1000 Islands Harbor Hotel gets ‘Four Diamonds’ from AAA

CLAYTON — When it comes to ratings, diamonds are a hotel’s best friend, and the 1000 Islands Harbor Hotel now has four of them.

The year-old hotel hosted a small ceremony Thursday morning to celebrate its Four Diamond status, awarded to it by the American Automobile Association in June.

Opened in July 2014, the 1000 Islands Harbor Hotel cost about $24.5 million to construct. In addition to its 105 rooms, the facility houses an indoor swimming pool and Jacuzzi, a fully equipped fitness center, a business center, more than 6,000 square feet of conference and banquet space, upscale dining and views of the St. Lawrence River from the riverside patio and an outdoor bar.

David P. Hart, president and CEO of Buffalo-based Hart Hotels, said it was an honor to have the 1000 Islands Harbor Hotel receive this award in its first year of business.

“It normally takes a number of years — sometimes a lifetime — for hotels to win this award,” he said. “Obviously, because of the difficulty of achieving the award, some of them never get there. This first full year has really established our foundation for future success.”

The Clayton hotel is one of just 24 hotels in upstate New York to receive AAA’s Four Diamond status, joining another Hart-owned property, the Watkins Glen Harbor Hotel.

Of the more than 28,000 AAA-approved hotels in the United States, only 5.4 percent are Four Diamond-certified.

“We’ve had lots of success and lots of learning experiences, especially in the dead of winter,” Mr. Hart said. “Sometimes you have to make lemonade out of lemons; we made an ice bar out of ice.”

Town Supervisor Justin A. Taylor also expressed pride in the hotel’s award. He praised the hotel management and staff for creating a facility that has bettered the community and encouraged tourism.

“It’s the first major new full-service hotel to be built in the Thousand Islands in three decades, attracting thousands of visitors from outside the region,” Mr. Taylor said. “The hotel has created 90 jobs. Wages generated from these new jobs are spent in local stores, restaurants, gas stations and for purchasing homes and household needs.”

Also, the town revealed its new transient docking facility, near the hotel’s rear .

The docks are open to the public and are capable of harboring 49 boats, complete with electrical and water plug-ins. A wheelchair-accessible ramp connects the docks to the shore, where a new building houses restrooms for boaters.

Mr. Taylor said the docks, in use since Aug. 1, are already a big hit with tourists and locals.

“These new docks make the complete package for tourism, boating and the traveling public,” he said. “I feel these positive projects that are strongly supported by the community are just the beginning of job growth and economic development that is coming to Clayton in the years and decades to come.”

By ELI ANDERSON www.watertowndailytimes.com