Tar Heel Travels

The Sanderling Inn in Duck

By Bill Hensley

Conde Nast, the national travel magazine, recently listed the top 500 hotels in the world according to its annual readership poll. Much to my disappointment, only one of the great hotels in North Carolina made the list -- The Sanderling Inn in Duck, a resort and conference center on the Outer Banks.

I wasn't familiar with the inn except by reputation, so I wondered what made The Sanderling so special that it is listed alongside the Dorchester in London, the Crillon in Paris, the Shangri La in Bangkok, the New Otani in Tokyo and the Regent in Sydney. Could this be true: a resort in Duck, a little-known wide spot in the road miles from civilization, ranked with the world's grand hotels? It sounded so incongruous that I had to see for myself.

Upon arriving, I learned the inn was built in 1985 by Earl Slick of Winston-Salem. In the beginning it was intended to house Slick's hunting guests at his seaside hunting club, because good accommodations in the area were non-existent. But the property caught on quickly and soon the original building had a north wing. And then a south wing was added as guests from all over the eastern seaboard flocked to the secluded resort on a 13-acre tract between the Atlantic Ocean and the Currituck Sound.

Today, The Sanderling has 88 rooms and four family-type villas, a peak season staff of 160, a full-service restaurant, health club and spa, tennis, indoor and outdoor swimming pools, and a series of nature trails that adjoin the property. Nearby is a variety of beach-oriented recreational activities including golf, kayaking, sailing, fishing, cycling, shelling, hiking and sightseeing on the Outer Banks.

Running the show is 46-year-old Christine Berger, a Michigan native who has been in the lodging industry since she began work at the Waldorf Astoria in New York when she was 20. Formerly the No. 2 executive in charge of operations, she took over as general manager when her husband died unexpectedly six years ago.

What does it take to be rated as one of the world's top hotels? “Commitment,” she replies quickly. “A strong, never-ending commitment to excellence. We want to be the best, and we never lose sight of that goal.

“In addition,” Berger continues, “you must have a great staff with the same strong commitment as management and a passion to do the best job possible.

“We have a continuous training program,” she adds, “even though our staff turnover is low. We encourage the staff to look for ways to have personal contacts with the guests so we will know how to please them.”

At The Sanderling, like any beach property, weather, sand and salt air create maintenance problems that must be attended to on a daily basis. “And the fact that we are so remote -- a plus in our marketing program -- hurts when we need fast attention,” Berger comments. “Each room is redone every three or four years.”

May to October is peak season at the resort when occupancy runs in the 90 percent range. “But we are open all year, and the off-season months are when we host numerous small business meetings,” the general manager says. “Our convention center has been a tremendous asset.”

The Sanderling, like all fine hotels, has a variety of thoughtful extras that discerning guests appreciate: free newspapers and morning coffee in the lobby; expedient room service; an attractive in-room amenities package of soap, shampoo and other necessities; large television sets with remotes and VCRs; a well-supplied library; sofas and easy chairs in spacious rooms; welcome gifts; a complimentary continental breakfast delivered to your room; and more.

And all of this is in gracious surroundings that are enhanced by a museum quality art collection of paintings, sculptures and crafts by renowned artisans.

Since North Carolina's top-rated inn by Conde Nast is nearly a four-hour drive from Raleigh and mid-state points, how many North Carolinians stay there? “We have a strong client base in-state,” Berger explains, “but Virginia, Maryland, the Washington area and the Mid-Atlantic states are our biggest market. Good word-of-mouth advertising has helped send a lot of travelers from the Northeast our way, too.”

Berger is quick to admit that feature stories in such national publications as Gourmet, Travel and Leisure, Conde Nast and the New York Times also have been a key factor in the resort's quick rise to fame.

Rates at The Sanderling range from $123 to $186 per day during the off-season, and from $214 to $462 during the peak season. Package rates are also available. For further information, call 252-449-6664 or check out the inn's web site at www.SanderlingInn.com.

COPYRIGHTED MATERIAL. This article first appeared in the May 1999 issue of the North Carolina Magazine.