First, during the COVID19 pandemic, no one is wearing a mask in any part of the vicinity. Not the owners, not the customers that crowd the attached deli store, nor the other hotel guests inside the lodge. There's no respecting the 6 ft distance, either. There's not even a sign to inform others about safety precautions, nor were there any verbal reminders by the owners. The reason I mention the attached deli store with the lodge is that one MUST go through it to get their room key and thus deal with all the other folks either buying stuff or loitering about. Add to it, the owner, Deb, and her husband both didn't adhere to wearing a mask or social distancing.
Second, the rooms are like grandma's old attic in design--and stuffed like it, too--without many amenities. No phone, no TV, no fridge, and no a/c (but you do get a box fan that looks like one I bought back in the 90s from Walmart for 5 bucks). It does have an old coffee maker in the bathroom and what looks like an iron fire place, but knowing the irony (pun intended) it probably can't be used. Its "high speed wifi" is at 1 to 2 bars max inside the room.
Back to the décor, there's oodles to be had for doilies and ruffles. We had the "honeymoon suite" but I ask what decade was this ever considered a honeymoon destination? The pillows beneath the cases are browning, the coverlet and bedding were dab dun in color, and the figurines are fatigued and staring at you to help rescue them. This just feels so outdated and hardly what I would call a love den for a couple to escape to. It doesn't feel cozy or cheerful, let alone romantic.
Now there's a deck that surrounds the entire upper floor rooms without boundaries between the other rooms. Given, again, the pandemic we're in, it is very disconcerting to know neighbors in other rooms, not wearing masks, can come up to you for a chat or come walk by your room should you leave the screen doors open for some clean and cool air. And being on the second floor, it is quite stuffy without some breeze to come in! Simple baby gates, temporarily placed, could be installed to place boundaries. But then again, maybe the owners would consider this a restriction of freedom for their guests.
They do boast a home cooked breakfast, which sounds quaint and inviting. However, the way Deb said it after taking in our masks at check in really turned us off. At first she informed us that they offer a home cooked breakfast between 8 and 9:30. Then, looking at our masks, she added with clear sarcasm; it's around a kitchen table indoors, but there's seating out doors if you insist on being safe. That felt like a slap, as if being safe was an insult to her establishment. We take being healthy serious and follow all CDC guidelines whenever we enter any establishment to insure not only our health but that of others.
Well, by the time my husband and I had time to see the room and see the lack of safety (I mean, how does one even know the rooms are cleaned enough if they don't even bother enforcing simple safety measures?), we decided to ask for a refund for the second night. We were willing to stay that night just in good faith for their business. Deb got angry at my husband, saying it's been difficult to get the rooms booked because of the COVID19. My husband informed her that he wasn't pleased with the lack of safety precautions (mentioned above(, to which she simply told him he was complaining too much and she wanted us gone. We took the out, got our refund, and left to book a place in another establishment where safety measures were observed and enforced.
It's very sad because it is in an ideal location. Just some simple changes would make everything feel much more inviting and safe. For all the reasons above, I would give this location a negative 1 star, but due to this rating system, the lowest I can give it is a one star with a warning to customers to beware. read more
