New Bern NC B&B - help me choose please

[JunieBJones (JBJ)]

I have a REQUEST - Guests were telling me all about how fantastic New Bern NC is as a weekend getaway destination. History, walk to shops, walk along the river etc. I said "Oh there are a few B&B's there" and he replied there are only two.
I did a quick google - if you were going to New Bern NC which B&B would you choose and why?
Going from BandB.com there are some with 2 reviews and some with 35. If you have a chance - tell me which one you would book AND why?
Here is the list on BandB.com
Here is the list on BBonline
THANKS GUYS!

 

[Morticia]

Aerie B&B. I like the website photos. Didn't read the reviews. And you get a choice of breakfast.

 

[gillumhouse]

I found 7 and all seem to be on ******* Street. Sail Inn was a guest house so that was cut, Harmony House made me look too hard for rates, Hannah House web site was blah, I liked Howard House, Meadows, and Aerie and the It Must Be Heaven was last of the acceptable (name was too syrupy for me -stupid reason but there it is. Also they did not say anything about the bathrooms of 2 rooms but all the others said private. If it is shared SAY SO). There is another one another street besides ******* but the web site is so uninformative I dismissed it period.

 

[EmptyNest]

Aerie B&B. I like the website photos. Didn't read the reviews. And you get a choice of breakfast..

Yeah...but "down filled feather beds" not what I would want to sleep on. THough I have to admit this place looked about the best of them. None of them have very good web sites:-(

 

[Morticia]

Aerie B&B. I like the website photos. Didn't read the reviews. And you get a choice of breakfast..

Yeah...but "down filled feather beds" not what I would want to sleep on. THough I have to admit this place looked about the best of them. None of them have very good web sites:-(
.

Yeah...but "down filled feather beds" not what I would want to sleep on. THough I have to admit this place looked about the best of them. None of them have very good web sites:-(

They might take the feather bed thingy off if you asked. I didn't read anything, I just looked at pix. Altho the choice of breakfast caught my eye. I liked the ambiance of the photos. It looked like they took some care with the rooms. Other ones looked like someone said 'you have to have photos' and they went in and took pix without thinking about what was in the pic.

 

[NW BB]

Definitely Aerie B&B. Best of the websites, but needs better pictures. I like they had a list of in room amenities, so I know if I have to bring any extras. 600 count thread sheets sound good to me. I would choose the Tuscarora Suite with the double whirlpool tub.

 

[JunieBJones (JBJ)]

These are quite possibly all lovely B&B's. From their websites they do not impress me at all. From a perspective as an inn goer - the over abundance of print and tiny photographs puts me off all of them!
In this scenario, I have found BandB.com to be the best solution. The map feature works well as an overview. Of course the FEATURED INN is a resort, Broad Creek Guest Quarters Resort - so that kinda irks me!! It is not a B&B, oddly enough I thought it was called BedandBreakfast.com. hm. I, as a potential guest DID click on it to see what it was.
Anyway, I believe in my heart of hearts that ALL of the B&B's in New Bern NC would be better off using BandB.com listing AS THEIR MAIN LISTING! (Not for searches etc) but just for uniformity and conciseness in presentation. The websites are not good. Not good at all. Esp the one with all the Christmas photos - PLEASSSSSSSSSSSSSSE don't use Christmas photos 365 days a year!
Has anyone been to New Bern NC? Is it such a great place to visit? Next stop...Trip Advisor.

 

[JunieBJones (JBJ)]

Next question (hope you don't mind):
If you were planning a trip to New Bern NC and went solely by Trip Advisor - would you click those with the most reviews first? Or how would you determine which was which? Some have 2 reviews some have 38 reviews. All have about the same rating. They show 10 B&B's in New Bern NC.
Here is TA on this topic

 

[Suzie Q]

I tend to go toward smaller bnbs. The "Sail" one interested me until I realized they have a "Continental Plus" breakfast. What is that, rolls and hot coffee? One website had a low rate for singles and it jumped up $40 for a second person. Is the breakfast THAT expensive? I began to jumble them. One site you had to go to webervations to see the prices. Howard House didn't describe the breakfast at all! Maybe they didn't SERVE breakfast! One inn/bnb had "gourmet" fare. I wouldn't want to get stuck with a $10 breakfast, consisting of shrimp, fish, etc. Don't like it. One inn/bnb had a queen bed in that room that could sleep THREE?
I spent about 20 minutes looking at the inns on the first link and left it at that.

 

[Morticia]

Next question (hope you don't mind):
If you were planning a trip to New Bern NC and went solely by Trip Advisor - would you click those with the most reviews first? Or how would you determine which was which? Some have 2 reviews some have 38 reviews. All have about the same rating. They show 10 B&B's in New Bern NC.
Here is TA on this topic.

Oh, yes, MY guests have stayed at those places...'Wonderful! Had a terrific time! Everything perfect!' 4 stars. What I do when I look at TA, is to look at the number of stars, then I'll read the ones for the places I want to stay. A lot of reviews but a low number of stars? Uh oh. A few reviews and low stars? May not be important.
I'm with you on the resort thing. I didn't even look at it, because I'm not looking for a resort. And we all know that bandb lists anything that pays them including hostels. (We saw that last year when they were pushing the 'cheap vacation' and listed places in DC for $40/night- hostels.)

 

[Morticia]

These are quite possibly all lovely B&B's. From their websites they do not impress me at all. From a perspective as an inn goer - the over abundance of print and tiny photographs puts me off all of them!
In this scenario, I have found BandB.com to be the best solution. The map feature works well as an overview. Of course the FEATURED INN is a resort, Broad Creek Guest Quarters Resort - so that kinda irks me!! It is not a B&B, oddly enough I thought it was called BedandBreakfast.com. hm. I, as a potential guest DID click on it to see what it was.
Anyway, I believe in my heart of hearts that ALL of the B&B's in New Bern NC would be better off using BandB.com listing AS THEIR MAIN LISTING! (Not for searches etc) but just for uniformity and conciseness in presentation. The websites are not good. Not good at all. Esp the one with all the Christmas photos - PLEASSSSSSSSSSSSSSE don't use Christmas photos 365 days a year!
Has anyone been to New Bern NC? Is it such a great place to visit? Next stop...Trip Advisor..

I have the feeling, from their photo, that the innkeepers at my choice are not hands-on. The 'look' is one that says they'll be there to say hi, but not much else.

 

[JunieBJones (JBJ)]

Aerie is Select Registry. So that says something.

 

[muirford]

Aerie is Select Registry. So that says something.

.

I think I have spoken with them when we thought we might go to New Bern. They at least make some decisions in running the place. They didn't come to the conference because they were too busy.

 

[NW BB]

Next question (hope you don't mind):
If you were planning a trip to New Bern NC and went solely by Trip Advisor - would you click those with the most reviews first? Or how would you determine which was which? Some have 2 reviews some have 38 reviews. All have about the same rating. They show 10 B&B's in New Bern NC.
Here is TA on this topic.

Oh, yes, MY guests have stayed at those places...'Wonderful! Had a terrific time! Everything perfect!' 4 stars. What I do when I look at TA, is to look at the number of stars, then I'll read the ones for the places I want to stay. A lot of reviews but a low number of stars? Uh oh. A few reviews and low stars? May not be important.
I'm with you on the resort thing. I didn't even look at it, because I'm not looking for a resort. And we all know that bandb lists anything that pays them including hostels. (We saw that last year when they were pushing the 'cheap vacation' and listed places in DC for $40/night- hostels.)
.

I'm with you on the resort thing. I didn't even look at it, because I'm not looking for a resort. And we all know that bandb lists anything that pays them including hostels. (We saw that last year when they were pushing the 'cheap vacation' and listed places in DC for $40/night- hostels.)

Last year I phoned bandb.com to complain that a property listed on their site about 45 minutes north of me was not a b&b and did not serve breakfast. They contacted the owner and removed the listing.

 

[egoodell]

I have a REQUEST - Guests were telling me all about how fantastic New Bern NC is as a weekend getaway destination. History, walk to shops, walk along the river etc. I said "Oh there are a few B&B's there" and he replied there are only two.
I did a quick google - if you were going to New Bern NC which B&B would you choose and why?
Going from BandB.com there are some with 2 reviews and some with 35. If you have a chance - tell me which one you would book AND why?

I didn't have much time to look, but I would never book Broad Creek. The website looks like it would appeal to people looking for something really commercial. It made the property look horrible, and I can't even bear to read what it says.
I would not book the Hanna House because I don't have the patience to wait for the virtual tour to load up - even here in high speed I could not see any rooms.
The others looked okay to me - very poorly designed.
I would most probably read and book the Aerie House if the location proved to be good. After all the badly designed websites, it sure looked good to me.
I would be very particular too about where I stayed in New Bern, since I grew up in Bern, Switzerland, the original town.
Riki