On Island Time – Our Trip to The Cloister
First off, I should say The Cloister is a wonderful place to travel to if you are wanting to self- distance and nervous about Covid. It’s a very safe and clean place. Everything is 5 star. You are currently required to wear a mask inside the property but not outside which most everything we did was outside. The staff always is wearing masks so very safe! The resort is so large you honestly didn’t see that many people except at the pool and restaurants at night.
The rooms are beautiful!! They are so spacious and newly renovated and decorated. We stayed in the main building in a River Room. The room overlooked the river and marshland which we loved. Very quiet and peaceful over there. It’s very easy to get everywhere from that location. It’s located right outside the gardens too. In the am, they are now offering coffee and pastries in the main building right outside La Tavola, the Italian Restaurant, at night. Normally it’s located in the library area but with Covid they serve you to keep it safe. They also offer coffee and cookies in the same spot from 3-5ish. They have lattes as well. Love a place with great coffee. :)
Brett and I had booked some things prior to the trip like spa, golfing and dinners. We did not book dinner for the first night which ended up working out but if you plan on traveling there make sure you book in advance because everything is pretty much booked when you get there and the concierges were not very accommodating. So, we didn’t want plans for everything and thought it would be easy to eat at any of the several restaurants there however not all the restaurants were open. The first night we ate at the bowling alley called Sea Stripes because we wanted something SUPER casual. Ended up being local’s night and was pretty fun. The food is like bar food but actually really good. Recommend getting the pretzel for an appetizer. You can bowl there too and you can reserve lanes so sign up in advance. The second night we ate at the Italian restaurant called La Tavola. It was delicious. Highly recommend. They have homemade pastas, pizzas, steak and seafood. It’s also where they are serving breakfast in the morning. For breakfast the avocado toast is excellent. The third night we ate off property at Delany’s Bistro. This was recommended by a family friend and was delicious. We loved all of our food and our waiter was wonderful too. Note, it took us about 45 minutes to find an Uber so once again I would recommend renting a car if you plan to go off property to shop, eat etc.
The last night we went to The Lodge. The Lodge is where the golf courses are and it’s about 10 minutes from The Cloister. The Cloister does provide a shuttle back and forth all day. This was our favorite night by far. Every night from 5-6, a bagpiper closes out the day on the golf course and you can get drinks, watch the sunset, putt around and watch the bagpiper. Not to mention it’s beautiful out there. After that we grabbed appetizers and drinks on the back porch of the clubhouse for dinner. The oysters were fantastic. We love east coast oysters. It was the perfect evening to end our trip.
Throughout our entire stay you can truly do as little or as much as you want to do. Brett golfed 2 out of the 3 days we were there. He said it was probably some of the most beautiful courses he has ever played on. He also loved that they assign you a caddy. He thought that was pretty cool. As for me, I just wanted to beach it, relax by the pool and go to the spa. If you plan on going to the pool, the chairs fill up quickly so get there early to grab a good chair. The drinks were fantastic but are pricey, if you got any drink with liquor it was about $23. The snack shack was open for lunch so that’s where we grabbed a quick bite to eat every day for lunch. The beach was beautiful and had plenty of chairs out so don’t worry about that. They also provide towels so you don’t have to worry about bringing those. The spa was fantastic. I had a 90-minute-deep tissue massage and it was great. You could take off your mask when you were face down but when you turned over you would have to put your mask back on. Overall the spa was great and I definitely recommend it if you want to truly relax.
One of my most favorite things to do every morning was go on my run. It’s so beautiful there and I enjoyed running on the main street so much. The houses are gorgeous so I loved looking at the architecture. If you like to exercise, I recommend walking, running or renting bikes to explore the property.
Overall the trip was perfect. It was just what Brett and I needed to recharge. We will definitely be going back. It would be a great place to take kids too in the future. They had lots of activities for kids. If you are interested in shopping the island of St. Simons has the Tibi outlet which I’ve been too before and they always have the latest new arrivals but also lots of great sale items that you can only find there. I also was told they have The Bailey Boys outlet. Sadly, I didn’t make it there this trip but next time!! Some of the restaurants were not open but I have heard they are all wonderful. I guess there are plenty of reasons to go back :) Thanks Sea Island for an amazing trip Brett and I will never forget! If I left anything out please don’t hesitate to ask. Until next time!
Xo
Caroline
