Every year for the past seven years, our whole family has taken a summer break in Watch Hill, a little oceanfront hamlet near Westerly, RI.

I’m pretty sure it’s the greatest place on earth, and here’s why:

It’s beautiful and pristine.

It’s five minutes from Misquamicut Beach, which is beautiful and not pristine, but equally awesome.

It’s an hour and a half from our house, but feels light years away.

The coffee soft-serve at Dusty’s (Misquamicut) is to die.

The lobster roll at St. Claire Annex (Watch Hill) is also to die.

Pat Grande’s Grandview B & B, our home away from home, is delightful, and her breakfasts are delicious.

The waves are big enough to body surf but small enough to get up afterwards.

It’s home to the magnificent Ocean House Hotel, which was kind enough to host us for a swim at the indoor pool last year. (We said we were looking for “our friends Bill and Susie.” They never showed up.)

The movie theatre in Stonington always has at least one movie we want to see. (this year: Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes. Utterly enjoyable.)

There’s a gorgeous old town, with a footbridge that connects CT (Pawcatuck) to RI (Westerly).

I have only one complaint about the place: the couple that runs the parking lot in Watch Hill is not very friendly. We call them Mr. Cur and Mrs. Mudgeon.

In short, I can’t recommend Watch Hill strongly enough. It’s our summer tradition, and we love it so much.

Here’s us, Watch Hill 2010, enjoying the aforementioned coffee soft-serve:

And here’s us this year, same spot, same coffee soft-serve, same happy smiles.

Come meet us there in 2012. We’ll save a wave for you.