My husband and I just returned from our 4th visit to the Osceola Mill House (August 2nd and 3rd 2007), and we would highly recommend it. The Osceola House is a Limestone home built in the mid 1700’s. The home is on a quiet country road next to Amish farms and houses. The innkeepers, Pat and Ron Ernst, are very friendly and accommodating. Their breakfasts are delicious, and we haven’t had the same thing to eat twice. On our most recent visit, Ron made stuffed banana french toast for one breakfast and blueberry waffles for the other -- both accompanied with sausage, fresh fruit, orange juice and coffee. Both breakfasts were delicious!

Gordonville is a small village just down the road from Intercourse, Bird-in-Hand, Paradise, and Gap. For those that are not familiar with the area, these villages have many interesting shops to visit -- all within a short driving distance to the Osceola Mill House. You can find large selections of local Amish-made furniture and crafts, bakeries, horse and buggy rides, retail outlets, local theaters and plenty of places to eat. In addition to shopping, we enjoy simply driving around the backcountry roads and like to stop at the roadside stands. If you happen to come across a sign for “homemade root beer” stop and sample some. We always have to bring some home.

Ron and Pat have pictures of the rooms on their website. All of the rooms are very clean and beautifully decorated, including the quaint carriage house (which we stayed in once). Our favorite room is the Burgundy room on the 3rd floor. Some rooms have bathtubs with a hand-held shower; others have stall showers, or a tub/shower combination. There is a TV in the sitting room on the first floor. If you’d like to book a room with a TV, call before making a reservation to find out which rooms have one.

On a previous visit, Ron and Pat helped us arrange for a hot-air balloon ride. They were extremely accommodating, when we told them we needed to be flexible due to the weather. On our last visit, we stopped at the local butcher and purchased fresh bacon and sausage. Ron and Pat were kind enough to let us store the meat in their refrigerator until we left for home.

If you are ever in the area, I would definitely recommend this B&B. Depending on the time of year, you may see Amish farmers across the street working in their fields. We find it enjoyable to sit outside and watch the Amish people pass by in their horse and buggies. As we have different models of cars, the Amish have different types of buggies. Ask the innkeepers to tell you more about this. When planning your visit, keep in mind that Amish-owned businesses are closed on Sundays. If you’re into antiquing, many of these stores are open on Sundays.

Whenever we visit the Osceola Mill House, we feel like we’re visiting with family and hope you’ll enjoy it as much as we do.

Patty and Greg