Fairlee Motel & Drive-in Theater — Hotel in Fairlee

If I were traveling by myself, I would not have stayed here. The reason for us going to this motel was the Drive-In Theater. The first time we pulled into the parking lot, I told my husband to turn around & leave - not very appealing! Then we had dinner & I read reviews on TripAdvisor so we decided to give it a try. This place has so much potential, especially since Drive-In Theaters are so rare. ||||There's a sad sign out front for the motel & a bunch of trees/bushes that prevent passers-by from seeing the motel. I suppose that may help with road noise, but it doesn't look very inviting. There's also a portable sign (4-lines with a flashing arrow) that lists the current movies. ||||There's no lobby to speak of, just a cramped office that is only open when checking-in. Upon arrival, we used the phone in a plastic box (weather-shielded) outside next to the office door to call the owner. We waited for him to unlock the office door & proceeded to check-in. ||||It's obvious this gentleman has had a number of bad experiences renting rooms! Although we are cash-paying customers, he took a copy of our credit card (does not accept Discover) in case we didn't leave the room in tact. He went over ALL the rules (& there are many): if you want to go to the drive-in your car, you have to pay (it's NOT included in the room fee). No extra people/parties in the room (can't bring friends, family, etc... because he'd lose revenue - movie admission fees). Made us sign something saying we won't smoke in the room & if we did there's a $10,000 fine per the state of Vermont, and he'd charge an additional $250 cleaning fee. ||||The room was clean & had some updates (new flooring). It had a microwave & mini-refrigerator. The bathroom had a newer looking sink, but the shower looked original (small, tile shower stall). There were no counters in the bathroom. Also - no hair dryer. ||||The purpose of our visit was for the drive-in. We did not pay the extra fee to watch the movies from our car because we wanted to experience it watching from the room. There's a speaker in the wall, so if you aren't interested in watching both movies, you can pull the blinds & shut off the speaker. The grounds of the drive-in are very nice. There's a new fence around most of the property. They also have LOTS of old-timey speakers on the poles if you want to get the vintage drive-in feel experience. Their "snack bar/refreshment stand" is a camper trailer converted into a concession stand. ||||The motel could be a little more inviting with some work, but I'd certainly recommend checking out the...

When we found out we’d be near the Fairlee Drive-In Motel and Movie Theater, we instantly wanted to stay! There are only two drive-in movie motel combos in the US, with the other being in Monte Vista, CO. We tried to stay there a few years ago, but it had been booked for months.||||We started calling for reservations in March. The owner is a farmer, and we’d always catch him at a bad time. Finally we made a reservation. Hurrah!||||When we arrived on a stormy Friday evening, we were worried that the movie might be cancelled. No way— he ran the double feature rain or shine. Since other Trip Advisor travelers had warned about the motel’s exterior looking rough, we weren’t worried. If I had pulled up without advance research, I would have fled! The exterior makes Bates Motel look homey. ||||Once inside, whoa, what a transformation. The spacious room was spotless. Aside from the well-kept tile shower stall, the bathroom appeared completely remodeled. We were most excited about the big window overlooking the outdoor screen. The screen was a little farther away than we anticipated, but so what. We ran out to buy food at the Whippi Dip (see other review) and returned to eat while watching the drive-in attendees arrive, play Frisbee or rearrange their SUVs/trucks to best watch he movie in the rain. The storms had moved in again, but still they came. ||||The movie experience was hilarious. The mood was set by 1950’s urgings to visit the concession featuring dancing hotdogs and popcorn. The film, “Despicable Me 3” was cute, but not my favorite. During the film, fog rolled across the screen, and a sudden downpour provided a weird effect to the watching. Wine consumption atop of travel exhaustion added to the surreal experience. We tried watching part of the “Transformers” movie, but it was so stupid we gave up and went to bed.||||But we did it! We stayed in a Drive in Movie Motel. What a strange start to our Vermont vacation. ||||One last note: in order to make ends meet, the motel’s owner rents out the rooms at the far end of the motel to people who are “between homes.” I had no problem with this, but some...

We like to get away from chain motels on our trips, and the Fairlee is quite unique in that it’s a motel and drive-in movie combination. Unfortunately for us, movies had stopped being shown after Sept., and since we were there in Oct., we missed being able to watch the big screen from the picture window in the room. I wondered if the coming and going of vehicles would be noisy for those in the motel.||||As stated by other reviewers, the outside of the motel looks rather sketchy but don’t let that keep you away. Our room for the two nights was large, very clean, and perhaps freshly painted. There was no carpet, and that gave the room a fresher feel. ||||We had reserved a room with two beds—one king and one twin—but a mix-up had caused the twin to be removed from the room. The owner immediately tracked down the missing bed and had it in place by the time we returned from dinner. More work for him but we appreciated how quickly he met our needs.||||The room had a microwave, frig, and coffee maker. There was no hair dryer and no ice machine available. The bathroom was small with little counter space for toiletries, but there was space under the sink for storing those. Towels were large and fluffy, and soap was provided. The shower seemed a bit dark. Perhaps a lighter-colored shower curtain would let in more light?||||We enjoyed our stay at the Fairlee and would like to return when movies are...