A former hunting lodge transformed into fifty clapboard cottages along the May River, this Lowcountry retreat channels authentic Southern architecture with screened porches and pine-floored interiors. The 13,000-square-foot spa offers Tata Harper treatments, while the Audubon-certified Jack Nicklaus course shares fairways with resident bald eagles. A Cadillac partnership lets guests explore Savannah in style—ideal for families and golfers seeking seclusion between two coastal destinations.
Where to Stay
On a barrier island where armadillos wander the dunes and turtles graze across manicured lawns, this beachfront retreat pairs Southern hospitality with refined leisure. Chef Okan Kizilbayir, formerly of Le Bernardin, helms Salt restaurant with masterful seafood preparations. The spa's zero-gravity hammock massage offers singular relaxation, while golf, tennis, horseback riding, and sailing fill active days. Families find excellent kids' programming throughout.
Twin 19th-century Italianate townhouses on Gaston Street contain sixteen rooms where period architectural details meet contemporary luxury. Mornings begin with an Indian-accented breakfast; evenings culminate at the bar, its opening announced by a saber-struck Champagne bottle. A compact spa rounds out the amenities. The intimate scale and theatrical rituals suit travelers who prefer character-driven stays over conventional hotel formulas.
A 19th-century Victorian mansion overlooking Forsyth Park, Hotel Bardo channels Mediterranean sophistication through romantic retro interiors and an atmosphere that oscillates between resort calm and private club energy. The 149 rooms occupy a sympathetic red-brick addition, spacious with oversized baths. Saint Bibiana delivers coastal Italian cooking, while the spa and expansive pool deck reward those seeking both style and substance.
A converted loft building steps from the river walk, the Andaz brings contemporary edge to historic Savannah. Rooms pop with bold color—scarlet chairs, leopard-print sofas—against a cool urban backdrop. Daily wine tastings and custom-roasted coffee punctuate the stay, while the restaurant delivers modern Southern cooking with local flair. An outdoor pool, pet-friendly policy, and nearby golf round out the appeal for travelers seeking style without stuffiness.
An 1860s cotton warehouse turned Coca-Cola bottling plant now houses 145 rooms dressed in Arco-inspired lamps, Italian linens, and modern four-poster beds. The adults-only morning hours at the outdoor pool offer rare quiet, while Pacci Italian Kitchen delivers Wednesday supper club menus and weekend Punch Drunk Brunch. Pet-friendly policies and complimentary bicycles suit travelers mixing historic district exploration with laid-back Southern comfort.
Theatrical interiors channel a gothic-romantic fantasy—think Titanic reimagined by Tim Burton—across 75 rooms overlooking Savannah's riverfront district. Rocks on the River delivers American comfort food and Neapolitan pizzas at street level, while the rooftop bar pours craft cocktails against panoramic water views. Pet-friendly policies and complimentary bikes suit travelers eager to explore the historic squares on two wheels.
A New York-rooted boutique brand finds its Southern footing in Savannah's revitalized Eastern Wharf district. The Thompson's 193 rooms channel mid-century modern design softened by local artworks and warm regional character. Days drift between the pool deck's in-water loungers and Bar Julian's rooftop panoramas over the river, while Fleeting restaurant anchors the experience with seasonal, locally sourced cooking that shifts with the calendar.
Against Savannah's backdrop of historic squares and antebellum architecture, Perry Lane strikes a deliberately modern chord. Rooms start at over 400 square feet, dressed in Frette linens and stocked with Byredo amenities, their walls hung with eclectic art and vintage books. The Peregrin rooftop surveys the historic district below, while downstairs The Wayward channels rock-and-roll energy in a city known for seersucker and Spanish moss.
Addison Mizner's Spanish-revival architecture sets the tone at this private Georgia island retreat, where Mediterranean details—Turkish rugs, wood-beam ceilings—recall Palm Beach grandeur. Five miles of pristine beach invite horseback rides along the sand, while the Georgian Room delivers refined Southern cuisine in a formal setting. The spa's garden atrium, complete with waterfall whirlpool and outdoor labyrinth, rewards those seeking coastal seclusion with substance.
Where to Eat
Burgundy leather and mahogany paneling frame views of the Plantation Course's 18th hole at this steakhouse within The Lodge at Sea Island. Prime cuts arrive with optional tableside preparation, while the signature Front Porch Lemonade—mixed with a Woodford bourbon blend exclusive to the property—proves the ideal aperitif. Time dinner to catch the nightly bagpiper at sundown from the veranda.
Crystal chandeliers cast light across bas-relief walls and a hand-carved stone fireplace, tables dressed with hand-painted china and silver flatware. Chef Aaron Bellizzi's farm-to-table kitchen delivers refined Southern plates—Atlantic halibut with strawberry and rhubarb, filet de boeuf in Madeira sauce périgueux. The adjacent lounge, all dark mahogany, serves tapas and inventive cocktails for those preferring intimacy over grandeur.
Deep forest-green walls, leather banquettes, and brass fixtures conjure the atmosphere of an elegant hunting lodge beneath crystal chandeliers at this Sea Island destination. The kitchen takes a farm-to-table approach to steakhouse classics—seared foie gras arrives over Vidalia onion pain perdu, short ribs gleam with heirloom tomato glaze. Jacket and tie required; the adjacent Lounge offers sushi and sake in a more relaxed register.
What to Do
Spanish moss drapes the approach to this cottage-style sanctuary, where plantation shutters frame views of the Lowcountry landscape. The signature Amazing Grace Massage unfolds aboard a 1913 antique yacht cruising the May River—a treatment found nowhere else. Couples retreat to private suites for the 2.5-hour Lover's Jubilee ritual, emerging to a relaxation lounge stocked with warm chocolate chip cookies and lemon-infused water.
Salt defines the wellness philosophy at this 27,500-square-foot sanctuary, where Pink Himalayan lamps cast amber light across 26 treatment rooms and warm salt stone massages draw on mineral-rich traditions. The signature Heaven in a Hammock treatment suspends guests in gentle motion during deep tissue work, creating weightlessness. Spa butlers attend to details while a plunge pool plays underwater music, and the Amelia Island Honey Butter Wrap layers organic oils with local honey.
A 2.5-story garden atrium anchors this Georgia coastal retreat, where a preserved olive tree towers above a stone-lined brook and plush seating. Twenty-three treatment rooms deliver bespoke wellness programs spanning nutritional guidance to the signature Pursuit of Happiness ritual. The two-story indoor pool offers panoramic garden views through soaring windows, while a dedicated children's menu ensures younger guests receive their own pampering.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which Savannah squares have the best surrounding accommodations?
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Monterey, Madison, and Lafayette squares anchor the quieter southern portion of the Historic District, where converted mansions tend toward refined aesthetics. Chippewa and Orleans squares sit closer to the activity of Bull Street and Broughton Street shopping. Each square creates its own micro-neighborhood, so properties facing them benefit from green views and reduced street noise despite being minutes from restaurants and galleries.
What distinguishes Lowcountry cuisine in Savannah from other Southern food traditions?
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Lowcountry cooking reflects the coastal geography and Gullah-Geechee heritage specific to this stretch of Georgia and South Carolina. Rice dishes, tidal creek shrimp, blue crab, and okra feature prominently, with West African influences visible in techniques like one-pot rice preparation. Local restaurants interpret these traditions across a spectrum from historically faithful to contemporary adaptations, often sourcing oysters and fish from the same barrier island waters that supplied the city's antebellum kitchens.
Is the Starland District worth visiting for dining and nightlife?
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This former streetcar suburb south of Forsyth Park has emerged as Savannah's creative corridor over the past decade. Restaurants here tend toward inventive Southern cooking and international influences rather than traditional Lowcountry fare, with chefs who trained elsewhere bringing outside perspectives. The cocktail bars occupy converted bungalows and storefronts with a neighborhood feel distinct from River Street's tourist concentration. It's a twenty-minute walk from the Historic District or a quick rideshare.
Nearby Destinations
Explore USASpanish moss drapes over the twenty-two squares that define Savannah's grid, each one a pocket park surrounded by Federal and Regency townhouses converted into intimate properties. The Historic District concentrates most accommodations within walking distance of River Street's converted cotton warehouses, while the Victorian District to the south offers quieter residential settings. Forsyth Park anchors the southern boundary, its fountain a useful landmark for orienting yourself among the neighborhood's oak-shaded streets.
Dining here draws from Lowcountry traditions — shrimp and grits, she-crab soup, oysters from nearby Wassaw Sound — served in spaces ranging from white-tablecloth restaurants along Broughton Street to casual spots on the City Market cobblestones. The bar scene clusters around Congress Street and the emerging Starland District, where craft cocktail rooms occupy former corner stores. Morning coffee rituals unfold on wrought-iron balconies overlooking squares that have barely changed since Oglethorpe planned them in 1733.