Gruene Homestead Inn — Hotel in New Braunfels

When you first pull up to the Inn, you see the sign and pull into the Main House and park. What you find is actually an area of land dotted with little cottages here and there that people are staying in – it’s just the coolest thing! We stayed in Number 2, “The Cottage”, which used to be the Carriage House, right in the center of the property. Once we checked in at the main house, got our keys and such, we drove around to our own little cottage, parked right at our own porch and were home!

There is a bar on premises – Tavern IN the Gruene – and several of the rooms are near the bar (and are stated thusly in the descriptions, so that if you want a quieter room you can choose a location at the other end of the property). We however were at the bar both nights so any noise coming from the bar didn’t bother us. Once we were done at Tavern, we left and literally walked about 50 feet to our cottage and would sit on the front porch, talking over the days’ adventures and listening to the great music still left to be played before the band closed down for the night. The sound is very faint, but you can still hear it. (Once we got inside we could NOT hear it, and I doubt that it would have been a problem sleeping in any of the other cabins)

As for The Cottage itself, it was absolutely adorable, completely modern while keeping its period charm. The whirlpool tub was huge and amazingly divine. The shower was spacious, well lit, clean as a whistle and HOT, HOT, HOT! Double sinks with great lighting for putting on makeup – (ladies – there is a wall mounted, lighted makeup mirror with dual sides/magnification). And under the sink there is a hair dryer – although if you need a high power dryer you might want to bring yours from home, this one was kind of on the smaller side. They do provide soap but no shampoo or conditioner, so bring that from home.

The bed was very comfortable in my opinion, pillows were perfect. Temperature was great, there was a ceiling fan, plenty of table space, two foldable luggage racks. In the closet there were coat hangers, a mini fridge (empty) and a microwave. On a table by the door there was a coffee pot (regular, not Keurig style) with a very nice basket of coffee/tea/cocoa variety. If you are a heavy sugar/cream drinker you might want to bring your own.

Breakfast is in the main house (I forgot the times, my apologies) and was very nice. We were only able to attend one of our two days, but the owner Ed was in the dining room and saw to our every need. There was eggs and bacon, tortillas, breakfast potatoes, fruit assortment, pastries, juices, etc.

I was very pleased with my stay and cannot wait to come back – I would love to stay in just about every one of the different rooms. They have so many unique cottages, cabins, the Silo of course, and now that I know the quality and the detail that they put into each and everything that they do – I am looking forward to many more trips to Gruene and the...

We've stayed here twice (April 2018 and December 2019) and there was a noticeable downgrade in the experience since the original owners sold it between our two trips.

Pros: Donna at the front desk is the heart and soul of this place and the new owners are VERY lucky to have her warmth and hospitality. Both times she treated us like family and was the main redemptive highlight of our most recent stay.

Also, The Silo: Both times we stayed at this unique property. Our young children loved telling family and friends about it and my husband and I appreciated that it's a standalone unit away from any potential noise at the Tavern; we didn't need to worry about tiptoeing around neighbors or getting woken up by them, and we enjoyed having our own porch space.

Lastly, the breakfast buffet was decent: fresh fruit, good coffee, Continental options. Limited, but what was served was pretty good and the staff was friendly.

CONS: The new owners seem to be moving the place in a direction away from family-friendliness. They discontinued Pack n Play rentals so we had to buy one for our infant son. They also don't have highchairs in the breakfast room.

There is no basic service to the rooms. Any fresh towels, sheets or handling of trash falls on the guest -- either navigating to the main office to ask for more or to drop off the trash. The new owners couch this under environmental-friendliness but it's a cost-saving measure that comes at the cost of a relaxing stay. If they were truly motivated by environmentalism, there would be recycling bins in the rooms and throughout the Inn's campus. There are none. Also, there would be towels and flatware/plates available to use in the kitchenettes. Instead there are paper towels, and if you're lucky, single-use plastic or styrofoam plates left from the previous guest.

While the location is convenient to exploring Gruene and New Braunfels and the different lodging options seemingly attractive, the downgraded experience and extra hassle are not worth the lower cost. Perhaps if young children weren't in tow and we weren't looking to relax, we might not mind the extra hurdles, but having stayed there before the property sale and after, the new owners have a ways to go before recapturing the charm that was organic to the place in 2018.

To the new owners: please don't greenwash your motivations when the absence of truly green options tip your hand as being cheap rather than...

Unfortunately, we can not recommend this place. This location is expensive for what you receive. Although confirming an early check-in was okay, they failed to note that there was a change at 11 unless we wanted to sit there for an hour because although the room was ready, it was theoretically too early despite the $500+ rooms, plus more for a family dog, more fees are required om top of that. We also had a family member with a disability that required a service dog that had to stay elsewhere or pay other absorbent fees as they did not want to take the time to discuss the law. The rooms are acceptable but not cleaned throughly and nothing special or memorable. Be sure to bring socks that you don't mind getting filthy or slippers as the floors were very dirty. Also, it is quite a far distance from anything in town, about 15 minutes driving minimum with no congestion, and nothing is walkable, which is a bummer in a small ish town. The breakfast is nicely presented, but without any flavor. I also would not have taken the time to leave the feedback, but after unpleasant interactions with staff, I figure I might as well as that was the tipping point to lead me not to not want to return despite a family trip here each year. There was another staff member who seemed nice, but with apparently little to no authority (who said come on over for the early check-in), definitely good cop bad cop vibes. Very passive aggressive responses too, but never any specifics about the actual facts as we clearly laid them out. Apparently the quality had fallen off under new ownership, so sad when...