Luv2Travel_19438
July 14, 2021
After a COVID-abbreviated visit to Stella Maris last summer my husband and I decided to vacation there again this summer, this time staying at the Sea La Vie property. Sea La Vie is a 2 bedroom / 2.5 bath house with a stunning view of the Atlantic Ocean. It's elevation affords wonderful breezes too, and we enjoyed perfect weather during our stay. The bedrooms and 2 bathrooms are in one wing of the house, and the living room/dining room/kitchen and powder room are on the other side. In-between is a patio and breezeway -- there's an outdoor dining table (seats 6, in the shade), and 2 lounge chairs that are perfect to use for sun bathing during the day and star gazing at night. With the constant breeze it was delightful to enjoy this outdoor space. Both bedrooms have full ocean views, as does the main living area. I've attached a photo of a sunrise, as seen from the master bedroom. What a lovely way to start the day! The kitchen has frankly seen better days, but it's spacious and fully functional. The kitchen is equipped with the basics for preparing meals, should you wish to do so. The house is an easy 2-minute walk to Stella Maris' main pool and beach bar & grill. I'd suggest renting a car if you stay (the house has a carport with shade). When exploring the island I'd recommend checking out Docky's (for fishing expeditions and boat tours during the day, and for the restaurant/bar when open in the evenings). Docky's also has a nice gift shop for souvenirs -- all within a 5-minute drive of the resort. For an amazing meal, take a drive to Chez Pierre (but call first for reservations). I believe I posted a restaurant review for Chez Pierre last summer on TripAdvisor... We returned 2 more times on this trip, and believe me Chez Pierre did not disappoint! It's about a 30 minute drive from Stella Maris, but well worth it. Cape Santa Maria, one of the prettiest beaches I've ever seen, is about a 15-20 minute drive from Sea La Vie; the Columbus Monument is not far from there and affords spectacular views of the coastline in that area. Dean's Blue Hole is about an hour drive away. It's a unique and scenic place to visit (scuba diving can sometimes be arranged in the blue hole, as well as around other areas of the island -- the diving overall is excellent). One day we drove pretty far south to the Clarence Town area, and had a very nice lunch at Lighthouse Point. They're located adjacent to a marina and offer indoor and outdoor dining. We had a lovely lunch outside overlooking the water. Stella Maris' Moonshine Bar & Grill is always a good option as well, with tasty food, friendly service, a full bar, and beautiful views. There used to be a more formal indoor restaurant at Stella Maris (which we loved), but it's still closed due to the pandemic. Hopefully they'll eventually be able to reopen that once tourism gets more back to normal. A quick note about driving on Long Island: The roads are rough, so a jeep/SUV is a good choice for rental car.