A Milwaukee-Area Bed and Breakfast, The Port Washington Inn

Our new rack card can now be found in shops and eateries around Port Washington!  Distributing it has reconnected us with our business partners in the community; their friendly generosity has been a reminder that our guests time and again speak highly of the warm welcome they have experienced during their stay in Port Washington.  The ultimate compliment is hearing guests talk about coming back; it reflects well upon the welcome they experience as they visit Port Washington!

Harrington Beach

What fun to find Port Washington, Wisconsin, and Ozaukee County’s Interurban Trail highlighted in an article by Catey Sullivan writing for Chicago Magazine’s The Escape Artist July 2010!   Follow this link to read the article online  http://www.chicagomag.com/Chicago-Magazine/July-2010/Exploring-the-Interurban-Trail-near-Port-Washington-Wisconsin

Locals all too often take for granted Port Washington’s exceptional setting, but we are reminded by visitors that what we have here is ‘a little piece of heaven’.

From Port Washington the Interurban Trail heads north through the countryside toward Harrington Beach State Park or south with a mixture of countryside and the towns of Grafton, Cedarburg, and Thiensville.

The 636 acre Harrington Beach State Park is a favorite destination for guests of Port Washington Inn to take one of the inn’s Gourmet Picnics to enjoy at a picnic table or on the beach.  The picnics can be packed in backpacks for guests doing the bike trail or in a picnic basket for those preferring to travel by car.   It’s homemade fare prepared in the inn kitchen!

NOTE: The toll free number listed in this article is defunct.

Please call 262-284-5583 to reach Port Washington Inn.

Did your spring blooms disappear all too quickly this year?   In Port Washington  along Lake Michigan’s shore, blooms are a bit later to appear and tend to last longer      which means you can come here to enjoy them again………like turning back the clock and the calendar!  Savor the fragrance and the beauty just a little bit longer as you walk around the grounds of Port Washington Inn on Sweetcake Hill or sit on the park bench under the maple tree.

Scaffolding, which has been visible around Port Washington Inn since November, is disappearing today, February 4th!

It’s time to celebrate the inn’s fresh new look, most especially on the exterior but evident as well on the interior where we’ve been painting and finessing. Far from feeling its age (107 and counting), the inn’s exterior now matches the tasteful interior. The careful attention to the trim details of the building have taken time and patience to replicate but not to do so would have been to lose the integrity of this historic Port Washington landmark.

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Many a gift was wrapped and unwrapped this holiday season and here at Port Washington Inn, the wrapping has been happening in a grand way as the inn’s old siding is replaced with new and insulation is added to this 100+ year old building.

The first stage of this project began in late August when the remaining original windows were replaced with new energy efficient windows! That was accomplished quickly by a large crew in between busy guest times.

November was the earliest we could allow the siding work to commence since October is a busy guest month here and we didn’t want guests to be negatively impacted by this work. In November and December, we blocked out all midweek dates and many weekends as well. We spent parts of both months visiting family and friends!

As 2010 begins, the siding project is winding down. A final coat of paint will be applied in the spring and then we’ll be eager to get new pictures for our website!

Little did we realize when we purchased the inn 14-1/2 years ago, that a significant part of our accomplishment here would be the careful restoration of the building. It feels good to have seen such a wonderfully designed house through this process so that it can accommodate guests (and the innkeepers!) comfortably and efficiently.

We invite you to come and enjoy the Serenity, Elegance, & Comfort of Port Washington Inn where you will find peaceful privacy and generous hospitality!

We never know from whence our next guests will come! In these days of exorbitant gas prices, we tend to assume our guests will not have traveled so far, but that is not always true. We’ve had guests from the Czech Republic, Netherlands, Germany, England, and Scotland within the past two months and several guests from California, Missouri, Michigan, Minnesota, and Iowa. Increasingly, our accessibility from both the Milwaukee and Chicago airports makes a stay at the Port Washington Inn an easy choice, with rental cars and/or airport limousines readily available. Port Washington is a walkable community so a stay here does not require a car.

June 5, 2010 will be the 15th anniversary of our arrival at the Port Washington Inn. We had purchased an existing bed and breakfast and our first guests arrived days after we moved in. By June 5, 2010, Port Washington Inn will be clad in new siding and trim, a huge project that has involved insulation and energy efficient windows as well. Truly, our fifteen years here have cast us in the role of stewards of this historic property alongside our roles as innkeepers. Our Travel Green Wisconsin certification makes us justifiably proud to have brought the inn into the 21st century with significant eco-friendly enhancements while making every effort to maintain it’s historic references.

Looking back to those pre-internet days, we recall trying to describe the guestrooms over the phone (and hoping our descriptions improved with time)! So much has changed in twelve years, and so much remains the same. We spend much less time on the telephone now and much more time on our website blog!

Looking back, we know that the operating of the inn in those early years was accomplished with the most modest of means compared to our current standards. Hospitality is, however, the common thread woven throughout the tapestry of innkeeping. Offering gracous hospitality that puts guests at ease is the goal of every innkeeper. Behind the scenes innkeepers juggle a vast arena of priorities and when they do it well, their guests experience seamless hospitality.

These days our guests and we enjoy the benefits of a vastly renovated bed and breakfast inn that retains its historic references while offering all the modern comforts. Our kitchen is our pride and joy and has allowed us to offer gourmet picnics May through October as well as the full “from scratch” breakfast we serve our guests.

In today’s world we tend to assume that people have found us on the internet but we are always pleased to hear that Port Washington Inn gets good press in travel books and magazines that spotlight Wisconsin, Lake Michigan, and the greater Milwaukee/Chicago area. Scenes of the inn are currently appearing on a television commercial promoting B&B’s throughout Wisconsin. Travel Green Wisconsin helps us get the word out about our eco-friendly practices and VISIT Milwaukee has featured us on their ECO visits rack card. Discover Wisconsin did a show highlighting Ozaukee County and we are now represented on their website as well. The Wisconsin Bed & Breakfast Association, Port Washington and Cedarburg Chambers, and the Ozaukee County Tourism Council are valued partners.

Innkeeping is a labor of love that is all about sharing.

To meet most innkeepers is to meet people who aspire to offer a special experience to their guests.
The care that goes into decorating and maintaining their inns and into preparing delicious food for their guests is calculated to look and feel as though it happens effortlessly.
A truely professional innkeeper will manage to provide this experience in spite of all the snafus they may have been dealing with behind the scenes.

It is always a pleasure for such innkeepers when their guests are moved to express their appreciation, sometimes verbally, sometimes in a thank you note that arrives after their stay.

Our hearts are always warmed by kind words from our guests and there have been many.
The following note arrived recently from Erika who visited our bed and breakfast inn with two friends who have been visiting the inn for many years (in fact these friends gave the inn a Lenten Rose last year and have also made our hearts sing with their kind words):

Rita & Dave,

I just wanted to drop you a note to let you know how beautiful your B&B home is.
The hospitality was incredible and the warmth of both of your personalities really made me feel very comfortable.
Your place is an awesome getaway.
What a fantastic job you both did with the decor.
I have spent time in a lot of B&B’s
– but your place is the most elegant of all!!
I will be back!

Erika

Erika knew that Dave (and our son Aaron) have created many special furniture pieces for the inn in their woodworking shop.
She also knew that Rita uses her sewing skills to enhance the inn.
Erika and her friends had participated in the Saturday Night Good Food, Good Company Special as well as two full breakfasts and she took home a few recipes.

Thank you for your kind words, Erika.
They truly did make our hearts sing!

If you qualify as a baby boomer, you may remember Julie Andrews in My Fair Lady singing “Wouldn’t It Be Loverly”. My Fair Lady dreamed of a “loverly” place.
You may dream of such a place too!

Wouldn’t it be loverly to be magically transported to a place
where the surroundings are beautiful and comfortable?

Wouldn’t it be loverly to find a delicious homemade treat
and complimentary beverage options upon your arrival?

Wouldn’t it be loverly to enjoy a sunrise over Lake Michigan from your room?

Wouldn’t it be loverly to enjoy rich, fresh roasted coffee
before and during your delectable full breakfast?
OR your favorite tea?

Wouldn’t it be loverly to watch a movie uninterrupted?

Wouldn’t it be loverly to sit outside in the park-like grounds
of the inn on a pleasant day?

Wouldn’t it be loverly to share a gourmet picnic while you commune with nature?

Wouldn’t it be loverly to spend quiet hours in total privacy
with your favorite music in the background?

Wouldn’t it be loverly to travel back in time to a ‘kinder, gentler era’?

Time at the Port Washington Inn is “loverly”!
Our guests tell us so again and again.

Come enjoy the romance of Port Washington Inn.

We’ve improved the comfort quotient in the sitting room of Grace’s Suite,
newly redecorated last winter! With a new wingback chair and two new
ottomans this sitting room is sure to put a smile on your face as you cozy
in to watch a movie, read, play a board game, or check email on your laptop
(WI-FI makes that easy). The electric fireplace enables the ambience of a
fire with or without additional heat. A roman shade on the door gives you
total control of the privacy. Wall sconces are on their way to put the finishing
touches on this sitting room.