The MOST important facts to know about this place are
--the owners don't know how to run a business
--the beds are incredibly uncomfortable
--the basement (which accommodates 9-10 people) smells like mold/mildew and activates allergies for those allergic (and they should tell you this if housing you there)
Here are the good and bad in greater detail:
GOOD:
--There are lots of surface charms. On the surface it's a lovely Craftsman-era old home. Front-room fireplace, nice kitchen that's well equipped, easy to use, and clean.
--Bulletin board with local info.
--Cute handmade signs explaining rules and care/maintenance.
--It appears that every room is equipped with a space heater for the cold cold nights, and it seems it's easy to keep warm with provided sheets and blankets.
--I got two pillows on my single bed, and they were nice pillows and allowed for more comfortable sleeping than any other aspect of the stay.
--No shoe policy indoors. I like that it makes everything feel cleaner, especially floors on bare feet.
BAD:
--Like I said, they can't run a business.
point 1: Making arrangements for a three-night stay in a double/shared room took about three 20-minute phone calls. Poor communication, no getting to the point. Then the day we were arriving we received a call around 3:30 p.m. from the owners saying THEY needed to do errands in town. When were we coming? Would it be okay if they're NOT THERE for our ~5 p.m. arrival? They've checked in everyone else and are just waiting for us, etc. (Excuse me, but last I checked when you're running this kind of establishment, checking in should be allowed at all hours, but most typically expected between 4 and 7 p.m.) It was really uncomfortable and we felt forced into making a different decision (kill time elsewhere first). I think two more calls resulted after that, but because our phone was also our navigation and communication that takes 2 minutes between most people and 10 minutes with them, we ended up MISSING Ashland and driving 10 miles past it because we were too busy on the phone. It took us a while to figure this out because we never saw the exit and couldn't figure out why navigation wanted us to turn around.
Another guest told us she got the same call and they were rude to her. We didn't feel they were rude to us, but it was annoying to have to talk so much. And be told there's no way to check in at around the very reasonable FIVE PM. I mean, what kind of business are you running?
point 2: There are lots of rules and lots of information and in spite of lots of talking it wasn't disseminated well. For instance, my roommate wasn't given the keycode to get in the house, so it's a good thing we came home together. Also, I wasn't shown the rules list that apparently bans alcohol from the house, so it was quite embarrassing to buy wine and be told by another guest I can't have it while putting it in the fridge.
point 3: THEY CAME INTO OUR ROOM while we were sleeping!! It was VERY annoying to have such horrible sleep (see below) and feel no restoration and be awakened because we swapped one space heater for another and they literally barged in, no knocking, to swap the space heaters back. ???!!!
--World's most uncomfortable beds. My roommate and I had singles on creaky wooden frames. The mattress was crazy-soft, and I sank into a center sinkhole. It was hard to be comfortable. Both beds creaked loudly as we tossed and turned, so it becomes very noisy. My joints ached and my sleep was uncomfortable and unrestorative. I tried my friend's bed in her single and though it was better, it was still much too soft and bad on the joints.
--Dank, musty basement that smells terrible. (This is where our rooms were located.)
--Janky and cheap renovation work. Laminate floors and industrial carpets. Poorly cut base and quarter round, poor caulking, just generally janky work that looks like Uncle Hobbyist did it and not a professional. Everything very cheap--old/cheap sheets, mattresses, and pillows, plastic shower enclosures, plastic base in bathroom, cheap vinyl. I know it's not the Four Seasons and that's cool, but I think historic houses deserve better pride of ownership and better maintenance. They could even charge more for rooms if everything didn't feel so cheap. Walking on the sad laminate floors made me wonder where the wood went.
Because the entire point of being in Ashland was a dance event that required a lot of physical movement and late nights, it was very disappointing to be here. Because I lacked the necessary rest, I lacked full participation in my paid event.
I would not return, and we are owed an apology for the walk-in incident. read more
