Accommodations

The best way to stay on Amelia is to rent a house on a weekly or monthly basis. Few of the beach houses are fancy, but most are spacious, and nearly every one is but a few steps from the beach. Contact Amelia Island Vacation Rentals (800/772-3359, www.ameliaislandvacation.com [1]) for rental information. When researching properties, you’ll need to decide whether you want to stay near Fletcher Avenue in Fernandina Beach [2], in one of the numerous rental properties within the confines of Amelia Island Plantation, or in of the various condo communities on the south side of the island.

Short-term visitors should check out the well-appointed beach-view guest rooms at the Seaside Amelia Inn (2900 Atlantic Ave., 904/206-5300, www.seasideameliainn.com [3], from $109 d). Located at the northern tip of the island close to Fort Clinch State Park [4], the hotel offers clean contemporary guest rooms that are some of the newest on the island.

In downtown Fernandina Beach yet only a few minutes down State Road A1A from the beach is the Hoyt House (804 Atlantic Ave., 904/277-4300, www.hoythouse.com [5], from $139 d), a beautiful and unpretentious bed-and-breakfast. The inn’s 10 guest rooms are housed in a 1905 house that’s perfectly evocative of the historic district’s lost-era elegance.

For a splurge, the Ritz-Carlton Amelia Island (4750 Amelia Island Pkwy., 904/277-1100, www.ritzcarlton.com [6], from $399 d) has all the frills one would expect from the chain. Bracketed by a dense copse of trees at the entrance and opening up to a wide private beach, the hotel offers secluded luxury. An on-site spa, two golf courses, three restaurants, and two lounges give you little reason to leave the property.