flowed in one open window and out the other. That’s when it clicked, that’s why this Block Island Bed and Breakfast is called Sea Breeze Block Island.
The property hasn’t maintained it’s authentic Block Island charm all on it’s own. It’s received a lot of help in recent years. Today Seabreeze is owned by Andrea Moynier. The property was bought and taken over in the 70s by Andrea and her family. Her mother was an artist and established The Sea Breeze Gallery on the premise. Andrea’s family fixed up the buildings, planted the garden, built the red-brick path, and opened the Sea Breeze Bed and Breakfast in 1983. 2019 marked the properties 36th year in business! They are still maintaining the properties Block Island charm and continue to be successful at it.
Sea Breeze Block Island Bed and Breakfast is located on the corner of a winding road just steps from Old Harbor in New Shoreham. A small red brick driveway brings you to 4 traditional New England-style cottages with 10 rooms. The choices for where to stay in Block Island fall into 2 basic categories: newer, bigger hotels or intimate inns and bed and breakfasts that have been on Block Island for 100 years or more. We stayed in the latter. The Sea Breeze was an old island boarding house for the local fishing community. Staying at this small Block Island Bed and Breakfast was like a crash course in the island’s history. The island was a quiet paradise for fisherman and farmers for a large part of its history until the late 19th-century. It’s easy to imagine what living on Block Island in the 1930s was like at the Sea Breeze inn.
The General Manager, Corey, greeted us upon arrival. Corey is a smiling, laidback, young local guy who emits extremely upbeat and genuine Block Island vibes. He showed us our way around the property, gave us some stellar, very detailed recommendations on what to do, and gave us his personal phone number should we need anything or any additional recommendations at any point during our trip. We were staying in Room 5, in the Inlet Cottage facing the backyard sitting area. The room had a view of Sea Breeze Block Island’s private East facing protected conservation land rich in wildflower meadows, perennial gardens, and Spring pond.
Today, the historical roots of Sea Breeze’s well-preserved cottages come alive in the quaint island furnishings carefully placed in the private and public areas, the well-kept garden, and warm service of the staff. Outside of the ground floor is a water dispenser that is constantly filled with chilled fresh lemon water and complimentary beach towels for guests. On the first floor of the cottage is a common area with book shelves, chairs, and a small kitchenette, perfect to escape the heat. In case of rain, the room is stocked with rainy day items a selection of books, games, umbrellas, and puzzles. Corey, the General Manager of Sea Breeze Block Island, rents bicycles only available for guests. In the spirit of sustainability and staying active, bikes were our primary mode of transportation during our 3 days on Block Island. They are available for rent: $30 for 24 hours and $20 for a 12 hours. The bicycles are equipped with baskets for toting lunch, swimsuits, sunscreens, towels, and more. We headed up to the second floor where we found a small lounge area with hints of teal and pink next to our bedroom door.
Room 5 has wooden furnishings with beautiful hand painted details on them. There is a large closet and a roomy dresser. It has a small table in the corner where we could enjoy breakfast if we didn’t choose to go outside, a comfortable sofa chair, and a plush high-top bed. We could view Spring Pond and the ocean from our bedroom window. As mentioned, sustainability is at the core and heart of the island, so you won’t find any radios, TVs, wi-fi, or air conditioning in the rooms. But it’s almost a sense of relief. For those looking to completely unplug and just immerse themselves in the outdoors, the Sea Breeze inn is the place to be. At first we were concerned about not having A/C in the room, but we soon realized that the Sea Breeze stayed so cool that we didn’t need it at all during our stay.
The rooms have authentic, hand painted island furnishings, something you won’t find in many places on Block Island. The original artwork in the room is curated from The Sea Breeze Gallery, the first mixed-media gallery on the island, which was established in 1980 on site. Handmade pottery and handblown glassware add little hints of something special too the room. Beautiful hand-selected linens and fabric give it that elevated island-vibe.
We stepped out into the backyard that offers magnificent ocean and coastline vista views. We enjoyed our breakfasts out here almost every morning. Colorful lawn chairs and tables dot the edge of the property as they overlook Spring pond and the ocean. An outdoor shower is available for those who wish to rinse off after a quick dip. A small trail leads down to the freshwater pond. On the way there you walk by a hammock, a perfect spot for reading a book or taking a nap away from the crowds. They even have a kayak available at the end of the pond for those who are interested.
The entire staff is extremely mindful of resources, including water. Water is a precious resource on the island. Sea Breeze sources it naturally from a well on the property and it’s potable. Because of how valuable water is on the property, they do ask that guests limit time spent in showers and try to reuse towels as often as possible. Sea Breeze Block Island comes with rooms with shared bathrooms and private bathrooms. We had a shared bathroom on the second floor that featured a tiled shower with all the necessities including a hair dryer, shampoo, conditioner, and body wash. To stay in line with the theme of sustainability, Sea Breeze Block Island offers bathroom products provided by EO Bath Products, another eco-friendly and sustainable essential oil brand. I absolutely loved the feeling of their body wash after a long day at the beach and the products had an amazing lingering lavender and zesty citrusy scent.
If there was one part of my stay I loved the most, it was breakfast. Every morning at either 8AM or 9AM (your choice!), the staff knocks on your door and drops off a cute picnic basket with your morning breakfast. Lucky for us, this intimate service is included in the room rate! A fresh continental breakfast is served everyday with ingredients from their garden or neighboring farms and local bakeries. Breakfast changes every day. While we were there we were served baked brioche french toast with fresh berries and maple syrup on Friday, and avocado toast with sun-dried tomato spread and egg and seasonal fresh fruit on Saturday. It was all served with our choice of hot and cold beverages.
Pat and I were looking to live the “simple life” for a few days and that’s exactly what Sea Breeze Block Island gave us. A huge part of living this simple life includes sustainability: less consumption and more conscious contentment with what you have. Our time at Sea Breeze Block Island helped us readjust our priorities and bring some clarity and self-control into our lives. Every decision made on the property and every piece of advice given to guests is done with intent. What Sea Breeze Block Island strives to do is share this knowledge they have from continuous support and interaction within the local community and subtly educate guests on the benefits of this uninterrupted, untainted Block Island lifestyle. Rooms start at $95 p/night during low season.
Disclosure: This is a sponsored post for Sea Breeze Block Island. All opinions remain my own and I was in no way influenced by the company.
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