Star Island Resort

Gurney’s has done it again, reinventing the Hamptons experience with their uber-chic oceanside resort, Gurney’s Montauk, now seamlessly and effortlessly linking in minutes to its brand-new Gurney’s Star Island Resort on Lake Montauk.

When you arrive at the Star Island complex, look for the lighthouse. Open its door. Enter the tranquil interior and you will immediately detect an elevated level of hospitality, significantly raising the bar because the ambiance, service and quality are unique and like no other in the Hamptons. Expect the best.

Book your room with a balcony facing the marina so you can admire admire the yachts at dock. Rooms reflect laid back luxury, so you’ll be able to unplug from everyday life and slip into the unhurried lifestyle of Star Island. If you’re feeling energetic, sign up for sport fishing charters leaving right from the dock, a catamaran charter or learn how to sail in their 28-foot Catalinas.  

At the resort, wine and dine at Showfish, their signature restaurant, helmed by one of the best chefs on Long Island, Jeremy Blutstein, formerly of Almond Restaurant. A firm believer in Michelin-level cuisine served casually and celebrating only the best seasonal produce, he is a magnet for day fishers bringing in scallops, monkfish, black bass, tile fish and more to his dock, farmers and foragers traveling out to Montauk to offer him wild mushrooms and ramps, then taking it all in and creating an innovative menu. 

Peruse his lobster tank. He’s equally happy to prepare the simplest lobster, just for you, with a bottle of the best champagne in the house. Most, if not all, on his menu is sourced within a 20-mile radius. A rock star alchemist of local produce, his reputation is for cutting-edge cuisine and is worth seeking out.

After dinner, find your way to the outdoor fire pits set near the boat slips in the marina. Take in the evening air, light a cigar, sip a brandy. You might spy a celebrity or supermodel swaying to live music by the outdoor bar. You may stay up past your bedtime.

The marina the hotel and restaurants face is the biggest in the Hamptons, accommodating superyachts up to 220-feet in size, making it an enchanting safe haven for weekend mooring within easy cruising distance of New York City, avoiding city docks and curious onlookers. Yachting Magazine named it “One of the Top Ten Marina Destinations in North America, Mexico and the Bahamas.” Montauk provides easy access to Long Island Sound, the ability to scoot over to Nantucket, Block Island Newport or down to the city in no time. If you don’t have a yacht, Star Island can connect you with a seaplane and yacht service to those destinations.  If you have a yacht or are chartering one, you can take a slip in the marina or pick up a mooring and skiff in to the docks of the resort for supplies, take out gourmet food or enjoy an evening in town.

Accessing Montauk and Gurney’s Star Island by other means is straightforward. Arriving via air? Montauk Airport is a few minutes away, so you can skip the traffic, hop on a Blade chopper in the city, and arrive in only 45 minutes. If you’re braving the infamous traffic of the Long Island Expressway, travel past the Hamptons and be sure to take the time to check out the wineries on your way back to New York City.

Take a day to shuttle over to Gurney’s Montauk to experience their salt-water spa services offered during the summer season under a tent on the beach. Luxuriate in their ocean-fed salt water pool or relax on a cabana-shaded king-size day bed shaded by umbrellas and cabanas on the sand with comprehensive food and beverage list at your fingertips or saunter along the vast pristine beach along the Atlantic Ocean, the only sound coming from the crashing waves.

Gurney’s Star Island should be on every Hamptons luxury seeker’s bucket list. This is an exciting new venue setting itself to possibly become one of the most in-demand resorts and restaurants in The End.

Prediction: No Vacancy.