If you forgoe the opportunity to stay at the Turtleback Inn, you will have denied yourself a truely fine experience. Bill and Susan (the owners/innkeepers) have operated it for 20+ years, and have refined innkeeping to an art form. They are like one's favorite aunt/uncle, are warmly and genuinely hospitable, and are extremely likable. The Inn is impecably clean. The tiniest detail has been attended to. The two guest buildings invite one inside without pretense or contrived charm. It is all genuine: the hosts, the Inn, the entire 80 acres. It is the real deal.

My wife and I had an opportunity for a 3 day "kid break". We jumped on it, and headed to the San Juans for a bicycle getaway. We booked the Turtleback on Orcas for 1 nite on "a flyer" after a cursory web review of the other options. We'd never heard of the place. We were going to play Sat & Sun nites by-ear with intentions of touring another island too. Long-Story-short: we were so taken by the Turtleback we continued to extend each day and spent all 3 nites there. We thuroughly enjoyed it! The Turtleback's contribution to a great weekend was of large measure. (1) Each of our 3 breakfasts was "gourmet", different, and fabulous! The coffee was excellent (we're Seattle coffee snobs) and bottomless. (2) The setting is bucolic and scerene; one is encouraged to wander. (3) The bed was firm and comfortable; the place is quiet; the sleeping was great! (4) The Inn's sitting/living room is charming, rich with wood, inviting to both genders, and the fireplace stoked and ready, with a generous wood supply 10 feet away under the front porch; the conversation with other guests was most interesting. (4) The entire place was squeaky clean. (5) The attention to detail was amazing, down to furnishing q-tips and even foam ear plugs for those who may be light sleepers.

While enjoying the fire in the evening, we purused scrapbooks of published, professional reviews. We were taken aback by the plethora of positive reviews the Turtleback has received over the many years from Sunset Magazine, LA Times, multiple travel magazines, etc, etc. You name it, its given Turtleback 5 stars. In other words, the place has credentials! IT IS A SLAM DUNK THAT YOU WILL LOVE THIS PLACE!!!