First, It is not clear when you arrive where you need to go to be greeted. We were confused and wandering around with bags and pillow in hand looking for a sign or someone to help us before we accidentally ran in to other guests and they pointed us upstairs where the owner was working. When we found him at the top of the stairs in the hallway he used his key to open our room and then never came back to welcome us or explain how things work at the B&B. A couple minutes later a staff member came up and gave us our own room key and did her very best to let us know everything we need. She was very nice! Ultimately, however, we just made ourselves at home and figured things out on the fly. During our two day stay, we observed two other groups of guests having the same problem upon arrival.

The Carriage House Bed and Breakfast is located directly across the street from Winona State University and on a city block that is dominated by student occupied rentals which means loud partying all night long on the weekends. While this isn't under the control of the owners, it's unfortunate and was a real detriment. I should also mention that this was WSU's homecoming weekend and I am positive the noise was much louder than average. Perhaps on a more average weekend, this wouldn't be a problem. But with the rate at which student rental housing turns over, I don't think you could predict from semester to semester whether the tenants next door will be the partying sort or not.

Calling this place a "Bed & Breakfast" is a stretch. It's a "Bed" for sure (and nice cozy one actually- the bed/bedding felt like grandma's house); however, "Breakfast"- not so much. You would get more variety and the same quality food if you were to be enjoying the free continental breakfast at the local Motel 6. You get your choice of a breakfast bread (croissant, muffin or bagel) with fruit and either juice, coffee or tea. That's it. AND, I am sure the baked goods are simply bought at the local supermarket. I was really hungry and the croissant was just fine; but, I would expect more from a B&B. Perhaps this was clear on the website, but I might have just missed it or something!

One thing to be aware of is that there is not much privacy between rooms. The Carriage House, where the guest rooms are located, is not well insulated and thus you can hear everything going on in the entire place very easily. Not much privacy for couples'! Also, it's cold..brrrrrrrrrr.

Finally, when we were ready to check out at 7:15am there was nobody to be found. We weren't instructed about leaving procedures, so we just left! Overall, the visit was awkward and a little strange. But, hey, that's the deal with B&B's I guess- the quirkiness is part of the charm. I wish we would have known all of these things before we booked the room though!