Hop the Ferry to Block Island — New England's Best-Kept Girls' Trip

Why Block Island

Here's the thing about Block Island: you've driven past the ferry sign a hundred times on your way to somewhere else. Newport. The Cape. The Hamptons. And you thought, someday. Well, she's your someday.

Thirteen miles out into the Atlantic sits a pork-chop-shaped island that The Nature Conservancy named one of the "Last Great Places" — 40% of it is protected from development, which is a fancy way of saying nobody's building a strip mall out here anytime soon. What you get instead: rolling green moors that look weirdly like Ireland, dramatic clay bluffs, stone walls older than your grandmother, and beaches that go on for miles without a single high-rise blocking the view. No traffic lights. No chain hotels. No pretense. Just salt air, rented mopeds, and the kind of quiet that resets your whole nervous system.

The magic is in the arrival. You don't just drive to Block Island — you board a ferry, watch the mainland shrink behind you, and feel your shoulders drop somewhere around the halfway point. It's a full weekend of Gilded-Age charm and beach-town ease, and it's all reachable without ever leaving New England. This is a two-night, three-day escape — long enough to unwind, short enough to leave you plotting your return before the ferry's even docked back home.

Getting There

The nearest major airport is T.F. Green International (PVD) in Providence — about a 45-minute drive to the ferry terminal at Point Judith in Narragansett.

From there, the Block Island Ferry leaves from Point Judith (Galilee) year-round. You've got two speeds: the traditional ferry (about 55 minutes, open-air top deck, bring a windbreaker and a coffee) or the high-speed catamaran (roughly 30 minutes if you're impatient — and no judgment if you are). In summer, seasonal ferries also run from Newport, RI and New London, CT. Leave the car on the mainland — you won't need it, and the island parking situation will only stress you out. Walk on, and rent your wheels once you land.

Where to Stay

The splurge — Spring House Hotel. The grand dame of Block Island — a sprawling white Victorian perched on a hill above the ocean, open since 1852 and looking every bit the part. Wraparound porch, rocking chairs, a lawn that rolls down toward the water, and a history that includes hosting the likes of Ulysses S. Grant. It's the kind of place where you put on a linen dress just to have a cocktail before dinner. Get the ocean view. You'll thank yourself at sunrise.

The boutique pick — The 1661 Inn & Hotel Manisses. Family-owned, impeccably run, and home to the best breakfast on the island — a legendary garden buffet included with your stay (yes, there are actual llamas and alpacas on the property grounds). The rooms are romantic without being fussy, many with decks and ocean views, and it's walkable to Old Harbor. This is the sweet spot: elevated but not stuffy, exactly the GGC comfort zone.

The charmer — The Atlantic Inn. Set back on six acres up on a hill, this restored 1879 Victorian is all peace and porch views — croquet on the lawn, a knockout sunset from the veranda, and enough distance from the harbor bustle to feel like a genuine retreat. Adults skew toward this one for a reason. Come for the porch cocktails, stay for the hush.

What to Do

Friday Evening — Land, Settle, Sunset

Ferry in, drop your bags, and do not overschedule tonight. Walk into Old Harbor, grab a table at The Oar in New Harbor for a mudslide (their signature, and look up — the ceiling is covered in thousands of decorated oars). Watch the boats come in. Ease into island time. This is not the night to pack in activities.

Saturday Morning — Moped Up and Bluff Out

Rent a moped or a bike from one of the shops near the ferry dock — this is the Block Island rite of passage, and the whole island is your playground. Point yourself toward the Mohegan Bluffs, the island's showstopper: 150-foot clay cliffs plunging to the sea, with a wooden staircase (about 140 steps — worth every one) down to a secluded beach. Up top, the Southeast Lighthouse stands guard in all its brick-red Gothic glory. Bring your camera. This is the photo.

Saturday Afternoon — Beach, Then Lighthouse Number Two

Point the moped north to Crescent Beach (also called Fred Benson Town Beach) — the big, easy, gorgeous stretch where you'll actually want to swim. Lay out, wade in, do nothing productive for two hours. If you've got the energy, keep going all the way to the northern tip for North Light, a granite lighthouse standing alone at the end of a sandy spit, with a seal-watching stretch nearby. It's a hike out, but the solitude is the point.

Saturday Night — Dress Up (a Little) and Eat Well

Clean up and head to Eli's — the island's tiny, beloved dinner spot where the portions are huge, the pasta is legendary, and reservations are a contact sport (they take a limited number, so call the moment you land). If Eli's is booked, Persephone's Kitchen does a beautiful farm-to-table thing, and Mohegan Café & Brewery in Old Harbor pours their own beer with a harbor view. Order the local oysters somewhere tonight. You're on an island. It's the law.

Sunday Morning — The Manisses Breakfast and a Slow Goodbye

If you stayed at the 1661, you already know: the garden breakfast buffet is the move. If not, wander into town for a proper morning — coffee, a walk along the harbor, one last poke through the shops. Then catch your ferry. Sit on the top deck. Watch the island slip away behind you and start planning the next one.

What to Pack

• A windbreaker or light layer. The ferry deck is breezy and island evenings cool off fast, even in July. Shop (affiliate link)
• Comfortable sandals you can actually walk in. Cobblestones, beach paths, and moped foot pegs demand it. Shop (affiliate link)
• A wide-brim hat. Those bluffs are exposed and the sun is real out on the water. Shop (affiliate link)
• A dry bag or beach tote. One that survives sand, salt spray, and a moped basket. Shop (affiliate link)
• Reef-safe sunscreen. Because 17 miles of beach is a lot of exposure and the ocean deserves it. Shop (affiliate link)
• A crossbody bag. Hands-free for the ferry, the bluff stairs, and the moped. Shop (affiliate link)

The GGC Bottom Line

Block Island is the rare escape that asks nothing of you. There's no itinerary you have to conquer, no reservation you'll regret missing, no FOMO if you spend the whole afternoon horizontal on Crescent Beach. The island's entire personality is slow down, you're here now.

It's close enough to be easy and just far enough — that ferry ride, that stretch of open water — to feel like a genuine departure. You'll come home windblown, a little sandy, and calmer than you've been in months. That's the whole pitch.

So stop driving past the sign. Board the boat.

Go find your someday.

We'll meet you on the top deck.

Craving more Rhode Island? See our Rhode Island guide and the Providence WaterFire weekend.