Once you pull up to the beach/ocean front resort you immediately feel transported to a Mediterranean paradise. The buildings are all painted a pale yellow with beautiful golden brown/red stucco. The streets are lined with a mix of palm and magnolia trees. The tennis courts are a short the King and Prince luxury at affordable prices (check their website and Facebook page for room specials). The fun is free of course.
The King and Prince offers not only the basic necessities you expect when traveling with your family: clean and comfortable rooms, spacious accommodations, plus the option for balconies, patios, and full-kitchens. But they also provide those extra touches that really go a long way in making your vacation that much more special. My favorite moment? Needing extra bath towels (we've all been there right?) and expecting them to arrive in about 30 minutes. Not at the King and Prince! I made a phone call, and within 5 minutes our additional towels arrived - now that's service!
A Room With A View
When I tell you that this resort is literally a few steps away from the beach, I'm not joking. The ability to be able to walk down the ocean without having to pack the kids in the car, and later vacuum all that sand out of it is worth the stay alone.
The proximity to the beach was probably my favorite part about staying at the King and Prince and is one of the top reasons we're planning on staying there again on our return visit next year. The convenience of having the beach right on your doorstep really inspires you to get out and take a stroll along the beach each morning.
The hotel boosts 14 different styles of rooms, suites, cottages or villas, so there is something for everyone. We stayed in an ocean front suite with a veranda and BEAUTIFUL view of the pool and the Atlantic Ocean. Every day we woke up we had to joke about feeling like we were on a cruise ship sailing over the Atlantic. We were literally that close to the water. This was our view from the balcony of our room. Paradise right?
We stayed in an Ocean Suite which not only had all of the amenities we needed - large flat-screen television, mini-fridge, complimentary Wi-Fi - but the room was SPACIOUS! It was large enough to fit a desk as well as a couch and coffee table.
There was also a separate area to do hair and make-up so no one was fighting for the mirror in the bathroom.
Southern Cuisine
Two words: Crab Mac-N-Cheese. This became my food staple while at the resort (don't forget we would get up and walk the beach in the morning so I thought the extra calories would be OK!). I ate this for lunch and dinner, and even tried to replicate it when we got back home (my version was good, but nothing close to this delightful and tasty dish.
The King and Prince has two dining options: The Ocean Terrace Grille, which serves food poolside , and the King's Tavern which is where we ate breakfast, lunch and dinner and is great for casual family dining. Both offer oceanfront dining. Ocean Terrace Grille serves up tropical drinks, salads, seafood and sandwiches. At the King's Tavern you'll find a breakfast buffet with an omelet station and everything from chicken and waffles to shrimp and grits on the lunch and dinner menus. Both restaurants have children's menus.
The Beach/Pool
For kids, the hotel pool tends to be the main attraction. And for many if they had their choice, they would be just as content staying in the pool all day if mom and dad allowed it. Fortunately for them (and you) the King and Prince has SIX unique pools for toddlers, kids and adults. Since my daughter doesn't yet know how to swim, she felt most comfortable in the toddler pool so that's where we spent our pool time. The toddler pool is a nice size that has levels from 1 foot to about 3 feet. There's also a cute water feature/fountain inside the pool for kids to walk and splash under, and right next to it a sand play area.
We've been to hotels and resorts where the pool wasn't crowded but the seating options were and in some cases we'd have to walk the pool deck several times before we could find a couple of chairs -with no shade options of course. That was NEVER the case at the King and Prince during our stay. Even during peak pool hours there always seemed to be plenty of chairs available with lots of umbrellas too if you didn't want to bake!
The King and Prince also offers daily children's activities poolside. It's a nice break from the water and while we were there, we got to make paper jellyfish and a cute "beach in a bottle" craft.
The beach really has a nice undisturbed and preserved feel to it. It's lined with fine, hard, white packed sand. So it's very easy to walk across without feeling like you're sinking in it. This was probably one of the reasons it seemed people loved to get up early and take walks along the beach.
The beach also never felt crowded to me on the resort side, which make the experience that much more enjoyable. Along with other beach goers we had fun looking for shells along the shore, finding crabs and helping our daughter make "chocolate soup" with her sand bucket and shovel.
You can rent beach umbrellas by the hour or for the day right from the hotel.
Adults Only
The King and Prince offers 18-hole golf (off of the resort property) if you want to spend some time on the course. It's an award-winning course with holes across the island's creeks and marshes.
Also, while we were there, my husband got a massage at the Royal Treatment Cottage. I can recommend this if you want to add a little quiet time to your trip as he came back refreshed and relaxed, and said he thoroughly enjoyed the treatment.
There's so much to do and see on St. Simon's Island but the wonderful thing about the King and Prince is that if you're just looking for a family beach vacation and not much more, the resort alone is the perfect place to sit back, relax and call home for a few days.
If You Go
From Atlanta, St. Simon's Island is approximately a 5 hour road trip. If you prefer to fly into the Jacksonville airport, it's about an hour's drive north.
