Almost Perfect
By A Yahoo! Contributor, 4/25/07
Stayed at the Refuge Inn this past weekend based mostly on the reviews from this site. Everything said here is absolutely true. However a few things were left out that prevents me from saying this is an 'Excellent' place to stay. Close.
Room's are great. Very clean. The rooms are also not furnished as typical hotel rooms might be, but instead offer much nicer and more interesting furniture. More like a bed and breakfast than a hotel.
The only problem we had with the room is that the doors on the rooms, which seem very solid under scrutiny, offer absolutely NO sound filtering/reduction. In our room we could hear every sound in the hallway. I am not exaggerating at all. You can hear every word of people passing by as if there was no door. I can only assume that the reverse is true and that anything being said (or done) in the room is just as open to people in the hallway. It was a major detraction for us as we stayed there for an anniversary.
Secondly, the staff is great. Friendly each and every one of them. Also, very helpful and informative in regards to places to eat and visit. A bit of testimony to this fact is that we were in town in a store asking about boat tours and they called the ladies at the desk at the refuge for advice. Says it all.
Additionally, the location is perfect if your primary interest is the Assateague wildlife refuge. The Refuge is the closest hotel to the wildlife refuge on Assateague. Just a 1/4 mile down the road to the bridge. They also have have a nice horse pen with 4 ponies that you can feed and pet, offer a nice continental breakfast with waffles and such that was quite nice and two observation decks where you can see the water between Chincoteage and Assateague. Free wireless internet... heated indoor/outdoor pool.. hottub.. hey, it's a nice place.
The only other detraction for the refuge is that I had the impression from the pictures and the description on their site that the hotel was right on the water facing Assateague. I also thought that the hotel was a bit nestled into the woods or something. I don't know why I had that image in my head since I went back to the site and there is nothing that specifically says that. It was just the impression that I had. The reality is that the hotel is like any other hotel in a crowded tourist area. There is another hotel on one side, an RV camp behind it, and a McDonald's on the other side. The one observation deck that goes down to the water actually goes behind the McDonald's. Not any worse than any other hotel on the island, but just keep the reality in mind when considering where to stay.
Long and short of it is that I liked the hotel very much but would not stay there for an anniversary again until they replaced the doors with something more sound proof. But for a family visit or group outing for some biking, hiking, fishing, swimming on Assateague I would definitely do it again.
Hope this helps. :)