Emma Cole
Google
Positives: I like to start off being positive. It’s a very whimsical and vintage cottage that reminds you of Anne of Green Gables. The price is very affordable compared to other places to stay on Mackinac Island. Trish has so much rich family and island history. It was fascinating to hear about her childhood and memories growing up on the island. The pastries were also very delicious and homemade. The brunch was all ready and on time at 8:30. It is evident that she puts a lot of hard work into making it nice for her guests. The bath towels were very soft and nice.
Major Issues: I didn’t like how I was treated by Trish on several occasions. I didn’t feel very welcomed at this place and wouldn’t go back. I called a few days prior to our trip asking about the AC and she answered me making me feel like I was an idiot. She answered in a very snarky tone saying, “Ummm…no??? Hardly any of the places on Mackinac have AC.” Not only did I feel stupid at the moment, but we later found out that other places did have AC on the island. When we got there, we felt like our room was crowded with our luggage and pack and play and all of the furniture(we had a toddler with us.) I asked her nicely if we could move one of her antique pieces of furniture so that we could put our pack and play in the corner of the room. Again, she was very cold, snarky and not friendly in her response. She said there was no other place to put the antique but I could move it to another part of the room. So as I was upstairs attempting to move it, it wasn’t even able to fit through spaces because it was so crowded. Trish comes into the room very confrontationally and emotionally telling me to stop. She barked, “THIS IS MY HOME!! YOU CAN’T JUST MOVE IT. WHY CAN’T YOUR PACK AND PLAY BE HERE???” as she points to a place that wasn’t what I had in mind. I tried to remain calm but I felt very unwelcomed and very uncomfortable in the first 5 minutes I was in the inn. I just tried to explain why I felt most comfortable putting my toddler in the corner of the bedroom. Trish seemed very annoyed and irritated about it. The next morning, I tried to be friendly and ask her questions about her life. She often gave me one word responses but was very conversational and friendly towards other guests. It felt like she showed extreme partiality and favoritism towards other guests. There were several times when she asked me when I was going to pay her for the remaining balance payment, which I also felt was really awkward. You don’t usually pay the rest of the amount until you check out, but she asked me once when it was late at night and I was trying to put my daughter to sleep. She asked another time at the dining table during breakfast in front of the other guests. It was very unprofessional and awkward, but I just paid her then because I could tell she was getting anxious about it. Lastly, when my toddler was in her pack and play, she ripped part of the wallpaper off because the ends were peeling and she has been interested in textures. I felt terrible and wanted to be upfront with Trish and confess to her to be honest. Trish rolled her eyes and gave me a really stern look and was not gracious about it at all. I felt bad, but I also felt like…if you are going to be running an inn, you need to be flexible and kind when accidents happen. Lastly, my husband hated the place so much that he wanted to leave early. We booked 3 nights, but we only stayed 2 in the end because he just couldn’t stand being there anymore. We called Trish saying we were leaving. She didn’t even ask why or how she could help. She basically just said, “ok, bye!!!” It seemed like all she cared about was getting our money. We did not feel welcomed by her, which made us really sad because this was our four year anniversary. We planned for months and were really excited about this trip since this was our first time staying on the island overnight. We budgeted and saved so that we could really have a good time.