I’ve been to nearly every Jekyll Island Restaurant there is. Some are better than others but the good ones are very good. My favorite is the Rah Bar, located right on the dock of the bay side, withink walking distance of the Historic District. It has a very simple menu of oysters, shrimp, crab, or all of the above in their famous Lo’ Country Boil. They also have a fine collecting of beer and other spirits.

Right next to the Rah Bar and owned by the same guy is Latitude 31. This is a fancier place than the Rah Bar but it features a fantastic selection of seafood and has an excellent bar. The service is great, the staff is friendly and if you are looking for a nice dinner at a Jekyll Island restaurant this is a great place to go.

Another great Jekyll Island Restaurant is Zachry’s Seafood Restaurant. This a great family owned restaurant featuring local seafood and a good selection of terrestrial critters.

Seajay’s Waterfront Cafe & Pub is a restaurant that I have only eaten at once. It’s out of the way but they have an all you can eat Low Country Boil so it’s definitely worth the trip. I’m not the only one who thinks so as there is always a wait for a table. Seajay’s also features live music and a great view of the bay side of the island.

The big daddy of Jekyll Island Restaurant is the Grand Dining Room of the Jekyll Island Club Hotel. It is a magnificent treat to go there and if you visit the island you owe it to yourself to go at least once. Its a very fancy restaurant but well worth the price. Like all restaurants on the island it features an amazing array of seafood expertly prepared by their chef. It is not to be missed.

One disapointing jekyll island restaurant would be Blackbeard’s Restaurant. Its true that it has a great view of the ocean from the patio but the food isn’t any good. The service was pretty bad as well. We only went once and had to wait two hours for a table to get served by a woman who was delighted to complain about her job for our benefit and the food was cold. The view failed to save the evening.

Jekyll Island has a very colorful history, including the group of wealthy landowners such as John Rockefeller and J.P. Morgan who made up the Jekyll Island Club.  Today it is designated a National Park and a historic landmark.  It can be explored in order to uncover all the exciting attractions that make it such a great place to visit.

You can visit the Historic District on your own or take one of the guided tours available and gain insight from the knowledgeable tour guides.  See the impressive winter homes of millionaires from a different era.  You can explore the customs and habits of these out of the ordinary people.  Its a great chance to see how the other half lives.  All the homes have been painstakingly restored and they are centered around the Jekyll Island Club Hotel.

Jekyll Island has ten miles of beautiful coastline to relax on.  You can lounge in the sun or swim all afternoon on a Jekyll Island Vacation.  In addition, the Georgia Audubon Society has designated Jekyll an Important Birding Area due to the large number of exotic and migratory bird species that populate the area.  Its always exciting to watch birds hunting for their breakfast while out on the beach.

Another fun thing to do is rent a kayak or a canoe and go out to explore the marshes on the bay side of the island.  You can either go on a guided tour and be shown all the sights of a fascinating ecosystem or you can head out on your own to explore this exciting world.  The Tidelands Nature Center is another great place where you can see creatures such as alligators, snakes, sea turtles, and hermit crabs.

Since Jekyll Island is a state park so much of the Island is undeveloped and you can find much to do such as wandering the dues, heading out on horseback and even chartering a sail boat.  However, it’s not all wilderness, as there are several golf courses, tennis courts, and stores.  Some people go just for the golf, as there are three great courses on the island.  There are also antique and specialty stores with many fine items unique to the island.

There are twenty miles of paved bicycle paths on the island making for a fun and healthy way to relax.  You can rent a bike from one of several spots on the island or bring your bikes from home.  This is a great way to spend time together as a family.  You can get to anywhere on the island using just the bike paths so you won’t even have to spend money on gas while vacationing on Jekyll Island.  Another family friendly activity is the water park on the island.  Take your kids and have a great time.  One other option would be to visit on of the other islands in the area.  Brunswick is the access point for St. Simons, Darien, St. Mary’s, Sea Island as well as Jekyll Island.

The best part of Jekyll Island is the number of rental properties available.  There are dozens of houses and condos you can rent for a week for much less than a hotel room would cost.  You will have a kitchen and several bedrooms and a living area so you will have lots of space and you can save on food by just stocking up on groceries for the week and cooking in so you don’t have to eat out every night.   And pretty much every house on the Island is just a short trip to the beach.  It’s great way for your family to spend its Jekyll Island vacation.