A lesson learned...take the negative reviews with a grain of salt and what you will get is a "diamond in the rough". We stayed at the Shelter Harbor Inn despite some negative reviews we came across when we were making our travel plans. Although at first I was worried being I was making plans for my large extended family which included several rather demanding teenagers who wanted to stay at a "real hotel" and not "somebody's old house", a severely arthritic Aunt, and one grumpy-old-man, and I had to go through alot of room juggling and making changes to my reservations and wasn't sure what to expect. Well from the moment we arrived to when we departed our stay could not have been made any more perfect. We stayed in rooms in both the Barn (15,19 & 20) and Carriage House (#23). Rooms 19 & 20 had a large room adjoining the two rooms which we got to have all to ourselves to congregate, play games, watch tv, eat, etc. They even provided us with air mattresses for the kids to have a slumber party. There was also a huge deck off of these rooms with lounge chairs and tables and that overlooked a croquet court, a kiddie play area and beautiful gardens. For a place as old as it is the rooms were immaculate and obviously well cared for. As well, the grounds were impeccable, the roof-top hot tub was heavenly, and every meal was a culinary delight. We especially loved the full breakfast included with our stay and that we were able to enjoy sitting outside on a rustic stone patio with views of the gardens. Perhaps the breakfast waitstaff was somewhat inexperienced but it was clear that they were eager to get the expereince and no doubt my troops gave them a run for their money. Nevetheless the "greenness" of the upandcomers was certainly made up for by the dinner servers of which our waitress (Meghan) delivered us the art of classic service with grace. For the most part we were attended to with nothing but good old-fashioned hospitality and customer service by all of the staff that we had the pleasure of interacting with. Even the teenagers had remarked about the level of service being better than a "real hotel". Well we were happy that we did not pay any heed to the negative reviews, because this old country Inn is a diamond in the rough...sadly, even its own website does not do it justice.

We have stayed here a number of times in the last 4 years. We love the Westerly area, but the area lacks decent mid range accomodations. The biggest selling point of the Shelter Harbor Inn (SHI) is the access to the lovely Shelter Harbor / Weekapaug Inn. The grounds indeed are lovely and breakfast included. While a very good value, the service is not great. Most of the staff appear to be teenagers with very little experience. As my five year said, "Mommy can make 10 grilled cheese sandwiches in the time it takes them to make one." As a testament to the lack of establishments in the area, the restaurant is frequently packed.

When we first started going there, we felt the SHI had a definite New England Inn charm, a little shabby but clean. Now I question the cleanliness. Our suite had a definite musty feel and there were cobwebs on table lamps (within easy reach and easy to see). I felt like the carpet was filthy. I don't think it was vacuumed during our stay. I had a hard time sleeping the entire trip.

The management desperately needs to spend some money on maintenance to replace worn floors, shabby doors, worn and ragged furnishings. And please train the staff to do their jobs.

I can't stay there again, and that makes me sad because I love the area.

This was a unique property to stay in. It had a lot of character and is a historic property (so if you are a 4 Seasons Type who needs shiny granite and everything new this is not the property for you). Everything was very clean in our room (small building off the main). Bedding was fresh and new. Included in the price was a full breakfast (gourmet touches). Our family enjoyed eating outdoors on the terrace. We had dinner one night also and it was yummy. It appeared to be doing a brisk dinner business and seems to be a destination restaurant for the area.
The private beach was just a short drive or shuttle ride away and had a lifeguard and was pristine. The rooftop deck and hot tub were nice, and had shower facilities up there too. On site were 2 paddle tennis courts (great fun for us and our 2 young children), and a putting green/croquet/bocci ball lawn. Nicely scattered around were chairs to sit and watch. There also was a swingset. It was nice to find a historic property that welcomed children (though they should be well behaved for the restaurant).
Our room had a queen 4 poster bed and room for air mattresses for the children. I would recommend requesting air mattresses instead of cots if your children are much above toddler weight (cots didn't have enough slat support). Management was very responsive to our problem and promptly sent over an air matttress instead. I would stay here again.

nice house, nice garden with slide/swings for kids, nice hot tub and very nice food. But service was pretty poor, no-one really seems to care if you have a nice time. On arrival we were told there was no cot bed, due to a miscommunication. This was met with a shrug. we weren't shown to our room or helped with our hundreds of bags up 3 flights of stairs. When we needed a table for 4 for dinner, we were told there were no tables available, we then proceeded to sit at the bar and watch an empty table for 15 mins before going to ask and then told that, yes, in fact there was a table?! Oh forgot lovely private beach 10 mins drive away, shame no one at reception told us about it or the parking restrictions. My advice Mr Manager get some new staff who care!