Inn on the Harbor — Hotel in Stonington

Real 5 star review here. Not paid, not earned. Etc. The Inn earned it.

Mary Day Room. 1 Night. Off season. Weekday.

I think I read that the owner is the CEO of a management company who owns this location. He has quite the success story. It was a very interesting read. Look him up!

Why they stand out- I’m thinking the reason this property hits all the marks is because it’s owned by hospitality specialists. Not Aunt Sue in Florida.

— It reads like a big hotel, but it sleeps, warms, homes up & ambiences like a quaint little Inn sitting on the shore of a small town island fishing harbor.

Which… is exactly what it is.

I expected the location, the view, the quiet. —— It all met and succeeded expectations.

What I didn’t expect was all the extra details.

-Binoculars on the window sill. -No screens on the windows for maximum quality view. -The most comfortable chairs. TV tables. Dock rocking chairs. The TV with Hulu and streaming with guest accounts. This LITERALLY , single handled made us feel at home and is a BIG DEAL! No we may not have been there to watch TV. But night still comes and we need to fall asleep. 👏👏👏 -COFFEE. Sweet coffee. This is huge. Something expected from a hotel stay, but I don’t usually get with BnBs, Inn rooms etc. Real coffee mugs, wine glasses on the end table, cups in the bathroom.

—- This list of details is exactly why I say it reads like a hotel. I never get coffee or extra toiletries. Etc. at most Air B n Bs. Instead, they make you fend for yourselves like you rented a remote cabin.

Not at this Inn. They thought of everything. LOVE the contactless check in. LOVE the code key. LOVE the feeling of alone. No counter. No staff. No offense. LOVE the common area and offerings. LOVED the feel of walking right next door to the public dock and around the area.

In my opinion the reason why you don’t get this from most small Inn or similar type properties is because they are owned by people who don’t do specialize in hospitality. Maybe that person owns it because the family handed it down. Or, they may rent it out because it’s a second property. You know what I mean.

Well most don’t/won’t have the time or funds to give all the extra listed above. It’s understandable. But it won’t prevent a property owner/ management company like this putting an Inn of this caliber ahead of the game.

If you haven’t gathered. We were beyond satisfied. We...

July 2025: Harbor inn has beautiful views. Looking at the harbor from the shared decks was very relaxing. However, the stay fell somewhat below my expectations: -We stayed three night. The rooms were not serviced at all. The towels did not dry over the 24 hours, not replaced, and I had to use damp towels from day 2. -My tiny shampoo tube lasted one day. No additional shampoo was given and I just had to rinse my hair with water. -coffee and sugar in the room were not replenished, everything was set for one night stay The walls are very thin. I could hear conversation of the neighbors who spoke in normal tones not raised voices. I could hear the stomping and jumping of the kids above me. in Angelique the bed was comfortable, but the mattress had those deep indentations, like nests, which I don't usually see in hotels There no designated parking. The signs on the street restrict parking to 4 hours. A waitress in a local restaurant told us they are pretty strict about parking, but we did not get a ticket for overnight parking there were no free outlets, I had unplug something to be able to charge my phone. These days inn keepers should know that no one travels without a phone that needs to be recharged overnight the refrigerator in the room was a very nice touch, but it was very loud breakfast is not provided, there packages of pretzels and potato chips in the kitchen but I don't consider that breakfast be careful of the banisters, do not slide your hand on them, as my husband got a deep splinter and I had to perform "surgery" with a sewing kit needle to extract it Angelique was supposed to be mobility accessible room on the first floor, however it still has several steps which was not clearly spelled in the description. Someone in a wheelchair would not be able to navigate this entrance. The other room on the first floor (to the left) has one step, also a challenge for a wheelchair bound. I liked two folding tables that made up for the lack of flat surfaces I appreciated the microwave where I could make instant oatmeal for breakfast since no breakfast...

This establishment is under new management, the "Ohana Inns" and no longer run by Dana and Jay, the local proprietors. It's unclear where the Ohana Inns are located, but they don't appear to have any on-site staff and advertise their rooms for cheaper via 3rd party sites like AirBnB than they do directly from them, which feels like a sketchy ripoff.

They do a good job at keeping guests fully informed, but the lack of onsite service can make things difficult. For example, we attempted to enjoy the back deck to sit quietly and stargaze as we were invited to by the Inn, but several rowdy clientele were there after quiet hours. Their dogs, unleashed, began barking loudly and running towards us. The clientele seemed to believe they had absolute run of the place, and without onsite staff there was no oversight of this. The shock of almost being attacked by a dog made it difficult to sleep, and the patrons remained loudly conversing past midnight right outside our window. This never would have happened with the previous inneepers.

Further to this, you can tell the new proprietors don't share the same local love of Stonington as the previous ones did. If you view their social media accounts prior to May, 2022 you'll find a plethora of posts informing others of local happenings, supporting local community efforts, fellow small businesses, and doing their best to help their guests and the community they belong to. Now, no such helpful and supportive posts exist, and it reflects quite a bit on how the inn as changed.

Observations aside, the Inn on the Harbor has some wonderful views. It's clean. It's got charm. It's nicely decorated but certainly not overly fancy. The previous owners did a good job making this a comfy place. I've stayed in 3 rooms and each was proper, had it's own charm, and felt like a good and comfortable...