To begin, I have never been treated so disrespectfully or unfairly by a host or anyone in the hospitality business in my entire life.
We booked The Lodge on Main a year in advance for a much anticipated family reunion. To quote the website ad directly, "We designed The Lodge on Main to comfortably accommodate large groups of friends and families. With a huge open floor plan that combines the kitchen, great room and dining room, you'll never feel cramped."
Under amenities in the website description in the ad reads "Large Group Rental (10+)"
Summer rates listed for the property read,
"Summer Rates:
Thursday - Sunday nights $400" Although, we were in fact charged $500/night -
as explained by the owner the rate was $50 per person per night due to "wear and tear on the plumbing" and we had only "estimated" 10 people per night - due to the fact that two of our guests are active military and could not be guaranteed leave that far in advance. Had we known the reservation was absolutely inflexible and set in stone we would have estimated 12 guests to error on the side of caution.
In reality, only five guests stayed the first night which when charged using the per person formula should have been $250 when in fact we were charged $500.
The remainder of our party (7 people) arrived Saturday morning in 3 separate vehicles. We were not there 30 minutes when the owner approached us and inquired as to how many people were on the rental property as there were too many vehicles in the lot. (6 total) There was no mention of parking on the rental agreement or website nor were there signs guiding us where to park. We were also accused of driving across the lawn when in fact a customer from the liquor store was seen doing this. When I replied 12 people were on the property (10 estimated + 2 military) the owner immediately accused us of violating the agreement which only allowed 10 individuals on the property at once. He explained the property boundaries included the inside of the lodge as well as the outside backyard area which was generously equipped with 2 full sized picnic tables (16 seats) one raised ledge table with space for approximately four people and a fire pit area with exactly 11 Adirondack chairs arranged in a circle. When I questioned the owner as to why there were 11 chairs outside when no more than 10 were allowed on the premises, he snapped and stated that he was calling the police to have us evicted immediately.
We were not informed prior to our arrival that there were strictly enforced rules stating NO guests beyond the original estimated 10 people were allowed to step foot on the property for ANY reason at ANY time. Had we known of this inflexibility we definitely would NOT have reserved this property for a vacation, family reunion or any other recreational purpose.
The owner refused to explain HOW we were violating the contract when the website clearly stated, "sleeps 12" and there were exactly 12 people in attendance.
One gentleman from our group asked (direct quote) "What can we do to make this work? Can you explain where it is acceptable to park, how many cars are allowed and the acceptable maximum occupancy inside and out?" The owner outright refused to answer the question and called law enforcement to have us evicted immediately.
We were falsely lead to believe as stated on the website that this spacious rental property was appropriate for large gatherings that accommodated 12 guests.
My adult family which included retired seniors, middle-aged first responders and active military whom were all civil and respectful were unjustly evicted without provocation or recourse.
12 people, thousands of dollars, one year of planning and a weekends worth of food and linens displaced in Old Forge on a Saturday afternoon with nowhere to go.
It is also worth mentioning that this owner has live cameras mounted on the property where he monitors and records his guests activities from inside the adjoining liquor store (George's Liquor's) which he also owns.
THIS is how Steven Perlowitz treats his guests.
Do NOT spend your hard earned money at the Lodge on Main where guests are obviously NOT WELCOMED.
The owner has no right to refer to himself as a host on his website or any other forum as he was the most unreasonable inhospitable business owner I have ever dealt with in my entire life.
We will not be returning to Old Forge as our family reunion and weekend was completely devastated by the unjust actions of one inflexible and obstinate rental host. read more