Having checked the posts here I have noticed very little recent info on St. Simon's.

My husband & I are interested in spending a few days there on the way down to Florida in the late fall. Would love to hear from anyone who has been there recently. We would like to stay in a smaller place and not in a chain hotel and we are willing to spend up to $250 a night.

Thanks for any help you can offer.

St. Simons is mostly residential, and there are not many hotels, which is why you aren't finding much in your search for posts. There are a few chains such as Holiday Inn Express and Hampton Inn. Both of those are actually pretty nice (but not on the beach). The big St. Simons hotels are the King and Prince, and Sea Palms. You may be able to get a deal at the K & P or Sea Palms due to the bad economy. I can only think of a couple of smaller inns, Sea Gate and the Village Inn. both are older properties.

What about the island next door and stay at the Jekyll Island Club? It is just gorgeous.

we enjoyed Sea Palms. I would try there. I bet you could find some deals.
The town is so cute! Fun restaurants and cute shops!

Let me say "cute" one more time!..... Ugh

I stayed at a hotel with the signage "No Pets or Intoxicants".
Sound appealing?

Just kidding. Sort of. I really did, BUT...

at that price point I'd pick the King and Prince

www.kingandprince.com

Restaurant suggestions -

I can HIGHLY recommend the restaurant at the marina (as you coming on the island) - Coastal Kitchen

Loco's also delivers if you want some food brought to you.

I ate at a great little sandwich place at Ocean Blvd and Neptune - the Boulevard Cafe. GREAT sandwich named Avolaunch or something like that. Basically a BLT with avocado added. Fresh baked cookies, etc too. Cute gift shop next door. It's close to the King and Prince too.

My BFF goes down twice a year with childhood friends (who all honeymooned at the Cloister) and on the last trip they really enjoyed Gnat's Landing and Bonefish. Bonefish is a small chain but has really good seafood.

Barbara Jean's is a perennial favorite. And, for basic, casual seafood you can't beat the Crab Trap.

Thanks everyone for all your suggestions. We have looked at the King & Prince and Sea Palms but were hoping to find something smaller and less resort-like. The Village Inn looks interesting but it does get mixed reviews.

We don't necessarily have to be on the beach.

Starrs - thanks for those restaurant reviews. A friend did mention Barbara Jean's to me so glad to have another recommendation.

GoTravel - don't know much about Jekyll except very quiet and the Jekyll Island Club seems to be the only recommended place.

Well, someone was staying at the Village Inn while I was in my "No Pets and Intoxicants" hotel and loved it. She had a VIP flying in for the event and two thumbs up from her too.

I'm kidding about my hotel. Telling the truth, but kidding. It is a typical old Holiday Inn style hotel room but on the grounds of church conference center. The grounds are GORGEOUS and overlook the river. You can stay there even if you aren't associated with a conference taking place there. Nothing fancy but I'd stay there again when I want a basic clean room with gorgeous grounds to stroll on in the mornings/ afternoons. Can't relax with a glass of wine though Let me know if you want info. It's not for everyone, but I did enjoy it.

Another idea is to rent a condo or cottage. Check local rental agencies or VRBO. There was an open house for a triplex that was up for sale and that kind of rental apartment would be nice to stay in if you were there for several days.

Starrs - your hotel sounds very nice but don't think I could give up my daily wine tipple unless it was something really special ... maybe not even then! Curious as to how they would know if you had a drink while you were there???

Oh what the heck - send me the info just in case.

Right now I am leaning towards the Village Inn but willing to consider other suggestions. Don't think we want to rent a condo or cottage just for 2-3 days.

Do the Village Inn. They loved it. I think you will too. And, it's a perfect "happy hour place".

Funny thing about the afternoon tipple. That was a REALLY long day. I'd driven about 1.5 hours to work a full day and THEN drove down to the coast to get ready for the next day. After I got off I95, I was looking for a package store. The plan was to "relax" a bit when I got there. But, I was too tired to stop. How would they know? Dunno, but I'm pretty much a rule follower on church conference grounds. LOL! I was too tired to go out and ordered something from Loco's. Pretty good, especially the broccoli (of all things).

I STRONGLY recommend the Coastal Kitchen. You'll love the ambiance and the food is great. The service was wonderful. It's my local friend's favorite place on the island.

Thanks Starrs. The Village Inn it is. Didn't really want to give up "happy hour" and like you not a rule breaker.

Will definitely try the Coastal Kitchen and Loco's sounds good for take-out. Actually, planning to try all your suggestions.

Thanks again.

You're welcome. Have a great time!
Do check out Jekyll too. Spend an afternoon there looking at the "cottages" (ha!) in the historic district.
I like walking the beach on Jekyll and it's a great place to bike. Rent a bike and just bike on the sidewalk around the island. I think the total change in elevation is 4 feet
If you like to kayak, take a tour with the nature center on Jekyll through the marshes. A really great experience. One of my favorites ever.

Thanks again Starrs for this extra information - will definitely rent bikes and do that. Never kayaked but sounds interesting. We should have time to get everything in.

Starrs: don't want to highjack this thread, but you seem to be talking about the Methodist Conference Center on St. Simon's.
Funny thing is, we've stayed there twice and LOVED it!!
It is inexpensive, even for the best rooms, and the grounds are lovely, and the food's not bad.
BUT, I am definitely a wine drinker, and I don't remember NOT drinking there!! I guess we must have gone out to dine other places, and just had our lunches at Epworth by the Sea.

Also, I remember a great place to eat, nothing fancy, but excellent food, called "The Fourth of May" (or was it the "Fifth") because all the owners had that birthday.

Is it still there??? Thanks for the memory!

Yes, I was.
The sign on the back of the door and the paper envelope for the key both said "No Pets or Intoxicants" LOL! But, I loved the center, the grounds and the basic hotel room was just fine.

Fourth of May is still there.

I'm headed that way this weekend. Yay!

Thanks, Starrs - I guess we just blocked that message out of our minds. But I don't think we would have "disobeyed" the rules. Just can't remember that part! It is a great place for a holiday! Lucky you!

They may have added it.
I sure got a chuckle out of it

It IS a nice, moderate, family style place to stay.

But, I'm going back to Jekyll this time!