The Mayors Mansion is marketed as the top historic bed and breakfast in Chattanooga and a AAA 4…read morediamond property, located in the historic Fort Wood section of Chattanooga. So, with that in mind, my review is contrasted against that intention. (As Kurt Russell's Wyatt Earp says, "you called down the thunder..."). But it's three stars, so it's not bad, there's definitely room for improvement. I recommend staying here, it is a comfortable good value, just not "nex-level."
The good - The rooms are nice, we had a good seating area in the Cumberland Suite and the bathroom was spacious. Everything was clean, we had triple sheeted bedding, with comfortable beds. Being on the third floor, we thought hot water might take a while to reach our shower, but it arrived quickly. The front porch is an excellent place to enjoy reading, visiting, a glass of wine and relaxing. The library is also comfortable and complimentary soft drinks and water are provided in a refrigerator easily accessed near the kitchen. The mansion is truly a grand old dame with high ceilings and detailed ornate woodwork (some mismatching though), a nice large dining area and an even larger annex for their dinner cruises. The coffee is very good.
The constructive criticism: With some attention to detail and tweaks, the experience could improve substantially.
The check in process was strange. We had been contacted the morning of arrival to determine our arrival time, which was approximately 4PM and we were punctual. The door was locked and no one was in sight, so we called and we were soon let into the side door. The front door area off the big main porch would have set the first impression much higher.
The overall area is safe but sketchy, especially later in the evening.
We didn't interact with the same staff person at any time during in our stay. I found that to be unusual, since hospitality is personal.
The first impression is an office area is in the main foyer, which takes away from the overall first impression of the manor. The staff did wear a uniform, but they were basic monogramed scrubs.
The four course gourmet breakfast was far from our expectations or as advertised, but the service was prompt.
For example, he first breakfast course both days was vanilla yogurt with one solitary blueberry in the middle. It was a lonely blueberry that begged for some company of granola or other berries or even a drizzle of honey or a sauce. It's not gourmet, it's a scoop of vanilla yogurt and one blueberry. The main courseielbasa medallions were fried almost to a crisp, but they were fancifully arranged in a semi-circle of a smiley face below two egg muffins and two slices of raw squash? We really did want breakfast to shine based on their marketing, but while good, it was ordinary.
I could go on, but Yelp limits to 5000 words. I hoped to provide some constructive feedback as I think this is a worthy property and could improve a lot with some attention to detail. One example being the coffee from a local roaster was very good, so serve it as a highlight with real cream instead of artificial creamer. Sounds nit-picky, but a lot of small details would add up if someone had a passion or vision for the manor.
FYI, there is no elevator, so third floor guests are hoofing it, which is great if you are in shape, we were fine with it, but be advised. They are very upfront about this during the reservation process.
We enjoyed our stay and would recommend the Inn, its just that sometimes when you are close to something, you sometimes become blind as to how to make improvements. Small details.
