Point Reyes Station Inn — Hotel in Novato

Unfortunately, this inn is neither luxurious or peaceful. This was probably stunning in the 80s but if there have been any updates, there are not enough to show. This is also not a traditional bed and breakfast. The common areas are sad and the kitchen unseemly. Smudge stained handles on cupboards and ice that tastes like it was made in someone's old freezer which gives it an odd taste. ||Pros:|The jacuzzi tub in the room is amazing! Spacious and clean with plenty of bubble bath. ||Cons:|Close to highway (also a 10 minute walk to town but on the highway so a little sketch) not a big deal when windows are closed but can't do that because there is no AC. And I'm pretty sure they leave the heater on often making very hot rooms. |Very outdated bedding, towels, decor (think fake flowers), fridge (runs loud) and vibe|Bedding and towels are washed in a strongly scented detergent. |Carpet and rugs are tattered, stained and frankly, gross. (So the smell in the room is dust, age and detergent)|Our room.had a large skylight in the bathroom area. Some may like this for light but you must be an early riser or don't mind full sun coming in the afternoon. It hadn't been clean in a while and there was no covering to block the light. A negative for us especially during a late afternoon bath. One had to be blinded unfortunately!!|The room we were in had an accordion door for the toilet room offering no privacy and loud middle of the night visits. |Dingy table covers and stained doilies cover every table top. The older furniture is fine and can add to the charm (leave coasters!)|Base boards are chipped and paint is peeling.|Screen for patio is really loud to open and came off the track several times. ||"Breakfast" was a little shocking to be honest. Breakfast (which is in your room fridge) consists of a plastic fruit cups or yogurt, frozen individually wrapped pastries, granola in a mason jar that looks ancient and some bagels that had freezer burn in ziploc baggies. There were some juices, individual trail mixes and cereal bowls from named brands. We sometimes grabbed the trail mix and yogurt but otherwise did not touch anything else. So different from traditional Bed and Breakfasts that have warm breakfasts and friendly hosts. We never saw either of these. ||ThIs rooms was 300+ a night. Definitely not worth that price. ||I'm happy to see they are going to be closed for repairs and upgrades. If they invest in this place, buying updated bedding/towels/decor/flooring, having warm breakfasts and present hosts, touching up paint and ditching the doilies and strong detergent, this place could be charming and...

I was super excited to book our stay at the Pt Reyes Station Inn to celebrate a combined our 10-year anniversary & birthday with my husband and mother-in-law. We wanted to splurge a bit and after reading many reviews, we thought that the Point Reyes Station Inn would be a great place to impress my mother-in-law who was in town. The inn was described as "upscale bed-and-breakfast" (Google Maps) and "a peaceful, luxurious retreat" (website) with the photos on the website seemed quite beautiful. Quiet the opposite. Unfortunately, as soon as we stepped into the inn, I was shocked and disappointed by the state of dilapidation.||||Garden Room: My mother-in-law's Garden Room was especially sad – dark & dank & dirty. The outside private patio with a view of a garden had a moldy table that should have long been thrown away (see photo). The chairs were also in no state to sit in. We ended up not using the private patio at all – which for $225/night was quite a disappointment.||||Satinwood Room: My husband & I stayed in the upstairs room which thankfully was much more spacious and filled with sunlight than the sadness of the Garden Room. The jacuzzi bathtub and fireplace were definite pluses. Again though, the balcony was dirty – with cobwebs on the creaky screen door – with the outdoor chairs covered in dirt so we couldn't enjoy it as hoped. For $250/night, we'd hope for at least a clean & usable balcony.||||Breakfast: The breakfast really rubbed salt in our wound. For a bed & breakfast, we expected more effort in providing a pleasant breakfast. Instead, we arrived to a bagel in a ziplock bag and generic children's snack packs like Lucky Charms and fruit cups (see photo). I understand that with COVID, breakfast may have had to be modified but for a $250+/night bed & breakfast (where "breakfast" is one of the highlights), I again expected more thought & care. We have stayed at nearby b&b's during COVID and they at least made the effort to provide local fresh fruit and baked goods e.g., from Bovine Bakery – in lieu of a home-cooked meal – and presented the breakfast in a more appealing way e.g., in a picnic basket. This ziplock breakfast instead showed again the lack of care & detail. We would have much preferred that they didn't serve any food at all. ||||Location: The location is conveniently near DT Point Reyes and the Heidrun Meadery – walkable if you don't mind walking without a sidewalk alongside cars. As for "peaceful" description, I would say it is very close to the road and so it can be quite noisy at peak hours.||||TLDR;...

My friend and I stayed in two of the upstairs rooms for two nights. This review is quite mixed: ||On the positive side the upstairs rooms have vaulted ceilings and lots of light (which I very much appreciate) and the beds are comfortable. The little decks in each room were charming with views of the courtyard and a glimpse of the hills. The host (who built this place) was very pleasant and welcoming. He lives on the property and is readily available. The large in-room tub was wonderful and hot water plentiful. The check in and check out hours are very reasonable. The kitchen downstairs is available with a microwave, and the dining room and common area is quite lovely as is the courtyard.space.||There are indeed small refrigerators and a toaster in each room and for continental breakfast— bagels with fixings, juice, and sweet rolls are provided. Unfortunately, there is no fresh fruit only plastic cups of “canned fruit” and all the provisions are bulk bought (probably frozen) rather than locally sourced (there are two marvelous bakeries in town.) there is complementary sparkling water as well (a nice touch.)||On the negative side:|The in-room Keurig needed to be descaled. There was paint wearing off in patches, one towel bar in my bathroom was torn out, leaving an unpatched hole. The industrial rug throughout the entire upstairs is stained, dirty, fraying, and disgusting.|The wing back chair in my room was so broken down that I found it impossible to sit in comfortably. One of the “double hung“ windows in my room needed repair and would not stay up. The screen on the slider was torn and frayed. The overhead fan in my friend’s room was noisy and vibrated so much it was scary (no way to turn it down from ‘high’.) Some of the furniture was very nice, “antique” cabinets and wardrobes but another dresser looked like it could have been picked up from the curb. ||It is close enough to town to walk there, but it would be dangerous because there’s no sidewalk or shoulder to walk on and the roads are fairly narrow and windy. ||Conclusion: it’s a nice place, but for the price it definitely needs to be updated with better chairs, some general repairs, and new flooring. Fresh fruit and real silverware for the continental breakfast would also help. And if the owner really wants to wow his guests, he could bring in scones from a...