Grand hotel that doesn’t fully live up to potential. We stayed at the hotel for a couple of nights and although the decorations and furniture are more of a dated decor, they work well with the hotel. We had a Jacuzzi tub and they came with robes, which was a very nice touch. The bathrooms fixtures were in slight disrepair. (Loose towel rod, and things like that. Jets in tub yellowing from age, base boards showed messy caulking) The rooms do not have coffee and coffee is not served 24 hrs a day. There are no refrigerators or microwaves in the rooms, but there’s a shared area on each floor with a small community refrigerator and microwave, but there’s no coffee maker there either. In the morning, coffee is available and there is a nice restaurant. They do usually have free muffins that they give out with the coffee. The rooms were larger, clean and the bed comfortable. Free Wi-Fi is available. The pool and hot tub were both closed down and appeared to be closed out for a long period of time. We ask about that and they said they were closed for repair. We wish we had known about that before we book the room. There is a very nice deck up on the third floor with a fireplace, but there’s only a couple pieces of very worn down furniture that are in the corner. The entire ledge of the top floor balcony is covered with chiggers. There is a restaurant downstairs called the speakeasy that is an excellent place to eat. The meal there was top notch, and we love the atmosphere, but it closed at 9 PM and was the only bar in the hotel that served. There is a bar at the main entrance, but it is only staffed for special occasion it appeared. The front of the hotel appeared to have large balconies, but those were not accessible and the doorways to them were blocked off and it look like they were holding water. There is a spa on premise, but according to the documentation, they want 48 hour notice of booking for treatments so we didn’t bother using them because we did not know that. Some of the locals told us that there are some beliefs that part of the hotel is haunted, but we experienced no strange behavior. Lol. I believe this hotel has tons of potential and it is a clean comfortable place to stay, but there are obvious things that are being overlooked that do not shine well. I still believe it’s probably one of the best places to stay in town.
Sean Kidder
I definitely enjoy this place every time I stay there. The most recent trip the staff were simply great and helpful and accommodating and supportive and all kinds of good things. The location near the skyline drive and the Shenandoah valley and all of the tourist attractions in the area is ideal. The hotel is up to date and in good shape but retains a flavor of age and perhaps a little bit of faded elegance which I enjoy.
Rich Peifer
The folks running the Mimslyn Inn and the employee's who work there go above and beyond for you. The service is great and the food was very good also.
Kelly McIntyre
I don't know what rooms the 5* reviewers are staying in, but ours, 102, is incredibly musty. The bathroom light flickers, fan doesn't work, shower head is broken, tub doesn't drain. The pool and hot tub are in the parking lot. No ambiance at all. No view really from the hotel (except the closed off roof above the front porch). The main lobby area is beautiful and yet everything else is mediocre to outdated, and in not a good kind of way. Crappy art prints in broken frames for example. Bad old carpet. Drop ceilings downstairs. Did I mention musty? I'm really glad I didn't book a spa service after seeing the basement area where the spa is located. I expected so much more than what this place is, but it still looked better than the other nearby options, so I guess there is still that. It's really cool that it's historic, just don't expect any luxury - like at all. Funky place.
Bunny
I'm very unsure how to rate our stay because there were highs, but a huge low. All the staff we dealt with were fantastic. The meal we had at The Speakeasy was one of the best meals I've had in ages. The location was really convenient. But one of the main reasons we chose our cabin was the advertised bath tub. The water heater really wasn't big enough for the sheer size of the tub. It took multiple cycles to fill it up. Not a huge issue but annoying. The real issue started when I turned the jets on. All this black crud came gushing out. I'm assuming it's mold or mildew, I have no idea. But it was disgusting, and after 30 minuets of filling the tub, I had to give up on it. On check out we mentioned it, and got a very wishy washy response about how they cleaned it regularly. If they do, I don't understand why it was like this. The rest of the cabin was clean (if very dated and worn) but the experience with the moldy tub was really unpleasant. I hate leaving bad reviews but it feels justified.
Daniel Setzer
Shower head was caked with build up, room was small. Found sewing needle in carpet. Fred and the morning receptionist on 4/1 were very kind and helpful.
Cory Mendenhall
Beware - they charge you $18.50 when you check in if you book this hotel with a 2nd or 3rd party. Not sure this is legal since it was never mentioned on any site. Staff were very helpful on where to dine in town. Room was comfortable, but dated. No room on bathroom for products, shower head needed cleaning and did not adjust, and tub appeared to have water under the floor pan. TV was small and older. Restaurants were average. Recommend you go to the Chop House for dinner. I would stay here again but the extra charge for booking through Expedia will get me looking elsewhere
Jeff Thomas
Very quiet, nice room with comfortable king bed, good Inn and restaurant service, and good food.
Dana Wagner
Their Front Desk Manager could certainly use a lesson in humanity. I have never seen a property so desperate to squeeze every last dollar from a customer while being so lazy in their service. For instance- their website offers room packages where you can combine food/services with your reservation. It doesn’t say anywhere that it needs to be booked 48 hrs in advance. (And quite frankly there is no logic to why receiving a discount on your dinner would require advance notice. The kitchen staff has to prepare the same amount of food. The only difference is the amount of money they receive for it.) So you can book this package online less than 48 hrs in advance, receive a confirmation that you have booked it, but be told by a very condescending hotel staff that you are not eligible because its their “policy” (that isn’t written anywhere) that you must book 48 hrs in advance. But let’s be real, if you HAD booked 48 hrs in advance, they probably would have told you at check in that the policy is 72 hrs in advance. Anything to save a buck.
The same woman told me that the cottage I had booked was going to be “uncomfortable” and that its “not very nice” and “there’s a reason its priced lower” and how we should consider one of their much more expensive cottages. She literally would not accept that I had chosen the cottage that best met our needs. She kept insisting we needed to stay somewhere more expensive. Never have I heard of a business actively insulting their own offerings in an attempt to upsell a customer. Turns out, the cabin we booked was just fine. The only issue was that the trash bags and dirty linens from the previous stay just sat outside our door the entire time we were there.
Also be aware the doors do not have keys, only keypad entry locks. And who knows how often those codes are changed. So while I felt fine while we were inside and could deadbolt the door, I did not feel safe leaving my belongings with an unknown number of people knowing the code to the door. You also cannot park at the cottages. The fitness room is part of the lobby for the spa with signs everywhere saying it’s a “quiet zone”. Someone please tell me how to run quietly on a treadmill? And just be aware that as of March 2025 there is major construction going on in the main building that they also will not make you aware of when booking. Loud noises and strong smells immediately next to the dining room.
Overall, once we were locked away in our cottage we enjoyed our stay. But otherwise- horrible business practices, and virtually no worthwhile amenities.
(Blondish maintenance guy was nice!)
Philip Genovese
Really enjoyed our stay here. Beautiful old hotel and was pretty cheap for the accommodations when we came in the off season
Went in January. Showers were not draining as I showered, had to clean feet while standing outside of shower because of it. Humid feeling in room almost damp. Old smell. Bugs in stairwell. Dusty old feeling throughout the entire place. Needs renovation. Lacks life and presence. Only went here because it was less sketchy than the other ones in Luray. Go here when you don’t have a choice, not when you actually have one. I obviously didn’t.
Bradley Salyards
I stayed at the Mimslyn after a terrible booking across the street at the quality inn( blood on sheets, hair under the sheets, random holes in the wall. This hotel saved the day for us. We book the king size room and we were upgrade to a suite! It is definitely worth the stay! The staff is super friendly and a huge shoutout to Beth Rowe none of this would have happened without your help! She made this trip amazing! I definitely recommend the speakeasy in the hotel as well the food was delicious! I got the petite fillet mignon and my boyfriend got the Ruben recommendation by Beth and it was delicious! Our waitress was patient and kind with us from being out of town thank you Dana for that!
Edward Fox
This was our 3rd stay in 10 years, each time to celebrate a wedding anniversary. When our original reserved cottage was not available, we got an upgrade without extra cost. Staff is friendly, food is great. Cost is in line with the chain motels.
codi koshak
This hotel was nice. The room was cozy. The spa was great. Didn't see a ghost. Fred is awesome. Live long and prosper Fred. We'll be back.
Grand hotel that doesn’t fully live up to potential. We stayed at the hotel for a couple of nights and although the decorations and furniture are more of a dated decor, they work well with the hotel. We had a Jacuzzi tub and they came with robes, which was a very nice touch. The bathrooms fixtures were in slight disrepair. (Loose towel rod, and things like that. Jets in tub yellowing from age, base boards showed messy caulking) The rooms do not have coffee and coffee is not served 24 hrs a day. There are no refrigerators or microwaves in the rooms, but there’s a shared area on each floor with a small community refrigerator and microwave, but there’s no coffee maker there either. In the morning, coffee is available and there is a nice restaurant. They do usually have free muffins that they give out with the coffee. The rooms were larger, clean and the bed comfortable. Free Wi-Fi is available. The pool and hot tub were both closed down and appeared to be closed out for a long period of time. We ask about that and they said they were closed for repair. We wish we had known about that before we book the room. There is a very nice deck up on the third floor with a fireplace, but there’s only a couple pieces of very worn down furniture that are in the corner. The entire ledge of the top floor balcony is covered with chiggers. There is a restaurant downstairs called the speakeasy that is an excellent place to eat. The meal there was top notch, and we love the atmosphere, but it closed at 9 PM and was the only bar in the hotel that served. There is a bar at the main entrance, but it is only staffed for special occasion it appeared. The front of the hotel appeared to have large balconies, but those were not accessible and the doorways to them were blocked off and it look like they were holding water. There is a spa on premise, but according to the documentation, they want 48 hour notice of booking for treatments so we didn’t bother using them because we did not know that. Some of the locals told us that there are some beliefs that part of the hotel is haunted, but we experienced no strange behavior. Lol. I believe this hotel has tons of potential and it is a clean comfortable place to stay, but there are obvious things that are being overlooked that do not shine well. I still believe it’s probably one of the best places to stay in town.
I definitely enjoy this place every time I stay there. The most recent trip the staff were simply great and helpful and accommodating and supportive and all kinds of good things. The location near the skyline drive and the Shenandoah valley and all of the tourist attractions in the area is ideal. The hotel is up to date and in good shape but retains a flavor of age and perhaps a little bit of faded elegance which I enjoy.
The folks running the Mimslyn Inn and the employee's who work there go above and beyond for you. The service is great and the food was very good also.
I don't know what rooms the 5* reviewers are staying in, but ours, 102, is incredibly musty. The bathroom light flickers, fan doesn't work, shower head is broken, tub doesn't drain. The pool and hot tub are in the parking lot. No ambiance at all. No view really from the hotel (except the closed off roof above the front porch). The main lobby area is beautiful and yet everything else is mediocre to outdated, and in not a good kind of way. Crappy art prints in broken frames for example. Bad old carpet. Drop ceilings downstairs. Did I mention musty? I'm really glad I didn't book a spa service after seeing the basement area where the spa is located. I expected so much more than what this place is, but it still looked better than the other nearby options, so I guess there is still that. It's really cool that it's historic, just don't expect any luxury - like at all. Funky place.
I'm very unsure how to rate our stay because there were highs, but a huge low. All the staff we dealt with were fantastic. The meal we had at The Speakeasy was one of the best meals I've had in ages. The location was really convenient. But one of the main reasons we chose our cabin was the advertised bath tub. The water heater really wasn't big enough for the sheer size of the tub. It took multiple cycles to fill it up. Not a huge issue but annoying. The real issue started when I turned the jets on. All this black crud came gushing out. I'm assuming it's mold or mildew, I have no idea. But it was disgusting, and after 30 minuets of filling the tub, I had to give up on it. On check out we mentioned it, and got a very wishy washy response about how they cleaned it regularly. If they do, I don't understand why it was like this. The rest of the cabin was clean (if very dated and worn) but the experience with the moldy tub was really unpleasant. I hate leaving bad reviews but it feels justified.
Shower head was caked with build up, room was small. Found sewing needle in carpet. Fred and the morning receptionist on 4/1 were very kind and helpful.
Beware - they charge you $18.50 when you check in if you book this hotel with a 2nd or 3rd party. Not sure this is legal since it was never mentioned on any site. Staff were very helpful on where to dine in town. Room was comfortable, but dated. No room on bathroom for products, shower head needed cleaning and did not adjust, and tub appeared to have water under the floor pan. TV was small and older. Restaurants were average. Recommend you go to the Chop House for dinner. I would stay here again but the extra charge for booking through Expedia will get me looking elsewhere
Very quiet, nice room with comfortable king bed, good Inn and restaurant service, and good food.
Their Front Desk Manager could certainly use a lesson in humanity. I have never seen a property so desperate to squeeze every last dollar from a customer while being so lazy in their service. For instance- their website offers room packages where you can combine food/services with your reservation. It doesn’t say anywhere that it needs to be booked 48 hrs in advance. (And quite frankly there is no logic to why receiving a discount on your dinner would require advance notice. The kitchen staff has to prepare the same amount of food. The only difference is the amount of money they receive for it.) So you can book this package online less than 48 hrs in advance, receive a confirmation that you have booked it, but be told by a very condescending hotel staff that you are not eligible because its their “policy” (that isn’t written anywhere) that you must book 48 hrs in advance. But let’s be real, if you HAD booked 48 hrs in advance, they probably would have told you at check in that the policy is 72 hrs in advance. Anything to save a buck.
The same woman told me that the cottage I had booked was going to be “uncomfortable” and that its “not very nice” and “there’s a reason its priced lower” and how we should consider one of their much more expensive cottages. She literally would not accept that I had chosen the cottage that best met our needs. She kept insisting we needed to stay somewhere more expensive. Never have I heard of a business actively insulting their own offerings in an attempt to upsell a customer. Turns out, the cabin we booked was just fine. The only issue was that the trash bags and dirty linens from the previous stay just sat outside our door the entire time we were there.
Also be aware the doors do not have keys, only keypad entry locks. And who knows how often those codes are changed. So while I felt fine while we were inside and could deadbolt the door, I did not feel safe leaving my belongings with an unknown number of people knowing the code to the door. You also cannot park at the cottages. The fitness room is part of the lobby for the spa with signs everywhere saying it’s a “quiet zone”. Someone please tell me how to run quietly on a treadmill? And just be aware that as of March 2025 there is major construction going on in the main building that they also will not make you aware of when booking. Loud noises and strong smells immediately next to the dining room.
Overall, once we were locked away in our cottage we enjoyed our stay. But otherwise- horrible business practices, and virtually no worthwhile amenities.
(Blondish maintenance guy was nice!)
Really enjoyed our stay here. Beautiful old hotel and was pretty cheap for the accommodations when we came in the off season
Restaurantji Recommends
Went in January. Showers were not draining as I showered, had to clean feet while standing outside of shower because of it. Humid feeling in room almost damp. Old smell. Bugs in stairwell. Dusty old feeling throughout the entire place. Needs renovation. Lacks life and presence. Only went here because it was less sketchy than the other ones in Luray. Go here when you don’t have a choice, not when you actually have one. I obviously didn’t.
I stayed at the Mimslyn after a terrible booking across the street at the quality inn( blood on sheets, hair under the sheets, random holes in the wall. This hotel saved the day for us. We book the king size room and we were upgrade to a suite! It is definitely worth the stay! The staff is super friendly and a huge shoutout to Beth Rowe none of this would have happened without your help! She made this trip amazing! I definitely recommend the speakeasy in the hotel as well the food was delicious! I got the petite fillet mignon and my boyfriend got the Ruben recommendation by Beth and it was delicious! Our waitress was patient and kind with us from being out of town thank you Dana for that!
This was our 3rd stay in 10 years, each time to celebrate a wedding anniversary. When our original reserved cottage was not available, we got an upgrade without extra cost. Staff is friendly, food is great. Cost is in line with the chain motels.
This hotel was nice. The room was cozy. The spa was great. Didn't see a ghost. Fred is awesome. Live long and prosper Fred. We'll be back.
Good value at an elegant place from a bygone era.
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