Ryan P.
Yelp
What can I say that hasn't already been said? My wife & I stayed here last Saturday (12/12/15) to celebrate our anniversary, and this place definitely did not disappoint. Prior to arriving, Jose texted me asking what time he could expect me, as he wanted to welcome me into his home. Never having stayed at a B&B before, I thought I'd quickly check-in, get my key, and be on my way to my room; however, I was quite wrong. Jose gave me a warm welcome, introduced me to his wife, Jennifer, proceeded on a quick tour of his home, and showed me our room. He wanted to make sure we had everything we needed. He also gave me an envelope with my name on it, which included some details/reminders about their home. I could already tell our experience here was going to be different (in a good way) than staying at any other hotel. As with some hotels we've stayed at in the past, I thought the James Lee House might look a little different than the photos I saw online, but that wasn't the case at all. The house was restored perfectly with some modern updates, while keeping its original, historic charm. Even though I had seen pictures online, walking inside the home and seeing it in person was just breathtaking.
When my wife & I arrived, Jose & Jennifer were preparing an afternoon tea for other guests. When my wife heard this, she desperately wanted to partake. Not knowing anything about it, I assumed it was just tea, so I didn't think much of it to ask Joe & Jennifer if it would be too much trouble for us to have tea as well. They were both very accommodating and prepared everything for us within 30 minutes. After seeing the presentation, I felt guilty for asking at the last minute, but Jose & Jennifer were more than accommodating. Every item on the afternoon tea menu was amazing! It was such a nice treat! Everything that we couldn't eat was packed up for us to take home, too.
We stayed in the Harsson suite, and it was everything I saw in the photos. The room was gorgeous & spacious, and the bathroom was immaculate. The chair & couch in the room were also surprisingly comfortable. I think the one thing we enjoyed most about our room was the king size tempurpedic bed with softness & firmness controls. We didn't want to leave the bed!
When my wife & I left for dinner Saturday evening, Jose was kind enough to take some photos of us inside the home & outside on the Cinderella carriage. When we returned from dinner, we entered through the rear gated parking lot, and through the locked back door - such nice, secure features that we loved.
We were able to have a late breakfast (9am) the next morning, where we enjoyed a three-course meal! I was expecting only some eggs & bacon. There were homemade croissants on our table when we came down for breakfast. Next, we enjoyed Greek yogurt with a homemade orange marmalade, local honey, cranberries, pecans, and a blackberry. Finally, we had pancakes (blueberries in mine) made by Jose along with bacon. Of course, we also enjoyed fine tea and coffee, too. Again, Jose packed up the leftover croissants for us to take home. We were able to relax in our room until check-out time at 11am. Jose bid us farewell and walked us out.
It was definitely a wonderful treat to stay at the James Lee House. At previous hotels, we've always heard other people banging doors, running up and down halls, etc. At the James Lee House, we thoroughly enjoyed peace and quiet in our room. During our stay, there was only one other couple staying at the house. Our stay was so relaxing. Additional nice, little touches included:
- Updated, secure door handles & locks on all of the doors
- Our own personal door key and gate key
- Thick, soundproofing door sweeps on the doors
- Free Wi-Fi
- Sleeping masks & earplugs
- Bottled water in the room
- Lush, cozy towels, sheets, and blankets
Jose & Jennifer definitely thought of everything & didn't miss any details when they did the restoration. Their professional care and attention to our every need made our stay so personal. We highly recommended staying here!