Need to know
Rooms
20 suites, each with an assigned boat slip on the hotel's pier or at Albertson Marine (day rates apply).
Check–Out
11am, but flexible, subject to availability. Earliest check-in, 4pm.
More details
A $25 hotel fee is charged for each stay, which includes Continental breakfast, bike hire and beach passes.
Also
The Shoals has an accessible boardwalk, and one of the suites has been adapted with a roll-in shower for those with mobility issues.
At the hotel
Garden terrace with fire pit, food truck, bikes to borrow, a boat to charter (for an extra fee), alfresco showers, boutique, bay-facing lounge, and free WiFi. In rooms: TV, kitchenette, mini fridge and freezer, tea- and coffee-making kit, free bottled water, air-conditioning, steamer, and Malin + Goetz toiletries.
Our favourite rooms
The spacious Grand Suites, set a little further back from the main hotel, are a favourite for us; ochre and navy hues add pops of colour to their otherwise minimalist oak interiors, and there’s a furnished terrace for sundowners. The hotel’s shuck truck may be steps away, but should you wish to cook up your own catches, all the suites are handily equipped with full kitchens, too.
Packing tips
Bring your Moleskine journals for jotting down wine-tasting notes; and your sea legs for watery adventures.
Also
Female-owned business the Little Ram Oyster Co, helmed by mollusc-power-couple Elizabeth Peeples and Stefanie Bassett, has set up shop in the hotel. They also host private shucking workshops and farm tours that you’re welcome to join.
Children
Little Smiths are very welcome, but there’s no kids’ club or babysitting.
Sustainability efforts
The oysters grown by the hotel’s partners – Little Ram Oysters – help to depollute the waters (one live mollusc is known to filter up to 50 gallons a day) and promote reef growth. But sustainable practices at the Shoals don’t stop there – all produce is purchased locally (wine comes from North Fork wineries and cocktails are canned in Long Island’s Liv distillery) and single-use plastics are kept to a minimum.