We enjoyed the old style charm of a Victorian Hotel with a beautiful wrap-around front porch. While sitting on comfortable rocking chairs you can enjoy the romantic horse drawn carriages stream by all day and night offering curb side history lessons. The soft rumble of wheels and the clip-clop of hooves echo through the night. The rooms we impeccably clean and the housekeeping staff were polite and accommodating. The location was great and is walking distance to the beach.
There were a few displeasures. It was not a quiet place. The floors squeaked and the constant slamming of the veneer doors was bothersome. (They should be removed~!). The “bare bone” room did not offer a clock/ radio or TV, if this is important to you. It was not kid friendly which is typical for a B&B hotel. We had a room with air conditioning. Bring a sock to stuff into the AC ducts because it was cold! The food in the Magnolia room was just okay. The buffet breakfast was better than the dinner. The selection was limited. We had strip steak that was dry and barely edible.
Being the second largest hotel in the area we enjoyed the 19th century ambiance. We both enjoyed the freedom to roam around without feeling like you were in someone’s living space.
Jeanne and Kevin

My Husband and I went away for our anniversary and I booked The Chalfonte thinking it would be quaint and romantic. It was during a heat wave so I made sure we had a room with air (the ground floor doesn't have air). Our room was sparse but the hard wood floors and bed were pretty and our bathroom was new (although the plumbing in the tub/shower didn't work well).
The hotel is definately a throw back in time. The hotel dates back to the 1870's, with not much updated. So if you want to feel 'old' Cape May this is the place. There's no tv, not even in the bar, but the bartender was very personable and there was a terrific spread of cheese and crackers. A local walked through and sold us a pint of blackberries that were delicious and everyone enjoyed. There's a wrap around porch with plenty of chairs to sit on and enjoy the sights and sounds of Cape May. The upside is....we didn't have a tv to fall back on so we walked the streets of Cape May, a great town to take in. The downside is, if it's a modern hotel with all the amenities you want, this is not the place for you.
There's a restaurant on the premises and we did have breakfast. There's a southern vibe to both the hotel and resturant and we enjoyed that but I haven't a clue about how the dinners are.
There really seemed to be no one in charge, the hotel was run by a lot of young people but when I asked for a blow dryer they scoured the place until they found one for me and everyone was very polite.
I noticed alot of families moving into their rooms and I thought that was cool. If you want an old fashoined 'down the shore' feel, meaning drinking cream sodas and playing cards or board games after a day at the beach...then this is the place.
Our room took forever to be cleaned (we were out all morning and afternoon on Saturday and came back to find the room still not clean) so we did it ourselves.
I'm ambivalent about The Chalfonte, it was really interesting but there could be so many ways to improve the stay. It is a place that could be great but is hovering between falling apart or reaching it's distinct potential.
I guess the big question is, would we stay again and I'd have to say 'yes'.

We used to go to this hotel for over 30 years. The new ownership got rid of all of the wonderful, relaxing part of this hotel. The rooms are now cheaply decorated, the food is AWFUL - no spoonbread - are you kidding me? Oatmeal for breakfast? WTF! And dinner was a fiasco. The scallops were so fishy smelling my husband said they were not edible. We left after 1 night. The prices have gone up, the service down, and they don't even give you coffee with dinner - even though the meal plan they talk you into is $40 plus tax plus gratituty, plus so much freaking nonsense we wished we would've gone elsewhere. Give this place a pass.

We stayed at the Chalfonte in July for 2 days and loved it. The staff is very friendly and attentive, the rooms are small but clean and the atmosphere within the hotel is great. They have a beautiful wrap-around porch to sit and relax and enjoy the night air and the hotel is just minutes (on foot) to the beach. They provided a great cheese/fruit/crackers buffet on Sunday night (free of charge) that was delicious. We highly recommend this hotel to anyone staying in Cape May.