Having purchased a week at the Fairfield Time Share on a discount site, I felt comfortable only using it for four nights since this made our average nightly rate around $50. There is no check in at The Inn. You have to go to the Marriott Resort which is located across the street. Once we had figured out where that was, I had to actually call them to find it, our check in was effortless. One of the benefits of staying here is that you get to have dinner at a discount- two for one -at the Marriott Hotel. We took advantage of this our first night.

Parking is at a premium at this resort. It is a very small lot with a few spots under the building. In March this was not an issue but I can imagine in say July it could be problematic.

This building was formerly a hotel. This makes for a rather strange room setup. When you open your door you are in the bedroom. The kitchen is next and then the living-room. There are no windows in the bedroom. The compensation is that the view from the living-room is very nice, right out to the harbor. We had a seagull who was always right outside our window. I took a lot of pictures of him as he strutted his stuff.

In spite of its awkward design I really loved this place. Everything was in beautiful repair. The bed was comfortable and the bedding was luxurious, much more so than any others timeshare resort I have stayed at. There was lots of storage in the bedroom and plenty of lighting. We had a TV in the bedroom as well as a telephone.

The kitchen was pretty basic. There was a two burners range top, a microwave and a refrigerator. There was also a toaster and a coffeepot. There was several bags from the resort with little gifts and also coffee and tea. The cupboards were well stocked with any plates, glasses and cooking utensils that you may need.

The living room is very comfortable. It was a large sleeper sofa, a TV, great lighting and a telephone. There is also a dining area in the living room. The coffee table became my traveling office. The outside wall is almost all windows.

The best room in the house however is the bathroom. It has the biggest Jacuzzi tub I have ever seen, except for mine at home. This one has steps that you have to walk up to climb in. It was very nice and very clean. Our room was cleaned daily and our supplies were replenished.

I was very happy with everything about the Inn on the Wharf. We were asked to attend a very brief and very low pressure sales pitch for which we received $50 worth of dining coupons. I felt it was certainly worth while. But mostly what this resort has is location. It is right in the middle of everything.

The resort was exceptionally operated--the staff was incredibly helpful and service-oriented. It is a Fairfield property, and they do daily room cleaning. The units had whirlpool tubs, and we stayed in a two-bedroom that was a new, nice size--not huge, but nice--and everything was well-maintained.

Best Things Nearby:
Newport area is within walking distance. Shopping and eating are nearby, within a 5 minute walk. Mansions and beach are driving distance. There also is trolley service which we did not use.

Best Things About the Resort:
The view is very good. You can see all the fishermen go out and come in with their catches. The Newport Bridge is also seen from your room if you are in a room in the front or right side, which we were.

Resort Experience:
Stayed at this resort from 5/16/04-5/23/04. Although a good view, there is no balcony or sliding glass door to get a breeze. There are, however, two windows that do open. The timeshare has a different set up. You walk directly into the bedroom (which only has a queen bed---not king) then comes the kitchen with bathroom to the right of it. Following the kitchen there is the livingroom. The kitchen has a refrigerator a little bigger than a dorm room type. There is only a toaster (not toaster oven) and coffee maker. The microwave was made in 1982! No turn table and was not good for microwave popcorn. The bathroom is marble and has a jacuzzi which is hard to get into, I would not advise it for someone older. The exhaust fan is poor at best. We dropped some perfume and imediately picked it up and it still smelled two days later. Our toilet was not clean when we arrived which was gross. There is no deck! This is something I love in resorts, to sit outside and read or watch the boats. I would not suggest this room for anything over two adults and one child. The air conditioning is a single unit, not central. Several nights I found myself sleeping on the sofa because I was hot. I cannot imagine this keeping the room cool in the summer. You can only trade to this resort once every four years. That's OK as I don't think we'll be going back.

There is access to the Long Wharf Resort's swimming pool. As the weather was not too good, we were going to go there to swim. I walked over and looked and saw that there are no lounge chairs in the inside pool area. They had sofas. I'm not sure how you could sit in them if you had been swimming and were wet. Needless to say, we skipped the pool which was too bad as it looked fairly nice, but the water was cold. There are no restaurants either resort. Be careful when staying at this resort in May. The commercial fisherman were preparing their lobster traps for the first time and putting in the bait the day before so they would be ready. This, of course, smelled! After they are initially put out this would not be a problem as they re-bait them in the water.

• Unit Type: 1 Bedroom
• Activities: Fair
• Amenities: Poor
• Unit Satisfaction: Fair
• Family Friendliness: Not Available
• Service: Fair

We traded for two one-bedroom units. Great location, nice units visually, maid service daily. One unit had handicapped facilities which was good for us. Unusual layout. View from living room was outstanding. Minimal kitchen facilities.

The rooms were very clean and quite nice, and a staff person came in daily to make the bed, check towels, etc. The staff were very helpful and also provided a packet of things to see and do (such as touring the mansions, city tours, etc.), the prices of the tours, and a list of good restaurants that had specials on specific days. We ate at their recommended seafood restaurants and every meal was delicious. The harbor and seaport view through the large windows of our room was spectacular. It was one of the most interesting and beautiful views we have ever had when using a time-share exchange.

Since the accommodations were studios, we had a microwave, small frig., sink, dishes, etc. We were very comfortable there, and it was sometimes difficult to leave the room because the lobster fishermen, getting their boats and lobster cages ready for fishing, were so interesting to watch.

Our stay was very enjoyable.