Visiting other B&Bs

[Mtatoc]

The last three b&b's we stayed at were not pleasant experiences. All were dirty, (one with cobwebs, dead spiders, mouse droppings) and there were other things about them that we didn't like. We didn't say anything or make a review. but definitely wouldn't go back. Definitely wouldn't recommend them. We can overlook some "quirks" but cleanliness is essential.

 

[Susan]

As always we get the post and run on this forum, perhaps after some amount of time, we will hear the rest of the story. Sorry to sound so negative, but this is what always occurs here, we offer feedback and then null and void on their end. We shall see.
I wanted to know about the innkeepers, that is foremost in my mind. God forbid someone use my spiderwebs against me, I am a mere human, and cannot do it all here. So I hope they were treated well and in some weird way they can overlook some of the deficiencies before we all end up in straight jackets.
New drainage pipe installed, this meant digging a 200 foot ditch from the back of the property to the front by DH in the heat - after his 50 hour a week real job, area behind cottage was dug up and still dup up, brick work in piles, I put an orange cone out there to try to prevent guests from going back there. That was, hm 3 months ago. Mulch pile in parking lot, nearing on 2 months, it is moved wheel barrow by wheelbarrow full, husband is near to a heart attack from all the labor around here.
Just sharing this as it is beyond my control. I am but one person here. Had to get DH ticked off to finally move more of the mulch, in his ire. Why have it delivered in our peak season? Doesn't matter, he is he and I am me, he will do what he wants to do. This is how it is when you own and operate a B&B. (Just sharing this, it is easy to write a TA review and nit pick and never know more than a one night stay and what you perceived, this is why I would mention it if it is a big deal, otherwise move on.)
Like people on farms say "This is an operating farm" so excuse the mess. It happens..

OMG!! I never received an e-mail letting me know anyone replied to my post and didn't realize that all of you had left me a message! (I am new here and maybe this site doesn't send you a notice, SORRY) I am so sorry I did not see all these replies and didn't get back to you all sooner.
So, here's lots of answers. I never like to leave a bad review and, under normal circumstances, would talk to the innkeeper. But, in this case there was an innkeeper who looked and acted like he was so tired of running the place and couldn't seem to decide if he was the manager or owner when I spoke to him. We were there on a visit and the place is not listed for sale. There were different people at the desk which was open from 8am - 9pm and the place had 11 rooms. Every floor and curtain in the place needed a good cleaning. I didn't want to take my shoes and socks off in our room. There were little corners and cubbies (a very old mill and add ons with lots of stairs and corners here and there) that were stuffed with fabric, dried flowers and the odd figurine or other dust collector covered in dust, grime and cobwebs. Yet, it looked like someone dusted, vacuumed and mopped the obvious and easy to reach things/areas frequently. The place was 80 - 85 degrees indoors. In our room maybe we were able to get it to 75. The cobwebs in the room were on the ceiling beams (11 feet ceilings) and were the type that take months to reach that size and dismal color of charcoal gray. The windows were dirty with airconditioners ill-fitted, with cardboard and duck tape attempting to block the holes. The bathroom floor was old, peeling linoleum, dirty in the corners and around the comode like it hadn't been cleaned well for months. THe cault was that dreadful dark color it can get if never cleaned/replaced. There was peeling paint and wallpaper everywhere - halls, rooms, bathrooms, common areas. The entire inn needed a good scrub and some lovin'. It seemed to reflect the down-trodden disposition of the innkeeper who was not an aged person but was mature. But at the same time it was easy to see that it wasn't too long ago that it was a charming one-of-a-kind historical getaway.
The TA reviews are few and mixed. The area has very few B&Bs and we were looking to get our army daughter (who just returned from Afganistan 48 hrs earlier) and her fiance away for a night so they could relax so we didn't want to make a big deal of it and leave because the setting was peaceful, on a brook in the woods. It was so calming and charming outside with hummingbirds and deer all over.
I suppose I should have composed a note to the owner, but there is no way an innkeeper couldn't see what was so obvious and in front of them and it wasn't something isolated to just us and our room. Maybe I need to get over it and write the letter. I just wanted to throw this out there and hear what you all had to say. I will check this again tomorrow after work.
THANK YOU all for your replies.
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Thanks for the update. Sorry you had to experience that, ya see we feel for you and do not appreciate anyone in our business representing the industry this way! THAT SUCKS! I can see totally where you are coming from, I would have freaked and then left.
My next question - how was the website? Any clue there, now looking back?
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About the website. Hmmm. It is very old and in need of revamping. No online reservation option and obviously not touched for a while, however, I have been to some very nice places that haven't had the greatest website and it's only because the innkeeper is older and not into that "technical stuff." So I don't like to judge a place by how technologically up to date they may be.
We, DH & I, also really enjoy old buildings, especially when they aren't victorian to the nines. High victorian makes us a little uncomfortable - like tip-toeing in a museum - but it is so prevalent that we often stay at victorians anyway. So when I saw something that was old and more civil-war era, primative, etc. I called and booked it. Maybe I should have asked more questions. I think I am going to write to the innkeeper and hopefully do so in a tactful and helpful way.
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"So I don't like to judge a place by how technologically up to date they may be."
The website is the first impression. This is what baits the hook. Going there and hoping it might be nice is, well, you know the rest of the story. Running a professional B&B means all areas of operation, not just baking muffins.
If they don't care about the website, which is to attract business, then the rest is...gravy.
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I agree, JB, but, I have been to some delightful B&Bs whose websites were not necessarily bad, but weren't what we would call contemporary. Just because a website is behind the times doesn't mean that they don't care about it. Maybe they just don't know enough to realize it is in desperate need of updating. On a recent 8 day trip during which we stayed in 5 different B&Bs we met a few elderly owners who had never updated their website simply because they didn't know better. Granted that isn't the way we will do business, but a less than adequate website doesn't predispose an inn to poor quality. Some lifestyle inns aren't actively chasing business and are happy with the status quo - and may be darling places to visit.
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Susan that is the same thing as "This place is so great we will just keep it our little secret, so it stays small and special"...and out of business.
Proof is in the pudding.
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OK, I TOTALLY agree with all this, but that wasn't my original point. My original point was that just because a place has a poor website doesn't mean it won't be a good place to stay. HECK YES marketing is key, but so is cleanliness and one doesn't guarantee the other.