My husband and I stayed at the Savannah Beach Inn to celebrate the weekend of his fortieth birthday. I'd seen reviews on TripAdvisor, and had checked out their web site. From all photos, it looked like a huge, gorgeously elegant type of place: a step back into Victorian beachside living. And though the property itself was unique, and aspects of it refreshingly different and cool, it wasn't nearly as glamorous as it's presented on their web site.
We stayed in the Captain's Quarters, which is the basement of the house. It has its own entrance, mini fridge, microwave, a little table and chairs, and a tucked-away "berth" with a bed in it and a TV that's actually really cool. The decorations hover between old-time nautical-elegance (if that makes any sense) and kitchsy. The walls are exposed brick, which was beautiful, but the ceilings are very low (if you're claustrophobic at all, this is not the room to stay in for a long period of time).
There are no windows in the bedroom: only one in the bathroom, but we didn't open it because it was on street level and easy to see in. The only natural light in the bedroom is through two "windows" which are made with those warped-glass blocks. You cannot see out them but they do let in some light. The antique bed was comfortable and really quite gorgeous: both of us slept extremely well both nights. We enjoyed the collection of DVDs available to guests.
The bathroom, to me, is the best part of the Captain's Quarters: there is an antique clawfoot tub. The furnishings include other great antiques, and the lighting and exposed brick walls make it a romantic setting--certainly steps above any chain hotel. There is no shower, however, only a tub--so do know that before renting this room.
You can lock the doors to the outside, the bedroom and the bathroom, but your sitting area is open, and a spiral staircase leads up to a side porch. The washer and dryer are right above you, as is the office and kitchen, and so by 7:15 a.m. you will hear the cook and other early risers walking around preparing breakfast. If she loads the washer and dryer, you will hear that, too. It didn't bother us much because we were out of bed fairly early to take walks on the beach.
You cannot control the air conditioning in your room. The first night it was freezing, but we enjoyed the cold because we don't have air conditioning at home. The next morning and night, however, it was very warm in our room. To their (SBI staff) credit, though, we never asked them to turn it up or down.
The house itself (we only saw the basement and the main floor), is really beautiful, but could use a dab more in the elegance department--especially since they choose to market it this way. The kitchen has a great island with stools where we ate breakfast one day: it can get a little crowded if other guests are there, though. One thing we were disappointed in is that on their website it says you have a choice of crab cakes eggs Benedict, French toast, or omelet for breakfast. What they don't tell you is that the cook only makes ONE of these each day: which means that you don't really have a choice. My husband was really looking forward to crab cakes eggs benedict, which they chose not to serve while we were there. We did have the French toast and the omelet, though, which were yummy. The cook/housekeeper, Patty, is very friendly, personable, and accomodating.
The "wine and cheese" reception each night consists of oversized bottles of inexpensive wine, and squares of "party tray" cheese left out in the kitchen. The homemade cookies and milk each night are good, and a unique treat.
The house is a little cluttered on the porch: there are sandy beach chairs in plastic bins available for use (I was a little surprised no one sprays them off, because they're used and rusted). There is a fantastic swing and several rocking chairs. Though the house does not have an ocean view, it gets a nice breeze and the lot ahead is only trees. It's a short walk (not even 5 mins) to the beach. They call this house the "grand dame" of Officer's Row, but there are other houses around it which seem much more elegant in their outside appearance. I wonder if the Inn was historically the buttercup yellow color? If not, it would be much prettier painted another color, in my opinion.
All in all, we believe that though the Inn is eclectic and neat (however, there were some teddy bear figurines lying around which made me think of the B&B cliche), and some of the furnishings are beautiful, it is WAY TOO overpriced. We did enjoy our time there, and talked to other guests who said their rooms on the upper floors were lovely. But we would not go back unless the price was dropped. It's much too expensive for what you get. Though it's a unique place to stay, and certainly worth the stay if it were not so costly, it is not nearly as elegant or glamorous as their website makes it seem.
