Hotel at a Glance: Payne’s Harbor View Inn

Block Island floats off the coast of Rhode Island, with Montauk to the south and Martha’s Vineyard to the north. These islands are in good company: like its more famous neighbors, Block Island is steeped with small-town charm, sea breezes, and ocean views. In the town of New Shoreham, guests at Payne’s Harbor View Inn can walk to the beach, only two hundred yards away, and settle down in the sand with hotel-provided beach towels and chairs. When they’ve had enough sun and surf, visitors can return to the inn to rock in a chair on the inn’s double-decker porch or take a stroll to the center of town, less than a mile away.

• In-room amenities include private baths, antique furniture, and views of New Harbor. Some of the rooms salso have whirlpool tubs.
• Greet the morning with a free continental breakfast.
• Area attractions: Including Mohegan Bluffs, about 2.5 mi. from the inn, a popular photo op spot thanks to its craggy cliffs, Clay Bluffs, numerous hiking trails popular with bird watchers, and fishing charters.

Block Island, Rhode Island: Peaceful Retreat with Wildlife Refuge

It’s a tiny island—not even 10 square miles—but Block Island has been the preferred retreat of some big guests, including Presidents Grant, Franklin Roosevelt, Eisenhower, and Clinton, as well as Amelia Earhart and Charles Lindbergh. Located 14 miles from Long Island’s eastern tip and 13 miles from the Rhode Island coast, Block Island packs astounding diversity into its limited space—marshlands, soft beaches, undulating sand dunes, and serene salt ponds all have a home here. For the best scenic view, head to the island’s southern end to the Mohegan Bluffs, 150-foot-tall clay cliffs that overlook the Atlantic.

Block Island was named “one of the last great places” by the Nature Conservancy, which noted that 43 percent of the island is protected. More than 40 endangered or rare species live here, many in the Block Island National Wildlife Refuge. Many visitors come to the refuge for fishing or viewing wildlife, especially piping plovers, a rare, sand-colored shorebird.