Being in the tour operating business; I have seen many hotels, motels, inns, B&B’s, villas and rentals. I think the last time I counted; I may have seen several thousand.
The Coachman Inn in Oak Harbor on Whidbey Island was a pleasant surprise for a road side inn. Road side inns gained their popularity in the 1950’s when the route 66 generation hit the roads to explore America. Hundreds upon hundreds of two and three story outside access motels spouted up along roads like dandelions.
These properties are several decades old so many of them can be stricken with “drab from the past syndrome” where flower drapes, old carpet and out of date bed covers abound; but not the Coachman Inn.
When you enter your room; you notice the tasteful upgrades the moment you key in. The double bed presentation was superb with a setup you would find in the Four Seasons with great pillows, textured white linens with a touch of color from a well done throw.
Flat screen TV’s in many rooms, nicely finished loveseat, chair and wood coffee table cluster make the room feel homey. A tiled backsplash kitchenette stocked with all you need to create meal put a nice finishing touch on the room.
The bathroom while dated was done very well and added a retro feel to the updated overall appearance.
Some of the things you don’t expect to see in a road side inn which you do at the Coachman are full toiletries including shoe shine cloth, good quality shampoos, lotions and very nice heavy towels.
The lobby is well done with high quality furniture and an amazing lobby bathroom (the kind you wish you had in your room) several flat screens and a few gas fireplaces; again not what you would expect to see in a road side inn. Elizabeth, the weekend front desk person was friendly, very organized and gave us great suggestions for family walks, outside adventures, shopping and dining recommendations.
The breakfast is more than you would expect with eggs, good coffee selection, cereals, English muffins and their own homemade biscuits and gravy. The breakfast room is quite small so try to go early or late so you aren’t bumping elbows with your fellow “inners”
During our visit in February the pool was closed but the Jacuzzi was open, clean and welcoming.
Another impressive element of this road side inn was the usually barren spaces in the parking lot. Those “islands” of parking barriers and grass strips were all well groomed landscapes with lovely planters, well manicured flowers, plants and what seemed to be Bonsai’s.
The Coachman Inn is located just down the road from Deception Pass State Park which is a 4,134-acre marine and camping park with 77,000 feet of saltwater shoreline, and 33,900 feet of freshwater shoreline on three lakes. Rugged cliffs drop to meet the turbulent waters of Deception Pass. The park is outstanding for breath-taking views, old-growth forests and abundant wildlife; the inn makes a great base location to see this amazing park.
Don’t expect any views, business centers or room service but what you can expect is a great road side inn that delivers way more than expected and one that is located on a great island near amazing outdoor activities.
The Coachman Inn can be booked with special Travel 4 Real pricing by contacting us at info@travel4real.com or by calling 425-355-3711
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