Guemes Island Resort

I am not sure why they call this a resort. Having stayed all over the USA and overseas, resort meant something else to me. I am not sure what to call this, but not resort. It’s better than camping. This has no room TV’s, crap food truck food, a tiny store with very little items and quite frankly a boring place. The cabins have uncomfortable beds and old furnishings. We took a drive around the small island and saw what appear to be the loud local residents drinking at the park, streets and at the Ferry parking lot. Grown ups behaving poorly. The resort has an lounge to play ping pong and a shared TV, but the locals seem to hang out there and are very loud and obnoxious. There no where to shop on the Island, so bring your groceries. There a nice store on the mainland called The Market and has everything. The tiny store on the Island is shut down.

It is so nice. We came here for my Moms birthday. This resort is perfect for a quiet get away. If you like crabbing, come here. It is really good. Daily limits. The cabins are nice a cozy. I appreciate the fire wood they give you to keep the wood stove rocking.
Chilling on the beach is awesome. Watching drift wood float by and looking for rocks and shells on the beach. You can even get a massage here.
I will be returning!

This is my first time here and I cannot wait to come back! The cabins are cozy and the beds are comfortable. The fire pit is warm and the wood provided was dry.
Waking up to waves lapping while you enjoy a cup of coffee is a wonderful, peaceful way to start your day. Spend your day with beach combing, shell searching and bird watching. We enjoyed the Youngs park located right next door and enjoyed the trails. If you want more of an adventure drive a short distance to the 2.3 mile trail up Mt. Guemes. At the trail head you will find walking sticks provided for use up the hill. Or, you can chill out playing horse shoes and visiting with other guests.
Take in the local sounds on a saturday night at Andersons store while enjoying some delicious beers from local breweries.
The staff here is very accomidating and friendly.
I cannot wait to return!

Wow, the view out of the cabins is stunning. There’s nothing like «getting away from it all» and by coming here you are doing just that.
This «resort» is right on the water with very easy beach access. It’s an incredibly relaxing location and even when you’re sitting inside you can take in the amazing views. The free wifi means you won’t be completely disconnected if you don’t want to be which helps because cell phone service is lacking. While you’re here I’d recommend driving out and taking the Guemes Mountain hike… it’s a short 2.5 mile out and back (500 ft elevation gain) and gives some amazing views of the island.
If you’re looking to «get away from it all» then you can’t go wrong choosing this location.

Lots of improvements at this utopia since my last visit. The resort now boasts one of the area’s only liquor stores, and the selection is fantastic. The hiking trail above the accommodations is picturesque, and the people who own and operate the resort seem to get nicer and nicer with age. I’d give thIs place 10 stars if I could.

These guys are awesome! My buddy rented the whole place out for a weekend for his wedding. We danced and had campfires late into the night and the staff never yelled at us once. It’s also a nice resort in a beautiful location.

I’m already planning to come back!
We have had such a great time at this resort! I wish that we were staying for an entire week not just 2 nights.
The customer service at this place is so great! The woman who runs the resort, Holly is amazing. She helped us with all of our requests from setting us up with crabbing gear and patiently explaining everything, to answering our many questions about the resort, fires, renting boats/​bikes, etc. she seemed to do just about everything at the resort, seemed very knowledgeable, and happy to help.
The yurt that we stayed in was very well maintained and clean and had electricity and heat (which even summer camping I appreciate) There were rugs and linens and it was adorable! We felt very at home.
The bathrooms are just a short walk away and was very clean. The showers were awesome for a camping place! They even have floor mats!
Guemes island is so easy to get to. So much cheaper to take a $ 13 ferry that comes every half hour vs the $ 60 San Jain ferry that you have to wait hours for.
The island is modest and not touristy but beautiful and rustic feeling.
There are no restaurants really so be sure to bring everything that you need.

We had such a great stay last year that we thought we would try it once again this year. Our expectations were not only met, yet exceeded. We rented one of the oldest cabins on the resort. It was warm, cozy, and had lots of room for five people (comfortably) to sleep.
We also rented one of the new and modern cabins and it was fantastic! The cabin was named Patos and sat back a ways from the main row of cabins. It was fully stocked as the other cabins (linens, dishes, etc.). It also had a nice hot tub privately situated on the deck in back. The bathroom was beautiful with fully heated tile floors and a steam option in the shower.
The photos on the site do NOT do show the true beauty. I would recommend these new cabins to anyone who has stayed in a nicer hotel. You feel far away from home, with a beautiful room and view of the ocean.
The resort allows you to use their sea kayaks, row boats, crab pots, and more! I suggest that you arrive early so that you can enjoy the many activities available.
Thank you Guemes team… We will be back!

I am loving the cabin were in. The hot tub is right on the back porch. The sauna we reserved when I booked, so it was ready when we checked in at 5:45. The cabin was warm, they had a fire going in the little fireplace. Special towel for my dog and the kitchen has everything we need. I am loving this place and can’t wait for a chance to come back. Tomorrow we kayak! The owner has quite a few vegetarian and vegan items in the shop. Plus local coffee and handmade soap in the cabin.

Just had my women’s group retreat up at Guemes Island Resort and had an amazing time. THe resort is so lovely and relaxing. Our main group stayed in the big house on the water which was great since it’s right on the water and it’s rustic like you would expect a cabin. A few of us stayed in one of the newer cabin’s on the other side of the dirt road in the trees and it was so gorgeous. Private hot tub, steam shower and super high ceilings. Even the handmade soap was nice. Holly, the manager was awesome, attentive and extremely nice. Exactly what you would want in a resort guide/​cartaker. Thanks!

This was a great vacation, very quite and peaceful. The dogs loved running free and the hot tub was very relaxing. I found the staff to be very nice and helpful, the only complaint was that we could never get the wifi to work. No big deal, and would not care except we were told it did work. Other than that, great place to spend a few days.

We LOVE the resort it is in an AMAZING setting. We have stayed numerous times and for many occasions. We have stayed in the Deluxe cabins for a romantic getaway. Placed on the hill so your away from the commotion of the beachcombers. In a park like setting. Hot tub on the back deck very private. Amazing linens and thread count on the sheets. And I love the steam sauna. We have stayed in all of the beach cabins over the years. All have their own unique energy again great bedding. Rustic and romantic. For larger gatherings we have stayed in the Baker house which is Amazing right over the water. Great view. We have held many gatherings here large parties with many children lots of sleeping room and very separate spaces for noise level comfort We have stayed at all times of the year and love a stormy northwest day with a real fire in the fireplace. Watching the waves, reading a good book or just being. Sunny days are great for beach coming, playing yard games, kayaking, fishing. Dog friendly environment. I love the little store GREAT variety of wines and beer some tasty snacks. Interesting trinkets. The grounds are well kept and lovely. I find the staff to be incredibly accommodating. I spend a ton of my time in the sauna and find it so wonderful to get so relaxed in there and then go watch the waves. One of our favorite retreats. Suites the many moods and needs of our family PERFECTLY!

Everyone knows that you only get one chance to make a first impression. My first impression was that the Guemes Island Resort looked more like a practical sporting retreat with rustic camping rather than a resort. Everything following revealed that they need to learn about hospitality etiquette. First of all you don’t charge a guest the full amount until they check out. I was charged before we even were given the keys to our cabin.
Next we were told that our Deluxe Cabin wasn’t ready and that the hot tub needed to be adjusted. So my fiancé and I plus two staff members entered the cabin as a group. We decided to go with the flow and take a walk around the grounds and give the staff some time to take care of these last minute adjustments.
As you walk around the property you have to admit that the scenery is beautiful and peaceful. However the layout of the cabins don’t really allow for much privacy and I was happy we were there on a week day and not a weekend. Also the placement of large garbage dumpsters somewhat centrally located give the place a camp ground feeling.
After about twenty minutes of wandering we headed back to the cabin. They still had not adjusted the hot tub. To bring this to a point, they still were adjusting the hot tub thirty minutes later postponing our arrival close to an hour.
The next disappointment was the cedar Sauna. We had reserved the sauna two days in advance and we were assured that it would be ready at 6pm. You may guess by the first part of this review that the Sauna was not ready in fact it was stone cold.
This now brings us to the Steam Shower in the Deluxe cabin. It is DANGEROUS!!! There isn’t a verbal warning nor written warning that can justify that it has been INSTALLED INCORRECTLY. Meaning, when you advertise that the cabin comes with a large tiled steam shower it should be exactly that. And it should be safe.
Instead the standing area of the steam shower is about a two and half wide by three foot rectangle. It is very easy to burn yourself in such a SMALL space. In fact my fiancé did burn herself. And I am positive that in any Steam Shower Installation Manual there is specific warnings written for the sole purpose of preventing such situations in the first place.
So let’s fast forward to the next day at check out. We explain to the receptionist that despite the circumstances we did make the best of our time. We said we would like to talk with owner and go over the details. And for the prices they are asking this seemed like more than a reasonable request.
We felt that if we could make a slight compromise on the price, that would leave everyone feeling as though they obtained something positive over all. She wrote everything down. She told us he would be in soon and he would call shortly.
Hours passed and we had not received word from him. So we gave him a call. We ended up talking with the receptionist again. And she said that he was not around and that he wasn’t interested on compromising on anything despite all that had happened.
I told her that we would stop payment on the credit card if he refused to resolve the situation in a respectful and rational manner. After that statement, he was on the line in less than thirty seconds.
I explained to him that it is never up to the guest to come find the owner. In fact why had he not introduced himself in the first place upon our arrival? He was there checking in on the hot tub and pointing to where the sauna was. And that if there is ever any problem it is up to him and his staff to work through to find a solution.
These are the principles that separate good business from poor business practices. The fortunate thing about the state of Washington and the west coast in general is that there are many scenic retreats and resorts that also don’t over capitalize on what they offer. There are thousands of acres of coast line to visit.
The places that are up front and run their place with pride and respect are the ones people come back to. In this case I feel Mark and his staff need some time to work through the kinks in the line. Perhaps in time they will get it together. And in the meantime not neglect nor avoid their responsibilities to their customers.
David A. Smith

I regret it’s taken me this long to write a review but this place RULES.
We were fortunate to be the only couple in their cabins that weekend which means we had the run of the place. Sauna to ourselves? Check. Wood fired hot tub set up for us under the stars and right on the shore? Check. Super romantic? Damn straight.

I just returned from a fabulous extended weekend. .. it was like no other place I had ever been to. Arrived Thursday afternoon with the bride to be and a car filled with fresh flowers, place settings, and of course her wedding dress; her wedding day was to take place on Saturday. The island was an oasis of pure bliss. Activities galore, and yes they even have a masseuse or two. An awesome getaway and a perfect spot for wedding vows.

This place is the greatest! Rustic cabins right on the beach, romantic cabins with hot tubs nestled under the trees, cool yurts, and a couple of big houses for groups. There is a wood fired sauna and hot tub, and you can schedule a massage on site too! Boating, kayaking, diving, crabbing, hiking, ping-​pong (!!!), lazing around in front of a roaring fire, playing on the beach, there’s something to do for everyone. The staff is incredibly friendly and helpful. I live in Anacortes and the resort is my favorite no-​travel get away! Love, love, love it.