River House Inn, Snow Hill

We recently spent two nights in The River House Inn in Snow Hill, Maryland. We selected this inn, which is about 20 miles from Ocean City, MD, based on its web site which depicted well maintained grounds, rooms, great amenities; and the fact the inn is pet friendly. Well the stay turned out to be a disappointment. We paid about $420 with taxes for two nights. In our judgment, the rooms were about $200 overpriced.

On the positive side, the innkeepers have two very pleasant and friendly standard poodles named Peaches and Rosalie. Our two dogs felt right at home with them. There were dog bones and dog bowls in the room. In addition, there is a nice swimming pool area complete with a gazebo. Finally, the size of the room we had was large and it had a nice gas fireplace and attractive Jacuzzi.

The negative side of the ledger is lengthy. First, we selected the Garden Room because it was supposed to have breathtaking views of the Pocomoke River from an outside porch. What we found was that the porch was largely unusable. After we swept the large accumulation of leaves off the upstairs porch, we still found the porch uninviting because the furniture was filthy and moldy. The grounds were buggy and not well maintained . Second, though the Pocomoke River is a beauty, the Garden Room is at least 100 feet away from the River and the view is substantially blocked by trees and leaves. Third, the room which was once stunning, is in definite need of an upgrade. The carpet has several large stains and the wall paper is peeling in several places. We were also disappointed because the carpet had not been well vacuumed. The tile in the bathroom needs new grouting. Except for one corner, the room is quite dark and new lighting is need in several corners and in the bathroom. One lamp had a burned out light bulb and though we got it replaced there was no apology. The throw rugs in the bathroom are worn and the bathrobes hanging on the bathroom door are old and soiled. Fourth, the inn is not a very inviting place. The owners obviously like their privacy. None of the rooms in the elegant main house are for guests to stay as they once were. And, in the morning breakfast is not served in the large, well appointed dining room. In fact, we spent less than 5 minutes in the main house. Refreshments are served on a small outdoor porch. There is no morning coffee. There are signs around the house directing people to enter the inn from one location only and not to enter the others. Fifth, the breakfast was disappointing and definitely not up to the standards of a B&B charging $200 plus a night. In the a.m., the innkeepers bring you a basket. It has rolls, eggs and sausage, or an omelet. There is some fruit, orange juice and two bags of coffee which you have to make yourself in the room's coffee pot. Though china and utensils are provided, the eggs and sausage come in tupperware containers. Sixth, the town of Snow Hill turned out to be a big disappointment. The town has a couple of shops and a few antique places. There are several boarded up shops and the town does not appear to be thriving. The inn does not offer lunch or dinner. Though there is one place to get lunch in town that is nice, the sole dinner restaurant is very poorly appointed, has lousy food, and allows smoking in the adjacent bar. We ended up driving to Ocean City one night for dinner which was fine though over a 40 mile round trip.