I agree with all of the negative reviews, I've stayed here twice. The first time I chalked up my discontent to a very loud and drunk wedding. The second stay was more quiet but the hotel room was tired, dated, not very clean--with a bed that should have been replaced long ago. My room was on the third floor--no water pressure at all. There was a wedding this weekend also, the staff is only concerned about the wedding--not the other paying guests. The morning was very windy yet every indoor sitting place was reserved for the wedding guests. There is limited indoor seating with incredibly uncomfortable seating.

I did think the food was good and the staff was very nice. Management is another story--they could care less.

I stayed at the Spring House Hotel this past weekend because I was attending a wedding and reception at the hotel. I had never been to Block Island before and had no idea what to expect.
The Spring House is a very beautiful turn of century (19th century) hotel with magnificent views of the ocean from its hillside perch. It has all the charms of a hotel of this vintage: big wrap around porch with view seating, a handsome wood paneled dining room and sloping floors (I mean REALLY sloping floors) which attest to a century of shifts and settling. The staff is quite nice and helpful. The food in the dining room at dinner was good. However, the food at breakfast (included in the $265 price of my room) was minimal and extremely mediocre quality. This was very unfortunate since you had to overlook the fact that the water in the hotel was variable (boiling hot in some rooms and never really hot in others, a tinge of brown in one room, etc.) and that the only air conditioning was provided by the two fans in the rooms, and no swimming pool. It would take very little to create a truly wonderful atmosphere here- a great breakfast, some sort of tea in the afternoon, a free drink in the evening, etc. 19th Century atmosphere can be wonderful, but it needs to be augmented by 20th Century amenities. Would I suggest this as a vacation spot if I weren't there for a wedding? No.

I've been going to Block Island for years and have always stayed at a different place. If you've never been to BI you should know there are no 5 star hotels, however there are some very charming places. Also, only a very few have air conditioning.
Block Island is charming but can only be reached by boat or plane. So they aren't trucking in Ethan Allen 2011 furniture. In most of the places you stay each room is unique. Compared to the National, Spring House's rooms are twice the size and have a very decent size bathroom.
There is no other place on the island with this view. The adoroniak chairs are perfectly positioned to enjoy a cocktail while watching the water. The huge wrap around porch is for dining and cocktails but also great for a card game or to read a good book.
Dining is outside or in but you'd be crazy to sit inside unless it's raining. They have a vast menu during the summer months including $15 pizza to $45 steak. Take a quick walk down the street to see the fantastic farm with camels, bison, alpacas and sheep on your way into town to shop.
Ferries leave out of New London and Point Judith.
Ballards is the beach right in town. There is a restaurant and bar service on the beach. You can rent chairs and umbrellas. You can rent a bike or car to tour the island but it's not cheap. The cab's also offer tours of the island.

My wife and I try to get to the Springhouse each summer. We love it there. This summer we spent 3 nights in the Annex house. I am sorry to report that it didn't live up to the mainhouse. The Annex house is the "red-headed step child" to the main house, but it could be great. We had a room on the first floor, which the main house doesn't have for the reason that there are people sitting on the porch right outside my window every morning and night. Speaking of hte porch, there are a total of two chairs and no waitstaff. Upon asking the waitstaff to come over and help a bunch of us they said that it wasn't allowed.

In summary, stay in the main house, or in the upper floors of the Annex house. My mother stayed in the Annex on the third floor with the island view and it was gorgeous. FYI -- the Island View rooms have the predominante south west wind, so they are very cool, whereas the Ocean View rooms have zero breeze.