St. Andrews by the Sea: An Algonquin Resort Escape

Last year, Dan and I had the crazy idea to go to Prince Edward Island for our fist anniversary, despite it being on a bone chilling weekend in November and a stat holiday here in Canada. (Translation: pretty much everything was closed.)

And yet, there was something about traveling and being in a vacation spot in the off-season that made it magical. You can catch up on that trip here. 

This year, Dan suggested the resort town of St. Andrews by the Sea here in New Brunswick and I jumped at the chance to visit this beautiful coastal area of New Brunswick.

He sweetened by making my dreams come true and booking us into the Algonquin Resort.

You see, I’ve been dreaming of staying at the Algonquin since my childhood. My father would always go every Spring for work-related golf trips and conferences, and my mother often tagged along.

Little C-Star, did not, get to tag along. 

33 years later, I was able to experience it with my favorite person and fall a little more in love with him on the way.

Here’s a look at our little anniversary adventure.

I could walk around the grounds of the resort all day and not get sick of the view. It’s spectacular and oh, so charming.

Fun fact: the Algonquin was the hotel that inspired Stephen King for The Shining. Also, fun fact: it’s super haunted.

We ate all of our meals at the on-site restaurant, Braxton’s, and oh my goodness, that salmon was one of the best salmon dishes OF MY LIFE. I ate every last bite—and that rarely happens! 

The oysters were delicious; the fresh horseradish a treat.

Dan ordered their buttermilk chicken burger that came highly recommended from our fantastic waiter and loved it.

Lastly, we opted to bring dessert back to our room to share. No regrets there, it was DIVINE.

The next day, we had a few hours to ourselves before brunch was served on the resort.

We checked out the pool and got a little R&R. I was dying to try the waterslide but it seemed every time we were at the pool, it was outside of the waterslide hours.

I was a sad mermaid, but this view made it OK.

One of the items on my Summer 2017 New Brunswick Destinations Bucket List was driving to Minister’s Island at low tide (the only way to access it) so when we realized how close we were to Minister’s Island AND that our visit coincided with low tide, it only took minimal eyelash fluttering and pretty pleases to convince D to drive across.

I absolutely hated to leave and can’t wait to go back. To ease the sadness of having to say goodbye to the resort, D took a little detour through the picturesque little town of Saint George, so I could show him their famous mill.

I had a chance to visit Saint George this past summer (it was also on my bucket list) on my way to Deer Island and Campobello Island.

I can assure you, the mill looks just as pretty in the Fall!

It may have only been one night away, but it was one to remember and of course, one that made all my childhood dreams come true. Because most 8 year olds dream about staying at historic signature resorts, am I right? 

To the amazing staff at the Algonquin – I wanted to take each and every one of you home with us. Thank you for being so wonderful.

And to Dan! Thank you for keeping me safe from ghosts, watching me stuff my face with smoked salmon and trusting me when I told you that yes, you can drive across the ocean floor to get to Minister’s Island. I love our adventures, almost as much as I love you ❤️