13 Best Hotels in The Adirondacks and Thousand Islands, New York

Formerly the Best Western Sunset Inn, the property still has a heated indoor pool with an adjacent outdoor deck, but the building itself is under renovation. Still, rooms are spacious and furnished in the Adirondack style, with knotty-wood paneling and hunter-green and wine-red quilts.

The large 1903 Adirondack inn on Big Moose Lake has a central fireplace, a cozy lounge, a front porch with rockers, a floating gazebo with checkerboards, and canoes. Accommodations, located in the three-story lodge, are simple and have brass beds. Most rooms have a lake view, and one has a fireplace and a whirlpool tub, but some rooms and common areas feel a little like granny's parlor. A restaurant serves American fare in an attractive space with lake views; and a deck with umbrella-shaded tables offers lakeside dining.

This budget family motel is in a quiet area 5 mi from the Gore Mountain Ski Center. Its dark-wood exterior and the guest rooms' knotty-wood-paneled walls give it a rustic chalet look. Rooms are basic but spacious. There's a restaurant on-site that serves American-style fare like burgers and wraps, and an Adirondack-style pub.

Built in 1832, this Georgian redbrick home is next door to the Sackets Harbor Battlefield State Historic Site and a three-minute walk from restaurants, shops, and the Seaway Trail. Rooms have period antiques, four-poster beds, and quilts; two have water views, the third looks out onto the village.

Like many others in its chain, this Hampton Inn offers clean, modern and spacious rooms and breakfast until 10 am. You can enjoy it with a free newspaper.

The two-story hotel is set back 200 feet from the road, on a hill. Rooms, graced with wood furniture and soft earth-tone colors, are attractive and spacious. High-speed Internet access is available. Kids will love the kiddie pool, game room with oversize chessboard, indoor pool, and miniature golf course. Adults might dig the shuffleboard setup and basketball courts.

The Queen Anne Victorian, built in 1890, is a block from the St. Lawrence River and has a turret and a curved porch. Guest rooms are tasteful, with four-poster or brass queen beds, hardwood floors, large windows, and sitting areas.

Originally the home of William Avery Rockefeller, this ultra-exclusive retreat evokes the spirit of the great Adirondack camps. The secluded property occupies a forested peninsula on Upper Saranac Lake. Rooms, housed in four buildings, blend rustic furniture with handsome antiques and rich fabrics. Each guest room has a stone fireplace and lake views; some have pine-lined cathedral ceilings or private decks or patios. You may play billiards or darts at the intimate pub, which shares the Eagle's Nest building with three guest rooms. Overlooking the lake is the capacious Boathouse ($2,600 a night; offered from mid-April through October only), a favorite of honeymooners. Your day starts with Continental breakfast in your room or a hot meal in the dining room. Guests gather for lunch, afternoon tea, and dinner, and menus are set, but you may opt to have a lunch to go or eat in your room. Dinner is rather formal, with jacket and tie upgraded to black tie Wednesday and Saturday evenings. The deposit alone is $500, without which you don't get directions. But that's the point of exclusivity, isn't it?

The 5-acre property has an expansive patio that overlooks 300 feet of lakefront. Motel-style rooms are paneled in wood and have large windows. A private boathouse provides dock space.

Housed in a beautiful old Victorian home and set among rambling, 3-acre grounds, this relaxing B&B is comfortable and filled with antiques. It's run by Todd and Karen Hennessy, and Karen makes delicious sit-down breakfast in the morning and refreshments in the afternoon. The owners have chosen not to set up Internet access, and to keep the phones and TV downstairs in the main area. "This is where you go to get away," Karen says.

Built in 1891 as a boardinghouse for lumberjacks, this historic country inn is easily identified by its two-story porch with rockers. Guest rooms, all on the second floor, have antiques and quilts; bed configurations vary from a double to two queens or a king. In the restaurant you can order a wide range of seafood or regional recipes like vodka riggies (rigatoni) or greens—a mix of sautéed escarole, cherry peppers, mozzarella, and bacon. The tavern also serves food, but you might want to try the "Fresh Seafood on the Porch" event, which features grilled seafood and live music.

The rustic-style, three-story lodge with modern amenities sits at the edge of a lake in the Fulton Chain. Rooms have balconies, some overlooking the lake, and attractive traditional furnishings. Common areas include a library with cushy chairs, a stone fireplace, and water views conducive to lingering.

The two-story European-style Gasthof (guesthouse), built in 1920 at the foot of Whiteface Mountain, has a large porch and a deck. Fireplaces, skylights, and whirlpool tubs are among the extras in some rooms. The three-room suite includes a sitting room with a TV and a bedroom with bunk beds. The dining room is centered on a German Kachelofen (tile stove) and features a traditional German Stammtisch (corner booth for regulars) and an English-style bristle dartboard. Breakfast for overnight guests includes apple pancakes and blintzes.