Everyone before us seemed so thrilled with the Inn and it's hosts, so that was what lead us to stay here for a week. Fisrt off, you should know there are a LOT of stairs and uneven steps going up to the house, and a 2 flight staircase inside. You would want to know this if you are handicapped or have any problem with lots of stairs. The house is very pretty, and in the historic Montford district, which is very close to downtown Asheville. We stayed in the Leaf Peeper room, and it was very roomy and comfortable, with a large bathroom. It was very clean upon arrival, but we were very surprised to find the room was not cleaned while we were there. The bed was made, and towels were replaced, but that was it. Nothing was wiped down in the bathroom, as far as the sink and tub go. The owner let us know upon arrival that there were plastic cups in the dining room cupboard, because people were taking cups up to their rooms (she was perplexed at this). We did take some cups, so we could have a drink of water to take medicine, etc. I am certain this is why other people were taking cups upstairs too.
There are not too many places to go in the house. You can use your room, the parlor, the dining room, or the porch. There was not enough light for reading in the room, and a reading light behind one of the chairs would have been great. Another guest complained to us that there was really no place to sit in their room, so you may want to ask if you would like a room with seating. Our closet had about 2 hangers, and since their are no dressers for clothing, more would have been handy. The room had windows, and because it was warm, we opened one, but had to prop it with the 2 hangers because it wouldn't stay open. When we came back from our day out, the window was closed, and an un-openable storm window was put in place. We got the message they didn't want us opening the window. We had a tv in our room, but I am not sure if they all do, you may have to request it. There are few channels though, probably around 7.
You get a breakfast each morning, which was ok, but had some type of sausage 4 of the 5 days we stayed. Something different would have been nice. It would have been nice to have one alternative to the main breakfast each day, like a simple granola or something. Also, breakfast is a surprise. You don't know what you're having until it's served to you. Coffee seems to be rationed here, and don't expect any after breakfast time. I highly recommend the inn keepers purchase a Keurig system so visitors can enjoy coffee whenever they like. There is a water bottle in the dining room that dispenses hot/cold water, so you can have tea. It would have been so nice to come back in the afternoon or evening to settle down with a cup of coffee. There are cookies left out daily, but they were nothing special and not home made. They tasted like the buy-and-bake dough type. There are snacks and some sodas available, but the snacks were Sam's Club individual packs of trail mix, and were the same every day. Basically, coffee can be searched for at around 8am, breakfast is at 9am, then that's it for the day. I know most people go out and explore, but it just seemed odd to me that there was a great lack of a personal touch at this inn. And at the price they charge, I would certainly expect more. The whole experience felt mostly self-serve. It was all very odd.
Room Tip: Ask a LOT of questions, and be specific about your needs.
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This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC
9 January 2012
Honestly we had to laugh at these reviews once we got over the initial surprise to such deliberate untruths. Everyone is entitled to do a review, but if you are going to do it, AT LEAST be honest…We truly believe that anyone that comes across this will see right through the type of person that wrote it. Yet, we still feel we need to address it.
Of course we have stairs. It is not something we have tried to hide. As a matter of fact on the homepage of our website, we have 3 pictures that clearly show a multi-story house with what…stairs???? Each room description also indicates what floor the room is located on in clear bullet points. AND, we do not have a two flight stair case inside of the house like you claim. I wish we did. That would be so cool! Also, we are not handicap accessible and have never claimed to be, nor did you seem handicapped, so how is this an issue…?
Also, on our website we offer TV’s on request, as they are not left in rooms. No surprise there. More often than not, our guests do not even want to see a TV, much less watch one. As a courtesy, we have them available for those of our guests that do. Yes, our rooms are cable ready with the exception of our Endless Summer room. CABLE READY!!!! Meaning there are CLEARLY more than 7 channels.
Let’s see, coffee. Again, referring back to our website, it does clearly state early morning coffee service at 8am. Again, no surprise. We are accommodating and your girl friend requested coffee at 7am, which we did for her, every morning. We even poured her a cup earlier on several occasions and brought it to her while she sat on the front porch early in the mornings or when we found her sitting in the middle of the interior staircase…? What was that about? At that time and several times after that she was asked if she wanted coffee prior to 7am. She said no, as long as she was able to get coffee. Ooookayyyy…we really did not know what time to put coffee out for her other than the time she specifically requested, 7AM!
Oh, and yes we do provide an assortment of teas for guests, as if this is a bad thing…? On our website, we clearly say that we have a variety of teas in the dining room. If you wanted coffee in the evening all you had to do was simply ask, just as we asked you if there was anything you needed. You always said no. We would have gladly made some coffee for you. We never once claimed to have 24 hour coffee service, but we do make sure our guests know we are available to them and approachable should they need something. A B&B does not have a 24 hour manned desk like a hotel/motel would…but we are here!
Yes, upon all guest arrivals we show them where water glasses, tea cups, and plastic cups are. They are there for a reason and yes, guest can even take them to their room. Nothing perplexing about that.
As far as grab and go snacks, we leave them out as a courtesy (one of those things we would like to see form our past B&B experiences) we do buy granola bars, nutra-grain bars and trail mixes in bulk, so what? You did not seem to have any problems having more than your fair share…and we would happily restock for other guest’s enjoyment. Our guests seem to appreciate that they are there. We also have a guest refrigerator in the dining room stocked with soft drinks and V8 juice as a courtesy to guest. I guess what we could do is put one of those refrigerators in each room that you find in hotel rooms that charge you $5+ dollars every time you take something from it…and maybe charge for WIFI usage as well. Wouldn’t that have a nice hotel-like feel to it? Of course we would never do that!
As far as breakfast we are not a hotel with a restaurant…breakfast is not made to order and there is not a menu to pick and choose from. It is at our discretion, again which is stated on the website. Breakfast is decided once all guests have arrived and we have spoken with every one regarding dietary restrictions, allergies/sensitivities to foods. We often are use to working around guest dietary needs and sensitivities should that come up. If your dietary needs required high sugar and fat with low nutrient content, we could have accommodated you. Also, there was always coffee available every morning after breakfast if any one wanted more coffee. We poured almost full carafes out on a daily basis, which is a normal practice throughout the year.
We did supply you with new towels everyday. No, we do not do a full turnover of rooms for a stay over. However, the surfaces are wiped down and trash is emptied by our assistant while the bed is being made. As far as your window goes, yes I would shut it every day. (which would mean that it was operable) If I didn’t the room would get too hot, as that room faces south and the sun can really warm it up. Yes the nights were cooler but the days were still warm when you were here in October. Believe it or not, I was doing you a favor. OH and your bedroom window absolutely was not replaced with an inoperable storm window…really? Where is all of this coming from? All of the windows on this house have storm windows to help insulate the original windows to this house. They are all operable, in the Leaf Peeper room as well. The storm windows were already on the house when we purchased it. Again, we have to chuckle.
We also have ample seating in each and every room which is to scale for the individual rooms. We seriously doubt any other guest in the house complained about this as you say they did. We were quite familiar with the guests that were here the same week you were. Lighting in this room is more than adequate…as we responded in our response to your friends review.
Common space, how much do you need? As you stated, there is the parlor, dining room, and front porch. We also have a deck and large foyer. Keep in mind this house was built over 100 years ago. There is more than enough common space and is also to scale for this house. Again, we’re not a hotel, we are a home. We are a home that people enjoy coming to and we have many repeat guests.
Out of the over 4 ½ years we have been here, we have NEVER had anyone blatantly distort the truth quite like this. It almost seems like you purposely pulled specifics from our website and made them out to be something negative…AND for what reason? We are a very small business and we have based how we operate our B&B based on the B&B’s we have enjoyed for the past 20 years. Things we have liked at B&B’s and things that we would have liked. Every B&B is different and the way they are run is at the discretion of each individual owner. We are hospitable, friendly, welcoming, AND always available to guests should they need or want something or in case of an emergency. We are not for everyone. Nor do we expect to be. Life is short and we all have a choice to be miserable or happy. We wish you both a long life of happiness!
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