Half-Mile Farm — Hotel in Highlands

Overall, our 3 night stay at Half-Mile Farm was nice, but we expected a bit more service-wise given the price point and the affiliation with Old Edwards. We couldn't help notice a few areas where small tweaks, particularly in staff coverage and training, could result in a much better guest experience!||The Pros: |1) Room itself was fantastic - we stayed in one of the Woodland Luxury Suites and it had everything you'd dream of (fireplace, balcony, wet bar, heated tile floors, 6 shower heads in the shower, etc.). Loved it!||2) The grounds are beautiful - the place feels very quaint yet upscale, and is only a short drive from downtown Highlands. ||Areas for Improvement: |1) Housekeeping trash - this was bizarre. Each morning, housekeeping would leave dirty linens and trash from bathroom trash cans on the benches outside each room. It was very odd to be walking to/from your room and have the hallway littered with soiled linens and trash in clear trash bags visible to everyone (this would remain here for hours). We found this to be unsightly, unpleasant, and unwelcoming. Having a place outside of guest view to store / dispose of this would make a huge difference! ||2) Housekeeping services - felt as though they were lacking. Peer hotels (including Old Edwards) housekeeping services typically involve some degree of daily tidying, replenishing supplies, etc. Services at this hotel seemed limited to only making the bed, emptying the trash bin, and providing fresh towels if one was left on the floor. The tidying services did not apply here - so much so that, upon returning to the room, we had assumed that housekeeping was still in the middle of cleaning. |-Example 1: I sleep with a pregnancy pillow as I am 7 months pregnant - housekeeping made the bed, but in doing so, seemed to have thrown my pillow such that it was strewn across a chair / the floor. A more thoughtful / tidy approach of placing the pillow on the bed, or folded in the chair would have been much appreciated! |-Example 2: Performing basic tidying / straightening up services and replenishing of supplies (including replenishing lotion in the bathroom, removing the used bag in the ice bucket, etc.) would go a long way!||3) Bussing tables / ensuring cleanliness in common areas - felt as though no one was on point to ensure that common areas (porch, pool, etc.) were clean of guest trash and used dishes. |-Example 1: We spent several hours by the pool each day. On both occasions, guests had ordered lunch to the pool, and on both occasions, dirty dishes sat for hours. |-Example 2: Guests gather on the porch area for happy hour each day, which is lovely! However, service / attentiveness is limited. When we arrived, each table / seating area was littered with dirty dishes, and no one in sight to clean. We took it upon ourselves to move all soiled dishes to a single table and to wipe down a table for us to use (the bartender from inside ended up bussing the dishes about an hour later). |It would be a significant improvement to have someone assigned to keeping this area clean and promptly removing guest trash / dishes as they exit to make room for other guests. ||4) General attentiveness / awareness of staff - the staff seem lovely, but some seem like they could use training in navigating around guests and performing tasks in a way that do not disrupt the guest experience. |-Example 1: We were enjoying drinks on the porch and loving the piano player and singer who were there to entertain! It came time for one of the staff members to light the outdoor fire, and he came plowing through the main area with a large pile of firewood on a dolley, dragging the dolley down the several stairs through to the yard, resulting in a loud scraping / thumping sound. Many peer hotels would go out of their way to either A) lift the dolley down the stairs so as not to create such noise to disrupt the ambiance, or B) go around entirely so as to avoid navigating through the primary guest area. |-Example 2: While one staff member was lighting the outdoor fire, another staff member who was leaving for the day stepped onto the porch and yelled to the person lighting the fire. The two carried on a several minute conversation, yelling across the lawn to one another, all while guests sat along the porch trying to enjoy the happy hour with soft music playing. This was quite disruptive and is not a behavior you would typically encounter at a "luxury" inn. ||In all, we loved our accommodations, but expected more from a hotel affiliated with the Old Edwards brand, and at this price point. ||Next time we are visiting Highlands, we will likely opt to stay at Old Edwards (vs. Half-Mile Farm) due to the difference in service level and amenities for a...

My girlfriend and I had our second stay at Half Mile Farm this past Sunday and it was another excellent experience. We both work for and live in a resort community just about an hour away, and we're very familiar with the hospitality business - it's clear that these folks know what they're doing. There were a couple of minor missteps along the way on the last booking (communication errors at most - and not significant enough that I will even mention what happened in detail other than to say that it was adequately compensated for), but otherwise, the service both times has been impeccable. Everyone has a smile on their face (even with a mask on, it's clear that this is the case), and while the overall staffing seemed somewhat sparse, I'm cognizant that we are here during the shoulder season so I'm sure there is much more significant coverage during busy times. I only mention that as a quick aside -- I'm glad to walk a couple hundred feet to pick up breakfast, and they likely would have delivered it right to our cabin had I asked them to. Speaking of masks, they seem to really take COVID precautions seriously which we both really appreciated.

In terms of the accommodations, we were initially a bit surprised at how rustic things were, but once we read up on the history of the cabins (we stayed at the Tavern Suite the first night, and the Justice Cabin the second evening - the latter was our preference, but both were very comfortable) we came to really appreciate how interesting the setting was. Despite that somewhat rustic appearance, the amenities are up-to-date and we were particularly enthralled with the jet therapeutic tubs at both locations, along with the beautiful wood fireplaces. It's worth mentioning that we are both extremely picky about cleanliness anywhere we stay, and both agreed that while we normally would never travel without our own linens especially during COVID times, this was the one place we had been in the last year where we didn't even think about it once. Everything was spotless and in great repair (aside from some very minor issues I mentioned to them upon checkout), and that juxtaposition of the rustic exterior with the hand-hewn timbers, alongside the well-kept and modern amenities inside, was very well done.

I wanted to particularly call attention to two members of the staff who went above and beyond. During our first and second stay, we spoke often with Carol, who provided a warm welcome and also remembered us and even recalled where we worked, which shows me that she legitimately cares about connecting with guests. She helped us a number of times, even with my annoying requests for more fire starter (the wood was pretty wet - not their fault!) and more espresso pods (I like coffee, what can I say), and always did so graciously and with a smile on her face. We also had the pleasure of meeting Vickie (apologies if I'm spelling either name incorrectly) first over the telephone and then in person upon check-out, and she was similarly warm, friendly, and accommodating in every way. Both of these ladies deserve recognition for...

I wanted to take my wife to a great new place, this place was highly recommended. I booked a month cabin a month in advance for the cost of $300 per night. When we arrived the front staff was very helpful and pleasant, one of the staff members showed us around the main lobby and then too our cabin, to this point everything was great. When we were shown the cabin, it was very nicely renovated, the employee then went over some of the things inside and mentioned the tv remote will not turn off the tv, you need to reach behind the tv to turn it off, no biggie I was a little surprised. We went out to dinner and came back and used the large shower tub, it was also very nice. The next day we had breakfast in the clubhouse, it was also very nice. That evening we decided to get something to eat at the bar, we had been out exploring Highlands that day and decided to make it a quaint evening, we go to pull into our parking spot, and it's almost completely blocked, please understand that the cabin we were in had it's own designated spot and so did the other only twice the size, we figured once we got parked by morning time we would be fine, so we called the front desk to ask about food at the bar and was told the bar was not serving due to another event, this would have been helpful to know since the previous night, the front staff raved about it. So we squeezed back out of our parking spot and into town. When we get back, we settle for bed, and around 10pm we hear this scratching noise getting louder and louder and then stopped, around 5am I was awake sitting by the cast iron stove(which was also very nice) and I hear this noise again and it sounds like a raccoon trying to eat through the floor, I get we are out in the woods, but we have stayed in other cabins for the 3rd of the price without little critters. On to breakfast, I was not in the mood for what they were serving so I asked for an alternative and the waitress said eggs and toast. I then asked if they had Tabasco as I like it on my eggs, she said yes, so I ordered the eggs and toast, also we asked about jelly and she wasnt sure if they had any, but anyway, my order comes and the set down a bottle of I think Chiranda, I look at her and asked about the Tabasco and then she says this is all we have, if I had known that I wouldn't have ordered what I did. Also another little issue was the toilet seat, it wouldn't stay up So after all of this I go to the front desk to turn the key in, I explain a few of my concerns and the first lady looked at me and says' well you are in the woods' yea I get it but I paid what I paid to have a great experience. Another lady came up and I mentioned it to her, she seemed genuinely concerned. My overall experience was not what I expected, I've been to less expensive places that had more...