Name: The Grafton Inn
Address: 10830 County Road #2, Grafton, Grafton, Grafton, K0K 2G0, Canada
Rating: 8

Shopping on site

Garden

General

Coffee/tea for guests

Meals

Free Wi-Fi

Internet

Picnic area

Recreation

Free parking

Parking

Event facilities

Conference Hall

Business

Pets allowed

Pets

Location

At the guest house

The Grafton Inn

Grafton

I attended a funeral at The Meeting Place in August 2023. I had seen the space once before, but only when it was empty. This was the first time I had seen it used for an event. Honestly, it was the most beautiful, tasteful venue in which I have ever attended a funeral (and I have attended 87 funerals around the world, over the past decades).

It was built in the 1850s by Methodists, used for religious reasons until the 1920s, then was a house for many years until its current owners bought and restored it (this might not seem old to you European readers but in Canada, these dates make it a special, historical building). The simplicity, history, spirituality resonated with me in a profound way.  Make sure you look out for the small areas of vintage wallpaper, up high near the ceiling, that were uncovered and preserved in the restoration process... the kind of exquisite vintage detail that makes this place so special. (I didn't take any photos because I think that would be tacky at a funeral). 

I honestly cannot imagine a lovelier place for a special event. 

Blown away by the beauty and history of The Meeting Place

We recently stayed in the Pumpkin Cottage.  The rate was CA$575 per night.  We arrived at 4:00 pm and there was nobody around to give us any guidance. The keys were left in the mailbox of the cottage.  While I had been told a few days before check in that they were working on the wifi, I learned the next day that there never had been wifi in the cottage as it was too expensive.  In today’s age, wifi is a necessity!  There was also no phone in the cottage and no channels available on the tv.  There are two bathtubs in the two bathrooms with handheld shower hoses but it would be nice and less messy to have real showers.  We stayed for two nights and there was no cleaning done after the first night.  The kitchen was a mess with lots of dirty plates from our meal (there is no sink or running water in the kitchen area) and it was only after one of our party returned in the late afternoon and called the number in the window of the main building (no one is there after 3 we were told) that someone came and took away the dirty dishes and brought clean dishes and silverware.  Nobody had swept the living room floor which had a lot of crumbs etc. from our meal the night before.  The only staff I encountered were servers in the cafe and they appeared to have nothing to do with the rooms as they could not answer basic questions about the accommodations.  Given the price, I would expect some kind of maid service.  I would not recommend staying here as others in our group found much nicer and cheaper AirBnbs in the area. I can’t comment on the cafe as nobody told us whether or not breakfast was included with the rooms and there was no information in the cottage.

Accommodations not good for the price

Had a secound visit for breakfast and this time everything was perfect. The eggs were perfect, the smash potatoes were nicely cooked. The coffee was great. We are looking forward to returning for many more breakfast. 

Great breakfast

I stopped in for  some comfort food to ease my throbbing head. I was delighted with the waitress who really warmed my heart with her care and concern. I was even more delighted when my black current jam and brie panini arrived. What a delicious combo. The cafe and Inn are impressive inside and out. Sparkling clean and well maintained. I'll be visiting again.

Heartwarming

I want to preface this review by saying that the staff at the Grafton Inn were incredibly nice, and we had no issues whatsoever with their service. The Inn itself is very beautiful, and located in such a nice, quaint little town.

With that said, for the 200$+ that you pay for a room at this Inn, you would probably have a high expectation for this Inn. This was not the case. Unfortunately, this Inn is very poorly run. We were around 12 people checking in, and had arrived around 3:05pm, only to be told by the receptionist that they closed at 3pm. Our organizer who had booked the Guest House and Pumpkin Cottage for us, was never told this, despite speaking with two different receptionists. 

We had two other guests arriving later, and they would not have known to go pick up their room keys from the mailbox of the Guest House, which is not located near the main parking lot, and you actually have to drive a few seconds further to get to. I'm not sure how our guests would have found their way? Anyways, I believe the receptionist was going to leave a note at the door. It's very unusual for a hotel/accommodation in Ontario to close at 3pm, when in general, check-in times start at 3pm!

The Guest House and Pumpkin Cottage were very nice: they looked very historical and very quaint, and were very comfortable. However, think twice before bringing a heavy rolling suitcase, as the Pumpkin Cottage does not have a proper walkway. It's very rocky, and has a few trip hazards. I don't even think it's wheelchair-accessible! 

From their website: "Today, while we still offer old-fashioned hospitality, our amenities are definitely 21st century." I beg to differ. The doorknobs/locks are very hard to use, and one of our guests had even locked himself out, unfortunately. Obviously, this was pretty inconvenient for all, since there was no one at reception to help us. Also, some of our guests at the Guest House reported that there was no hot water. Again, how can we relay this information to the Inn, if there is no one at reception? The House/Cottage could definitely use an upgrade in terms of hardware. Lee Valley sells plenty of period-style hardware, for a decent price...Second, there is no wi-fi in the Pumpkin Cottage, so make sure you  have a data plan, or you have some other way of communicating with the rest of your guests. For 200$+ that guests pay to stay here, you would expect each House/Cottage to have their own wi-fi modem. The TV didn't have any channels either, but that didn't really bother us as much as the lack of wi-fi. When we tried to make ourselves coffee in the "kitchen", we had to unplug most of the other appliances to be able to get the coffee maker going, because the electricity kept shorting out! I'm sure the guests before us did the same thing, because the little cream pots in the fridge had all curdled.

Unlike other hotels as well, breakfast only starts at 8:30am. To our surprise, a proper breakfast is not included with your reservation. Only coffee and a muffin are included. For 200$+, we definitely expected to have at least some sort of continental breakfast or a self-serve buffet like you have at the Best Westerns...Nothing fancy, but at least something more filling than a muffin. The breakfast that we did order was delicious though, I would definitely recommend that.

"Our Goal at the Grafton Inn Is to Offer the Best Service Possible. Your Suggestions Could Help Us Reach Our Goal." Here are my suggestions: please let the guests know that your reception closes at 3pm; please have wi-fi available in all your guest houses - some people travel from a different country and may not have cellphone reception; please fix the path to the Pumpkin Cottage to remove all trip hazards; please update your doorknobs/locks to work better/easier for your guests; please ensure that the appliances in the guests houses work properly and that no food is spoiled; provide a separate soap for hand washing; and lastly, please include a proper breakfast with a guest's reservation.

Thanks!

Beautiful Inn, Very Poorly Run

I was instantly happy with this place when I noticed how clean the washroom was, I’ve always used that to gauge how clean a restaurant is in general, and they did not disappoint. The staff here are so accommodating and helpful and the food is delicious and locally focused. I had a black currant and brie sandwich that was dripping with brie and the black currant was locally produced. The salad that they served on the side was incredible with a perfect balance and sweet and salty. I am so happy that this restaurant is available every time I’m making a drive out East, it’s special.

The Grafton Inn

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