The Sunset Motel — Hotel in Brevard

My husband and I recently spent three nights in the upstairs apartment at the Sunset Motel and were pleasantly surprised. It exceeded our expectations and is an excellent option for budget-minded travelers. ||Check-in was simple and contactless. We arrived around check-in time, and our key was waiting in an envelope near the office door. While no one was on-site, the manager's contact number was provided if we needed anything.||It is important to note that the steps to the apartment are extremely steep. We were aware of this before booking, but I want to emphasize it for future guests. Hauling luggage up was a challenge. The stairwell is well-lit, but I would not want to tackle those steps unless completely clear-headed--if you plan on enjoying adult beverages, do so safely inside the apartment.||Once inside, the apartment is a "WOW". It features a full kitchen with a full-size refrigerator, stove, and dishwasher, stocked with all the cookware and tableware you need. We saved significantly on our meal budget by cooking breakfast daily and two suppers (including boiled shrimp) after shopping at the nearby Ingles and Food Matters Market. The kitchen has a Keurig (one cup at a time), a toaster, and a blender. The apartment is stocked with Kuerig pods and the supplies for coffee, but we always bring our own coffee, honey, and creamer.||The living space is open-concept, combining the dining table, a desk (with a handy charging lamp), a large sofa, and two chairs. The chairs are a leather-like material that can be sticky against bare skin, so we used beach towels to sit on them. For entertainment, there is a mounted television (we used the YouTube app on the TV for our music) and a record player with a small selection of vinyl (Eagles, Beatles).||The bathroom is located directly off the living room. It's a standard setup with a shower/tub combo and was well-stocked with toiletries and towels.||A small hallway connects the living area to the bedroom and offers excellent storage, easily holding our suitcases and coolers; it also contained a rollaway bed. The bedroom itself is large, featuring a comfortable king-size bed, plenty of pillows, a ceiling fan, A/C, and a second TV. The closet had useful baskets for folded clothes, though, as is typical, we could have used more hangers. The bedside lamps also had charging ports.||Everything in the apartment was very clean, and the lighting throughout was impressively bright. Despite the motel's proximity to the main road, the bedroom was quiet.||The Sunset Motel has that classic, old-school motor inn feel with a U-shaped layout. The grounds are well-kept, offering picnic tables, a grill, and a fire pit. There is also a designated smoking area. We heard from another guest that the ice machine was out of order, but we travel with our own ice, so it didn't affect us.||The motel is close to downtown Brevard, though we chose to drive and park in the town center. We enjoyed a walk through the adjacent residential area one morning and found a very old, interesting cemetery.||Except for the steep stairs, I cannot think of a negative thing to say about our stay. The upstairs apartment is a fantastic, affordable...

Our trip to Brevard wasn’t planned, which makes stumbling on a gem like The Sunset Motel even more amazing. We have ‘town hopped’ our last couple trips to the NC mountains, usually without any prior planning. This last adventure to the mountains, while spending our first night in a different town, we settled on hitting up the town of Brevard because of it’s highly touted downtown and the numerous hiking opportunities within close proximity. Our quick search revealed The Sunset Motel. The pictures and reviews tentatively sold me but one never knows. I am so glad we found this gem. It was extremely clean, the bed was amazingly comfortable, the owner was welcoming and friendly. He and his business partner have, apparently, just acquired the place and, as we spoke with him, you could tell that he was excited about the further plans they have for the place. They have a firepit out back, which we actually did utilize with other patrons that we otherwise would have never met or spoken to. The real star of the place is River. River is the amazing, beautiful pup that was in the office when we checked in. I was missing our dogs quite a bit and petting on River did my heart some good. It is extremely close and completely walkable for a good majority of people. There are sidewalks from the motel to downtown and crosswalks everywhere. The Pisgah Forest with multiple waterfalls is just a few miles up the road. Because the downtown closes extremely early (by most standards) we opted to do the downtown thing during the day and then do some of the Pisgah waterfall hikes towards the evening. That is better for photography purposes anyways. Dupont State Rec Forest is close by and a great way to spend the day hiking and taking in multiple falls as well. This place feels like a retreat to leave all the chaos behind for awhile. If your intention is to stay in your room all day, watch TV and be a lump on a log, you could do that. The wi-fi worked great, the AC kept the room nice and cool and it was comfortable. The true beauty of this place, however, is in the uniqueness that it displays, the location, and the environment and ambience that has been crafted. We not only loved the area but we truly loved this motel and will absolutely be...

While driving through this spectacularly beautiful part of North Carolina, our minivan broke down, and we became accidental tourists in Brevard.

After doing what we needed to do to get a rental vehicle, our next need was for lodging. Matter-of-factly, there aren’t many hotel/motel choices in the immediate area, and their prices reflected this. We only needed (and praying for) one night’s stay, and also felt somewhat limited since we had the family dog with us. After making a handful of calls, we learned that the places that accepted pets added a surcharge.

We pulled into the Sunset Motel in hopes of getting a room at a good price, and met Eric, the Manager, at the front desk. Eric was very nice, gracious, and was very sympathetic and accommodating to our circumstances. Needless to say, we stayed there that night. The price for our room was in line with what we had paid the previous two nights on our journey from the Texas Panhandle. Eric was also resolute in recommending an auto repair place for us to have our van brought to for the needed repairs the next morning.

About this unique motel, it was built in the 50s and has been renovated and upkept to maintain this nostalgic flavor. We appreciated this the moment we stepped into the office and little lounge area. There were records, photos and other memorabilia which was a throwback to the more relaxed days of road travel. Our room had a poster of Marilyn Monroe on the wall and other musical references throughout. The room was small but cozy and was our makeshift home for a night and most of the next day. I heartily recommend this motel for many reasons, but the most endearing reason is how hospitable Eric and his wife were to us. As it turned out, they are also dog people. 😊

Finally, the next day, while the van was being repaired, we walked around the downtown area, which is but 3-4 blocks from the motel, and enjoyed the loveliness of Brevard.

The Sunset Motel has become endearing to us, and will remain our Brevard home...