Bed and Breakfast Instead Of A Hotel

The pictures from chasing the fall colors are on Shutterfly and can be found at http://dogear6.shutterfly.com/.  Please remember that the copyright rules at the right apply.

My favorite boy toy and I made a decision with our recent trip to stay again in a bed and breakfast, as we did in May when we went to Pennsylvania (see Thursday in this post).  Having done it for a second time, we will definitely be doing it more in the future.

So why a B&B instead of a hotel?

• Quiet – typically children under 12 are not allowed nor are pets
• Limited number of guests
• Breakfast the next morning – a gourmet treat
• Clean – and I mean clean
• Common rooms where you can spread out books & laptops, visit with other guests, and relax
• Innkeepers who visit, want to know what you did, offer suggestions, and answer multiple questions – they’ve answered so many questions they know what you should be asking even if you don’t
• Pride of ownership of sharing their home with you
• Warm welcomes and warm goodbyes

There are some downsides to a bed and breakfast.  Once a reservation is made, it is difficult to change on short notice without a penalty.  A B&B can be more expensive than a hotel, depending on where you stay.  There’s no gift shop or vending machines, although both places provided after hours snacks and drinks.  The breakfast menu is set unless you’ve made a special request or have dietary restrictions that you mentioned beforehand.

This time we stayed at Laurel Lodge in Harper’s Ferry, West Virginia, run by Chris Craig and his partner, Ed Wheeless.  I didn’t take many pictures of it as their website has good photos on it.  The rooms were very comfortable, the house beautifully decorated, and it was in a wonderful location overlooking the Potomac River.  It was at the end of a quiet street, complete with a friendly black cat who came for a pet each time we went in and out to our car.

All three breakfasts were incredible!  We started with juice and a homemade bread (scones, biscuits, coffee cake), a fruit (stewed apple crumble, fresh fruit, broiled grapefruit), and a main dish (omelets, pumpkin waffles one day).  It was the highlight of the day.

There are several ways to find a bed and breakfast on the Internet.  You can Google for bed and breakfast + city name + state.  Two great sites that I use are http://www.tripadvisor.com/ and http://www.bbonline.com/.  I read reviews and go out to the individual websites to look at pictures and read descriptions.  I also put my own reviews out there afterwards.  These are very small businesses and a good review will help them get future business.

Laurel Lodge in Harper's Ferry

Word for tomorrow – RIOT.  If you prefer to work ahead, see the list for the week under “A Word A Day”.