We wanted to stay in a Victorian era B&B but didn''t have reservations and after checking with seven that were fully booked, we came across the Palace Hotel.
It''s located on the main street downtown and was built in the late 1800''s to serve as a bordello. The rooms are named after the "ladies of the night" who worked here and we had Miss Claire''s room.
Some of the rooms have private bathrooms but ours shared a large bathroom with two other rooms. Luckily for us, the other rooms weren''t rented so we had the bathroom to ourself. As well as an old fashioned claw foot tub, there was a separate shower, a pedestal sink and lots of thick, fluffy cream coloured towels. Toiletries, including individual packets of herbal bath salts were personalized with a sketch of the hotel.
Our extremely high ceilinged room had a double and a single bed, rocking chair, straight back chair, a wardrobe for hanging clothes, a T.V., fan (no air conditioning in the 1800''s you know) and a table with a coffee maker and an assortment of coffee and tea supplies. The room was decorated in yellow and blue and the beds had patchwork quilts with corresponding colours. We were near the Water Street entrance so it was a bit noisey at night but not loud enough or long enough to create a nuisance.
Breakfast was left outside the door on an old fashioned padded footstool. It consisted of orange juice, fresh orange segments and a couple of danish pastries.
The rooms are all on the 2nd and 3rd floor of the hotel and there is no elevator, just an extremely wide stair case. The parlor on the 2nd floor is filled with antiques and stained glass accents and there is a library for guest use, as well as various magazines in each room.
In keeping with the Victorian theme, a store inside the hotel lobby sells Victorian era clothing and accessories.
There is free parking at the back of the hotel and lots of shops and restaurants within a few blocks.
The price was very reasonable - $65.00 per night for two people, including breakfast and all taxes.