Welcome to 2020. The year when we all need a vacation but how and where to vacation is more elusive than ever. Well, I have good news for you. Holiday Inn Resort at Jekyll Island is the perfect vacation. It provides a place where you can truly escape and relax with minimal worries of coronavirus exposure or restrictions.
Our trip was courtesy of Holiday Inn Resort Jekyll Island.
Traveling to Jekyll Island from the Upstate
Jekyll Island is part of the barrier islands on the southern Georgia coast known as the Golden Isles. It took us about 5 hours to travel to Jekyll Island from the Upstate. Our trip took us through Columbia and then along the South Carolina/Georgia coast.
Jekyll Island is a Georgia State Park, and vehicles are charged an $8 daily parking fee. You only have to pay the fee when you enter the island.
Our Stay at Holiday Inn Resort Jekyll Island
Holiday Inn Resort is located right at the coast and offers beach front access directly in front of the hotel.
Each room has outdoor access and individual air conditioner units. We did have to check in via the lobby, but the staff member wore a mask.
The hotel is structured where every room has a double room with an ocean room seating area and balcony/patio and a bedroom. Some of the rooms even have family set-ups with bunk beds. I love double rooms because I have kids and it’s so nice to have enough space to put the kids to bed earlier than adults. Both rooms had TVs.
When we arrived I was excited to find a full-size fridge with a freezer. It’s so nice to be able to pack sandwich supplies to keep kids full and happy at the beach. The room even had dishes, a couple pots and pans, and a portable stove unit. It wasn’t anything fancy but enough where you could also bring food to cook a simple stove-top dinner instead of going out if you wanted.
Our room was very clean on arrival. Be aware though that house keeping during stays is limited due to COVID-19. We only had new towels dropped of our first morning, but the other morning we did have some minimal service included beds being made and trash picked up. I didn’t personally find it to be an issue but it’s good to be mentally prepared that you may be on your own for keeping your room tidy.
The Beach Front at Holiday Inn Resort Jekyll Island
One fabulous thing about staying at the Holiday Inn Resort is that there is a good deal of beach front right in front of the hotel. We found the beach to be delightfully uncrowded during our stay. There was enough room for almost everyone to have their own beach front area. Even taking into account the additional guests on the weekends, to me it looked like there was enough space to not be crowded.
Other Amenities at Holiday Inn Resort Jekyll Island
The property had a playground and outdoor pool, both were open.
The pool was limited to the main swimming area. The kiddie pool and the hot tub were both closed due to COVID-19 restrictions. We did swim in the pool and while it was more crowded than the beach, we were able to distance fairly well from others as it was a large pool.
Chair and umbrella rentals are available on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays. You are allowed to bring your own shade structures on the beach as well.
Adult bike rentals are available at the resort. You can also rent bikes from other vendors on the island if you need other sizes. While most of the rental places were not open on weekdays during our trip, they are now open each day.
The Beach House Restaurant at Holiday Inn Resort Jekyll Island
We ate two complimentary meals at The Beach House Restaurant. Kids eat free at the restaurant for all meals.
The prices were reasonable and the staff was friendly. Our waitress wore a mask and there was plenty of seating outdoors. We did have to walk indoors to be seated.
Our food was delicious on both the breakfast and the dinner menu. We tried a variety of foods from traditional chicken fingers and chips to salads.
They were serving a limited menu during our stay due to COVID-19 supply issues, but we had no issues still finding something that we all enjoyed eating.
The restaurant is on the property and is in easy walking distance from all of the rooms.
Our Adventures on Jekyll Island
You can find a full list of places to visit (including the scenic Driftwood Beach), where to eat, and tons of fun things to do in our full article about Jekyll Island.
Do you have a favorite place to stay at Jekyll Island? We would love to hear about it in the comments.
Thank you for the review! We just stayed there for a week at the end of March 2021 and the rooms were lean and comfortable. I hope you got to eat the fried okra at the Driftwood Bistro, there’s nothing like it..