1000 Islands Harbor Hotel

Celebrate Apple Season in style this year at the 1000 Islands Harbor Hotel with Apple themed craft cocktails and chef specialities.
Photography David Lewis Taylor exclusively for UnnamedProject.com

Clayton, New York

Fall in the Thousand Islands has a particular kind of luxury: fewer crowds, crisp river air, autumn color, and nowhere you need to be. At the 1000 Islands Harbor Hotel in Clayton, New York, a riverside stay becomes the starting point for exploring Boldt Castle, the St. Lawrence River, charming local shops, and the quieter pleasures of upstate New York. With apple-inspired dishes, fresh cider, signature cocktails, fire pits, river views, and spacious rooms with private balconies, it is an appealing excuse to slow down and stay awhile.

Celebrate Apple Season in style this year at the 1000 Islands Harbor Hotel with Apple themed craft cocktails and chef specialities.

Warm and welcoming - the 1000 Islands Harbor Hotel is located on the banks of the Saint Lawrence River.

Relaxing on the Riverfront

There is something particularly appealing about a fall getaway that asks very little of you. No packed itinerary, no race from one attraction to the next. Just crisp air, changing leaves, good food and somewhere beautiful to sit for a while.

At the 1000 Islands Harbor Hotel in Clayton, New York, that kind of slow travel comes naturally. Set directly on the St. Lawrence River, the AAA Four Diamond hotel offers 107 rooms and suites, many with private balconies and river views, along with waterfront fire pits, an indoor pool and hot tub, and the Seaway Grille and 1000 Islands Bar.

From our balcony and the Adirondack chairs on the lawn, we watched enormous freighters move through the Seaway, jet skis skim across the water and classic wooden boats drift through the harbor. It was the sort of afternoon when doing nothing felt like a perfectly good plan.

Clayton is an ideal base for exploring the Thousand Islands, where more than 1,800 islands stretch along the U.S.-Canadian border. In autumn, the pace slows, the foliage arrives and the waterfront takes on a quieter, more cinematic character.

The village itself is easy to explore on foot, with independent shops, restaurants, tasting rooms and breweries. We stopped at River Rat Cheese for aged New York cheddar and local maple syrup before heading back toward the water.

The St. Lawerence River fills the views to the Horizon.

Two views of the 1000 Island Harbor Hotel.

In and around Clayton New York.

Clayton NY

For those who want to venture farther, Clayton Island Tours offers seasonal trips to Boldt Castle on Heart Island, passing Millionaire’s Row, Rock Island Lighthouse and the region’s remarkable network of waterways along the way.

In and around Clayton New York.

Boldt Castle.

Riverfront on the Saint Lawrence.

By late afternoon, we were ready to return to the 1000 Islands Harbor Hotel. Fall comes with its own menu of pleasures here, including Apple Days, apple-inspired dishes, fresh cider, and signature cocktails. Our choice was a caramel apple martini, enjoyed outside beside a roaring fire pit overlooking the river.

It was a fitting end to a day built around doing very little—and enjoying every minute of it.

1000 Island Harbor Hotel.