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Graystone Lodge Boone Review

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Back in May, my husband and I spent the night at the Graystone Lodge in Boone, North Carolina. Seeing as how there’s not too many reviews on it, I thought I would post one.

Graystone Lodge

Graystone Lodge

When my husband and I visited Tweetsie Railroad back in May, we opted to spend a night at the Graystone Lodge in Boone. It’s a recently refurbished and re-branded hotel in the Choice Hotels chain. It’s a part of their Ascend Hotel Collection, signaling it’s a touch nicer than some of their other hotels.

King Bedroom

We spent the night in one of their King rooms. We loved having a huge bed to spend the night in! I was impressed with the refreshed room. The lighted picture of the mountains on the headboard was a nice touch! It felt authentic to the area.

The room was more than sufficient for our one night stay. The bed was ok, not the best or the worst. The sheets were a little scratchy on my skin, but nothing too bad. I appreciated how quiet the room was, as that’s not always the case in hotels.

The best part was probably the free breakfast! I loved the selection of bagels and donuts from a local bakery! They even had biscuits and gravy! I will often skip a free hotel breakfast, but this one is worthwhile!

Pros

  • Had hot water – Some hotels have just warm water. Not here. You can get legitimately hot water here.
  • Nicely decorated – We enjoyed the subtle decorations about the hotel that really suited the area.
  • Beekman toiletries – I was thrilled to discover the Beekman 1802 shampoo, conditioner, and body wash in the bathroom. It’s a nicer brand that I was tickled to try and made for a luxuriating experience.
  • Great breakfast – It’s nice when a hotel comes with a free breakfast. This is one of the better ones. I love that they get bagels and breads from a local bakery.
  • Recently refurbished – I didn’t notice anything broken or in dis-repair. Everything looked well done.

Cons

  • Water can get too hot quickly – While I appreciate the hot water, it did get too hot a little quick. So, be careful.
  • Sheets were scratchy – I have sensitive skin and had just shaved my legs that day. I found the sheets to feel a little scratchy on my legs in particular. It may be just me though. Also, it didn’t keep me from sleeping.
  • Small sink counter – If you are someone who needs a big bathroom sink to spread out, that will be a problem here. If you don’t require much space, then you should be good.

Is the Graystone Lodge worth it?

We paid $190.77 for the night we stayed. I think it was totally worth that amount, especially if you think about how much breakfast can cost. I enjoyed my stay here, but I might also look at other options in the area if I visit Tweetsie again. So, have you ever stayed here?

Charleston Indigo Inn Review

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Back in April, my mom and I stayed a night at the Charleston Indigo Inn. I didn’t see too many reviews of the hotel prior to our stay, so I thought I would post one.

Charleston Indigo Inn

Charleston Indigo Inn

After staying three nights in Myrtle Beach, my mom and I made our way over to Charleston for the first time. Having never visited before, we weren’t sure what to expect from the Holy City. However, I was pretty sure we wanted to stay in a central location in the historical district. That’s what lead me to the Indigo Inn.

Traditional Two Queens Room

For this trip, we booked a traditional two queens room for a rate of $286/night. The mattresses were pretty comfortable, although the bed frame was pretty high off the ground. As such, it was a touch difficult for my 5′ 2-3″ mom to get in and out of. It was doable, but she had to stretch.

The other issue with the room was the tiny bathroom. As in, you had to back up against the toilet in order to shut the bathroom door. Basically, if you have mobility difficulties, this may not be the room for you.

The Location

I will say, this was the ideal location for our one night stay. It was walking distance to everything! I intend to do another post at a later date on spending 24 hours in Charleston. However, we were within a short walk to a historical carriage ride, several good restaurants, and the Charleston City Market.

The Amenities

The Indigo Inn has a couple of added perks for staying there. For starters, they serve cheese and wine in the lobby in the evening. They also serve a nightcap of milk and cookies. Unfortunately, we had a busy schedule and missed both of those offerings. My mom grabbed a bottle of juice at the continental breakfast the next morning. I would say the breakfast was somewhat minimal. I wanted to try Callie’s Hot Little Biscuit, so I didn’t grab anything from the hotel. However, I think it’s really nice they offer these extras to guests.

Indigo Inn Pros

  • Location – This was my top reason for staying here. It was central to everything we wanted to do. We were able to park our car and just walk around the city.
  • Peaceful – This inn was peaceful and a welcome break from the bustle of Myrtle Beach.
  • More affordable – Charleston can be an expensive place to visit. This was one of the more affordable places we found.
  • Complimentary snacks – It’s nice they offer afternoon cheese and wine with nightcap milk and cookies. The breakfast is enough to get you out the door and on your way.

Cons

  • Small bathroom – The bathroom and shower were really small. Also, there wasn’t any body wash.
  • Tall beds – These wouldn’t be ideal for shorter/older/younger folks.
  • No free parking – Although, I think this can be an issue in Charleston in general. There’s convenient on-site parking, but they charge you $25/night.

Is the Charleston Indigo Inn worth it?

I think the Indigo Inn is a great choice for a visit to Charleston! It’s the perfect location for exploring the city by foot. Plus, it has comfortable beds and tranquil vibes. Have you ever stayed here?

Homewood Suites Myrtle Beach Grand Mall Review

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Back in April, my mom and I spent several nights in South Carolina. Due to the weather, we decided to head down a day early and booked a single night at Homewood Suites Myrtle Beach Grand Mall last minute. This hotel had some good things and not so great things about it, so I thought I would review it.

Homewood Suites Myrtle Beach Grand Mall

Homewood Suites Myrtle Beach Grand Mall

We booked this hotel the day before we arrived as it was a last minute decision to head down early. We opted to save a little money by not staying directly on the beach since it was just for one night. We paid $278.30 (including taxes using a Hilton Honors discount) for a Saturday night in early April. We liked that it was located away from the hustle and bustle of the beach given that it was a Saturday night. However, it was relatively close to other points of interest.

This place smells nice when you first enter. It has a nice, beachy vibe as you would expect from a hotel at the beach.

Double Queen One Bedroom Suite

The nice thing about this hotel is that every room is a suite! We enjoyed the extra space found here. There was a kitchenette area and living room! The bedroom could be closed off from the front living room by closing the door. It was nice to have the extra space to spread out, even if it was only for one night. The TV did have limited channels, much to my mother’s dismay.

Unfortunately, the beds weren’t that comfortable. My mom had some back pain the next day and suspected it came from these mattresses. I felt ok, so I’m not sure if it was the mattresses or not. There’s also poor lighting in the bathroom itself, so the shower was a little dark for my liking.

Overall, the room was more than sufficient for a one night stay.

Pros

  • Quiet – This hotel was located next to a mall. So, it was much calmer than a hotel on the beach.
  • Spacious suite – We enjoyed the extra space here. It would have been nice to use the kitchenette had we stayed longer.
  • Nice accommodations – The hotel is themed subtly with beach vibes and feels relaxing.
  • Relatively affordable by beach standards – It wasn’t a cheap night, but it wasn’t overly expensive given some of the rates we saw for this night.

Cons

  • Beds not the most comfortable – As I stated above, my mom’s back hurt the next day. I don’t know if it was caused by the beds here or not, but her back stopped hurting after we stayed at the Courtyard Myrtle Beach Oceanfront.
  • Poor lighting in the bathroom – If you have vision issues, then a dark bathroom might be important to note.
  • Limited tv channels – We enjoy watching tv on vacation and had a bit of a hard time finding something to watch here.

Should you stay at the Homewood Suites Myrtle Beach Grand Mall?

I think many families would enjoy staying here. The extra space would be appreciated by most travel groups. The kitchenette would be useful for those on a budget or those who just prefer to cook their own meals. It’s also ideal for people who want to visit the area without dealing with the people/noise/traffic of being on the beach. If you have back troubles, then you might not like the mattresses here. Other than that, it’s a pretty good hotel.

Universal Stella Nova Resort Review

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Back in early May, I stayed two nights at the Universal Stella Nova Resort. Here’s a review of that experience.

Universal Stella Nova Resort

Universal Stella Nova Resort

This resort is one of the newest hotels at Universal Orlando. It opened in January 2025 and is directly across the road from the new theme park – Epic Universe! It’s considered a Prime Value Resort like Aventura resort. In fact having stayed at both now, I would say it’s a space themed version of Aventura to a large extent. The space theme ties in nicely with the Celestial Park front of Epic Universe, which this hotel faces. I really enjoyed the space theme and pictures.

Standard Room

Immediately upon entering my room, I noticed an issue. There were two bottles of shampoo in my shower and no conditioner. I texted with the hotel to ask for a replacement bottle and was told it was no problem. Then, I went to the park. I came back several hours later and noticed that there was indeed a conditioner bottle in the shower. It wasn’t until I was in the shower that I realized that the bottle was completely empty. So, I had to text again the next day for conditioner. During my second park day, someone finally got me some conditioner. I don’t know what the process is to replace shampoo/conditioner at this hotel, but I’ve never had that much trouble getting either one before.

It appears that there’s only one type of room here – the standard double queen room. Due to the extreme last minute nature of my trip (I stayed here during my Epic Universe preview), I took what they had available. Personally, I always prefer a standard view room to a pool view due to noise. However, all they had left was pool view. So, I stayed in a pool view room during this trip. While I did hear some noise from the pool during my mid-day break, I turned on my white noise machine and was able to block it out. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to block out the noise from within the hotel. I kept hearing people running around and housekeeping slamming doors.

The Lights

I had read reviews online ahead of staying here with people complaining about the lights automatically turning off and on. While I’m very happy to report that the lights didn’t randomly turn on while I stayed here, I did have the lights turn off on me once. I actually had to get out of the bed to make them turn back on. I also noticed that the air seemed to turn off if there wasn’t much movement and got a little warm. Plus, there seems to be some sort of sensor on the lights near the bathroom and the sensor light never goes out. Rather, it lights up the whole room all night.

The Food

While I didn’t eat dinner here, I did enjoy breakfast. I was pleased to discover a couple of good items for breakfast. One day, I enjoyed the Croque Madame. I was surprised that it may have had cilantro or some other green herb that wasn’t advertised. Once I removed it, it was tasty. I also got the chocolate monkey bread and saved it for the next morning. It was still good the next day! Personally, I found the breakfast options to be a step above some other value resorts.

Stella Nova Pros

  • Space themed – The space theme is really cool. I enjoyed seeing the pictures of space around the hotel.
  • Location – This was the perfect hotel for my Epic Universe only trip. The bus ride was typically really short. Although, there was one time where the light couldn’t be triggered and it took us like 20 minutes to get to the park. There’s also a short walking path to Epic Universe – which is what swayed me to stay here instead of at Terra Luna.
  • More affordable – Unfortunately, I went during a cheer competition, which raised the rates pretty significantly. Typically, it’s around $200/night, which seems reasonable to me given its location.
  • New – Having just recently opened, you know that nothing is run down yet.
  • Comfortable room – It was a solo trip, but I wouldn’t hesitate to stay here with my mom or husband. The beds were pretty comfortable too.
  • Early entry – Just like all of the other on-site hotels, guests get early entry into the parks.

Universal Stella Nova Cons

  • Noise – The walls/floors seem to be somewhat thin. I thankfully didn’t have a connecting room, but I was still able to hear my next door neighbor’s conversations as well as people moving around the resort. I also heard housekeeping pretty consistently during my mid-day break.
  • Automatic lights and air – The lights and air will automatically cut off if they don’t sense movement after so long. I’m sure it’s a cost/energy saving measure, but it’s annoying.
  • Lack of room type options – If you need a different bed or room configuration, you will have to look elsewhere.
  • Theme not for everyone – Aside from the pictures of space, the resort is a little… sterile feeling? It’s sleek but kids would probably enjoy a different resort better.

Is the Universal Stella Nova Resort worth it?

This is a great option for visiting Epic Universe. However, I think it’s a little far removed from the rest of Universal Orlando Resort. I also didn’t like how noisy it was. I might stay at Terra Luna or Helios next time for the Epic portion of my trip and then transfer to a different hotel to visit the other parks. You can view my Universal Orlando Resorts Overview if you need help picking a resort.

Have you stayed here? What did you think?

Courtyard Myrtle Beach Oceanfront Review

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Back in April, I stayed two nights at the Courtyard Myrtle Beach Oceanfront hotel with my mom. I thought I would do a review of it in case anyone else is considering staying here.

Courtyard Myrtle Beach Oceanfront

Courtyard Myrtle Beach Oceanfront

This was only the second time I’ve visited the beach. My mom grew up going to the beach in New Jersey though. So, I thought it would be a great idea to book a beachside hotel for this trip. I have to say, it made for a unique experience that I wouldn’t mind repeating.

Standard Double Queen Guest Room

We booked a standard double queen guest room this trip. We chose the Discover Myrtle Beach package that came with free parking as there isn’t free parking at this hotel. In fact, the parking situation leaves something to be desired entirely. I think that the parking structure across the street with tiny spaces and an elevator that went out during our trip is probably the biggest drawback of this hotel.

Fortunately, the room was great. It was amazing to step into our room and immediately see the ocean! I loved having a balcony to sit and look out at the ocean. I’ve never been a beach person. However, sitting on the balcony and just looking out at the ocean made me understand people who are. It was very relaxing and beautiful. I loved watching the sunrise and set from the balcony. It was also cool to see how dark it was at night.

The room itself seemed recently refurbished. The only thing not in working order was the body wash holder in the shower. As you can see in my pictures, housekeeping just set the body wash in the basket on the wall. Everything else was pretty good in this room. The beds were more comfortable than the ones we slept in at a different hotel on this trip.

Really though, you are picking this hotel for the balcony and view.

Pros

  • Oceanfront view – Every room here has a balcony with a view of the ocean! I loved this and it makes me want to visit another beach lotion just to look out at the ocean.
  • Recently refurbished – The room was in mostly good working condition. I was happy with the number of plug ins as well.
  • Comfortable beds – We arrived here after staying one night at a different hotel in Myrtle Beach where we slept in hard beds. So, it was a noticeable difference how much more comfortable these beds were.
  • Good location – Yes, it’s on the beach. However, it was also reasonably close to everything we wanted to do in Myrtle Beach, like the Medieval Times dinner show.
  • Reasonable rates in advance – We booked this hotel a few months in advance. As such, we got a reasonable rate of $209/night! Granted, this was a Sunday and Monday night. However, we were happy with the rate considering it was on the ocean.

Cons

  • Parking – There’s a $20/day parking charge without the Discover Myrtle Beach package. This charge allows you to park in the parking structure across the street. Unfortunately, the parking garage is not as new as the hotel. It’s too small for modern vehicles. It was difficult to back up in this garage and to fit into the spaces. Additionally, the elevator went out during our stay without any explanation or apology from anyone. Walking up and down several stories with your stuff is not fun.
  • Limited TV channels – My mom enjoys watching tv before bed. Unfortunately, this hotel had a limited selection of channels for her to choose from. Not a deal breaker, but just something to keep in mind.
  • Check your bill – We booked the package that included parking. However, the final bill charged us for parking. So, we had to go down to the front desk to have it fixed. The front desk staff was friendly and helpful. Just pay attention to your bill.
  • Low chairs on balcony – The chairs on the balcony were a little difficult for my mom to get in and out of. It’s not a huge thing, just something to know.

Is the Courtyard Myrtle Beach Oceanfront hotel worth it?

While the parking situation is not ideal, I enjoyed the hotel and room itself. Maybe take a car instead of an SUV if you stay here so your car can fit the spaces better.