For our Outer Banks trip, I picked this hotel because it was at a midway point between Norfolk airport and Ocracoke Island (at least in driving time if not in total journey time thanks to the ferry). As it turned out, the hotel was perfectly fine, although the beach did not meet my other half’s shelling requirements.

The other hotel options nearby only included a Townplace Suites, Comfort Inn, Holiday Inn Express and Hampton Inn. Due to its remote location relative to most beach getaways, the Outer Banks area is more about vacation rentals for the week rather than high end hotels or resorts for a few nights.

The hotel was expensive as it was still August and peak season. It was either 80,000 Hilton points per night or $356 plus tax. Most of the hotels or Airbnb’s in the area including the Townplace Suites (that does not have direct beach access) were similarly expensive. I went back and forth a bit, but decided to spend cash as we would earn almost 30,000 points for the stay between my wife being Hilton Diamond and using a Hilton credit card to pay for the room during a Hilton promo.

We arrived around 11am after flying in early Friday morning from Atlanta to Norfolk, picking up a rental car and driving about 90 minutes to the hotel. It’s located right on the beach at the end of the causeway linking mainland North Carolina with the northern part of the Outer Banks. It’s quite well-located if you need access to things like Walmart, grocery stores, restaurants and tourist shops.

We changed into our beach attire in the lobby restrooms as our room was not quite ready when we arrived. The staff were friendly and helpful, but at a Hilton Garden Inn level rather than a Hilton resort level which was to be expected. The lobby was pleasant enough with a bar, restaurant and sundries shop and then just out back, a BBQ area and the pool with direct beach access. There’s also a conference area and an indoor pool/gym.

After we spent some time on the beach, the front desk called to let me know our room was ready around 1pm. We were in Room 333 on the third floor. All the rooms at the hotel have either a full ocean view or partial ocean view. Ours was very partial and mostly parking lot. I suppose an early room availability may have been due to Hilton Diamond status, although when I asked for late checkout on Sunday, they would only offer us a one hour extension to 12pm.

The room was decently maintained, with a comfortable king bed, desk, small love seat and plenty of room. There was a minifridge which was helpful to keep our water bottles cold and plenty of outlets for charging. Most importantly, the A/C worked well and the water pressure was good. Parking was free, but we had to place a hotel tag on our rearview mirror otherwise we might have been towed as I suppose people try to park for beach access.

We ended up taking a ride down the street to have lunch at a local place and then to another (better shelling) beach for the afternoon. On our return, I walked over and picked up dinner from a Thai place right across the street from the hotel. There was also a small sundries shop next to the restaurant that had reasonably priced beach gear where I bought a cheap beach chair for the weekend (which was certainly cheaper than renting one from the hotel and much more portable for our trips around the Outer Banks).

On the second evening after our long day in Ocracoke, we had dinner at a BBQ place in that same shopping center within walking distance. We also then had a drink at the hotel bar to use up our $10 per person per day Hilton food and beverage credits as we did not eat breakfast at the hotel. I had also bought a couple of beers from the hotel store the night before. This local one was particularly strong and tasty.

On our last morning, we left early and got some donuts for breakfast from Duck Donuts, which also was conveniently in that same shopping center across the street. We certainly made good use of that shopping center.

Overall, the hotel was pleasant, but not outstanding for the price. The outdoor pool is very small. The beach access is probably what sets the hotel apart from the others nearby. The cost was high for a Hilton Garden Inn, but it served our purposes for a quickly planned weekend away. Don’t expect late checkout or any real Diamond perks except the food and beverage credit.

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