Rhode Island Hotels, Restaurants Awarded AAA 4, 5 Diamond Ratings

WESTERLY, RI — More than a dozen hotels and five restaurants were honored with four- or five-star ratings by AAA, setting them apart as some of the best establishments in the country. Just one hotel and the restaurant inside were given five-star ratings, the organization's highest and most exclusive honor.

Of nearly 27,000 AAA Diamond hotels, just 0.4 percent are given a five-diamond rating. For nearly the 10th year in a row, The Ocean House in Westerly was the only hotel in the state to earn the designation. First opened in 1868, the hotel was closed in 2003 after falling into disrepair. The next year, work began on the current building, which is a replica of the original. It has maintained its five-diamond status since 2011.

COAST restaurant inside The Ocean House was the only restaurant in Rhode Island to earn a five-diamond rating this year. It was first honored in 2018.

"AAA’s Five and Four Diamond establishments consistently exceed expectations by providing their guests highly personalized, memorable experiences," said Lloyd Albert, AAA Northeast's senior vice president of public and government affairs. "They truly represent the best of the hospitality industry."

Across the country, just 2,400 hotels and restaurants were awarded four-diamond ratings. 12 properties in Rhode Island were given the designation, all of which have been honored before. The dates in parentheses show the year the property was first honored.

All four- and five-diamond restaurants and hotels will be honored at a luncheon at the Ocean House in March.

Restaurants

• Cara, Newport (2004)
• The Dining Room at Castle Hill, Newport (2016)
• The Vanderbilt Grill, Newport (2012)
• Gracie’s, Providence (2011)

Hotels

• Point Pleasant Inn and Resort, Bristol (2003)
• Cliffside Inn, Newport (2003)
• Forty 1 North, Newport (2017)
• Gurney’s Newport Resort and Marina, Newport (2018)
• Hydrangea House Inn, Newport (2005)
• Newport Marriott, Newport (2017)
• The Chanler at Cliff Walk, Newport (2004)
• The Vanderbilt Auberge Resorts Collection, Newport (2011)
• Hotel Providence, Providence (2005)
• Renaissance Providence Downtown Hotel, Providence (2008)
• Watch Hill Inn, Watch Hill (2016)
• The Weekapaug Inn, Westerly (2013)