We've had the pleasure of staying at the Little River Inn for a business event that has brought us to the area every October for the last ten years or so.

Staying at the Inn is a little bit like a trip to Granny's house: everything is comfortingly in its usual place, your cozy room is awaiting you at night, in the morning the aroma of coffee and frying bacon wafts up the stairs and you just know that Granny is down in the kitchen fixing her special breakfast in honour of her favourite grandchildren's visit.

Set on the main road in the picturesque hamlet of Aldie, the Little River Inn has been sensitively restored and decorated in keeping with its 19th C. origins. There are also two cottages--one a log cabin!--available with sitting room, kitchen and bedroom/s. Having never stayed in either, can't personally comment, but they both appear charming.

Two of the rooms at the Inn are en suite, four share a bath centrally located in the upstairs hall. For those who require a private bath, ask and if available, ye shall receive.

When we were there the early October weather was warm enough to allow us to take breakfast on the flagstone patio just outside the kitchen. We dined on baked french toast (syrup on the bottom) and crispy bacon, hot coffee and with the morning sun on our backs and the Sunday paper to hand we could ask for nothing more.

For those seeking a chic, contemporary boutique hotel with hipsters hanging in the lobby and designer toiletries in the cavernous marble bath, seek further.

But for those of us who enjoy a trip back in time to a simpler era (with modern conveniences), a night or a week at the Little River Inn is just the thing--plain and simple.